Cold case finally closed with sentencing of killer

Duke Bunnell was dead 11 years before Las Vegas police were able to track down his killer.

After another two years in the valley's legal system, the Bunnell cold case officially closed Friday.

Craig Lombardo, who in February pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and robbery for Bunnel's 1997 slaying, was sentenced to 13 to 32 years in prison by District Judge Linda Bell.

Lombardo, now 50, was arrested in July 2008 after police used improved forensic technology to identify his and Bunnell's blood through samples saved from the crime scene.

Lombardo, who worked in the kitchen at Rob Roy's bar, on Maryland Parkway near Sahara Avenue, stabbed the 69-year-old Bunnell to death on the morning of July 10, 1997, according to police. Bunnell worked at the bar as a bookkeeper.

Investigators suspected Lombardo from the beginning, but in 1997 the technology used to examine evidence was not sophisticated enough to support a murder charge.

Police believed robbery was the motive for the slaying after finding both a cash register and file cabinet used to safeguard money opened.

Contact reporter Francis McCabe at fmccabe@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-1039.