Robin Mendez (Photo: Oneida County Sheriff’s Department)
Prosecutors have charged a Minocqua man with the 1982 murder of his wife. Robin Mendez is accused of killing Barbara Mendez to cover up an affair he was having with a 14-year-old girl at his church.
According to the criminal complaint, the girl told investigators that she had lied when she said Mendez couldn’t have committed the crime because she was talking to him on the phone at the approximate time of his wife’s death. Mendez’s daughters also told investigators they feel he “manipulated them into providing a false alibi for him,” and said he never took them to their mothers grave.
Barbara’s body was found in April of 1982 at the Park City Credit Union, where she was employed at the time. The cause of death was listed as multiple blunt injuries to the head including abrasions, lacerations, and a skull fracture. It’s believed that a pry bar or other tool could have been used in the attack.
Police say they have been building the case against Mendez for months now by re-interviewing witnesses. He was arrested on Monday and is being held on $250,000 cash bond.
WSAU