Falconio DNA result 'within days'

Police in Australia said today they could find out within days whether a DNA sample from a man accused of two rapes matches that of the suspected killer of missing Briton Peter Falconio.

The 44-year-old suspect is due to appear in court in Adelaide tomorrow to face rape and kidnap charges unrelated to the Falconio case.

But detectives on the Falconio investigation have described him as a "person of interest to us".

Court officials are expected to sanction the handing over of a sample of his DNA by police in South Australia to detectives in the Northern Territory, where Mr Falconio vanished.

Northern Territory Acting Deputy Commissioner John Daulby said a blood sample taken from the suspect would not be analysed until the court had given its approval.

"Dependant upon the court's findings we could receive the DNA profile within 48 hours of the court's decision," he said.

"Our forensic experts will then determine if the DNA profile provided is relevant to the investigation into the disappearance of Peter Falconio and attempted abduction of his girlfriend Joanne Lees."

A Ministerial agreement had already been signed allowing the DNA profile to be handed over from South Australia to the Northern Territory, he added.

The rape suspect's DNA will be compred with a sample taken from a blood stain found on the clothing of Miss Lees.

He was arrested over the rape allegations in Port Augusta, 800 miles from where Mr Falconio disappeared in July last year.

Mr Falconio, 28, from near Huddersfield, is believed to have been shot by a gunman who then attempted to abduct Miss Lees, also from near Huddersfield, on the Stuart Highway north of Alice Springs.

The body of Mr Falconio has never been found and Northern Territory Police have made no arrests.

The disappearance sparked one of Australia's biggest manhunts.