Boston man charged with rape in 2014 cold case

A Dorchester man has been arrested in connection to a rape that took place nine years ago, according to Boston police.

Ali Tariq Abdallah-Muhammad, 30, was arrested Tuesday around 5 p.m. on an outstanding warrant issued out of Dorchester District Court from a sexual assault in 2014, police said in a release.

Authorities identified the subject through the Sexual Assault Kit Initiative — a program that launched in December 2021 when the Boston Police Department secured a three-year, $2.5 million grant to follow up on investigations of up to 100 unsolved sexual assault cases and further improve the city’s response to violent crime.

Police noted that the 2014 investigation remains active and ongoing.

Anyone interested in assisting the investigation can feel free to submit a tip anonymously by calling the CrimeStoppers Tip Line at 1-800-494-TIPS or by texting the word ‘TIP’ to CRIME (27463).

Boston police also encourage anyone who has been a victim of sexual assault, regardless of whether they have chosen to report it to police, to call the Boston Area Rape Crisis Center at 1-800-841-8371 for confidential advice from a non-law-enforcement agency. BARCC provides free and confidential counseling, case management, and legal and medical advocacy services to survivors in the greater Boston area, police noted.

In September, Boston police arrested Ivan Y. Cheung, 42, of Quincy, on outstanding warrants for aggravated rape (four counts), aggravated rape of a child (four counts), and aggravated statutory rape (two counts) stemming from four incidents dating back to 2003, 2005, and 2006. Police also identified Cheung via the Sexual Assault Kit Initiative.