'Finally justice will be done,' Vacaville cold case solved

VACAVILLE, Calif. (KGO) -- A cold case in Solano County has finally been solved according to Vacaville police with the arrest of suspect Marvin Markle in the murder of 14-year-old De Anna Lynn Johnson in 1982.

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Johnson's parents and friends were there as the police made an emotional announcement.

It was a murder that rocked an entire community. The body of a young girl was found next to train tracks, out in the open-badly beaten, just blocks from her Vacaville home.

Her mother and father finally have the news they've been waiting three decades to hear.

"We miss her very much," said Johnson's mother Ginger Dimpel. "And we are encouraged that the truth will prevail, and finally--justice will be done."

Vacaville Police Chief John Carli says Johnson's case became very personal to all who worked on it from the day the ninth grader went missing after failing to come home from a neighborhood party.

Marvin Markle, then 17-years-old, was there too. While investigators had their suspicions about him they couldn't make an arrest until Wednesday.

"Some people share things with people and confide in people over the years," said Matt Lydon of the Vacaville police. "And that's happened."

Because he was 17 at the time of the murder, Markle will initially be arraigned in Solano County Juvenile Court Thursday morning.