Hamilton man accused in Indiana murder may be linked to other crimes

Roman Cruz Urista Jr. of Hamilton told a Butler County judge he was innocent of murder in Indiana and would not waive extradition back to that state.

His wife, April, told the Journal-News, her husband is innocent and she is struggling to get basic information about the charges. But Indiana officials say Urista assaulted and murdered an elderly woman in 2003 and he may be linked to other sexual assaults.

Urista was arrested on an bench warrant from Hamilton Municipal Court for driving under suspension and a murder warrant from Grant County, Ind., on Nov. 3.

“It was the middle of the night, the house was lit up,” said April Urista. “It scared the hell out of me.”

Urista is accused of the strangulation death and rape of 81-year-old Betty Payne on May 11, 2003, in Marion, Ind., according to the Grant County Prosecutor’s Office.

James Luttrull Jr., Grant County Prosecutor, said he could not discuss the specifics of the case but thanked the Marion Police Department for “their determined and continued investigation over the years of this profoundly horrible and shocking murder.”

April Urista said she married Urista in 2002 and he has never been to Marion, Ind.

“We have been over to Brookville, Ind., to the flea market. That’s it,” she said.

Police came by the couple’s home on 12th Avenue several times recently, telling him he needed to take care of fines for the driving under suspension charges.

“Then last week they showed up with the warrant,” April Urista said. “If he had murdered someone, wouldn’t he have left when they came around? It doesn’t make sense.”

Marion police say DNA evidence collected from Payne matches a suspect in three other sexual assaults, including one in Hamilton and one in Florida. DNA results came from the Indiana State Police Laboratory.

Hamilton Sgt. Brian Robinson said Urista’s DNA was a match to a 2008 rape case in Hamilton, but charges are not currently being pursued because the victim has not cooperated.

“But that doesn’t mean we couldn’t in the future,” he said.

Urista will now await the governor of Indiana to issue a warrant for his arrest to Ohio’s governor, which can take up to 30 days.

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