MINOCQUA, Wis.–An arrest has been made in a 36-year-old cold case involving the murder of a credit union employee who had been working alone in a branch.
Police here have arrested Robin Mendez, 69, the former husband of Barbara Mendez, who was 33 at the time she was found bludgeoned to death at the former Park City Credit Union here on April 28, 1982.
Terri Hook, a captain with the Oneida County Sheriff’s Office, told the Northwoods River News that investigators decided several months ago to take a fresh look at the unsolved murder of Barbara Mendez. The publication reported that after re-interviewing multiple witnesses and combing through several boxes of information, Hook and the sheriff's department's detective bureau compiled a comprehensive report on the case and turned it over to district attorney Michael Schiek who filed a 36-page criminal complaint charging Robin "Bob" Mendez with the murder of his wife.
According to the complaint, Barbara Mendez was left alone in the credit union office, then located at U.S. Highway 51 and County J, [it has since been torn down] after the manager went home sick on April 28, 1982. She was expected to close up for the day at approximately 5 p.m., the Northwoods River News reported. This was the first and only time Mendez closed the credit union alone, according to a statement the manager gave investigators.
“Computerized records show Mendez had begun entering the balance sheet, a key part of her closing activities, at 5:02 p.m. and finished at 5:13 p.m.,” the publication reported. “Approximately two hours later, the manager received a call from Robin Mendez reporting that Barbara was expected at the Assembly of God Church in Woodruff at 6:15 p.m. and had not arrived. According to the manager, Robin asked her to drive to the credit union office and look for Barbara. Although the church was actually closer to the credit union than her home, the manager agreed to go look for Barbara. According to the complaint, the manager told investigators she immediately noticed Barbara's car was still in the credit union parking lot and became alarmed after realizing that the door to the office was unlocked. After walking inside, she discovered Barbara's body face down on the floor in front of the credit union's safe. She later noted that a deposit bag containing approximately $2,700 was missing but approximately $17,000 was plainly visible in the open safe.”
The complaint does not explicitly state a motive for the murder, but it does include multiple statements from witnesses who were concerned that Robin Mendez was involved in an inappropriate relationship with a teenage girl in the months preceding the murder. In an interview with Hook, the female in question confirmed she became sexually active with Mendez in the summer of 1981 when she was 14 years old, the Northwoods River News reported.
Police said one issue that has slowed the investigation since the murder has been alibi statements made by the Mendez daughters, Dawn, who was 13 on the day her mother was killed, and Christy, who was 11, placing their father at home at the time of the murder. “However, the women now say their father manipulated and coached them to the point that their memories are too ‘convoluted to give an accurate recounting of the timeframes of that day,’ the complaint states,” police said.
In a statement to the Northwoods River News, Val Mindak, president and CEO of Park City Credit Union, said, "It's a 36-year-old cold case and we're pleased to see that's its reopened. We hope the findings provide some resolution for the family of Barbara Mendez.”
Bail for Robin Mendez has been set at $250,000 cash after prosecutors expressed concern that Mendez could pose a flight risk, as he has a criminal history that includes convictions for child sexual assault.
The full story can be found here: http://www.rivernewsonline.com/main.asp?SectionID=6&SubSectionID=47&ArticleID=80334