1987 Cold Case Murder In St. Pete Solved Through DNA Match: PCSO

ST. PETERSBURG, FL — Thirty-six years after a cold case murder in St. Petersburg, detectives arrested a suspect in the case thanks to advancements in DNA testing, authorities said.

Michael Lapniewski, Jr., 55, of Mississippi was charged with first-degree murder in the death of 82-year-old Opal Weil, according to a Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office news release.

Deputies responded to Weil’s home in unincorporated St. Petersburg on Feb. 9, 1987, after her sister-in-law found her dead after she didn’t answer the phone.

Weil had obvious and visible signs of trauma, the sheriff’s office said. The suspect ran from the home before deputies arrived at the home.

Throughout the initial investigation, detectives learned that the suspect entered Weil’s home after removing a single windowpane to get into the Florida room. Detectives also discovered the phone line to the residence had been cut.

Forensic technicians collected evidence left at the scene, including several hairs, the agency said. A partial DNA profile was developed from the hairs, but no matches were identified until recently.

In December 2020, PCSO cold case detectives were assigned to the case. Detectives sent a request to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement for additional testing of the hairs found at Weil’s home. They also contacted Parabon Nanolabs for further genealogical testing.

After extensive testing by Parabon Nanolabs, family trees were constructed and familial relatives were identified, the sheriff’s office said. Of the relatives identified, the lab was able to narrow down the suspects to three possible males.

Detectives excluded two of the males, leaving Lapniewski as the primary suspect. At the time of the murder, he lived a half mile from Weil’s home.

Pinellas County detectives traveled to Mississippi, where the suspect lived, for further investigation. They obtained Lapniewski’s DNA, which was submitted to the FDLE for analysis, and found his DNA matched the evidence at the scene.