An Oregon man was arrested in connection to a 1987 homicide of a 6-year-old Vallejo boy.
According to the Solano County District Attorney’s Office, investigators arrested Fred Cain III at his Central Point, Oregon, home on September 18 after DNA technology linked Cain to the death of the boy.
In 1987, 6-year-old Jeremy Stoney was abducted near his home in Vallejo. The body was recovered four days later on Sherman Island in Sacramento County.
The DA’s office said the autopsy showed signs of sexual assault.
That same year, Shawn Melton was named the suspect in the case. Melton was charged with murder and kidnapping after investigators determined he had knowledge that only the person responsible for the death would know.
The case was later dismissed due to the jury not reaching a verdict.
On Friday, the Solano County DA’s office said that advancement in DNA technology that implicated Cain in the child’s death has exonerated Melton.
Cain will be transferred to Solano County to face charges of murder with special allegations of kidnapping and sodomy, officials said.
