Man convicted of raping, killing mentally disabled woman in Colo. Springs nearly 20 years ago

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colorado — A jury has convicted a man of raping and murdering a mentally disabled woman in Colorado Springs nearly 20 years ago.

The Gazette reports (http://bit.ly/11JL8F2 ) 58-year-old Jose Burciaga-Ruiz was found guilty Friday of first-degree murder, second-degree murder and sexual assault in the death of 38-year-old Sharon Lee Sklavos. His sentencing is set for May 31.

Sklavos' partially nude body was found in a field July 31, 1994.

Investigators always suspected Burciaga-Ruiz was involved, but the case against him was circumstantial — until police resubmitted evidence for DNA testing by the Colorado Bureau of Investigation with the help of a cold-case grant. The results came back in 2012 with a match to Burciaga-Ruiz, who was working as a roofer in Nebraska.

Burciaga-Ruiz dated Sklavos' sister at the time of the slaying.

Information from: The Gazette, http://www.gazette.com

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