An Arizona man is set to be extradited to Texas to face capital murder charges after modern forensic techniques linked him to the 1981 murder of 23-year-old Yolanda Herrera. Kelly Lee Brower, 68, was arrested on August 19, 2026, in Cottonwood, Arizona.
Herrera’s body was discovered on April 13, 1981, in a field near East Aviation Drive in Bexar County. She had been sexually assaulted and beaten to death after reportedly being last seen walking home from a local bar. Despite extensive investigative efforts, investigators were unable to identify the perpetrator, and the case remained unsolved for more than four decades.
A major breakthrough came in 2020 when the case was selected for the Texas Department of Public Safety’s Sexual Assault Kit Initiative (SAKI). The initiative, supported by the U.S. Department of Justice’s Bureau of Justice Assistance, provides resources for investigating unresolved sexual assaults and sexually related homicides.
Investigators from the Texas Rangers and Universal City Police Department submitted evidence from the original investigation for advanced DNA analysis and genetic genealogy research. In 2021, BODE Technologies conducted a surname search that generated an investigative lead. BODE Labs also successfully extracted a limited DNA profile from critical evidence, although the quantity was initially insufficient for genealogical analysis.
Further testing in 2025 by Othram Laboratories enabled investigators to apply Forensic Investigative Genetic Genealogy (FIGG) to the DNA evidence. The analysis produced a potential suspect, ultimately leading investigators to Brower.
Investigators later traveled to Arizona and interviewed Brower multiple times. During the interviews, he confessed to Herrera’s murder. He was subsequently arrested and is expected to be extradited to Texas to face prosecution.
The case highlights the growing role of advanced DNA analysis and forensic genetic genealogy in cold-case investigations. Evidence that remained inconclusive for decades was revisited using newer technologies, providing investigators with a critical lead and helping move the case toward prosecution.
The investigation involved multiple agencies and forensic laboratories, including the Texas Rangers, Universal City Police Department, Bexar County Medical Examiner’s Office, Cottonwood Police Department, BODE Technologies, Othram Laboratories, Bexar County Crime Laboratory and the Texas Department of Public Safety Crime Laboratory Division.