Almost 30 years after a young woman was tragically discovered stabbed in a drainage ditch in Azusa, California, authorities have brought charges against a 63-year-old man in a case that had long gone cold. Investigators revealed that DNA evidence was instrumental in solving this enduring mystery.

The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office announced that Brian Walton faces a murder charge, with additional allegations that Claudia Guevara’s death involved both rape and sodomy.

“For 30 excruciating years, the victim’s family awaited the news that their loved one’s murderer had been identified and charged,” remarked Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman in a public statement.

He continued, “Though labeled a cold case, both investigators and prosecutors persevered in their dogged quest for justice, reflecting our unwavering dedication to ensuring accountability for alleged crimes.”

During a news conference in Los Angeles on February 3, 2026, Los Angeles District Attorney Nathan Hochman, alongside L.A. County Sheriff Robert Luna, addressed the media. (Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)

Guevara, whose disappearance was reported by her brother on February 20, 1996, was last spotted at a bus stop in El Monte, having been dropped off by two colleagues. She was never seen again after that day.

Her nude body was found the following day in a drainage ditch near Encanto Parkway, where investigators determined she had been sexually assaulted and stabbed in the neck.

Sunshine lights up Bunker Hill and Los Angeles’ financial district after morning showers, seen from a rooftop along Spring Street on Sept. 10, 1996. (Ken Lubas/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)

Hochman’s office said DNA evidence linked Walton, who did not know the victim, to the crime.

Jail records from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department reviewed by Fox News Digital show that Walton was arrested on Feb. 5 and is being held without bail.

His next court appearance is scheduled for March 18 at 8:30 a.m. 

If convicted, Walton faces life in prison without the possibility of parole, or the death penalty, though prosecutors said a decision on whether to seek capital punishment will be made later.