UPDATED: More Details on Smyrna Man Convicted for 2020 Rape on Florence Road in Murfreesboro

(MURFREESBORO, TENN.) - UPDATED - We have more details on the conviction of a 41-year-old Smyrna, TN man who was found guilty on multiple rape charges late last month.

Ilaz Neziri was arrested under a sealed indictment stemming from a case that was investigated by the Murfreesboro Police Special Victims Unit in 2020. According to the original arrest report filed by former MPD Detective Tommy Roberts, who now works for the MTSU Police Department, Neziri was at a house party on Florence Road where he was accused of raping a woman.

The accusations were reported in May of 2020, when Murfreesboro Police were called to a residence at 3AM where a party was reportedly taking place. Two females at the home told police they believed their 22-year-old friend was raped by Neziri during the party. Officers talked to the victim who appeared to be heavily intoxicated. A police report shows that prior to police arriving, the victim told emergency dispatchers that she had been raped.

After gathering details, law enforcement turned to the suspect who denied having any sexual contact with the 22-year-old woman. However, another subject inside the house said that the victim and Neziri went into a bedroom at the residence for 5 to 10-minutes and later returned to the party. The MPD presented their findings to a Rutherford County Grand Jury, eventually leading to the indictment of Neziri in 2020.

It wasn't until late October of this year (2022), that Neziri appeared in Circuit Court for a four-day trial. Neziri apparently maintained his innocence throughout the trial. At trial, the jury got a first-hand look at evidence and heard testimonies over that time period and learned details of the case from a number of people who were subpoenaed. The list of those subpoenaed for the case included doctors, police officers and more.

Ultimately, the jurors found Neziri guilty. In Tennessee, that means a jury of 12 people had to come to a unanimous decision of guilty, in order for that plea to be filed in the local courts. The guilty plea was filed before Judge Howard Wilson. According to the courts, Neziri was found guilty of Aggravated Rape, and two counts of Rape, all of which are felony convictions. Detective Roberts was the investigating and arresting officer in the case.

Ilaz Neziri is now awaiting his sentencing hearing, which will be on Friday the 13th - - January 13, 2023. As of Thursday morning, the local man was being held at the Rutherford County Adult Detention Center where he has been in custody since his guilty plea was filed on October 21, 2022.

At sentencing, the amount of time the convicted man will be imprisoned and/or on probation depends on ‘If’ Neziri is sentenced consecutively or concurrently. If he’s sentenced concurrently, the defendant would be required to serve his sentence at the same time or “concurrently.” That means he could be sentenced to prison for a length of 8 to 60-years. If he is sentenced consecutively, the court will impose two or more terms that would be served one after another. In other words, it would mean that Neziri could be imprisoned for 31 to 120-years in prison. These are often referred to as ‘stacked sentences.’

Aggravated Rape: T.C.A. 39-13-502 – Class A Felony (15 to 60-year sentence)
Rape: T.C.A. 39-13-503 – Class B Felony (8 to 30-year sentence)
Rape: T.C.A. 39-13-503 – Class B Felony (8 to 30-year sentence)

SOURCE: Rutherford Co. Courts and MPD Incident #20-0007431

DISCLAIMER: All suspects are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. The arrest records or information about an arrest that are published or reported on NewsRadio WGNS and www.WGNSradio.com are not an indication of guilt or evidence that an actual crime has been committed.

Additional WGNS News Headlines: