U.S. and Mexican police say they have caught a woman in Mexico who they believe killed her fire captain wife. The woman had been on the run for more than a month.
Five-three-year-old Yolanda Marodi was caught on Saturday at a hotel in Mexicali, close to the U.S. border, according to the Baja California Citizen Security Secretariat.
The woman was then turned over to U.S. marshals in San Diego, where she was booked for the death of Rebecca Marodi, 49. Here, she was charged with murder.
The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation says that Yolanda was released in 2013 after more than 13 years in jail for voluntary manslaughter in the death of her then-husband, James Joseph Olejniczak Jr.
Rebecca Marodi, a captain for Cal Fire, was killed by stabbing in her own home on February 17. A main suspect was Yolanda, who later that day crossed the line into Mexico to get away.
Video security showed Yolanda getting into a fight with Rebecca and hitting her on the day of the fatal stabbing.
KABC got a copy of an arrest warrant that says Rebecca told Yolanda she was leaving her and ending their marriage almost a week before she was killed.
Police said they heard someone screaming, “Yolanda, please don’t die!” Yolanda told Rebecca, “You should have thought about that before,” while standing in front of her with what looked like a knife in her hand, say the police report.
Yolanda left the couple’s house before Rebecca’s mother got there, as seen on surveillance video. Rebecca was found with injuries in her neck, chest, and back that looked like they were caused by cutting.
Police in the sheriff’s office said that homicide agents are working to find out more about Rebecca’s death and why she was killed.
