Jury finds man guilty of 2016 crimes involving two UNCW students

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — There is a guilty verdict in New Hanover County in the trial of a man charged with rape and kidnapping following a 2016 incident at the apartment of two UNCW students.

A jury has convicted Titus Lee of rape, kidnapping, and robbery for crimes that happened in November of 2016.

Lee broke into an apartment in Litchfield Way armed with a gun and forced two college students to withdraw money from an ATM before sexually assaulting the female victim.

He was arrested in Philadelphia the following month.

Attorneys presented closing arguments on Tuesday, and the jury deliberated for a short time Wednesday morning before returning the guilty verdict.

Lee will spend the rest of his life behind bars. Judge Frank Jones sentenced Lee to between 126 and 182 years in prison.

District Attorney Ben David released a statement following the trial and sentencing.

“We thank the jury for their verdict. They had to pour over three and a half weeks of testimony and 465 exhibits before rendering guilty verdicts for every crime charged. Rape is a crime of violence and the Honorable Frank Jones gave the only appropriate sentence. Titus Lee will spend the rest of his life in prison. For the career prosecutors and detectives who handled this case, few of us can remember a worse crime of violence where the victims survived to testify. This was a hate-filled hours long crime spree that was gratuitous in its evil.

I want to commend the efforts of the Wilmington Police Department on this investigation and the apprehension of the defendant. The collaborative work of the Carolina Beach Police Department and the North Carolina State Crime Lab was also integral to securing today’s verdict.

All of us are inspired by the bravery of the victims and their families who have lived among us at this courthouse for the last month. Their courage to testify ensures that no other victims will suffer in the future.”