Murder of a Nevada beauty queen

The man was held in Mt Hope on Friday and has been a suspect in the case for 24 years.

The Associated Press (AP) on Saturday reported that the man was charged in the US since January but his whereabouts had not been known until he was tracked down to Mt Hope last week.

Carson City Sheriff Kenny Furlong told AP the man is expected to be extradited to the US within weeks.

The man, who was deported to Trinidad in the 1980s, is accused of the murder of 18-year-old Sheila Harris, who was found dead in her east Carson City apartment at Long Street and Lompa Lane. The suspect is reported to have worked at the apartment complex as a maintenance man.

An autopsy found the then-reigning Miss Douglas County had been sexually assaulted, beaten and strangled.

“My family has worked and prayed for this for 24 years. Thank goodness justice is finally going to be served,” Sheila’s mother, Linda Bratton, told Carson City’s Nevada Appeal.

Furlong said the Trinidadian man had been a suspect from the start but investigators were unable to find physical evidence linking him to the crime. He was arrested in the case in the 1980s but released.

Technology unavailable at the time led to the latest arrest, he said. The suspect was said to be linked to the crime through DNA found on Harris’ body and clothing.

Investigators travelled to New York City to track the suspect’s family to obtain a DNA sample.

In 1999, Lt Bob White a former detective of the Carson City Department asked officials to allow him to review the investigation.

DNA found on Harris’ body and underclothing was processed by the Washoe County Crime lab.

The sperm sample revealed the suspect was the source, which was stated in an affidavit in support of the federal arrest warrant.

“This case has never died,” Furlong said. “We’ve always had a strong sense of who the suspect was and getting enough evidence to prove it has taken some time.”

Shortly after Harris’ murder, the suspect was deported to Trinidad after being accused of living in the US illegally.

Furlong said he expects no problems finding trial witnesses or investigators who worked the case from the beginning.

“We have kept a continuing list of how to contact people associated with this investigation all along,” he said. “Most of them are still readily available, and most still reside locally in the area.”