DNA match solves 1987 murder of Arizona Navy veteran after suspect's suicide

In August 1987, the body of 54-year-old Navy veteran Orison James "Jim" Chafin was discovered in a Glendale cemetery, his throat cut and only wearing socks. Detectives later recovered three male DNA profiles from items at the scene, but none matched a suspect until the case was revived in 2025. The renewed investigation led to Gary Wayne Billups, a man who had not been interviewed in the original probe and whose arrest records placed him in Glendale at the time of the killing.

After initially refusing contact, Billups agreed to an interview in June and voluntarily gave a DNA sample, which matched the forensic evidence. He died by suicide a few days later, ending any possibility of prosecution, but confirming his involvement in the murder.