After 25 years, a cold case double homicide has finally found closure with an arrest made by St. Lucie County Sheriff's officials. Julian Antonio Romero, 58, faces charges of first-degree murder with a weapon following the slayings of Robert Hardwick, 77, and his fiancée, Vernice Reese, 57, who were brutally killed in October 2000. According to Treasure Coast Newspapers, Detective Paul Taylor indicated that Romero was suspected to have stabbed the couple and set their home ablaze with gasoline.
Investigators' persistence paid off when DNA evidence and a picture from a keychain were instrumental in cracking the case. The keychain, containing a photo of a girl later identified as Romero’s daughter, was found in the ignition of Hardwick’s stolen vehicle. The new evidence emerged with Detective Taylor's and former state attorney Bruce Colton’s renewed focus on the case beginning in 2023. "We sent a bunch of things off for DNA," Taylor revealed in an interview obtained by CBS12.
At the crime scene, DNA of Romero was found, which matched samples recovered from Hardwick's car. This breakthrough DNA evidence became a cornerstone of the investigation, confirming the long-held suspicions of authorities. "We've got witnesses that said he was there. So now also we have DNA recovered from the scene of the fire of the homicides, we have his DNA recovered there" Det. Taylor told CBS12. Romero, a Honduran citizen, was already serving a life sentence for unrelated charges of rape, kidnapping, and sexual assault in Broward County at the time of his arrest for the double homicide.
In the aftermath of the fire that took the lives of Hardwick and Reese, the sheriff’s office describes tireless efforts in tackling this and other cold cases. Hailing Detective Taylor’s work, newly appointed Sheriff Richard Del Toro praised the tireless dedication by his team, saying, "There are some tremendous employees here," as reported by Treasure Coast Newspapers.
