A Hawthorne man was arrested Thursday in connection with a 2005 murder thanks to DNA evidence, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department announced.
Charles Wright, 56, was tied to the killing of 21-year-old Pertina Epps in Gardena by “DNA and fingerprint evidence” after the Sheriff’s Homicide Unsolved Unit used “current technology” to reexamine evidence from the crime scene, the Sheriff’s Department said in a release.
Before the DNA evidence produced a match, “detectives believed both the suspect and the victim did not know each other,” the release said.
Epps was found dead in the 2700 block of 141st Place on April 26, 2005, and the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner determined she had been strangled, according to the LASD.
“At the time of the murder, an extensive investigation was conducted by LASD Homicide detectives and all leads were exhausted,” the release added.
Wright, who was arrested on a murder charge, was released on $1 million bail Thursday afternoon.
He’s due to be arraigned in court on June 28, 2022, according to the LASD.
Anyone with information is asked to call 323-890-5500.
To provide information anonymously, call Crime Stoppers at 800-222-TIPS (8477) or visit lacrimestoppers.org.