Molestation Charges Dropped After Negative DNA Tests : Investigation: Samples of semen taken from a towel where girl was accosted do not match genetic fingerprints of jailed man, 46.

The district attorney’s office dismissed charges Thursday against an Orange man accused of sexually molesting a 9-year-old girl, saying tests showed that his DNA did not match samples found at the scene.

Crime lab experts met with prosecutors late Wednesday with results of a series of tests showing that the genetic makeup of Marco Antonio Reyes, 46, did not match that of semen stains on a towel at the crime scene, said Charles J. Middleton, supervisor of the district attorney’s sexual assault and child abuse unit.

Investigators waited to dismiss charges against Reyes until Thursday, when the victim confirmed that the towel was the same one taken from Villa Park High School, where the alleged assault occurred on March 20.

Reyes was arrested the next day at his home and booked into Orange County Jail in Santa Ana. He was later charged with one felony count of kidnaping and five felony counts of forcible child molestation, Middleton said. Reyes, who was held in jail in lieu of $100,000 bail, was to be released late Thursday, said his defense attorney, Dennis O’Connell.

Sheriff’s investigators will continue their investigation into the attack, Middleton said.

In DNA fingerprinting it is possible to match an individual with biological evidence, such as skin, blood, hair or semen gathered at a crime scene. The technique is based on the fact that the genetic pattern carried in a molecule of deoxyribonucleic acid, or DNA, in every cell, is unique for every person, except identical twins.

DNA has been used for identification purposes in U.S. court cases since the 1980s, but its validity has been questioned and challenged by defense lawyers. A few courts have barred DNA evidence, Middleton said.

Middleton said that until the DNA tests were finished, prosecutors had strong evidence against Reyes. The alleged victim, who was at the high school that Saturday for a swim meet, picked Reyes as the suspect from photos taken by sheriff’s investigators. Reyes apparently was the only person that day with keys to the area where the Huntington Beach girl was attacked, Middleton said. Reyes was also identified by people in the area, Middleton said.

O’Connell, however, has said that he interviewed four people who said that Reyes was in his neighborhood at the time of the assault.

In a brief Municipal Court appearance on April 5, Reyes pleaded not guilty to the charges and was scheduled to return to court May 3 for a preliminary hearing.

Reyes’ relatives late Thursday were “happy he’s out but are voicing a lot of frustration that they were telling law enforcement that he was innocent and no one was listening,” O’Connell said.

Middleton said: “It’s unfortunate that this man spent time in jail, but I think this is a salute to the technology” of DNA testing.

Crime lab experts first performed a series of blood typing tests before the DNA testing, Middleton said. But they found that Reyes’ blood type did not match the type determined from the semen stains on the towel.

Investigators then switched to DNA typing and saw that during three separate tests the genetic coding contained in Reyes’ blood was different from that on the towel.