Woman, 48, charged after DNA linked her to 27-year-old cold case homicide 'was dating same man' as teen girl found stabbed in 1989 AND also knew husband of woman shot to death in 1994

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A 48-year-old woman has been charged with first-degree murder more than two decades after she allegedly stabbed to death a love rival in 1989. 

Police believe the suspect could also be linked to a similar case in which a woman was shot dead in front of her two children five years later. 

Carolyn J. Heckert was taken into custody by U.S. Marshals Service in Smithville, Kansas on Wednesday afternoon, the Kansas City Star reported.

DNA evidence linked Heckert to the homicide of Sarah Jo DeLeon, who was found dead near railroad tracks on December 29,1989 after being stabbed to death. The 18-year-old also suffered a head injury. 

According to KMBC, Heckert had been in a relationship with DeLeon's then-boyfriend and 'police knew all along they were looking for a female suspect.' 

In addition, Heckert, who was a realtor and previously worked as a postal worker, was also reportedly in a relationship with the husband of Diana Ault, who was shot to death in front of her two young children at home in Independence, Missouri in 1994.

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Carolyn J. Heckert (left), 48, was taken into custody by U.S. Marshals Service in connection with the 1989 cold case homicide of 18-year-old Sarah DeLeon (right)

DNA evidence linked Heckert (left) to the DeLeon (right) homicide. She was found dead with multiple stab wounds and a head injury on December 29, 1989. They both were dating the same man at the same time

In a separate case, Heckert involved in a relationship with the husband of Diana Ault (pictured). Ault was murdered in Independence, Missouri in 1994 and as of Wednesday, police said they have nothing new to report in her case

Both murder cases were reopened by police three years ago. As of Wednesday, police said they have nothing new to report in the Ault investigation.

Earlier this year, Detective Scott Howard said there is pattern of behavior that might link DeLeon's murder to the unsolved Ault case and an abduction in Kansas City, Kansas on February 13, 1987. 

A train crew spotted DeLeon's body near Interstate 435 and Wolcott Drive which is the western edge of Kansas City, Kansas.

Police said DeLeon had left her boyfriend's house about 1am on December 29 and was headed home before her body was discovered later in the day.

Her car was found about a mile from her home under the Interstate 70 overpass at 78th Street with the door open and her emergency flashers were on.

Police did not find any blood or evidence of a struggle in or around her car at the time. 

Investigators believed that she had been killed somewhere else and her body was dumped along the railroad tracks.  

The murder weapon was never recovered.

In addition, there was no indication that DeLeon, who was a 1989 graduate of Washington High School, was sexually assaulted. 

At the time of her death, DeLeon was attending Kansas City Kansas Community College while, she and her younger brother, Matt, worked as ushers at The Woodlands greyhound race track.

At the time of Ault's death in 1994, her husband, Tim (above), was reportedly having an affair with another woman who is believed to be Heckler.  He admitted in 2004 that he regretted cheating on his wife

The 27-year-old case was reopened by police due to new DNA collection and testing technology. 

DeLeon's mother, Gail Elieson, said on Thursday she was 'elated' that an arrest was finally made.

'I'm elated, I didn't believe it until I saw her name and mugshot. That was fantastic,' she told the Star. 

Elieson said she never met Heckert, but she knew for a while she had been considered a suspect in her daughter's murder. 

'She was a good kid,' her mother said. 'She had no enemies but this one woman.'

In a separate case, Ault, 26, had just returned home from a Superbowl XXVIII watch party on January 31, 1994 when she was ambushed in her kitchen. 

She was found shot to death by police as she was surrounded by her crying then-4-year-old son and then-6-month-old daughter.

Her husband, Tim, was at work at the time of her horrific murder. 

Ault's son Josh told investigators at the time that his mother's killer picked him up and put him inside a closet before taking her mother's car.  

Ault's car was found less than a mile away from the home and was still running.

Face of a murderer? FCK police released this mugshot after she was arrested in connection to the 1989 cold case murder of Sarah DeLeon

Police said DeLeon (left) had left her boyfriend's house, who about 1am on December 29 and was headed home before her body was discovered later in the day. DeLeon's younger brother, Matt (right), said his sister was 'outgoing' and 'friends with everybody'

A gun that belonged to her husband and was thought to be the murder weapon was also found at a nearby church, The Kansas City Star reported in May.  

Prior to her murder, Ault and her husband had told police they received several phone calls where they were threatened by a woman. 

Sharon Vanvleck, her older sister, recalled last week to Dateline about the moment she received the horrible call about the murder.

'I just remember sliding down my stove, just with this gut-wrenching scream and cry,' she shared. 

'And it was just, like, a wailing -- just from my gut. This scream and cry. I'll never forget it.'

Vanvleck said that it was not a secret her sister's husband had 'strayed' with another woman. 

She said her sister confided about the infidelity to her, several friends and colleagues. 

In 2004, Tim spoke to KMBC and said he regretted having an affair on his wife. 

At a 2014 vigil for DeLeon, her family said they were still devastated by her murder

'If I could go back in time, I'd trade places with her,' he said. 

The widower explained to the TV station that he moved out of the home he shared with his wife to live with another woman shortly before his wife's murder. 

He said the other woman he went to live with was his co-worker at a postal facility, but did not reveal her name. 

At the time, Heckert also worked at a postal facility.

The Ault and DeLeon families have long been in contact and have held joint commemorative ceremonies for the women.

Both families have said previously that DeLeon and Ault were the victims of harassment or bullying before their deaths.

'The investigation has revealed that the suspect and an accomplice have been involved in other incidents involving the harassment and intimidation of romantic rivals,' Kansas City, Kan., police said in May when they announced they had identified a suspect.

At a 2014 vigil for DeLeon, her family said they were still devastated by her murder. 

'She was outgoing. She was friends with everybody. She didn't have any enemies and she was a lot of fun to be around, ' her younger brother Matt told WDAF. 

In another interview, Matt said his sister was bullied too, similar to Ault. 

'We knew Sarah was harassed and a little bit bullied and we feel like that also ties into the connection with the Ault case, too,' he said.  

Pictured above is the railroad tracks where DeLeon's body was found in 1989

Heckert is being held in a Clay County Detention Center in Missouri on $1million bond and is awaiting extradition. 

Investigators are also seeking help from the public in relation to an 'abduction by deception' in which the victim was fooled into leaving her house in a limo in 1987 - two years before DeLeon was murdered, the Star reported. 

She was then taken to the American Inn at 78th Street and Interstate 70 in Kansas City, Kansas.  

'We are asking for tips regarding the February 13, 1987, incident as we believe the circumstances are relevant to a possible prosecution in Sarah DeLeon's death,' a statement from police in May reads. 

'We believe that we can show a pattern of behavior that links this to the DeLeon homicide and other crimes,' Howard said.

Anyone who may have been at the American Inn at that time and saw anything unusual or suspicious is asked to call the Kansas City, Kansas, homicide unit or the Tips Hotline at 816-474-8477.