Investigator reveals eerie detail from search of Golden State Killer suspect's home

An FBI forensics team collects evidence from the home of Joseph DeAngelo in Citrus Heights on April 26, 2018. An FBI forensics team collects evidence from the home of Joseph DeAngelo in Citrus Heights on April 26, 2018. Photo: Paul Chinn / The Chronicle Buy photo Photo: Paul Chinn / The Chronicle Image 1 of / 35 Caption Close Investigator reveals eerie detail from search of Golden State Killer suspect's home 1 / 35 Back to Gallery

So far, the items found inside the Citrus Heights home of Joseph DeAngelo have remained a closely guarded secret. But one investigator who saw the scene just dropped an eerie detail about the Golden State Killer suspect.

Paul Holes, a cold-case investigator for the Contra Costa County district attorney's office, said on the popular true crime podcast "My Favorite Murder" that an oddly placed towel "left the biggest impression" on him.

When the Golden State Killer escalated to attacking couples, he was known to separate husbands from wives. He would force the woman from her bedroom to the living room and bind her there. Once in the living room, he would sometimes turn on the TV, flick off the sound, and drape a towel over the screen to give himself a faint glow in which to see his victim.

After DeAngelo's arrest on April 24, Holes was part of a team of investigators who gained access to his home. He immediately saw an echo of the television signature in DeAngelo's room.

"He has a computer there, and he's got a towel over the monitor," Holes said on the podcast. "And I'm looking at that going, 'Is that just a dust cover, or is he reminiscing?' He wants a glow. Is he pulling out any of those souvenirs and replicating the glowing environment from back in the 1970s?"

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The Golden State Killer took dozens of items from his victims — the "souvenirs" Holes references — including customized jewelry, keys and single earrings. The majority of the rapes occurred in the Sacramento area, earning the suspect the "East Area Rapist" nickname. Further rapes — and eventually homicides — were linked to the same man prowling across the state, from Danville to Goleta.

Police allege DeAngelo committed 12 murders, 45 rapes and more than 150 break-ins from 1976-86. DeAngelo has been charged with two murders in Sacramento County and four in Santa Barbara County; prosecutors in Ventura and Orange counties are also looking into filing additional charges.

MORE: Paul Holes recalls nearly knocking on suspect's door

"I think it will eventually go to trial, but don't expect that trial happen any time soon," Holes said on the podcast. "I think the trial is probably going to be five years or more out. It takes a long time to get a case, especially of this magnitude, to trial."

DeAngelo has appeared in court several times since his arrest. The most recent hearing, on May 14, was to address a motion by several media outlets, including The Chronicle, to have arrest and search warrants released. DeAngelo's defense is seeking to keep them sealed; among the documents they hope to keep out of the public eye include an inventory of what was found in his home. The hearing will be taken up again on May 29.

DeAngelo walked into the May 14 hearing, in comparison to his first court appearance when he was wheeled in in a chair. On the podcast, Holes reacted strongly to how DeAngelo has behaved post-arrest.

"That was just a bunch of BS," Holes said. "That's where, in many ways, he's trying to portray himself as the Golden State Killer back in the day as a master criminal mind. And then he's doing a wimpy wheelchair thing? At this point, he just needs to man up. He needs to basically take accountability for these crimes, tell us everything."

"During surveillance, the guys watching him were saying, 'This guy is not walking around like a 72-year-old man.' He's like a 50-year-old man, like me," he added. "He's moving around, he's on his motorcycle. He's going at high rates of speed on his motorcycle on the freeway... He's basically just showing he's a physically capable individual."