Man indicted on capital murder charge in 1980 Austin cold case

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- A man who was already incarcerated in a Massachusetts jail was indicted on a capital murder charge in connection with a 1980 Austin cold case, according to court documents.

Deck Brewer Jr., 78, was indicted on one count of capital murder and one count of murder, records state.

KXAN has reached out to Brewer's attorney. We will update this if a statement is received.

On Jan. 9, 1980, the Austin Police Department received a call from a man who said he witnessed a kidnapping that happened in the 200 block of Franklin Avenue in central Austin, according to court records. The next day, APD received a report of a body found in an alley in the 2000 block of 17th Street. The body was identified as 25-year-old Susan Leigh Wolfe.

According to police, Wolfe was walking to her friend's house when the kidnapping happened.

A pathologist determined the cause of death for Wolfe was a gunshot wound to the head and ruled the death a homicide, according to APD.

The case went cold until authorities filed a search warrant earlier this year to obtain DNA swabs from Brewer while he was in the Massachusetts Department of Corrections on unrelated charges. That DNA came back as a match for Brewer, according to the Texas Department of Public Safety.

According to online court records, the murder charges were filed together back in August. However, a grand jury did not return the indictment until Tuesday.