According to authorities, a 70-year-old man was taken into custody on Friday in relation to a murder that occurred in Southern California in 1983.
Ronald Gaskey was killed on December 13, 1983, in his Newport Beach home, according to authorities, and Michael Larry Manatt of Huntington Beach was taken into custody for the crime.
The case remained unsolved after officers interviewed Gaskey and gathered evidence from his house at the time of the murder, according to a statement from the Newport Beach Police Department.
Police say they were able to identify Manatt as a suspect when it was reopened in recent years.
How the authorities came to believe that Manatt was the case’s suspect was unclear. The killing’s motivation was not revealed.
Manatt was taken to the Newport Beach Police Department jail, according to the police. A $1 million bail was imposed for him. On Sunday night, there were no online court records that would have shown whether he was still in detention. On the phone, a jailer stated that they were unable to provide information regarding the custody status of the inmates.
Whether Manatt had hired a lawyer was unknown. On Sunday evening, the Orange County public defender’s office did not immediately respond to an email requesting comment.
According to the Associated Press, which quoted the Orange County Register, which referenced a 1983 Daily Pilot article, Gaskey, who was 36 at the time of his death, was discovered by a previous lover after failing to show up for work as a construction worker. A blunt object had been used to strike him in the face and head.
Gaskey was described by the AP as a “highly security-conscience person” who had attempted to protect his house, according to the Daily Pilot piece. Neighbors reported that it would have been odd for him to have his door unlocked.
According to the AP, investigators at the time disregarded robbery as a possible motive because Gaskey’s home had not been broken into.
About 36 miles to the south of Los Angeles is the city of Huntington Beach. About 45 miles southeast of Los Angeles is the city of Newport Beach, which is located in nearby Orange County.
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