The Retiree Who Caught the Valentine's Ghost

A retiree discovered genealogy as a hobby and solved a Valentine's Day murder eleven years later from her computer. Art Sarin saw the killer escape in 2007, but classic forensic science never found him. In November 2018, a DNA test from a 2011 bank robbery identified the man who left his perfectly arranged sneakers by the door: David Mabrio, a normal neighbor from Carlsbad, already dead when he was found. In this episode, you will discover how genetic profiling and investigative genealogy revolutionized impossible cold cases. The killer of the "Valentine's Day Crime" lived in the same city where he killed, passed by his victim's parents on the night of the crime, and evaded all databases for a decade because he had no recorded criminal history. You will see how a forensic technique that did not exist in 2007 - and a family tree reconstructed by a grandmother from her home - solved what fifty swabbed suspects could not. Case Details Victim: Jodine Sarin, 29 years old, assistant director with intellectual disability Date: February 14, 2007 Location: Carlsbad, California, United States Status: Closed case; posthumously identified killer in November 2018 - Why did the complete DNA of the killer available since 2007 not produce a match in eleven years of searching? - How did a swab from an unrelated bank robbery in 2011 become the final piece of the puzzle? - What did David Mabrio do the week after he was swabbed in 2011 that completely changed his behavior? - Did Marissa Mabrio know who her ex-partner was when she first denied recognizing the sneakers? Who solves impossible crimes: detectives or the person who builds the correct family tree? Valentine's Day murder Carlsbad, forensic investigative genealogy, cold case solved DNA, Jodine Sarin, David Mabrio, Parabon Nanolabs, genetic profiling, Barbara Rae Venter, unsolved DNA crime, true crime Spanish podcast If you want to listen to this podcast without ads and have access to premium episodes, we invite you to try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com. © 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved. This episode and its content (audio, text, and associated materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use in whole or in part is prohibited without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA. For permissions, licenses, and business inquiries, write to: [email protected].