"As you can imagine, this was difficult news to receive," Lewis said. Nothing he said made the hair on the back of my neck stand up. Linda Ann O'Keefe's killing in 1973 in Newport Beach, California went unsolved for more than four decades. Linda O'Keefe. Those alleged crimes happened between 1995 and 2004 in Riverside County east of Los Angeles. Neal was arrested last year and charged with the sex assault and murder of 11-year-old Linda Ann OKeefe, who was abducted while walking home from school in the summer of 1973. James was in and out of prison throughout his younger life, with arrest records in California, Florida, and Colorado between 1959 and 1974. Through the tireless efforts of generations of our investigators, we hope we have been able to bring a measure of closure to Lindas family, friends, and loved ones.. Neal said that despite his recidivism, he was confident he could become successful. The key moment arrived with the February 19, 2019 arrest of Neal in Colorado Springs, Colorado. "After all this time, finding out there is a face and a namejust brings additional closure.". James Alan Neal was arrested February 19, 2019, in connection to her death, prosecutors announced at a press conference.. So, if youre curious to know more about James and what happened to him after his arrest, weve got you covered. A day later, her body was found in a ditch, and she had been sexually assaulted. It was a difficult conversation . A Santa Ana police officer who arrested Neal for the burglary went further, describing him as being in constant emotional conflict and in need of long-term psychiatric care. Anyone with additional information about the OKeefe case or who believes they may be a victim of Neal is asked to call the NBPD Cold Case Tip Line at 949-644-3669.. "They haven't forgotten about her and we haven't, either.". Police and prosecutors on Wednesday said they put Neal under surveillance and eventually got his DNA though they did not detail exactly how. 2023 Cinemaholic Inc. All rights reserved. Cookies collect information about your preferences and your device and are used to make the site work as you expect it to, to understand how you interact with the site, and to show advertisements that are targeted to your interests. The sketches depict what the suspect may have looked like at 25 years old as well as an age-progressed version. PRESS RELEASE: Linda OKeefe Homicide https://t.co/sSg9rjwXgH, Starting tomorrow at 7:45 am, #LindasStory will be told here, through our Twitter account. The next day she was found strangled, her. Neal was taken to a hospital on May 25 for an illness. He was paroled in July 1961 but returned to the Youth Authority in October 1962. A man has been arrested through DNA and genetic genealogy in the decades-old cold case killing of 11-year-old Linda Ann OKeefe, who was strangled to death in Southern California in 1973, authorities said. On the day Linda disappeared, she was last seen talking to a stranger in a van, Lewis said. When you visit this site, it may store or retrieve information on your browser, mostly in the form of cookies. Photo Source. Then her mother made that call that every parent dreads and told police her daughter was missing, he said. Neal worked in construction at the time of the crime, officials said.
O'Keefe was last seen alive on July 6, 1973, as she walked home from summer school, the Newport Beach Police Department said. O'Keefe, who was seven years younger than Borgeson, was "an old soul" with a "go with the flow" personality, Borgeson said. Neal currently lives in Colorado, but investigators were able to confirm that he lived in California in the 1970s, when Linda was murdered, Spitzer said. Neal was arrested for burglaries in August and October 1959 and was committed to the California Youth Authority in December 1960. Linda never made it home that afternoon, he said. It was July 6, 1973, a Friday. Later he moved to Colorado, where he was living when he was arrested, he said. It wasnt long before Neal was in trouble again. Neal was living in Monument at the time of his arrest and was extradited to Orange County, California, where he has remained since. As a result of that genealogical submission, they got an indication that James Alan Neal may be the suspect.
That night, a woman who lives in the bluffs above Back Bay heard a voice scream, "Stop, youre hurting me," police said. OKeefe, 11, was abducted on July 6, 1973, as she walked home from summer school, the Newport Beach, California, Police Department said. Their mother "carried that guilt the rest of her life," Borgeson said. He was on parole from Colorado's prison system when Linda Ann O'Keefe was killed. Neals education was terminated early and his work history was spotty, McMillan reported. Trouble followed James everywhere, and he was sentenced to 3-10 years for fraud in Colorado. Turn on desktop notifications for breaking stories about interest? Generations of investigators worked on her case, said Lewis.
Neal appears gaunt and stoic in a black-and white prison photo. pic.twitter.com/47pA4FhBmG, Newport Beach Police (@NewportBeachPD) July 5, 2018, Im wearing a dress today Its white, with light blue flowers on it, and dark blue trim. James Alan Neal fell ill and died while awaiting trial for the . James Alan Neal, 72, was picked up in Colorado on Tuesday and charged with the murder of 11-year-old Linda O'Keefe in 1973. . Based on a witness statement, it was believed a man in a van kidnapped Linda. James spent time in juvenile prison and later dropped out of school in 1963. Neal then moved back to California, where he lived until 2014 at six addresses in Riverside, Hemet and Winchester, public records show. Composite sketch of the driver.
Linda O'Keefe murder: James Neal DNA match leads to arrest for 1973 The brown-haired, blue-eyed 11-year-old got a ride to summer school - about half a mile away - but had to walk home in the afternoon. He was arrested in Colorado Springs on Feb. 19. James Alan Neal, 72, of Monument, Colorado, who was arrested for allegedly murdering Linda OKeefe in Newport Beach, California, in 1973. James Alan Neal, 73, was an inmate at the maximum-security Theo Lacy jail in Orange for the 1973 sexual assault and strangling death of Linda O'Keefe, 11. However, through the genealogical data of his family members, who voluntarily submitted their DNA to genealogy databases, investigators were able to corroborate the DNA from O'Keefe's body and the DNA obtained from the suspect, according to Spitzer. The genealogical hit came in January, officials said. O'Keefe's parents have since died, Spitzer said, but her sisters have been notified about the arrest. Neal was taken to a hospital on May 25 for an illness. Detectives from Newport Beach arrested Neal at 6:29 a.m. in Colorado Springs, Colorado, Newport Beach Police Chief Jon Lewis said at the press conference. "Generations of investigators worked on her case. James Neal, 72, was arrested in Colorado Springs on Tuesday and charged with murder with special circumstances, Spitzer said. Anyone who may have any information on this unsolved crime is asked to call the Newport Beach Police Cold Case Tip Line at 949-644-3669. SANTA ANA, CA Officials in California say James Alan Neal, who was arrested last year in Monument for the rape and murder of 11-year-old Linda O'Keefe, has died. In August 1969, he was convicted of fraud in Denver and sentenced to three to 10 year at Colorados Territorial Correctional Facility. Having spent two years living in England including Liverpool, he is an avid Beatles fan and memorabilia collector. James Neal, 72, was arrested in Colorado Springs, Colo., and charged with murder with special circumstances in the death of Linda O'Keefe, who was found strangled in 1973, a case that has long shaken the seaside community of Newport Beach, Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer said.
Colorado Man Pleads Not Guilty In California Cold Case Death Police and prosecutors in Southern California thanked the FBI, the Colorado Springs Police Department and the El Paso County Sheriffs Department in Colorado for their assistance. While their parents did not live to see an arrest, Borgeson said, "I'm sure she [O'Keefe] and my parents are rejoicing.". "It is bittersweet to hear that, yes, this case has been resolved. "I'm sure they're going through a lot of grieving of their own.". I want to make up for all the hurt I have caused myself and my parents, especially my mother, Neal, who was 19 at the time and went by James Albert Layton Jr., told Orange County probation officer David R. McMillan in 1966 while awaiting sentencing for a burglary conviction. Linda Ann O'Keefe was the middle child in a family of five.
Suspect in 1973 Newport Beach child murder dies in custody 'She listens, but hears nothing more. Powered by WordPress.com VIP. "He seemed like a good guy," Neal's landlord, Michael Thulson,. Here at this jail, people want to give me a bad time. Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer also called the arrest "bittersweet," noting that he had been 12 years old when the 11-year-old was killed. He left California after the alleged killing and went to Florida where he changed his name, officials said.
Cold Case Suspect In Newport Beach Child Death Dies Before Trial Jeffrey Malecki, 55, who lived next door to Neal for five years, said Friday his neighbor mentioned having served time in jail but never elaborated. The authorities confirmed that the 73-year-old showed no symptoms of COVID-19 and that his death was not considered suspicious. The sister of a little girl who was strangled to death in 1973 didn't expect to see a conclusion to the mysterious cold case, she told ABC News hours after a man's arrest was announced on Wednesday. A native of Chicago, Neal began getting into trouble soon after he moved with his family to Anaheim in 1956.
"He has a connection to Southern California.". "I had closure when they found her body," Borgeson said about the fateful day 46 years ago. Using details from the investigator's decades-old case files, police relayed O'Keefe's last hours, as well as her family's frantic search for her, as if they were unfolding in real time, as The Washington Post's Meagan Flynn reported: "At 6:42 p.m., six hours since her mother had last heard from her, O'Keefe's parents reported her missing to the Newport Beach Police Department, convinced by then O'Keefe was not simply running off with friends to retaliate for not getting a ride. Neal became a suspect in the slaying through "genealogical DNA," Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer said. Linda was last seen talking to a stranger in a van, Newport Beach Police Chief Jon Lewis said Wednesday. Investigators would later learn that the girl had last been seen at an intersection, talking to a stranger in a turquoise van. James Neal, 72, who lived in Southern California and worked in construction in the 1970s, was arrested this week in Colorado, where he had been living, Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer said at a Wednesday news conference. Since April 2018, genetic genealogy has helped identify more than three dozen suspects, said CeCe Moore, chief genetic genealogist with Parabon NanoLabs. "It didn't necessarily lead to the identification (of the suspect)," he said.
Linda Ann O'Keefe cold case: Murder, sexual assault suspect dies in "Just before midnight, 'a lady in the bluffs above Back Bay hears a female voice outside, screaming "Stop, you're hurting me," ' the police tweeted in O'Keefe's name. James Neal, 72, was arrested in Colorado Springs, Colo., and charged with murder with special circumstances in the death of Linda O'Keefe, who was found strangled in 1973, a case that has. Photo Source. About a month later, the police brought additional charges of sexual assault against a child younger than 14. He was transferred to a local. James Alan Neal, 72, was picked up in Colorado Springs on Tuesday and charged with the murder of 11-year-old Linda O'Keefe, Newport Beach police and Orange County prosecutors said. Authorities did not provide details on Neal's illness. An eight-page report prepared by McMillan offers for the first time clues about what may have driven his criminal behavior. [Mugshot via Newport Beach Police Department], Have a tip we should know? Police also want to know if Neal could be linked to other crimes. I dont have any friends because Ive always been afraid to make any because I just figured they would only see me as everyone else has in the past.. That DNA "hit" came in January, Spitzer said. The investigation into the homicide remained cold for 45 years until Virginia-based Parabon NanoLabs used DNA to identify Neal as a suspect in the killing, leading to his arrest last month in Colorado. Authorities did not elaborate on his death but said he was not exhibiting Covid-19 symptoms. This photo shows a poster of James Neal during a news conference at the Orange County District Attorney's office in Santa Ana, Calif., Feb. 20, 2019. But he praised Newport Beach police for persisting through the decades. She had been strangled and sexually assaulted. So, if youre curious to know more about James and what happened to him after his arrest, weve got you covered. O'Keefe was a schoolgirl from California who went missing on July 6, 1973, and was found dead the next morning. The police department last year also "live-tweeted" O'Keefe's story from her perspective, narrating the final day of her life in real-time, exactly 45 years later. James Alan Neal, 73, died on Wednesday at a hospital where he had been transferred in May to be treated for an illness, according to the Orange County Sheriffs Office.
Linda O'Keefe Murder: How Did She Die? Who Killed Her? . Neal was arrested Tuesday "without incident" in Colorado Springs, Newport Beach Police Chief Jon Lewis said at a news conference Wednesday. The victim was found dead during a search. Colorado man charged in 1973 Orange County cold case dies awaiting trial. Detectives from the Newport Beach Police Department kept investigating. "That sample remained in the system for a long period of time," Spitzer said.
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