San Jose police have arrested a Santa Clara man for allegedly strangling a local machine and sheet metal worker more than 37 years ago.
Joseph Abyeta, 56, stands accused of strangling 46-year-old Jesus Ibarra with an extension cord back in April 1987, according to a press release from the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office on Sept. 20.
Three days after his death, Ibarra’s family discovered his body in his apartment on Nordale Avenue in San Jose. The day before, police discovered Ibarra’s car, a blue Ford Capri, burned from the inside less than a block away on Peach Court, where Abyeta lived around the time of the murder.
Evidence showed that the men knew each other, and, in addition to stealing Ibarra’s car, Abyeta may have stolen a gold chain necklace and ring.
Rob Baker, a deputy district attorney with the cold case unit, said he “couldn’t speculate” as to the relationship between the men. However, Ibarra’s door had been bashed in. Further, in addition to discovering Abyeta’s blood on Ibarra and in the apartment, investigators also found Abyeta’s semen at the scene.
Abyeta was in custody for a gun possession charge when prosecutors got a hit on his DNA, filing the charge on Sept. 18.
Police were unable to determine a suspect at the time, so the case went cold. However, DNA tested earlier this year linked Abyeta to the crime.
“We identified this one as potentially promising,” Baker said.
Three major contributors have helped prosecutors solve more cold cases in recent years, Baker said.
First, the DA’s office has devoted a full-time investigator — in this case, Baker — to cold cases. Second, a $500,000 federal grant in 2021 gave the DA’s office more money to fund cold-case investigations. Finally, advancements in medical technology, specifically the ability to parse DNA samples that have more than one person’s blood, have allowed more sophistication in sussing out perpetrators.
Baker called the advancement “game-breaking.”
Although it didn’t play a role in this case and isn’t able to be used in court, Baker also said developments in genealogy have helped investigators narrow in on suspects.
“The guiding principle of the cold case unit is we never forget. We never forget the victims; we never forget the family,” Baker said.
Although Ibarra had an ex-wife at the time of his murder, the two had not been married long. He had no immediate family. Abyeta was unemployed at the time of his arrest for the firearm charge.
Abyeta appeared in court on Sept. 20 for arraignment. If convicted, he faces 25 years to life in prison. Baker said the DA simply charged Abeyta with murder; the jury will decide whether to pursue first-degree murder.
Collaboration between the San Jose Police Department and the DA’s cold case unit made the arrest possible. Established in 2011, the DA’s office has solved more than 30 cold cases, going back as far as 1969. This is the third cold-case homicide the DA’s office has filed this year.
Anyone with information about this case should call (408) 792-2466 or email coldcasetips@dao.sccgov.org.
Other Local Cold Cases:
Coroner IDs Body Found in Santa Clara, Seeks Public Assistance in Tracking Down Family
1979 Sunnyvale Cold Case Homicide Solved
1982 Sunnyvale Cold Case Arrest Made
