SAN RAFAEL, Calif. (KRON) -- San Rafael police have identified a suspect in the 1966 homicide of Marjorie Rudolph, solving the 60-year-old cold case through DNA evidence found on cigarettes at the crime scene. The suspect, who was known to the victim's family, died by suicide only eight days after t he killing occurred. The breakthrough came after retired investigators reopened the case and sent forensic evidence to a specialized laboratory in Texas. Forensic analysts linked the DNA on the cigarettes to a relative of the suspect, confirming the individual was present in the home at the time Rudolph was killed. Funding for the advanced testing was provided by a nonprofit organization dedicated to solving cold cases. Woman convicted of murder in grisly killing of San Francisco roommate Rudolph was found bludgeoned to death in her home on Carroll Court. She was alone at the time of the attack. While police identified a suspect shortly after the killing occurred in 1966, the individual took his own life only eight days after the homicide. Though he was a suspect at the time, investigators lacked the forensic capabilities to definitively link him to the scene until now. Harry Barbier, a retired San Rafael police officer, worked with another retired investigator to reopen the case. Barbier joined the department as a cadet in 1968, two years after the killing and has spent the last three years volunteering on cold case investigations. He noted that the original evidence was well-preserved. "I'm glad they collected the cigarettes," Barbier said. "They saw that those cigarettes probably belonged to the suspect although there wasn't much you can do with it, that time they did collect it and put it into evidence." The forensic breakthrough was made possible by Othram, a private laboratory based in Texas. Analysts at the lab extracted DNA from the cigarettes and compared it to the DNA of a relative of the suspect. "They compared it to the relative's DNA and it showed a connection, that the DNA on the cigarettes was related to that relative which put the original suspect in that house at the time of the homicide," Barbier said. Colby Lasyone is the chief of staff for Othram. Lasyone said the successful identification of the suspect highlights the persistence required to handle cases that span multiple generations of law enforcement. "Every one of these cases represents investigative effort by law enforcement agencies, the changing of hands when detectives retire, for when these cases drag on for years and for decades," Lasyone said. Investigators believe the victim and the suspect were acquaintances rather than strangers. The suspect's wife had previously worked for Rudolph's husband at a bank, establishing a link between the two families. However, the specific motive for the killing remains a mystery. Barbier said they believe something occurred between the families, "but that's probably something that we may never have a real answer on." Funding for the DNA testing was provided by Season of Justice, a nonprofit organization that assists law enforcement with the costs of advanced forensic technology in cold cases. Lasyone said the availability of such tools gives agencies the opportunity to resolve cases that were previously considered unsolvable. "The real moral of the story if you will is that there's a choice to use the technology that exists today and to help to resolve these cases when there's evidence from which DNA can be extracted and DNA profiles can be built," Lasyone said. Barbier said he has spoken with Rudolph's daughter, who expressed relief that the case has reached a conclusion. He is now moving on to investigate another cold case. "With the technology today, I would urge anyone who knows about any homicide to contact their local Police Department," Barbier said. "The technology is really good and in this case, 60 years, we were able to come to a successful conclusion." Anyone with information regarding this specific crime is still encouraged to contact the San Rafael Police Department. All facts in this report were gathered by journalists employed by KRON4. Artificial intelligence tools were used to reformat information into a news article for our website. This report was edited and fact-checked by KRON4 staff before being published. ...read more read less