Case against suspect in Lexington cold cases going to grand jury

LEXINGTON, Ky. (WKYT) - The case against a man accused in connection with three sexual assault cold cases will go straight to a Fayette County grand jury.

George Aldridge was back in court Wednesday morning.

He and his attorney decided that they didn’t want to go through a preliminary hearing. These types of hearings are used to determine whether or not there is probable cause that the defendant did what they are accused of doing.

Instead, Aldridge decided to waive that right and send his case directly to a grand jury for a potential indictment.

Aldridge is facing three counts of kidnapping, two counts of rape, sexual abuse, and sodomy and one count of wanton endangerment in a series of cold cases from 2009 to 2016. Lexington police allege that, during that timespan, Aldridge sexually assaulted at least three women.

Court records say that, in two of those cases, the women told police that a man approached them while they were walking in the early morning hours.

In one case, the victim told police that she was approached by a man in a pickup truck who offered her a ride home. She said that man pulled her into the truck, drove to a field and assaulted her.

She was later found running naked down Tates Creek Road.

In a different case, a woman told police that she had been at a party near State Street earlier in the night, but woke up naked in a field in Jessamine County.

Lexington police say new technology allowed them to use DNA evidence to connect Aldridge to each of these victims.

Aldridge was arrested in early February and is being held on a $150,000 bond.

In court Wednesday morning, the defense asked the judge to consider lowering Aldridge’s bond, but the prosecution objected and said that they believe his bond should be higher.

The prosecution also mentioned that Aldridge has a case in Jessamine County for these same charges where bond was not allowed.

The judge decided to leave the bond at $150,000.

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