Ray Salisbury of Syracuse, Indiana was arrested Wednesday in North Webster, Indiana for the murder of 34-year-old Edmund LaFave, police said.
LaFave was found dead in his home on Feb. 25, 1975, San Diego police said.
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Police found him on his bedroom floor. He had been stabbed multiple times and severely beaten, police said.
Investigators used Forensic Investigative Genetic Genealogy Technology and other forensic evidence to identify Salisbury as a suspect, police said.
Salisbury has been booked into the Kosciusko County Jail in Indiana on a homicide warrant and awaits an extradition hearing, police said.
Anyone with information on the case is asked to call the San Diego Police Homicide Unit at (619) 531-2293 or Crime Stoppers at (888) 580-8477.