BETTER LATE THAN NEVER

Police Use Airplane Water Bottle to Nab Suspect in Chilling 1985 Murder

Roger Dean was shot dead in his Lone Tree, Colorado home. Then, five years later, someone believed to be the killer tried to extort Dean’s wife.

Police have been able to identify a suspect in an unsolved 1985 murder case after pinching a water bottle he used on a commercial flight. Michael Jefferson of New Orleans was arrested on Tuesday and faces first-degree murder and kidnapping charges. In 1985, Roger Dean was shot to death in his Lone Tree, Colorado home after the killer demanded money. The shooter left behind a ski mask, which police were able to life a DNA sample from. At the time, there were no genealogical matches. In 1990, Dean’s wife was the target of extortion attempts by someone believed to be the killer, who threatened to kill her kids if she didn’t pay $150,000. In February 2021, investigators were able to use modern technology to match the ski mask DNA to the suspect’s parents. Cops then trailed him onto the Spirit Airlines flight between Los Angeles and New Orleans and nabbed the water bottle, which allegedly provided a positive DNA match.