Brevard County Sheriff’s Office agents arrested Robert Edward Peek, 47, today on charges of first-degree premeditated murder in a cold case from 1988.
Ramona Lee Moore, 22, of Melbourne was killed in July, 1988. Construction workers paving a northern extension of Washingtonia Drive, west of Melbourne, discovered the body of a woman later identified as Moore. She was found nude, beaten and left in a retention area that had filled with water during a recent rain. The medical examiner determined the cause of death to be drowning and classified the death as a homicide.
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“It is a very good feeling when we can meet with the family and tell them that the individual responsible for their loss is being brought to justice,” Sheriff Jack Parker said.
A DNA profile obtained from evidence from the murder scene matched Peek’s profile through a CODIS hit in 2011, according to a release from the sheriff’s office. Following an interview this year about the murder, agents said Peek denied any involvement and provided a DNA sample. Lab comparisons between this sample and evidence from the murder confirmed the previous results, they said.
Earlier today, homicide agents interviewed Peek again, who has been detained at the Brevard County Jail since his arrest on Jan. 16, in reference to two cases involving the trafficking of stolen property. Agents said that interview and the DNA findings led to them obtaining a warrant for Peek’s arrest.
This investigation is the sixth cold case homicide solved by the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office Homicide Unit during the past three years.
Anyone with information about the investigation is asked to call the homicide unit at 321-633-8413 or CRIMELINE at 1-800-423-TIPS (8477). All calls to CRIMELINE are confidential, and callers can remain anonymous and be eligible for a reward for information leading to an arrest.
