73-Year-Old Man Sentenced for the Murder of His Girlfriend 40 Years After She Went Missing
An Oregon man has been convicted in connection with the 1983 disappearance of his girlfriend, marking a significant development in a long-unsolved case. Mark Sanfratello, 73, was sentenced to 20 years in prison after pleading guilty to first-degree manslaughter for his role in the death of Teresa Peroni, who was 27 when she was last seen alive.
The Oregon Department of Justice announced Sanfratello’s sentencing in a press release on April 21. His arrest in June 2025 came after the reopening of the cold case in February 2024. This investigation occurred more than four decades after Peroni’s disappearance, which had initially raised suspicions but lacked enough evidence for prosecution.
“For Teresa Peroni’s family, this has been a 43-year wait for an answer they never should have had to wait for,” said Attorney General Dan Rayfield. “Cases like this remind us of why we don’t give up. It doesn’t matter how many years have passed; if someone took a life, we’re going to keep working until we can hold them accountable.”
Peroni was last seen with Sanfratello in a wooded area on July 4, 1983, before her family reported her missing. Investigators initially deemed her disappearance suspicious but faced challenges in moving forward with criminal charges. A notable breakthrough occurred in 1997 when a human skull was discovered nearby and subsequently identified as belonging to Peroni, although her other remains were never found.
The renewed investigation into the case led to the collection of new DNA evidence and modern forensic techniques that helped build a stronger case against Sanfratello. On June 27, 2025, a Josephine County Grand Jury indicted him on murder charges, a statement from the Josephine County Sheriff’s Office confirmed.
The case was prosecuted by the Oregon Department of Justice Criminal Division, with Senior Assistant Attorneys General John Casalino and Brad Kalbaugh leading the effort, aided by ODOJ Special Agent Brendan McGuire, who organized decades of evidence related to the case.
