Topline: A 64-year-old man was arrested 34 years after Cindy Wanner was kidnapped from a Granite Bay home and found strangled to death near Foresthill, authorities said.
Published: April 29, 2026 3:00 pm ET
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GRANITE BAY, CA — The Placer County Sheriff’s Office said 64-year-old James Lawhead Jr. was arrested Friday, April 24, in Bullhead City, Arizona, in connection with the kidnapping and murder of Cindy Wanner, whose disappearance and killing shook the Granite Bay community in 1991.
Wanner was 35 when she vanished from a Granite Bay home on Nov. 25, 1991. Authorities said her 11-month-old baby was left crying in a highchair, while Wanner’s shoes, coat and car were all left behind. Three weeks later, she was found strangled to death in a remote area outside Foresthill, about 40 miles from where investigators say she was abducted.
According to a Placer County Sheriff’s Office announcement, detectives in the agency’s Cold Case Unit spent years submitting evidence for testing before a final piece of evidence was sent to the Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Office Forensic Lab, where advanced DNA analysis identified Lawhead as the suspect.
Investigators said Lawhead was 30 at the time of the crime and had been released from prison earlier in 1991 after serving 11 years of a 19-year sentence for prior sex crimes involving a young child. After identifying him as a suspect, detectives discovered he appeared to have vanished, with no documented record of him since 2005. As the search continued, investigators came to believe he had assumed a new identity.
With help from law enforcement agencies in areas where he may have lived, and assistance from the Scottsdale Police Department, detectives used a facial recognition comparison that led to a match, according to authorities. Investigators then found Lawhead living in Bullhead City under the name Vincent Reynolds.
Placer County detectives said Bullhead City police helped take Lawhead into custody and book him into jail in Arizona. He is expected to be extradited to Placer County to face charges. Detectives also interviewed him after his arrest and served a search warrant at his Arizona residence, where they said additional evidence was collected.
Authorities also arrested Lawhead’s 71-year-old sister, Terry Lawhead Steele, on Saturday, April 25, in South Carolina on an accessory charge with assistance from the Lancaster County Sheriff’s Office. Detectives then served a search warrant Sunday, April 26, at her San Clemente home. Investigators said Steele had spoken with law enforcement several times over the years, including weeks ago, and claimed she had not heard from her brother in more than 20 years. Detectives said they later found evidence that James Lawhead had been living in a home she owned and that the two had remained in communication.
Investigators said they are now examining whether Lawhead could be connected to other crimes and asked law enforcement agencies, especially on the West Coast, to review similar cold cases and contact the Placer County Sheriff’s Office.
Presumption of Innocence: A presumption of innocence means that any defendant in a criminal trial is presumed to be innocent until they have been proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. The defendant in this case is only accused of the charges set forth in the criminal complaint. They are innocent until proven guilty.
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Arrest Made In 34-Year-Old California Kidnapping And Murder Cold Case After DNA Breakthrough
A 64-year-old man was arrested 34 years after Cindy Wanner was kidnapped from a Granite Bay home and found strangled to death near Foresthill, authorities said.
By Silvia Torres
Published: April 29, 2026 3:00 pm ET
GRANITE BAY, CA — The Placer County Sheriff’s Office said 64-year-old James Lawhead Jr. was arrested Friday, April 24, in Bullhead City, Arizona, in connection with the kidnapping and murder of Cindy Wanner, whose disappearance and killing shook the Granite Bay community in 1991.
Wanner was 35 when she vanished from a Granite Bay home on Nov. 25, 1991. Authorities said her 11-month-old baby was left crying in a highchair, while Wanner’s shoes, coat and car were all left behind. Three weeks later, she was found strangled to death in a remote area outside Foresthill, about 40 miles from where investigators say she was abducted.
According to a Placer County Sheriff’s Office announcement, detectives in the agency’s Cold Case Unit spent years submitting evidence for testing before a final piece of evidence was sent to the Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Office Forensic Lab, where advanced DNA analysis identified Lawhead as the suspect.
Investigators said Lawhead was 30 at the time of the crime and had been released from prison earlier in 1991 after serving 11 years of a 19-year sentence for prior sex crimes involving a young child. After identifying him as a suspect, detectives discovered he appeared to have vanished, with no documented record of him since 2005. As the search continued, investigators came to believe he had assumed a new identity.
With help from law enforcement agencies in areas where he may have lived, and assistance from the Scottsdale Police Department, detectives used a facial recognition comparison that led to a match, according to authorities. Investigators then found Lawhead living in Bullhead City under the name Vincent Reynolds.
Placer County detectives said Bullhead City police helped take Lawhead into custody and book him into jail in Arizona. He is expected to be extradited to Placer County to face charges. Detectives also interviewed him after his arrest and served a search warrant at his Arizona residence, where they said additional evidence was collected.
Authorities also arrested Lawhead’s 71-year-old sister, Terry Lawhead Steele, on Saturday, April 25, in South Carolina on an accessory charge with assistance from the Lancaster County Sheriff’s Office. Detectives then served a search warrant Sunday, April 26, at her San Clemente home. Investigators said Steele had spoken with law enforcement several times over the years, including weeks ago, and claimed she had not heard from her brother in more than 20 years. Detectives said they later found evidence that James Lawhead had been living in a home she owned and that the two had remained in communication.
Investigators said they are now examining whether Lawhead could be connected to other crimes and asked law enforcement agencies, especially on the West Coast, to review similar cold cases and contact the Placer County Sheriff’s Office.
Presumption of Innocence: A presumption of innocence means that any defendant in a criminal trial is presumed to be innocent until they have been proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. The defendant in this case is only accused of the charges set forth in the criminal complaint. They are innocent until proven guilty.
Editor's Note: ThePo makes every effort to accurately transcribe the contents of affidavits of probable cause contained in criminal complaints. Often, the complaints themselves are copies of copies of faxed copies, and are difficult to read. To confirm the accuracy of our transcription, contact the Magisterial District Court listed above and request a copy of the criminal complaint. It's a public record to which you are entitled.
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Editor Picks
Latest Articles
Arrest Made In 34-Year-Old California Kidnapping And Murder Cold Case After DNA Breakthrough
A 64-year-old man was arrested 34 years after Cindy Wanner was kidnapped from a Granite Bay home and found strangled to death near Foresthill, authorities said.
By Silvia Torres
Published: April 29, 2026 3:00 pm ET
GRANITE BAY, CA — The Placer County Sheriff’s Office said 64-year-old James Lawhead Jr. was arrested Friday, April 24, in Bullhead City, Arizona, in connection with the kidnapping and murder of Cindy Wanner, whose disappearance and killing shook the Granite Bay community in 1991.
Wanner was 35 when she vanished from a Granite Bay home on Nov. 25, 1991. Authorities said her 11-month-old baby was left crying in a highchair, while Wanner’s shoes, coat and car were all left behind. Three weeks later, she was found strangled to death in a remote area outside Foresthill, about 40 miles from where investigators say she was abducted.
According to a Placer County Sheriff’s Office announcement, detectives in the agency’s Cold Case Unit spent years submitting evidence for testing before a final piece of evidence was sent to the Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Office Forensic Lab, where advanced DNA analysis identified Lawhead as the suspect.
Investigators said Lawhead was 30 at the time of the crime and had been released from prison earlier in 1991 after serving 11 years of a 19-year sentence for prior sex crimes involving a young child. After identifying him as a suspect, detectives discovered he appeared to have vanished, with no documented record of him since 2005. As the search continued, investigators came to believe he had assumed a new identity.
With help from law enforcement agencies in areas where he may have lived, and assistance from the Scottsdale Police Department, detectives used a facial recognition comparison that led to a match, according to authorities. Investigators then found Lawhead living in Bullhead City under the name Vincent Reynolds.
Placer County detectives said Bullhead City police helped take Lawhead into custody and book him into jail in Arizona. He is expected to be extradited to Placer County to face charges. Detectives also interviewed him after his arrest and served a search warrant at his Arizona residence, where they said additional evidence was collected.
Authorities also arrested Lawhead’s 71-year-old sister, Terry Lawhead Steele, on Saturday, April 25, in South Carolina on an accessory charge with assistance from the Lancaster County Sheriff’s Office. Detectives then served a search warrant Sunday, April 26, at her San Clemente home. Investigators said Steele had spoken with law enforcement several times over the years, including weeks ago, and claimed she had not heard from her brother in more than 20 years. Detectives said they later found evidence that James Lawhead had been living in a home she owned and that the two had remained in communication.
Investigators said they are now examining whether Lawhead could be connected to other crimes and asked law enforcement agencies, especially on the West Coast, to review similar cold cases and contact the Placer County Sheriff’s Office.
Presumption of Innocence: A presumption of innocence means that any defendant in a criminal trial is presumed to be innocent until they have been proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. The defendant in this case is only accused of the charges set forth in the criminal complaint. They are innocent until proven guilty.
Editor's Note: ThePo makes every effort to accurately transcribe the contents of affidavits of probable cause contained in criminal complaints. Often, the complaints themselves are copies of copies of faxed copies, and are difficult to read. To confirm the accuracy of our transcription, contact the Magisterial District Court listed above and request a copy of the criminal complaint. It's a public record to which you are entitled.
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