(Las Vegas, NV)  –  DNA evidence has helped police catch a major break in two cold cases.

Metro’s cold case unit reports 62-year-old Nathaniel Burkett was arrested July 18th near Biloxi, Mississippi for a pair of murders in Las Vegas.  Police say Barbara Ann Cox died in 1978, while Tina Gayle Mitchell was killed in 1994.

Metro Police say a grant to test back-logged DNA helped link Burkett to the two killings.  Burkett has waived his right to extradition.