Serial killer suspect Joseph Naso and his wife's DNA were found on the two East Bay women he is charged with murdering, documents released Thursday reveal.
Naso, who is charged with killing four Northern California women in the 1970s and 1990s, also identified the women in a handwritten list of 10 women and 10 different locations. Detectives found press clippings about two victims in Naso's Reno safe deposit box, according to the probable cause documents released in response to a Bay Area News Group information request.
The arrest documents paint Naso as a serial killer and bondage fetishist who sought out prostitutes to strangle.
Marin County prosecutors charged the 77-year-old Reno resident in April. Naso, who represents himself in court, could receive the death penalty if convicted.
Authorities found most of the evidence during a probation search of Naso's home on April 13, 2010. It linked him to the unsolved killings of Roxene Roggasch, found near Fairfax in January 1977; Carmen Colon, found near Port Costa in August 1978; Pamela Parsons, found in September 1993 in Linda; and Tracy Tafoya, found in Marysville in August 1994.
During the search, investigators found thousands of photos of nude or scantily clad women, often in bondage poses. Sources have told Bay Area News Group that over the past year, investigators have been trying to identify the hundreds of women featured in those images. One model was Naso's former elderly fiancee Mildred Gardner, who met him at a Reno senior center and was photographed in revealing poses. Sources say the photos include young and old women, from all races, and from various decades. However, no children were included in the photographs.
"Some of these women appeared passed out or deceased," wrote Marin County Sheriff's Office investigator Ryan Petersen in his April 11 probable cause form shortly before arresting Naso who was in custody on a probation violation.
The trove of evidence collected shows the first sign of DNA evidence linking him to the victims and appears to reveal a serial killer suspect who took pains to document his alleged crimes, including the handwritten list.
'Girl near Port Costa'
DNA evidence found on the fingernail clippings taken from Colon's body revealed a "partial, foreign DNA profile" that included Naso as a possible contributor, Petersen wrote.
A CHP officer found Colon's naked, decomposed body on Aug. 13, 1978 below Carquinez Scenic Drive just outside of Port Costa. A pathologist determined Colon died from "homicidal violence of undetermined origin."
Shortly before her death, Colon told her sister that she was having her photo taken, Petersen wrote.
Naso, a self-employed photographer, admitted to photographing women, including prostitutes, Petersen noted.
On Naso's handwritten list of women, investigators believe Colon was No. 2 -- "Girl near Port Costa."
'Girl near Loganitas' [sic]
Investigators believe Roxene Roggasch is girl No. 3 on Naso's list -- identified as "Girl near Loganitas," a misspelling of the Marin County town of Lagunitas.
Roggasch's body was found along Sir Francis Drake Boulevard four miles east of the small west Marin town.
At the time of her death on Jan. 11, 1977, Roggasch had been working as a prostitute in Oakland and the East Bay, near where Naso and his family lived.
Cold case investigators began looking at Roggasch's case because she was strangled and bound with pantyhose, which was consistent with Naso's fetish, Petersen wrote.
The DNA of Naso's wife Judith was found on the pantyhose, Petersen wrote.
Cemetery girl
Tracy Tafoya, who was working in the Yuba City area as a prostitute, was found dumped on the side of Highway 70 next to the Marysville Cemetery on Aug. 6, 1994, near Naso's home.
Tafoya was No. 10 on Naso's list of women, with the final entry making reference to a girl from Marysville and "(cemetery)" written next to it, Petersen wrote.
In Naso's safe deposit box, investigators found newspaper articles and photos related to the Tafoya's death. At his Reno home, detectives found "writings referring to the disappearance and death of Tafoya."
'Girl from Linda'
Investigators found significant evidence tying Naso to prostitute Pamela Parsons, who was found strangled on Sept. 19, 1993 in a rural area of Yuba County near where Naso then worked and lived.
Investigators found newspaper articles describing her death in his safe deposit box. Additional photos of Parsons, numerous writings, logs and a calendar from 1993 detailing
Naso's daily activities related to her were also found in his residence. Naso told investigators he had photographed Parsons, Petersen wrote.
Naso frequently sold items at the Marysville flea market and wrote that he attended the fair the day of and day before Parsons body was found one-and-a-half miles away.
Investigators believe Parsons, who is from the town of Linda, is No. 9 on Naso's list, identified as "Girl from Linda (Yuba County)," Petersen wrote.
The documents were unsealed by Marin Superior Court Judge Andrew Sweet in response to a motion by an alliance of media organizations, including Bay Area News Group.
The documents -- Petersen's statements on the probable cause to justify arresting Naso without a warrant -- were sealed at Naso's April arraignment at the request of Marin County District Attorney Ed Berberian.
The media argued that Petersen's statements were court records that should be available for public access. Prosecutors argued that unsealing the documents would compromise
Naso's right to a fair trial and could jeopardize an ongoing investigation.
Sweet ruled in the media's favor, saying the prosecutors' concerns were "speculative"; that the public has a presumptive right of access to court records; that much of the information has already been reported; and that the evidence will be presented anyway at Naso's preliminary hearing July 11.
"It reaffirms a basic tenet that an understanding of the facts underlying a criminal complaint are of utmost importance to the public and that the public has a right to see and understand the basis for arresting, charging and holding a criminal defendant pending trial," said Duffy Carolan, the lawyer for the media organizations. "We don't do that in secret in this country."
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The probable cause document is at the link.
