In a significant development in a cold case dating back to 1980, police have arrested a 78-year-old man in connection with the murder of a nursing student in Austin, Texas. The victim, Susan Leigh Wolfe, was just 25 years old when she was abducted, sexually assaulted, strangled, and shot on a January evening.
The arrest of Deck Brewer Jr. came after a breakthrough in the case, with DNA evidence linking him to the crime scene. Wolfe, a nursing student at the University of Texas at Austin, was kidnapped while walking to a friend's house, just a block away from her home. A witness reported seeing a man forcing her into a car, which matched the description of a 1970 Dodge Polara.
Despite extensive investigations and numerous leads over the years, it was advancements in DNA technology that finally led to Brewer's arrest. Detectives from the APD Cold Case Unit submitted evidence from the sexual assault to the Texas DPS Crime Laboratory, which resulted in a match in the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS).
Upon being informed of the DNA match, Brewer invoked his right to counsel. Subsequently, the Austin Municipal Court issued an arrest warrant charging him with the murder of Susan Leigh Wolfe. The case highlights the importance of ongoing advancements in DNA technology, which have enabled law enforcement to revisit and solve cold cases that previously lacked sufficient DNA evidence.
Wolfe's tragic death left a lasting impact on her family and loved ones, with her parents and then roommate having passed away since the incident. The arrest of Deck Brewer Jr. brings a sense of closure to a case that haunted investigators for over four decades, offering some measure of justice for Susan Leigh Wolfe and her surviving family members.
