Suspect Linked to Cold Cases Through DNA Match
A 73-year-old man has been charged with the strangulation deaths of three Southern California women in 1977, after cold case detectives used DNA evidence to solve the decades-old murders. Authorities announced the charges on Thursday, adding that they believe the suspect may be linked to additional victims.
First Court Appearance Postponed
Warren Luther Alexander, a resident of Diamondhead, Mississippi, made his first court appearance on Thursday. However, his arraignment on three counts of first-degree murder was postponed to August 21, according to the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office. Alexander remains in jail without bail.
Victims and the Crime Pattern
The three California victims, all sex workers, were killed by “ligature strangulations” in 1977, according to District Attorney Erik Nasarenko. The victims were found in different locations within Ventura County, northwest of Los Angeles, an area known for sex trafficking.
The victims were identified as 18-year-old Kimberly Fritz, who was found dead on May 29, 1977, in Port Hueneme; 31-year-old Velvet Sanchez, found dead on September 8, 1977, in Oxnard; and 21-year-old Lorraine Rodriguez, whose body was discovered on December 27, 1977, in an unincorporated area of the county.
“While believing these three crimes were indeed connected, leads ran cold and detectives were unable to identify who was responsible for these horrific murders,” Nasarenko said at a news conference.
Breakthrough in the Case
The breakthrough in the case came last year when DNA evidence from the California murders was uploaded into a national database, resulting in a match to Alexander. Investigative genealogy had previously identified him as a suspect in the North Carolina case of Nona Cobb, leading to his arrest in March 2022.
Despite an earlier 2006 query of the database, no match had been found at that time. Alexander’s connection to the California murders was only discovered after the DNA match.
Alexander’s Background and Potential Additional Victims
Alexander lived in Oxnard, California, during the late 1950s and 1960s, attending local schools before returning to the area in the 1970s, according to Nasarenko. From the 1970s into the early 1990s, Alexander worked as a long-haul, cross-country truck driver, a profession that has led investigators to believe there may be additional victims both in California and other states.
“We believe there may be additional victims both locally and in other states,” Nasarenko said. “This is an ongoing investigation, and we will continue to pursue all leads that become available. This is not in any way closed.”
