A convicted burglar serving time in prison was arrested and charged with first-degree murder, burglary and kidnapping in connection with the 2008 disappearance of an east-side woman.
Tucson police announced the arrest in the cold case on Tuesday.
On Feb. 15, 2008, the family of Kay Read, then 62, reported that Read and her van, a turquoise 1996 Dodge Caravan, were missing. Read needed crutches and leg braces to walk, which were left at her house along with her glasses, according to previous reports about the case.ย
The day after Read went missing from her home in the 7300 block of East marigold Circle near Davis-Monthan Air Force Base on Feb. 14, her Caravan was found ablaze in a parking lot less than two miles from her home at the intersection of East Golf Links and South Kolb roads.
Police later obtained surveillance footage showing a man purchasing gasoline for Readโs vehicle at a Conoco gas station, the Star reported in 2008.
Because of "suspicious circumstances," police investigated Read's disappearance as a homicide.
Police detectives identified Luis Vargas as a potential suspect early on in the investigation. Vargas was sentenced to prison for an unrelated incident later in 2008, authorities said.
The police were aware that Vargas was already in prison, which gave the police more time to investigate thoroughly, said Sgt. Chris Widmer, a police spokesman. ย
Tucson police worked together with the Pima County Attorney's Office and more than six years after Read went missing, arrested Vargas.ย
On Nov. 24, Vargas was charged and arraigned with first-degree murder, second degree burglary and kidnapping.ย
In 1997, Vargas was arrested and later convicted in Pima County Consolidated Justice Court of driving under the influence. He was sentenced to one year in prison.
In 2004, he was again arrested for DUI. He pleaded guilty to aggravated DUI while having a suspended license.
He was sentenced to 2 1/2 years in prison.
His criminal behavior began to escalate, when in 2007 he was arrested and charged with burglary and auto theft. He pleaded guilty to theft of a means of transportation and was sentenced to 3 1/2 years in prison.
Before being sentenced on the 2007 offense, Vargas pleaded guilty to an unrelated 2008 burglary. He was sentenced to four years in prison to be served consecutive with the 2007 conviction.
His release date for the prior conviction was scheduled for today, Dec. 2.
Since her disappearance in 2008, Read’s family has been searching for traces of her and the suspects by offering a $20,000 reward and establishing a website in her honor, FindKayRead.com, where members of the family periodically post updates.
In a Jan. 29 posting, the family wrote, โWill we ever get answers? I doubt that the person or persons responsible for this evil act will ever read this, but our hopes and prayers are someday they will slip up and make another mistake and get caught. Or better yet that something will soften their hearts and they give us an anonymous tip or lead to help us find Kay and bring her home.โ
The family has also set up blood drives in Readโs honor. The upcoming blood drive is on Sunday, Dec. 14.
The Star reached out to Mary R. Seagle, Readโs sister. She was not immediately available for comment.ย
