Arrest made in 40-year-old Flagstaff murder case after DNA evidence match

FLAGSTAFF, AZ — The Flagstaff Police Department says it has cracked a 40-year-old cold case thanks to DNA.

In 1987, 24-year-old Ina Langstaff was a student at Northern Arizona University when she was found dead, stabbed outside her apartment in Flagstaff’s Old Town neighborhood.

Over the last four decades, cold case investigators continued to collect and reexamine evidence in their search for her killer.

In 2025, police say advanced forensic testing connected 62-year-old James Arthur Runnels Jr. to the killing.

The case was submitted to a grand jury, which led to the indictment of Runnels Jr. for first-degree murder earlier this month.

Runnels was a Flagstaff resident at the time of Langstaff’s murder.

On Monday, authorities took Runnels into police custody, according to the Coconino County Sheriff’s Office.

“Ina’s family has waited nearly four decades for answers,” said Coconino County Attorney Ammon Barker. “Our office, in partnership with the Flagstaff Police Department, has worked diligently to follow the evidence and take this important step toward justice for Ms. Langstaff, her family and our community.”

Police continue to ask for anyone with additional information related to this case to contact the Flagstaff Police Department at 928-774-1414 or Silent Witness at 928-774-6111.