Police on Monday identified a registered sex offender and transient as the suspect in the home-invasion robbery and slaying of a 76-year-old San Bernardino woman whose body was found by her son in November.
Jerome Anthony Rogers, 57, was arrested on Friday in connection with the death of Mary Beth Blaskey, San Bernardino police said.
Blaskey’s son found her when he went over to take her to a doctor’s appointment on Nov. 14, 2012.
He found his mother, Blaskey, dead in her ransacked home.
The robber took off in her 2001 Lexus, police said. The car was recovered two weeks later.
The case received media attention in January when police asked for the public's help to find a suspect. At the time, police theorized that someone killed Blaskey and potentially two other elderly women.
Police on Monday did not provide details of other cases and said they were continuing to piece together Blaskey's case.
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Police said they gathered hundreds of pieces of evidence, including from Blaskey's home and locations where the suspect had been staying.
Investigators said Blaskey was sexually assaulted during the incident. San Bernardino Police Chief Rob Handy said they had DNA evidence linking Rogers to the case.
Police said they interviewed Rogers shortly after the discovery of Blaskey's body.
Police said they had looked at Rogers early on when they were investigating burglaries in the area, said Lt. Paul Williams, a San Bernardino Police Department spokesman.
Rogers, who stayed at various places, went from home to home offering yard work services to residents, Handy said.
Police were seeking a second person in connection with the case. Anyone with information was asked to call 909-384-5742.
