A previously overlooked scrap of human tissue inside a rental car led to an arrest in the bludgeoning death of "Hogan's Heroes" star Bob Crane, killed 14 years ago.
John Henry Carpenter, a 64-year-old former friend of the actor, was arrested in California on a murder warrant Monday and jailed without bail for a July 1 hearing. He was accused of crushing Crane's skull with a camera tripod.Carpenter, who had been under suspicion for years, has repeatedly denied killing Crane. He called his arrest "tomfoolery." And his lawyer, Gary Fleischman, said the delay would preclude a fair trial.
At a news conference, Maricopa County Attorney Richard Romley gave no motive for the slaying.
The Arizona Republic said investigators found videotapes Crane had made of himself having sex with women, raising speculation that Crane was killed by a jealous husband or boyfriend.
In court papers, investigators said tests on tissue found inside Carpenter's rental car indicated it might contain brain matter. The discovery of the tissue had been overlooked by previous investigators, authorities said.
Blood found in the car was type B, the same as Crane's, and of all the people known to have ridden in that car while Carpenter had it, only the actor had type B, the complaint against Carpenter said.
The complaint identified the murder weapon as a camera tripod. It said one was missing from Crane's apartment.
Crane, who played the wisecracking and devious Col. Robert Hogan in the 1960s TV series, was killed on Jan. 29, 1978.