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Indiana Man Arrested in 1975 San Diego Killing After Genetic Genealogy Break

Forensic genetic genealogy led detectives to a 71-year-old Indiana resident in a case long considered cold.

Overview

  • Johnnie Ray Salisbury, 71, was taken into custody on January 21 in North Webster, Indiana, as a suspect in the 1975 killing of Edmund LaFave in San Diego.
  • Salisbury was booked into the Kosciusko County Jail in Warsaw on a homicide warrant and is awaiting an extradition hearing to California.
  • San Diego police say forensic investigative genetic genealogy and other forensic evidence were used to identify the suspect.
  • The SDPD Cold Case Unit worked with the San Diego County District Attorney's Office and the FBI, with assistance from Indiana State Police, the Syracuse Police Department, and Kosciusko County prosecutors.
  • LaFave, 34, was found stabbed multiple times and severely beaten at his Suncrest Drive home on February 25, 1975, and authorities have not disclosed a motive.