Additional Coverage:
- DNA cracks 40-year cold case mystery with arrest in library worker’s savage slaying: police (foxnews.com)
Nearly 38 years after the tragic murder of 22-year-old Roberta Walls in Virginia, law enforcement officials have made a significant breakthrough in the cold case. Charles Berry, 66, from Newington, Connecticut, was arrested Monday in connection with the 1986 rape and murder, the Newington Police Department announced.
The arrest came through a coordinated effort with the Virginia Beach Police Department (VBPD), which had issued an arrest warrant related to the homicide. Walls’ body was found on May 15, 1986, in a field behind Old Donation Elementary School, according to VBPD records.
At the time, investigators noted that Walls had suffered multiple stab wounds and had been sexually assaulted. She was last seen alive the night before her death at the Bayside Public Library, where she worked. Walls had been leaving work to meet friends when she vanished, with the crime scene located just across the street from the library.
Advancements in forensic technology played a key role in the case. In 2017, authorities secured funding to analyze DNA evidence preserved from Walls’ body, which helped generate a composite image of a person of interest. This development paved the way for Berry’s arrest.
Following his detention, Berry was taken to the New Britain Superior Court in Connecticut on Tuesday. He has been indicted by a grand jury for Walls’ murder, and his bail was set at $2 million. He currently awaits extradition to Virginia.
The investigation into this decades-old case underscores the persistence of law enforcement in seeking justice for victims, no matter how much time has passed. The Virginia Beach Police Department has yet to release further comments on the arrest.