NorCal Man Accused of Murder
MURRIETA (CNS) – A 43-year-old Northern California man accused of gunning down a Hemet resident more than 20 years ago and leaving his body along a hiking path in the San Bernardino National Forest was charged last Wednesday with first-degree murder and other offenses.
James Robert Landi of San Mateo was arrested last week at his residence by detectives from the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department’s Cold Case Unit.
Along with murder, Landi is charged with a special circumstance allegation of lying in wait and sentence-enhancing gun and great bodily injury allegations.
He was slated to make his initial court appearance Wednesday afternoon at the Southwest Justice Center in Murrieta. The defendant is being held in lieu of $1 million bail at the nearby Byrd Detention Center.
According to sheriff’s Sgt. Jarred Bishop, Landi killed 18-year-old Reynaldo Burts in March 2004.
Bishop said the young man’s remains were located by a hiker in the area of Southfork Trail and Highway 74 west of Mountain Center, prompting an immediate call to 911.
“Deputies located the victim, who showed signs of obvious trauma,” the sergeant said.
Central Homicide Unit detectives spent several years on the case and identified Landi as a person of interest, but were unable to gather sufficient evidence to confirm he was the alleged perpetrator, according to Bishop.
The case went dormant until last August, when the Cold Case Unit reopened it and “identified additional investigative leads” that directly implicated the defendant, Bishop said.
No further details were disclosed, including a possible motive.
Bishop said detectives traveled to San Mateo, serving an arrest warrant on Landi at his home, where he was taken into custody without incident Friday afternoon. He was transported to Riverside County that night.
He has no documented prior felony convictions in Riverside County.
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