Danville, San Ramon Rapes Recalled As DNA Cracks Cold Case Deaths

EAST BAY, CA — The same DNA technology that helped capture the accused Golden State Killer — who is linked to multiple murders across California and several rapes in Danville, San Ramon and nearby areas — has helped police identify the suspect in the slaying of two 16-year-olds in Fremont in 1982, authorities said Tuesday.

Clifton Hudspeth has been dead for 20 years, but Fremont police say Investigative Genetic Genealogy shows he killed Mary Jane Malatag and Jeffrey Flores Atup, who were cousins. That investigative process involves finding familial ties through DNA databases such as 23andMe, AncestryDNA, and many others — the same technique that saw the 2018 arrest of Joseph DeAngelo, believed to be the Golden State Killer and East Area Rapist.

At about 6 a.m. on Dec. 20, 1982, a caller reported they had seen what they believed to be a body located near the intersection of Green Valley and Scott Creek roads in Fremont, near the Milpitas border, according to police.

Officers who arrived at the area found Atup dead and it was immediately apparent, based on visible injuries, that he was the victim of a homicide, police said.

At 8:35 a.m. that same day police received a second call reporting a person down near the intersection of Hunter Lane and Mission Boulevard. Officers who responded found Malatag dead and she also had visible injuries and was believed to be the victim of a homicide.

Fremont police said initially it wasn't known if the two homicides were related but as the investigators learned that the two victims were cousins and had been together the prior evening in Milpitas.

Atup worked at the Serra Theaters in Milpitas and Malatag was at the movie theater with some friends, waiting for Atup to get off work. After Atup closed up the theater, they walked to a local 7-eleven store off of North Abel Street in Milpitas and bought some food with Malatag's friend.

When they left that area Malatag and Atup were last seen walking northbound on North Abel Street at about 12:35 a.m. on Dec. 20, 1982. It was believed they were walking to Atup's residence on Horcajo Street in Milpitas but the two never made it home, police said.

There was an extensive investigation with multiple interviews with possible persons of interest but the case went cold.

In 1999, while DNA was becoming more prevalent in investigating crimes, Fremont police detectives began to look at the case again and located key DNA evidence that was uploaded into the state and national DNA databases in an attempt to find a match to the known offender. But there was no match to anyone in the database and no new leads developed.

In 2018, Detective Jacob Blass, Fremont police's cold case homicide investigator, took a renewed look at the case and determined additional information was available that needed to be reviewed and they had the opportunity to use new DNA technology.

The same Investigative Genetic Genealogy process that was used in identifying DeAngelo as the suspect in the Golden State Killer case eventually identified Hudspeth as the suspect in the deaths of Malatag and Atup, police said. (DNA evidence also tied DeAngelo to rapes in Contra Costa County that occurred from Oct. 1978 to July 1979 — three were in Danville, two in San Ramon, two in Concord and one in Walnut Creek. DeAngelo cannot be charged with the sex crimes because the statute of limitations expired, but he has been charged with 13 counts of murder and 13 counts of kidnapping in other cases.)

Hudspeth, who was 31 in 1982, had lived in Milpitas at the time of the murders and lived relatively close to where the teenagers had been seen walking. Police said he had a history of violence, including bank robberies, sexual assaults and attempted homicide.

Sources were able to confirm Hudspeth was in the area of Jacklin Road in Milpitas on Dec. 19, 1982, at about the time Malatag and Atup were walking home, according to police. In addition, Hudspeth's residence was a four-minute drive from the area where Atup's body was located.

But once Hudspeth was identified as a potential suspect in the double homicide it was discovered he had been dead since October 1999, police said. He died at age 48 as the result of a medical condition.

To confirm Hudspeth's involvement, a search warrant was approved to exhume Hudspeth's remains interred at a cemetery in Santa Clara. DNA evidence was extracted from his remains and through DNA testing he was confirmed as the suspect in the case, according to police.

Fremont police said they believe Hudspeth acted alone and is the only suspect in the case. But they said a motive for the murders is not available at this time.

Fremont police also said it is believed Hudspeth may have been involved in other crimes around the time of the 1982 murders. He was known to be in Arkansas and San Diego in the months preceding the deaths of Malatag and Atup, police said.

Fremont detectives met with the families of Atup and Malatag to share the information they had uncovered; the families asked for privacy at this time, police said. Detectives also notified Hudspeth's family of the finding.

Fremont police said anyone who has any information about the deaths of Malatag and Atup or any other cases in which they believe Hudspeth may be involved should contact Detective Blass at 510-790-6963.

—Bay City News contributed to this report.