Santa Clara man charged with murder in 1987 cold case

SAN JOSE, Calif. (KGO) -- A Santa Clara man has been charged with the murder of someone he may have known - almost 40 years after the crime occurred.

Joseph Anthony Abeyta faces 25 to life if convicted of killing Jesus Ibarra of San Jose.

"That's one of the challenges in a cold case, but we're happy and eager to overcome those challenges and obtain justice for the victim's family," Santa Clara Co. Deputy District Attorney Michael Gilman said. "They were present here in court today and they just want justice."

It has been 37 years since Ibarra's death.

Police did not identify a suspect then.

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But DNA evidence tested this year just linked Santa Clara native Joseph Anthony Abeyta to the crime.

Abeyta is already in jail for gun possession and identity theft, but is now charged with murder and faces 25 years to life in prison.

"His DNA was collected as part of his arrest in that existing case," Gilman said. "We had the CODIS hit, CODIS is the database for the DNA, then we went ahead and did a confirmation to confirm his DNA that we collected upon his arrest for his other case and confirmed it was a match."

The investigation into Ibarra's death began in April 1987 on Nordale Avenue in San Jose.

San Jose police say he was strangled with a power cord inside his apartment.

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Evidence obtained by the Santa Clara County District Attorney's office suggests the two men knew each other.

Ibarra's car was located a day before he was found dead - burned from the inside out on Peach Court, just 3 miles away from Ibarra's home.

This is less than a block from where county records showed Abeyta was living one month after the murder.

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Abeyta's newly-tested DNA matched DNA found on multiple items including the power cord and the blanket that was covering the victim.

"We were able to use crime lab technology through the Santa Clara County District Attorney's Office to really lock down DNA as proof that the suspect was there and present in that apartment and was the one responsible for the murder," San Jose Police Dept. Public Information Representative Stacie Shih said.

This is the third cold case homicide charge filed by the DA's office and the ninth cold case solved by SJPD in 2024.

Abeyta refused to attend a court appearance Friday. His next scheduled appearance is September 24.