Suspect Found Guilty in 2024 Sexual Assault Case
Published on October 06, 2025
Roberto E. Bryan Jr.
Chief of Police
Release: IMMEDIATE Contact: Sgt. A. Caldwell, Public Information Officer
Date: October 6, 2025 Phone: (910) 433-148 OCA: 2024-007555
All suspects, and persons charged with a crime, are considered innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Persons of interest are believed to have information relating to a case, and have not been charged unless stated otherwise.
Suspect Found Guilty in 2024 Sexual Assault Case
(Fayetteville, NC) – On September 26, 2025, Dennis Jerel Sullivan (Black male, 41 years of age), of Fayetteville, NC was found guilty of Statutory Rape of a Child age 13, 14, & 15 years of age (3 counts), Sex Offense with a Child age 13, 14, & 15 years of age (3 counts), Incest with a Child (3 counts), and Incest (1 count).
On March 30, 2024, a juvenile victim was being seen at the Cape Fear Valley Medical Center where they reported being sexually assaulted for several years by a suspect known to the victim. The Fayetteville Police Department’s Youth Services & Special Victim’s Unit detectives responded to the Medical Center and assumed the investigation.
The preliminary investigation revealed the juvenile victim was sexually assaulted by a suspect known to the victim, identified as Dennis Jerel Sullivan for approximately five years. The victim underwent a Sexual Assault Kit, where DNA evidence was collected and later processed at the North Carolina State Crime Laboratory.
On June 7, 2024, Detectives with the Fayetteville Police Department’s Youth Services & Special Victim’s Unit charged and arrested Dennis Jerel Sullivan (Black male, 40 years of age at the time of arrest), of Fayetteville, NC with Second-Degree Forcible Rape, Incest and Sexual Battery.
Prior to the Grand Jury, the Cumberland County District Attorney’s Office indicted Sullivan on 13 additional sex crimes against a juvenile.
On September 22, 2025, the trial for the charges against Sullivan began.
On September 26, 2025, Dennis Jerel Sullivan was found guilty and convicted of Statutory Rape of a Child age 13, 14, & 15 years of age (3 counts), Sex Offense with a Child age 13, 14, & 15 years of age (3 counts), Incest with a Child (3 counts), and Incest (1 count). Sullivan was sentenced to 150-210 years in prison by Superior Court Judge R. Hicks.
If you have been, or are, a victim of sexual assault, victim advocates from the Phoenix Center work with detectives to ensure victims receive appropriate care and access to resources. The Phoenix Center can be reached by phone at 910-485-7273.
If you know someone who is a victim of sexual assault and want to remain anonymous, anonymous tips can also be submitted to Fayetteville / Cumberland County Crime Stoppers by calling (910) 483-TIPS (8477). Crimestoppers information can also be submitted electronically, by visiting http://fay-nccrimestoppers.org and completing the anonymous online tip sheet, or by downloading the FREE “P3 Tips” app available for Apple devices in the Apple App Store and available for Android devices in Google Play.
All suspects are innocent until proven guilty
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