After nearly four decades since the murder of 18-year-old Lachelle Waite in Phoenix, police have finally arrested a suspect tied to what's been described as the city's oldest cold case homicide. Alfred E. Green, 70, was taken into custody last week in connection with Waite's 1986 murder, as per 12News and FOX 10 Phoenix. Green, already serving a life sentence for a separate 1988 murder, was linked to the case thanks to advanced DNA testing of evidence submitted in 2022.
The cold case, which dates back to January 16, 1986, when Waite was found dead at her home near 59th Avenue and Thomas Road, had a strong investigative lead at the time but lacked the evidence to make an arrest. Green, a friend of Waite's boyfriend, was suspected after property, including jewelry and a gun, was stolen and then immediately sold by him. Phoenix police, determined to eventually put the pieces together, managed to thoroughly review the case and finally carry out to address the injustice, submitting the case to the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office decades later.
During his initial court appearance, when confronted with the prosecutor’s allegations that he strangled Waite to death, Green's response was curtly depicted by 12News as he stated, "I know she did a lot of lying." He is currently held on a $1.5 million cash-only bond. Meanwhile, officials at the Phoenix Police Department have expressed the significance of Green's arrest. "Being able to finally let the family know, and also let the community know that after 39 years, we're still working on these cases, trying to get justice for them, for the victims and their families, speaks to what this unit is all about," Detective Dominick Roestenberg told reporters in a statement obtained by FOX 10 Phoenix.
