Break in the cold case murder of a Cleveland woman in 2011

CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) -19 Investigations have revealed that there has been a major break in a murder case that is more than a decade old.

A 31-year-old man who was deported to the Middle East years ago is now charged with the murder of a Cleveland woman.

Heather O'Brien was just 21 years old when she was found dead on Cleveland's east side.

Now that the police have a suspect, we ask investigators if he knows where he is and if he will face a judge.

The murder case

Just five days after Thanksgiving, on November 29, 2011, a woman's body was discovered.

She was found lying face down behind a convenience store on Euclid Avenue in the Euclid-Green neighborhood of Cleveland.

She had been strangled.

Police identified her as 21-year-old Heather O'Brien of Cleveland.

She was originally from Marietta.

Investigators collected evidence and tried to find her killer.

But as the years went by, the case became bogged down.

The suspect

But this month the charges against Yousef Ali were reduced in the Heather case.

A grand jury indicted Ali on two counts of aggravated murder and five other felonies.

We also learned that Ali was convicted of a sexual assault that occurred just six months after Heather's death.

In May 2012, an 18-year-old woman told police that Ali grabbed her by the neck and dragged her up the stairs to his apartment in Slavic Village.

According to court documents, he tried to attack her and drag her into the house, but she broke a window.

And he let her go and apologized.

At his arrest the same day, Ali's uncle said he warned him about “how he treats women,” according to court documents.

Ali was originally charged with four crimes, including attempted rape.

However, he pleaded guilty to reduced charges and was classified as a Level II sex offender.

He was sentenced to one year in prison.

But before Ali was released in 2013, he was turned over to Immigration/Homeland Security and deported, according to the Cuyahoga County Sheriff's Office.

Court documents show Ali is from Jordan.

In this case, questions remain unanswered

That led us to wonder if investigators currently know where Ali is — and if he's still out of the country, will he be sent back to Ohio to face a judge on these charges?

19 Investigates is waiting to hear back from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to learn more.

The other big question we're still asking ourselves is: How did investigators solve this case?

We also reached out to the Cuyahoga County District Attorney's Office and the Cleveland Police Department.

You haven't answered this question.

Heather O'Brien would be 34 years old if she were alive today.

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