-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Jennifer Schuett 's search for the man who snatched her from her bed when she was 8 , sexually assaulted her and left her for dead on top of an ant hill ended Tuesday with the arrest of a suspect . Jennifer Schuett , 27 , was abducted and left for dead at age 8 . A suspect was arrested Tuesday . Now begins another chapter in Schuett 's 19-year quest for justice . Standing in front of the television cameras , Jennifer Schuett blinked back tears . `` This is a huge day for me , '' she later told CNN over the phone . `` And I want to see this through the end . The rest will come out during the trial . '' Schuett , 27 , joined a multi-agency team of investigators in her hometown of Dickinson , Texas , as they announced the arrest earlier in the day of Dennis Earl Bradford , a 40-year-old welder , in Little Rock , Arkansas . The arrest came after new DNA testing and other evidence made it possible to identify Bradford as the suspect . Schuett 's boyfriend and two police investigators who kept the case alive stood beside her . Fighting tears , she thanked them for their support . `` Throughout this journey , I 've had two main goals , '' she said . `` And they were to find the man who kidnapped , sexually assaulted and attempted to murder me 19 years ago so that he could not hurt anyone else . And to use my voice in telling my story to as many people as I possibly could over the years in hopes that I may encourage other victims of violent crimes to stand up and speak out against criminals . '' Watch Schuett explain why she 's speaking out '' She continued , `` Today , I can say very proudly that I have accomplished both of these goals . '' Schuett spoke with CNN two weeks ago about her 1990 ordeal . CNN normally does not identify victims of sexual assaults . But Schuett decided to go public with her story and her name to increase the chances of finding and prosecuting her attacker . Schuett was in her bed when a man crept in through a window on August 10 , 1990 . She remembers waking up in a stranger 's arms as he carried her across a dark parking lot . She said he told her he was an undercover cop and knew her family . He drove her through the streets of Dickinson , pulling into an overgrown field where , she said , he sexually assaulted her . She passed out . When she regained consciousness , she was lying on top of an ant hill with her throat slashed and her voice box torn . She spent about 14 hours in the field before she was found and rushed to the hospital in critical condition . `` Three days after the attack , I started giving a description . The doctors told me I would never be able to talk again , but I proved them all wrong , '' Schuett said . She believes she got her voice back so she could tell her story . At the news conference , a driver 's license photo of the suspect was shown next to the 1990 sketch based on her description . There was a clear resemblance . Watch the sketch artist 's memories of Schuett '' Shauna Dunlap , a spokeswoman for the FBI 's Houston office , said Bradford lived in North Little Rock , with his wife and two children -- a boy , 12 , and a girl , 15 . He also has three adult stepchildren . Bradford worked as a welder for United Fence in North Little Rock . A company representative said Bradford had been working there for 10 years and was a `` good guy '' who had mended `` his old ways '' and `` changed his life . '' He would n't go into specifics about what those `` old ways '' were . Court documents give some indication . In 1996 , Bradford was accused of kidnapping , sexually assaulting and cutting the throat of a female victim . He was initially charged with attempt to commit first-degree murder , but prosecutors amended the charges to rape and kidnapping . A Garland County Circuit Court jury found him guilty of kidnapping but was not able reach a verdict on the rape charges . Arkansas corrections officials said he entered prison in March 1997 , facing a 12-year-sentence , and was paroled in February 2000 . Investigators also found Bradford lived slightly more than two miles from Schuett 's residence and just a mile and a half from where she was found , according to an affidavit released Tuesday . `` It 's truly a rare occasion when we have the opportunity to prosecute a case like this , '' said Galveston County District Attorney Kurt Sistrunk . His office is charging Bradford with attempted capital murder . `` Jennifer has been a tremendous asset to this investigation from the beginning , an inspiration to all of us , and we are going to be very proud to have Jennifer by our side as we continue with our efforts to seek justice for you in the courtroom , '' said Sistrunk . The break in the case came after FBI agent Richard Rennison and Dickinson police Detective Tim Cromie persuaded the FBI 's Child Abduction Rapid Deployment -LRB- CARD -RRB- team to get involved . `` The main reason the CARD team picked this case was because she was alive , '' Rennison said . `` In cases of child abduction , it is rare that the child is recovered alive . Frequently , you recover a body . And most times , you never find them . '' In March 2008 , the investigators found evidence collected 19 years ago -- the underwear and pajamas Schuett was wearing , as well as a man 's underwear and T-shirt , which were found in the field where Schuett was left for dead . The clothes had been tested in 1990 , but the sample was n't large enough for conclusive results . But newer techniques allow DNA to be isolated from a single human cell . The FBI lab recently informed Rennison that the DNA in the man 's underwear matched Bradford 's DNA profile . He was entered into the database after the 1997 kidnapping conviction in Arkansas . Bradford was arrested on Tuesday morning on his way to work . He awaits extradition to Texas . CNN 's Mallory Simon contributed to this story