The 2018 arrest of the alleged Golden State Killer through use of a genealogy and DNA database sparked the chain of events that led to the break in an Alabama cold case that has haunted an entire region for decades.

Ozark Police Chief Marlos Walker on Monday said it was that California case – in which 72-year-old Joseph James DeAngelo was arrested on suspicion of being the man who killed 12 people and raped more than 50 women in the 1970s and 1980s – which led he and other investigators to reach out to Parabon NanoLabs in Virginia, which specializes in DNA engineering.

Walker said investigators’ goal has long been to break the case before the 20th anniversary of the murders, which will be July 31, 2019. When the Golden State Killer case was cracked, Walker said, “I was like, let’s try that,’’’ he said at a press conference held Monday. “I’m a spiritual guy and it’s all God’s work.”

Walker said they started the process in August 2018 and it culminated in the arrest of 45-year-old Coley McCraney, a truck driver who spent some time in the military and has led a crime-free, low-profile life up until the time he was taken into custody. McCraney is charged with one count of rape and five counts of capital murder in the 1999 deaths of high school seniors Tracie Hawlett and J.B. Beasley, both 17, who vanished on the way home from Beasley’s birthday party on the night of July 31.

According to Hawlett’s mother, Carole Roberts, the girls had been lost and could not understand the directions they were given before stopping at a convenience store in Ozark after the party in Headland.

“God gave her to me. He didn’t have the right to do that. I just want to know why,” said Roberts, who wore a button featuring her daughter’s photo at the news conference announcing the arrest.

Hawlett had two school-age brothers at the time of her death and Roberts said the whole family slept in the same bed for a time after the slayings out of fear. She still remembers her last conversation with her daughter, who called to see if Beasley could spend the night after the party, which was for Beasley’s birthday.

“Last words out of her lips were, ‘mama, I love you,’” said Roberts. “Last words out of my mouth to her were, ‘I love you.’”

The girls were found the next day inside the trunk of Beasley’s black Mazda 929, on the side of Herring Avenue about one block away from the Dale County hospital. Both girls had each been shot once in the head, but there were no other signs of foul play. The girls’ jewelry, purses and money were not missing and state forensics experts at the time said neither girl had been raped. However, authorities have now charged McCraney with raping Beasley.

In the years immediately after the killing, investigators conducted more than 500 interviews, overworked forensics experts and tested the DNA of more than 70 potential suspects, according to past published reports.

Police arrested Johnny William Barrentine, who they said implicated himself by putting himself at the crime scene during an interview with authorities. Barrentine later said he told police his fake stories to get the reward money that was promised at the time.

Barrentine was later cleared when semen found on Beasley’s clothing and skin did not match Barrentine’s DNA.

Following the Golden State Killer arrest, investigators sent DNA evidence from the girls’ murders – Walker said he couldn’t yet say whether that DNA was hair, blood, or semen – to Parabon. The company traditionally used the genetic genealogy to help connect family members but quickly moved into the law enforcement realm. They upload DNA evidence from crime scenes to GEDmatch in an attempt to identify perpetrators.

Last year, the company said they found matches in 20 cases out of 100 and, in November 2018, they said they were working on 200 cases and 55 percent had produced leads.

After receiving the evidence from Ozark investigators, they devised a list of possible matches. One of the names on that list jumped out at Walker and other investigators.

McCraney had grown up in Ozark and the police knew him from school and beyond. “I was very surprised,’’ Walker said. “I was surprised when I saw the results and every person I talked to said the same thing, but DNA doesn’t lie.”

Several weeks ago, investigators brought McCraney in to take a DNA swab from him. They sent his DNA to Parabon which was a match to the DNA taken from the 1999 crime scene.

“I had to sit in my chair for three hours,’’ Walker said. “We’ve all been working on this for so long. It’s one of those things where you say, ‘Is this really happening?’’

McCraney was taken into custody Friday during a traffic stop near Daleville, Walker said. He was arrested without incident. Walker declined to comment on whether McCraney confessed to the crimes or made any statements at all to investigators. In 1999, he lived not far from where the girls’ bodies were found.

Court records show McCraney has at least three children and was divorced in 1998. He had spent time serving in the U.S. Air Force in Biloxi, Mississippi, after graduating from Carroll High School Ozark, according to the Dothan Eagle. He served from 1993 to 1997.

According to WTVY, he remarried soon after Hawlett and Beasley were killed and has led a quiet life in Dothan. The news agency reported that state records show he founded a non-profit religious ministry, Spirit and Truth Lifeline Ministries, based in Dothan.

McCraney was booked into the Dale County Jail Saturday night. He made his first court appearance Sunday, and a judged ordered he be held without bond. Authorities have not identified the relative who had apparently submitted DNA for genealogy research nor said when that DNA was submitted.

McCraney, who has his own church and preached recently, is cooperating with authorities, said defense attorney David Harrison.

“My heart goes out to the victims’ families,” Harrison said. “It’s a tragedy. We don’t need to make it make three tragedies by convicting him.”

Harrison said McCraney is an outstanding community member who is married with children and grandchildren. Aside from preaching, records show he worked as a truck driver for years for several different companies.

Harrison also said he was concerned about his client getting a fair trial.

“It’s going to be difficult to find a jury that’s not already aware of the facts,” he said. “I might have to ask that it be moved to another venue to get a fair trial. A lot of emotions are flying.”

Dale County District Attorney Kirke Adams spoke at the press conference and explained why there are five capital murder charges against McCraney: one charge each for the girls’ deaths, one because a murder was committed during the course of a rape, one because two or more people were murder and one because the murder was committed with a deadly weapon inside the vehicle. Adams said he will seek the death penalty.

“Multiple agencies have worked tirelessly to bring this day together,’’ Adams said. “My office will be the voice for J.B. and Tracie. I pledge you that.”

Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall also attended the news conference.

“DNA evidence recovered from Beasley’s body and clothing helped to create a profile of the suspect, but despite our best combined efforts law enforcement were never able to find a genetic match—until now,’’ Marshall said. He noted McCraney had no prior criminal record which would have previously provided his DNA profile to law enforcement in the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS) run by the FBI. “McCraney has remained anonymous to investigators until new DNA testing of forensic evidence utilizing family genetic analysis finally led law enforcement to McCraney as a suspect.”

“Today, all who have sought justice for Tracie Hawlett and J.B. Beasley—including all the residents of the Wiregrass—are finally near closure in this long and painful case,” Marshall said.

Walker thanked those who helped in the investigation and arrest of McCraney: Ozark and Dothan police; the Dale County Sheriff’s Office, the Houston County Sheriff’s Office, the State Bureau of Investigation, the Dale County District Attorney’s Office, the Alabama Attorney General’s Office and the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences.

“This is joyous time,’’ Walker said. “To the families, we thank y’all for your patience. We know it’s been a tough road, a long road.”

Sherry Gilland, who lived near a store where the girls were last seen, said the killings changed the community. Afterward, Gilland said, she was afraid to let her own daughter ride her bicycle or walk too far from home.

“It has been a cloud over the town, but now it’s lifted,” she said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.