Decades-Old Cold Case Cracked: Man Arrested for 1991 Double Homicide of Restaurant Owner and Mother-in-Law in Prunedale
PRUNEDALE, Calif. — An 85-year-old Fresno man has been charged with the murders of a Prunedale restaurant owner and his mother-in-law, a case that has remained unsolved since 1991. Ira Ulysses Bastian, a former employee of the victims, entered a not guilty plea as he confronted the long-standing allegations in a Salinas courtroom. On November 11, 1991, the small community of Prunedale was shocked when George Smith, 67, the owner of the local favorite Smith’s …