Arrest made in 40-year-old cold case of woman killed in Roseville, Placer County DA says

Rosalio Ahumada
·2 min read

Forensic evidence led Placer County investigators to identify a man living in Southern California who is accused of killing a 69-year-old woman 40 years ago in Roseville.

Richard Raymond Moore, 59, was arrested early Thursday in Los Angeles on suspicion of homicide in the 1984 death of Madeline Garcia, the Placer County District Attorney’s Office announced in a news release.

Evidence collected at the crime scene suggested Garcia was attacked and dragged into an alley behind the 300 Block of Atlantic Street in Roseville, where she was murdered, according to the District Attorney’s Office.

Prosecutors said Roseville Police Department detectives pursued all known leads, but the murder investigation turned into a cold case and went without an arrest for four decades. Many of the officers and detectives who initially investigated the murder case have since retired.

The District Attorney’s Office’s Investigations Unit worked on the case, along with the Police Department, for several years to identify a suspect. They combed through available evidence and submitted samples to forensic laboratories for evidentiary testing.

The prosecutors said the investigators, using advancements in forensic techniques, identified Moore as the suspect in Garcia’s death. The District Attorney’s Office did not indicate what type of evidence was analyzed and tested that led to them linking the suspect to the crime nor the manner of Garcia’s death.

Placer Superior Court records show prosecutors on Tuesday filed a criminal complaint against Moore with a charge of murder for the Sept. 26, 1984, death. The murder charge has an enhancement that alleges Moore committed the crime during a kidnapping. Also on Tuesday, the court issued a no-bail arrest warrant for Moore.

With help from the Los Angeles Police Department, authorities took Moore into custody in Los Angeles where he lives, according to the District Attorney’s Office. Authorities will transfer Moore to Placer County, where he will face a homicide charge in Garcia’s death.

On Thursday afternoon, Moore remained in custody at the Los Angeles County Jail. Moore was arrested about 5:30 a.m. Thursday and booked several hours later, jail records show.