Police in Canada’s capital say they have identified a suspect in a fatal stabbing that happened nearly three decades ago. The suspect, a man from Vancouver, British Columbia, was arrested and charged with second-degree murder after advanced DNA testing helped authorities link him to the crime.

Lawrence Diehl, now 73, is accused of killing 22-year-old Christopher Smith on April 12, 1996. according to Ottawa police. Smith was stabbed to death on the Portage Bridge, which connects Ottawa, the capital of Canada, with Gatineau in the neighboring province of Quebec.

“Advances in forensics and DNA have allowed police to identify the perpetrator and the matter is now before the courts,” Ottawa police said in a statement.

Diehl was arrested in Vancouver on Dec. 10, police said. Investigators brought the suspect back to Ottawa within a week, and he made his first court appearance over the weekend.

Multiple law enforcement agencies from across Canada have been working since 2020 to solve Smith’s cold case, including the National Police. Diel was identified by research genetic genealogywhere scientists and researchers use a combination of genetic testing and genealogical research to build a family tree for the individual whose sample is being evaluated.

In Smith’s case, scientists used genome sequencing to build a DNA profile of the murder suspect, according to Othram Inc., a laboratory that specializes in forensic genetic genealogy to assist law enforcement. Otram’s revelations allowed police working the case to develop new leads and pursue a renewed investigation, culminating in Diehl’s identification.

Diehl’s arrest marked the closure of Ottawa police’s oldest cold case and the first time the department has used genetic genealogy to solve a crime.

“By laying these charges, the Ottawa Police Service demonstrates once again that we will never stop working for victims of crime and their loved ones,” Ottawa Police Chief Eric Stubbs said in a statement. “We will continue to embrace innovative techniques to solve cases and I commend the members of our Homicide Unit for ensuring that no case is ever forgotten and no effort is spared.”

Stubbs said police have contacted Smith’s family to update them on new developments in his case. Investigators asked anyone with information about Diehl and his time in Ottawa to contact the Ottawa Police Service’s homicide unit, as detectives learned he was there for work at the time of the murder.