RICHARD FINNEY 1986 MURDER: COPS APPEAL FOR HELP

FINNEY

HIS stabbing was so vicious that the knife used had been bent to a 90-degree-angle, but despite cops spending thousands of hours trying to solve the murder, his killer remains at large.
So after trying everything including extensive DNA testing, cops are appealing for the public's help to bring Richard Finney's killer to justice.
The 75-year-old traveling salesman was found in Escondido, CO, apartment on November 13, 1986, and the killer, who entered through an unlocked front door, stole cash, a Masonic ring and toiletries.  
Chuck Gaylor, a cold case homicide investigator and retired Escondido detective sergeant said they'd hoped the murderer's bloody palm print on a wall would lead them to him.
But to no avail.
He said: “We are hoping someone will come forward with a name, a suspect. In four years of reworking this case, we’ve spent hundreds if not thousands of hours trying to figure out who murdered Richard Finney.
“It’s a detective’s dream with the palm print evidence with a DNA profile of the victim and the suspect. But it’s a nightmare because we don’t have a name. That’s why we need the public’s help.”
Finney’s daughter, Bea Turi, said she is grateful for the “diligent” efforts by police.
The 72 told the San Diego Union Tribune that her brother died without knowing what happened to their father, “and that bothered him to the end, and I hope it doesn’t happen to me, too.”
Turi said her father’s violent death is especially disturbing for her because he was charming and outgoing with strangers.
Through Crime Stoppers, police are offering a $1,000 reward for information leading to a suspect. Gaylor said he hopes that people come forward and give their name and contact information, but tipsters may remain anonymous. To report information on this case, call Gaylor at (760) 839-4929 or the anonymous tip line at (760) 743-8477, or go to police.escondido.org.

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EPIFANEO JAIMES ARROYO BUSTED FOR 1980 STAB

'KILLER'

A FUGITIVE murder suspect who allegedly stabbed a man to death after a vicious 1980 nightclub brawl, before going on the run, has been busted for murder.
Miguel Frias was partying with pals in north Houston, when a fight broke out between his pals and another group in a nightclub.
As it spilled out into the car park Epifaneo Jaimes Arroyo and his brother followed him down the road where they were observed beating and stabbing him, according to the DA's office.
But he vanished before cops could catch up with him, until DA investigator Chuck Lowery began looking at the acse again earlier this year.     

He eventually found the accused killer in Georgia and now they are seeking to extradite him back to Texas to face justice.
Harris County DA Pat Lykos told the Houston Chronicle: "Dangerous felons have evaded authorities for years, but they don't know about our secret weapon - investigator Chuck Lowery.
"He has been tracking down people who have avoided capture for decades and returning them to face justice. If you are a fugitive from Harris County, you might as well surrender now."

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JILTED RICARDO CRUZ STABBED EX'S MOM: COPS

CRUZ

A JILTED lover will now face a murder charge for the brutal November 2003 stabbing of his girlfriend's mom.
Ricardo Cruz, now 34, had known Honey Vitagliano, 31, since high school and the two began to date several years later.
But although he showered her with expensive gifts including $900 pair of diamond earrings, and took her on several outings to upscale restaurants and a Mendocino Coast resort, she made it clear she was not her boyfriend. 
She told a Santa Rosa CA, court: "He spent a ridiculous amount of money for someone who wasn't a boyfriend, but I went along. It was a good time."
She added that Cruz made a habit of calling her mom Kathryn, 55, for relationship advice and would go round while she was at work.
Then a few weeks before her mom was viciously stabbed to death, she broke things off with Cruz and he continually called her.  
But after the murder he stopped calling although it didn't immediately occur to her that he may be a suspect.
Cops initially focused on her ex, but after they obtained a voluntary DNA sample from Cruz last year, they found it was a perfect match for DNA sample taken from a scraping of one of Vitagliano's fingernails after her death. 
Cruz who is denying murder, remains in Solano County Jail custody with bail set at $1 million.

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SAMUEL EDWARD BAKER BUSTED FOR 1989 MURDER

BUSTED

IT WAS a vicious attack on a defenseless 74-year-old woman, who's body was found repeatedly stabbed on her kitchen floor.  
But now cops have arrested Samuel Edward Baker, 44, for the brutal slaying of Shellie Latham who's murder has been cold for more than two decades.
Cops say he was one of the original suspects for the attack but back then investigators didn't have enough evidence to charge him with the crime and the case went cold. 
Then in 2009, Detective Patrick Mullins re-opened the case and after reviewing some scientific evidence, he was confident that Baker committed the heinous crime.
But tracking down their suspect proved difficult after 22-years and it took cops a long time to locate their prime suspect.   
Sgt. Larry Berg told KXXV: "With the age factor, it's a little more difficult. But with the diligence, persistence and cooperation of multiple agencies, he was taken into custody without incident down in Buda, Texas."
"We take great pleasure in that we're able to tie up the loose ends and hopefully see justice done."
He added that authorities have yet to release any names, although police did say they've contacted Latham's family members, finally giving them closure.

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SCHOOLGIRL TINA FAELZ 1984 SLAY SOLVED: COPS

THE BRUTAL 1984 slaying of schoolgirl Tina Faelz has finally been solved after 27 years, cops say.
More than a quarter-of-a-century ago the 14-year-old's body was found viciously stabbed over 15 times near a dark culvert, which she had used as a shortcut home from school in Santa Cruz, CA. Yet despite huge community outcry and massive investigation by police, no one was ever charged with her murder. But now police believe that thanks to new DNA technology they have caught their killer - a fellow pupil at the time, Steven John Carlson, now 43. Carlson, who would have been 16 at the time of the murder, was
a schoolmate of Faelz at  Foothill High School and he was questioned at the time but later released.
Now living as a transient, with no fixed address, his DNA was in the system after a series of minor crimes, which matches that found at the scene of the crime.     
Pleasanton police Capt. Craig Eicher was a senior at Foothill High when Tina Faelz's body was found told the Mercury News that there was a lot of fear in the community at the time.
He said: "I think there are a lot of folks who will have a big sigh of relief now that this suspect will be brought to justice."
Tina's mother, Shirley Orosco, who still lives in Pleasanton, declined to comment Monday, but in a 2005 interview with the paper she revealed that about a month before her death, Tina was having problems with some kids at school and had stopped riding the bus home. 
She said: "I would like to see whoever did this pay for it. I lost a daughter."
It appears she will get her wish. 

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