Family backs suspect of '75 slaying
| • | Witnesses often key to solving old cases |
| • | Unsolved homicides of 1970s, '80s |
By Johnny Brannon
Advertiser Staff Writer
Delmar J. Edmonds, accused of the rape and murder of 13-year-old Dawn "Dede" Bustamante in 1975, is a career government employee and churchgoing family man. His relatives and friends insist he is incapable of committing the crime for which he was arrested.
Associated Press
"They've got the wrong man," said Jennifer Edmonds, his wife of 10 years. "He has a heart of gold, and people who know him know that. We're trying to hold on to our faith that the truth will come out. He's not the one."
Delmar Edmonds' extradition hearing in Indiana is scheduled Tuesday.
Police arrested Edmonds in Indianapolis on Tuesday after interviewing four former Marines who said he made incriminating statements after the killing.
Edmonds, who maintains he is innocent, is scheduled to appear in an Indiana court on Tuesday for an extradition hearing.
The year Bustamante and another girl were abducted in Kailua, Edmonds was stationed at the nearby Marine Corps base in Kane'ohe, where records indicate he was assigned to Headquarters and Service Company, 1st Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment.
Edmonds worked as a "wireman," and his duties likely included such tasks as connecting field communications gear, said 1st Lt. Kent Robbins.
A year after the killing, Edmonds was hired by the Naval Air Warfare Center in Indianapolis, where he was a popular civilian truck driver and maintenance worker for more than 20 years.
"He was just the nicest guy," said Marc Smith, who worked in the mail room next to the garage Edmonds was assigned to. "There's nothing that would lead me to believe he would be involved in anything like what they say. It just amazes me."
Smith said Edmonds was known at the center by his middle name, Jerome, and that he rarely talked about his tour of duty with the Marines or other aspects of his past.
"He never really discussed his private life," said Smith, who played on an employees' softball team with Edmonds at the 3,000-worker facility. He said Edmonds at one time drove a bus for a local church, and that he was well-liked by co-workers.
When the Indianapolis base was privatized in 1997, Edmonds went to work for Hughes Technical Services, which took over the facility and later merged with Raytheon Technical Services Co.
Edmonds' wife said he is still employed there, and his voice can be heard on the company's telephone answering service. But a Raytheon spokeswoman said Edmonds had quit this spring; others at the company declined to comment.
According to police, Edmonds, now 46, admitted on Tuesday that he had owned two items described by the murder victim's friend, a 13-year-old girl who survived the attack: a revolver with pearl hand grips and a floppy yellow hat. The girl had picked Edmonds out of a police lineup three days after the killing, but could not positively identify him.
The Marines questioned about Edmonds over the past year told investigators they were afraid to tell authorities that they suspected he was the killer in 1975. One said Edmonds had threatened him with a gun like the one the surviving girl saw.
Edmonds' son said his father is a loving and responsible man who provides well for the family and is a church deacon.
"They've got this all wrong," said the son, who declined to give his name. "He's not capable of any of these things."
Edmonds' wife declined to provide any other details about her husband's life, but said she would fight to clear his name.
"I support him and I believe he is innocent," she said. "This is just devastating."
You can reach Johnny Brannon at jbrannon@honoluluadvertiser.com or 535-2431.
