Global Courant
California authorities have captured a Florida fugitive who evaded arrest for nearly 40 years in connection with the 1984 murder of a 33-year-old woman.
Authorities in San Diego, California arrested Donald Michael Santini on Wednesday, June 7, for the 1984 murder of Cynthia Ruth, a 33-year-old woman whose body was found in a drainage ditch after being strangled in Hillsborough County, Florida.
The warrant said a medical examiner determined she had been strangled and found Santini’s fingerprints on her body, the Tampa Bay Times reported.
Cynthia Ruth Wood and Donald Michael Santini (Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office)
According to police, Wood was the last person to leave the 33-year-old’s home in 1984. On June 9, 1984, police discovered Ruth’s body.
“The suspect has not been seen since this incident and may be in the state of Texas with an unknown identity,” the sheriff’s office notes in an “Unsolved Homicides” page, noting that Santini was a suspect in the 39 year old cold case.
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Before his arrest, Santini lived in the Golden State as a fugitive under an assumed name.
An arrest warrant obtained by local outlet WFLA says Santini used the aliases of Charles Michael Stevens, Donald Chapman and John Trimble during his 39 years in hiding.
Cynthia Ruth Wood, left, and Donald Michael Santini, right. (Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office)
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According to the warrant obtained by Tampa-based WFTS, Santini’s fingerprints were found on Wood’s body.
In a statement, the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office said “today’s technology” helped detectives get the cold case going again.
Global Courant
“This arrest allows us to re-examine evidence gathered in 1984 using today’s technology as the case is now considered open again.”
Santini appeared in San Diego County Court on Friday, June 9 and is awaiting extradition to Florida.
Sarah Rumpf-Whitten is a writer on Fox News Digital’s breaking news team. You can reach her on Twitter at @s_rumpfwhiteten.
