Warren Luther Alexander, 73, was charged with the murders of Kimberly Fritz, Velvet Sanchez, and Lorraine Rodriguez, who were all strangled in Ventura County in 1977. Alexander's DNA linked him to the crimes after being uploaded to the national database CODIS. He is also suspected in other unsolved murders while working as a truck driver from the 1970s to the 1990s.
Ventura County, CA – A suspected serial killer has been charged with the murders of three women in Southern California nearly five decades ago. Warren Luther Alexander, 73, was extradited from North Carolina, where he was in custody and charged with a murder there in 1992.
Suspected Serial Killer Charged with 1977 Murders of Three Women in California
Kimberly Fritz, 18, Velvet Sanchez, 31, and Lorraine Rodriguez, 21, were all strangled to death in 1977. Investigators ran out of leads at the time, but Alexander's DNA matched the crime scenes after being uploaded to the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS) last year.
Ventura County District Attorney Erik Nasarenko said at a press conference, "While believing these three crimes were indeed connected, leads ran cold, and detectives were unable to identify who was responsible for these horrific murders."
Suspected Serial Killer Charged with 1977 Murders of Three Women in California
Alexander, a long-haul truck driver at the time of the California murders, is suspected of other unsolved murders in California and other states. Nasarenko said, "We believe there may be additional victims both locally and in other states. This is an ongoing investigation, and we will continue to pursue all leads that become available. This is not in any way closed."
The victims were all sex workers and frequented a shopping center and motels in the Los Angeles area that were known for prostitution at the time. Alexander is being held without bail.
Suspected Serial Killer Charged with 1977 Murders of Three Women in California
Nasarenko commended the investigators for their persistence, saying, "These murders may have occurred 47 years ago, but the investigators with the Ventura County DA's office, the investigators with the Ventura County Sheriff's Department Cold Case Unit, officers, and detectives with Port Hueneme and Oxnard never gave up. They never gave up seeking justice for these three victims and loved ones and their families."
"Just because the case has gone cold does not mean it should ever be forgotten."
Suspected Serial Killer Charged with 1977 Murders of Three Women in California
Alexander grew up in Oxnard, California, where Sanchez was killed in September 1977, and he moved back to the area in the 1970s. Nasarenko said, "For Warren Luther Alexander, once a fugitive from justice, the day of reckoning in Ventura County has finally arrived."
The case has new life after the arrest of Alexander, and investigators hope to find justice for more victims who may have fallen prey to this suspected serial killer.
