Person of interest identified in Capistrant murder cold case
The Roseville Police Department is seeking more information from the public to help solve the case.
For the first time since Susan Capistrant's killing in 1987, the Roseville Police Department has publicly identified a new person of interest.
On the morning of April 8, 1987, the body of 22-year old Susan Capistrant was discovered behind a Roseville grocery store and a dry cleaner, where she had worked for about two weeks.
Capistrant's death was ruled a homicide caused by strangulation, but the mystery of who killed her has never been solved.
Since then, the case has remained open. For the last four decades, police have investigated more than a dozen possible suspects, interviewed more than 100 witnesses, and scrutinized evidence in an attempt to retrace Capistrant’s final hours.
In a press release on July 18, 2025, Roseville Detective Brady Martin said they have evidence linking Capistrant to deceased Roseville man Robert Osborne, born in 1963.
“We know Ms. Capistrant was in contact with Mr. Osborne on April 7 or 8, 1987,” Martin said. "We are seeking the public’s assistance in connecting the lives of Capistrant and Osborne."
Capistrant and Osborne were roughly the same age and both lived in Roseville at the time of her death. Police cannot find any connection between the two and Martin declined to share specifics about the evidence linking Capistrant with Osborne, who died in 1996.
“We don’t want to jeopardize the integrity of the case by revealing too much information. If a member of the public knew these two individuals or saw them together, we are asking that they contact police,” Martin said.
Detective Martin said he believes more than one individual may have been involved in Capistrant’s death and stressed that Osborne’s involvement is unclear, according to a press release from the RPD.
What happened in 1987
On April 7, 1987, Capistrant spent the evening at Patrick's Lounge, at Larpenteur and Hamline Avenues in Saint Paul with her brother and a friend. She and her friend returned to her parents' home, where she lived, at the 1300 block of Garden Ave. Around midnight on April 8, she received a phone call while her friend was still with her. She and the caller had a short conversation and then she left the house around 1:00 a.m. Her friend said he also left the house at the same time, according to the RPD. Police have been unable to determine who called Capistrant.
Hours later around 7:30 a.m. on April 8, an 11-year-old girl found Capistrant's unclothed body behind Jerry Foods, a Roseville grocery store, and One-Hour Martinizing dry cleaners, at the corner of Dale St. and County Rd. B. Police investigated both the brother and the friend and determined they were not involved in Capistrant’s death.
Many witnesses in the case including Capistrant’s parents have since died, but police and the community has not forgotten Capistrant. Roseville detectives have actively investigated the case since 1987.
Nick Ferraro
Who Killed Susan Capistrant? Facebook Group
In October 2020, a Facebook group called "Who Killed Susan Capistrant?" was created by community members. Since then, Capistrant's friends, acquaintances, and interested community members have kept the group active, asking questions and sharing information with each other. Roseville Detective Brady Martin joined the group and actively participated in the discussions too, inviting community members to share any details—however seemingly insignificant—that could help solve the case.
In 2021, Martin posted a video of himself answering some of the questions that had been asked about the case.
According to a 2022 Pioneer Press article, Martin grew up in Falcon Heights and remembers his parents talking about Capistrant's death. He was eight years old at the time.
Seeking Information from the Public
Now, Martin is coming before the public again, asking for assistance in connecting the lives of Capistrant and Osborne.
"Cases like these are often solved by information that someone deems too small or inconsequential to provide," Martin said in the press release.
If you have any information, call (651) 792-7008 or email rvpoliceinvest@cityofroseville.com.
