A 49 year-old veteran Los Angeles police detective was arrested in connection to the 1986 murder of her ex-lover’s wife, officials confirmed.

Stephanie Lazarus was arrested at police headquarters after a sample of her saliva, matched the killer’s DNA.

Lazarus is accused of killing Sherri Rae Rasmussen, who was a director of critical care nursing at Glendale Adventist Medical Center, when she was murdered.

Rasmussen’s body was discovered by her husband in the living room of their home on February 24, 1986, and her silver BMW was discovered 10 days after her death about two miles from her home.

Because of her relationship with Rasmussen’s husband, Lazarus’ name was mentioned in the original case, however, she was not pursued as a suspect because investigators believed Rasmussen was killed by two suspects who were arrested two months later in a botched burglary three blocks from her home.

The case went cold for years until last week when undercover officers followed her and obtained a sample of her saliva to compare with DNA left at the original crime scene.

Lazarus, worked patrol duty in the San Fernando Valley when she joined the force in 1983.

She worked as a detective until 2006 when she worked in a unit that tracts stolen art.