A judge in Florida has ordered a 65-year-old California fugitive held without bond in connection with the murder of a woman 39 years ago.
Donald Santini was arrested by U.S. marshals in California in June and was extradited without protest to the Sunshine State. Authorities said that the suspect has used 13 aliases over the years.
Santini was the last person seen with 33-year-old Cynthia ‘Cindy’ Ruth Wood. The arrest warrant said a medical examiner determined she had been strangled, and Santini’s fingerprints were found on her body.
‘You being on the run for almost 40 years is a consciousness of guilt. You knew you were running from something… You are the definition of flight risk,’ Judge Catherine Catlin told Santini during a hearing in Tampa on Thursday.
Photos taken in the courtroom showed Santini weeping before the judge denied bond.
Donald Santini, 65, wept in court as he was ordered to be held without bail before being tried for the murder of Cynthia Wood
According to prosecutors, Santini alluded to the fact that Wood’s death was a contract killing
Back in 1984, Santini was known as Charles Michael Stevens, which was an alias he used to flee a warrant in Texas.
At the time of his arrest, he was living under the name Wellman Simmonds in Campo, California, which is in southeastern San Diego County.
Wood met with Santini, who had called her with promises of providing information about her husband, Barry Wood, that could possibly help her win custody of their two children, who were 3 and 5, according to previous reports by the Bradenton Herald.
Wood also had a son from a previous relationship. Police believe that she was strangled with her body being found in a watery grave three days after she was last seen, with Santini. Shortly afterwards, he left town.
Santini’s attorney asked the judge for bail. But prosecutors noted that Santini killed Wood after fleeing a charge in Texas related to a convenience store robbery in which he was accused of stealing $270 while armed with a knife.
‘You have from his very own mouth that he has been on the lamb for 39 years and he purposely has been using fake ID’s so that he can avoid law enforcement,’ prosecutor Michelle Doherty told the court.
The state’s attorney’s office also said in court that in interviews Santini referred Wood’s death as a ‘contract killing.’
‘You are the definition of flight risk,’ the judge told Santini during the hearing. ‘There is nothing I can do to preserve the safety of this community if I was to let you go.’
Cynthia Wood met Santini as the suspect’s girlfriend’s children were attending the day care where the victim worked
Santini was caught in San Diego in early June, after evading arrest for 39 years
Meanwhile, Santini’s public defender Jamie Kane said that there’s no evidence that the suspect left Texas with an outstanding warrant.
‘Where is the failure to appear warrant? Where is the circuit court case number? Where is the evidence that he was on pretrial release? Other than a simple statement of Mr. Santini, who is not a legal expert,’ Kane said.
Santini was identified by the FBI after he applied for a passport under the name Wellman Simmonds.
On Thursday, Wood’s stepdaughter Denise Kozer told ABC Tampa that she was delighted Santini will be held until trial.
‘He doesn’t deserve any freedom. We’ve had no freedom for 40 years, wondering where he was. And it’s been awful,’ she said.
While Florida Gulf Coast law professor Dr. Pamella Seay told the station that Santini’s assertion that Wood’s death was a contract killing, could be bad for his defense.
‘A killing for hire is, in many circles, worse than a killing for passion or some other reason.’
Seay also was not sure if the murder constitutes at death penalty case.
‘It depends on the circumstances surrounding it. What were the aggravating circumstances that contributed to the crime? What is it that caused this? And if you’re talking about a contract hit, that could be an aggravating circumstance—that you don’t want that kind of person out on the street ever again. That’s quite possible,’ Professor Seay said.
