DNA Evidence Breakthrough
For decades, the murders remained unsolved. But new DNA testing in 2024 and 2025 linked Bastian to the crime. Mixtures of his DNA were found inside a pair of shoes provided by his then-girlfriend, on the knife handle used in the stabbing, and on Thompson’s nightshirt.
Despite his consistent denials of being at the restaurant the day of the killings, the jury convicted Bastian of two counts of first-degree murder, as well as special-circumstance allegations of committing multiple murders, killing during a burglary, and using a knife in the crimes.
Bastian is scheduled to be sentenced on September 24, 2025, where he faces life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Cold Case Task Force Success
The work of the Monterey County Cold Case Task Force, established in 2020 with federal funding to investigate and prosecute unsolved homicides, resulted in a conviction.
According to the District Attorney’s Office, the task force has secured convictions in seven cold-case murders at trial, with two additional defendants pleading guilty.
