CROWN POINT — A 27-year-old Gary homicide investigation has led to a murder charge after advances in DNA technology and a renewed review of evidence identified a suspect investigators say had been on their radar since the original investigation.
Lake County Prosecutor Bernard A. Carter announced Wednesday that Alfred Kevin Sanders has been charged with Murder in the December 1998 killing of Jacqueline “Jackie” Soto. Sanders was taken into custody Wednesday by the Lake County Police Department.
“This arrest sends a clear message: the passage of time does not erase our commitment to victims or their families,” Carter said. “For more than 27 years, Jacqueline Soto’s family has lived without answers. Jackie was not forgotten. Her case was not forgotten. Today represents an important step toward accountability and justice.”
According to court documents, Gary police officers responded to a residence in the 500 block of Buchanan Street on the evening of December 29, 1998, after Soto’s body was discovered inside the home by her landlord.
The probable cause affidavit states investigators found evidence of a violent assault throughout the residence.
Detectives reported Soto was found lying face down in a pot on the floor. Her clothing was disheveled and she suffered multiple injuries, including facial lacerations, broken eyeglasses near the body, blunt-force trauma to the back of her head and Christmas lights wrapped around her neck.
Investigators also documented blood throughout the home, broken glass, bloody shoe prints leading upstairs and back through the hallway, suspected drug paraphernalia, and dresser drawers that had been removed. Although a television was missing, detectives noted the speakers remained, suggesting the home may have been staged to resemble a robbery.
An autopsy determined Soto died from asphyxia due to strangulation, with extensive soft tissue hemorrhaging and multiple abrasions to her neck. Her death was ruled a homicide.
Assistant Chief Nicholas Wardrip of the Hobart Police Department and the Lake County Prosecutor’s Task Force reopened the investigation by reviewing decades-old reports, photographs, witness statements and preserved forensic evidence.
Investigators submitted fingernail clippings collected from Soto during the original autopsy for modern DNA testing.
According to the affidavit, forensic scientists developed an unknown male DNA profile that was entered into the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS). In September 2025, that profile matched convicted offender Alfred Kevin Sanders.
Investigators later obtained Sanders’ DNA through a court-authorized buccal swab. Laboratory testing concluded the DNA found beneath Soto’s fingernails was “very strong support” for Sanders being the contributor.
The affidavit states one DNA sample from Soto’s left-hand fingernail clippings was reported to be approximately 220 million times more likely if it originated from Sanders and Soto than from Soto and an unknown individual. Additional testing reportedly found another sample was approximately 26 thousand times more likely to have originated from Sanders and Soto than from Soto and an unrelated individual.
Further Y-STR testing also supported the findings, according to investigators.
Investigators noted Sanders was considered a possible suspect in 1998 because he and Soto were reportedly involved in a relationship and because he was known to sell drugs.
During interviews conducted in September 2025 and again in February 2026, Sanders admitted knowing Soto, purchasing and selling drugs with her, and being inside her Buchanan Street residence before her death.
He also acknowledged that Soto had previously sold drugs on his behalf and said he was last at her home around Christmas 1998 because he believed there was a dog there he wanted.
Sanders denied killing Soto and denied ever having a sexual relationship with her. However, according to the affidavit, he was unable to explain why his DNA was recovered beneath Soto’s fingernails.
Witnesses identified Sanders years earlier
The affidavit also details statements from Soto’s longtime friend, who told investigators she last saw Soto around Thanksgiving before the homicide.
According to the witness, Soto had expressed fear of Sanders, known by the nickname “Sunday School” because of disputes involving drugs and money. The witness said Soto had told her Sanders wanted his money and believed Soto might have had it.
The witness also described Sanders as a large man who would often isolate Soto in a room during visits to her Fayette Street residence and recalled Soto appearing frightened of him.
Prosecutor Carter credited the case’s resolution to the persistence of investigators and advances in forensic science.
“Cold cases demand extraordinary patience, persistence and collaboration,” Carter said. “This case demonstrates the tremendous value of preserving evidence and using advances in forensic science to revisit unsolved homicides.”
Carter recognized the work of the Hobart Police Department, Gary Police Department, Lake County Prosecutor’s Task Force, Indiana State Police forensic personnel, Lake County Crime Scene Unit and the Lake County Coroner’s Office for their roles in bringing charges.
As with all criminal cases, the charge is merely an accusation, and Alfred Kevin Sanders is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.
