Salt Lake police seeking new information on 30-year-old Rosie Tapia murder investigation

KEY TAKEAWAYS

Salt Lake City police seek public help to solve Rosie Tapia's 1995 murder.
Authorities want to identify two Hispanic teens who were allegedly at Tapia's apartment the night before she was killed.

SALT LAKE CITY — Salt Lake City police are seeking information from the public that they hope will help them solve the 30-year-old abduction and murder of 6-year-old Rosie Tapia.

On Aug. 13, 1995, someone abducted the young girl from her ground-level bedroom window at the old Hartland Apartments, 1616 W. Snow Queen Place (1675 South), took her across the street to the banks of the nearby Jordan River surplus canal, sexually assaulted her, and then murdered her.

Despite numerous pleas over the years from Rosie's mother, police, and the Utah Cold Case Coalition for help solving the three-decades-old case, no one has ever been arrested and no charges have been filed.

Now, Salt Lake City police are hoping a break in the case might come by identifying and speaking with two teen Hispanic boys who, according to witnesses, were visiting a babysitter or babysitters at the Tapia apartment on the night of Aug. 12, 1995. The boys were believed to be 16 to 20 years old at the time, had "slender to medium builds," and were both possibly associated with a Salt Lake City street gang, police announced on Monday.

"The boys were in the apartment without the knowledge or permission of Rosie Tapia's parents. They were seen by a witness drinking beer with the babysitters," Salt Lake police stated. "Detectives believe these boys could have vital information about the kidnapping and murder of Rosie Tapia. The people at the apartment that night would now be 40 to 50 years old."

The plea for information is the latest attempt to bring closure to a case that recently marked its 30th anniversary.

Lewine Tapia told KSL on Monday she never lost hope that her daughter's killer will be found. She said Salt Lake City Police Chief Brian Redd met with her and told her investigators haven't given up the case.

"I would like to see this person eye to eye," she said.

"If they could find who these two are, or if somebody would give the information who these two persons were, I'd be grateful. I want more than anything to solve her case," Lewine Tapia said.

Over the years, the Utah Cold Case Coalition has presented new clues to the public in hopes that someone would step forward with the key piece of evidence to solve the mystery. In 2019, members hoped that a Barbie might spark new leads. That same year, a new sketch of a possible suspect was also released. In 2017, the coalition announced it had new, promising leads into the investigation. The family has continued to hold press conferences to keep the case alive in the public eye.

Anyone with information on this case can call Salt Lake police at 801-799-3000.

Contributing: Debbie Worthen

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