Murder suspect featured on 'America's Most Wanted' arrested after nearly 4 decades on the run

Donald Santini, 65, was booked into a Florida jail Wednesday morning on a charge of first-degree murder, according to a Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office statement.

TAMPA, Fla. — A man arrested earlier this month in California has been returned to Florida to face charges in the 1984 killing of a woman, authorities said.

Donald Santini, 65, was booked into a Florida jail Wednesday morning on a charge of first-degree murder, according to a Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office statement. Florida detectives had traveled to San Diego, California, following Santini’s June 7 arrest, and he was later extradited to Tampa, Florida.

“The arrest of Donald Santini brings closure to a long-standing cold case and provides justice for the victim and her family after nearly four decades of waiting,” Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister said in a statement. “Let’s not forget the tireless work that has gone into this case over the years, the resources, and expertise to pursue justice for Cynthia Wood.”

Santini had been on the run since June 1984, when Florida authorities obtained an arrest warrant linking him to the strangling death of Wood, a 33-year-old Bradenton woman.

Wood’s body was found in a watery ditch three days after she went missing on June 6 of that year. Santini was the last person seen with Wood. The arrest warrant said a medical examiner determined she had been strangled, and Santini’s fingerprints were found on her body.