Cold Cases - 1970 to 1979

Case:	70-5510
Victim:	Grace Lee, Birthdate 04/29/1906
Suspect:	Unknown
Location of Occurrence:	201 Pacific Street
Date of Occurrence:	April 1, 1970

Synopsis: 63 year old Grace Lee was sexually assaulted and beaten to death after parking her vehicle in her garage. Witnesses saw a male suspect walk away from the garage and get into a yellow-colored vehicle. No arrests were made.

Anyone with information is urged to contact the Santa Monica Police Department Cold Case Homicide Unit at (310) 458-8451 or anonymously on the 24hr tip line at (310) 458-8449 or WeTip at (800) 78-CRIME.

Case:	73-13505
Victim:	Estalla Edelmann
Suspect:	Unknown
Location of Occurrence:	1027 Lincoln Blvd
Date of Occurrence:	August 1, 1973

Synopsis: 80 year old Estalla Edelmann was found brutally beaten and sexually assaulted in her bedroom; the victim of a home invasion robbery. She died 20 days later as a result of her injuries. No arrests were made.

Case:	74-263
Victim:	Sally Marie Saunders, Birthdate 07/26/1919 LEster Wallwyn Saunders, Birthdate 06/13/1916
Suspect:	Unknown
Location of Occurrence:	2452 Lincoln Blvd
Date of Occurrence:	January 6, 1974

Synopsis: 54 year old Sally Saunders and 57 year old Lester Saunders were live-in managers of the “Star Motel” and on the night of the crime, unknown suspect(s) entered their apartment in an attempt to rob them. The Saunders were both shot once in the head, bound at the wrists and ankles and set on fire. There were no witnesses to the crime and no arrests were made.

Case:	75-4389
Victim:	Gary Uhles, Birthdate 01/15/1947
Suspect:	Unknown
Location of Occurrence:	Pacific Ocean Park Pier (below)
Date of Occurrence:	March 14, 1975

Synopsis: 28 year old Gary Uhles was found beaten and unconscious under P.O.P. Pier by a construction worker. Uhles sustained blunt force trauma to his head causing multiple skull fractures. He succumbed to his injuries eight days later as he remained unconscious in a hospital. There was a witness to the crime but no arrests were ever made.

Case:	76-2571
Victim:	Remigio Garcia, 75 years old
Suspect:	Unknown
Location of Occurrence:	1109 Broadway
Date of Occurrence:	February 9, 1976

Synopsis: 75 year old Remigio Garcia was playing cards at a Filipino Senior Citizens Center when two armed suspects entered the location and robbed everyone in attendance. The suspects physically forced everyone to the ground including Garcia who suffered a heart attack during the incident. Garcia died during his transport to the hospital. Suspect descriptions were documented at the time of the initial investigations but no other leads were available. No arrests were ever made.

Case:	76-16686
Victim:	Anne Paeva, Birthdate 06/27/1947
Suspect:	Unknown
Location of Occurrence:	1024 12th St, Apt A
Date of Occurrence:	September 9, 1976

Synopsis: 29 year old Anne Paeva did not report to work for three days. A check of her apartment revealed that Paeva had been stabbed once in the upper torso. She died as a result of the stab wound. There were no witnesses and no arrests were made.

Case:	78-1165
Victim:	James Edward Phillip, 57 years old
Suspect:	Unknown
Location of Occurrence:	1528 Alta Ave
Date of Occurrence:	January 19, 1978

Synopsis: 57 year old James Phillips was shot five times while in his ex-wife’s garage. It is unknown whether Phillips was there on a scheduled visit or not. There were no witnesses to the crime and no arrests were made.

Case:	78-19661
Victim:	Walter Goode, Birthdate 04/16/1945
Suspect:	Unknown
Location of Occurrence:	Santa Monica/Venice Beach Area
Date of Occurrence:	October 31, 1978

Synopsis: 33 year old Walter Goode walked into Claire Foundation on 10/31/78 with a badly beaten face. He was immediately taken to the emergency room where he told nurses that “he got hit in the eye on the beach last night.” That was Goode’s last statement. He coded in the ER and was later pronounced dead. It is unknown where the crime actually occurred. No witnesses came forward and no arrests were made.

Case:	78-20172
Victim:	Eugenio Rodriguez, Birthdate 06/15/1952
Suspect:	Unknown
Location of Occurrence:	1600 block of the Beach (Under the Pier)
Date of Occurrence:	November 7, 1978

Synopsis: 26 year old Eugenio Rodriguez was found under the pier in the water. At first glance, it appeared that he drowned but after Rodriguez was removed from the water, he was found to have suffered seventeen stab wounds and nine puncture wounds. There were no witnesses to the crime and no arrests were made.

Case:	78-20561
Victim:	Joseph Bernard Sawyer, Birthdate 07/25/1951
Suspect:	Unknown
Location of Occurrence:	808 4th Street, Apt 101
Date of Occurrence:	November 14, 1978

Synopsis: 27 year old Joseph Sawyer failed to show up for work and a welfare check of his apartment revealed that Sawyer had been bludgeoned to death. Sawyer suffered multiple blunt force trauma to his head. A male and female DNA profile was obtained from evidence recovered within Sawyer’s apartment. These profiles were uploaded into CODIS and to date, there have not been any matches. No arrests have been made.

Case:	78-9838
Victim:	Richard Jay Hecht, 30 years old
Suspect:	Unknown
Location of Occurrence:	117 Pacific St, Apt 204
Date of Occurrence:	May 28, 1979

Synopsis: 30 year old Richard Hecht was inside of his apartment with a female witness at the time of this incident. An unknown suspect came to Hecht’s apartment, entered the location and engaged in a physical altercation with him. The witness was unsure as to what the altercation was about but the suspect produced a handgun and shot Hecht to death. The witness could only give a suspect description as a male White, 25 to 35 years old, 5’-06” to 5’-08”, heavy build, medium complexion, wearing an unknown color short-sleeve shirt and blue jeans.

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Cold Cases - 1970 to 1979