SAN DIEGO, California – Mexican officials announced on Saturday the capture of a woman suspected of fatally stabbing her fire captain wife at their home in Southern California after more than a month on the run. Yolanda Marodi was apprehended at a hotel in Mexicali, Mexico, located 2.3 miles south of the U.S. border, according to a statement from the Baja California Citizen Security Secretariat (SSCBC). With the assistance of Mexico’s National Institute of Migration, Marodi was transported to the border and then turned over to the U.S. Marshals Service upon her return to the United States at a U.S. port of entry, as stated by the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department.
Marodi was a suspect in the February 17 killing of her wife, 49-year-old Rebecca “Becky” Marodi, a respected California fire captain. Video footage from the couple’s home in Ramona, California, depicted a violent altercation outside the residence, where Yolanda Marodi was seen confronting Rebecca Marodi with a knife. The affidavit supporting Marodi’s arrest warrant revealed chilling details of the incident, including Rebecca Marodi pleading not to die as they ran across the patio that night.
Following the murder, Yolanda Marodi was captured on home security footage changing clothes, loading belongings, luggage, and pets into her silver Chevrolet Equinox SUV before driving away. She crossed into Mexico with the vehicle that same night, approximately 45 miles south of Ramona. Marodi was officially charged with murder on February 21 and has been the subject of an intensive search by the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department and the U.S. Marshal’s Service San Diego Fugitive Task Force.
Yolanda Marodi’s criminal history included a guilty plea to voluntary manslaughter in the 2000 stabbing death of her husband, Jim Olejniczak, as reported by NBC San Diego. An unnamed witness received a message from Marodi confessing to the fatal encounter with Rebecca Marodi, stating that her wife had planned to leave her for someone else, sparking a heated argument that turned deadly. Responding to the scene, first responders discovered Rebecca Marodi with multiple stab wounds, tragically resulting in her death.
Rebecca Marodi, a dedicated firefighter of over 30 years with Cal Fire and the Riverside County Fire Department, had earned respect for her commitment to peer support and the well-being of her colleagues. Described as brave, compassionate, and dedicated, Rebecca Marodi’s legacy will be remembered by her family, friends, and the firefighting community. A fundraising effort has been launched by Cal Fire San Diego Benevolent Fund to support the Marodi family in the wake of this tragic loss.