Christmas Eve murder case closes as 80-year-old death row inmate dies at Pelican Bay

An 80-year-old condemned inmate convicted of one of Orange County’s most disturbing cold-case murders has died in custody, nearly 45 years after the crime that sent him to death row.

Benjamin Wayne Watta, sentenced to death for the rape and murder of 70-year-old Simone Sharpe in Seal Beach, was found unresponsive inside his cell at Pelican Bay State Prison on December 22.

According to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR), prison staff discovered Watta around 11 am during a routine check.

Life-saving efforts were immediately initiated, and paramedics were called, but he was pronounced dead at 11.37 am The Del Norte County Coroner will determine the official cause of death.

Watta had been housed at Pelican Bay since January 2009 and had spent nearly 17 years as a condemned inmate. His death marks the end of a case that haunted investigators and the victim’s family for decades.

Sharpe was killed on December 23, 1980, just days before Christmas, while helping neighbors who were away for the holidays. She had entered their home through an unlocked garage to feed cats and collect mail.

When she failed to return home, her son went searching the following evening—Christmas Eve—and found her body inside the neighbor’s bedroom, wedged between a bed and a wall.

Prosecutors said Sharpe had been raped, strangled, stabbed in the throat, and ultimately suffocated. Jurors later heard that the attack may have lasted several hours, making it one of the most violent crimes in the area at the time.

Investigators described it as a crime of opportunity, believing the killer noticed the open garage and followed Sharpe inside.

The case remained unsolved for more than 20 years until DNA technology revived it. In 2001, forensic testing of preserved evidence produced a DNA profile that matched Watta within weeks when entered into a state database. At the time, Watta was already imprisoned in Florida for attempting to murder his girlfriend.

Extradited to California, Watta faced trial in Orange County and was convicted in June 2008 of murder committed during rape and burglary. A jury recommended the death penalty, which was formally imposed in January 2009.

Court records revealed Watta’s extensive criminal history, including convictions for attempted rape, kidnapping, sexual assault, use of a firearm, and attempted murder—one involving a police officer. Prosecutors also linked him through DNA to an unsolved rape in Florida.

His death comes amid California’s ongoing death penalty moratorium. Executions have been halted since 2019, and the state has not carried one out since 2006. CDCR reports 579 condemned inmates remain in custody. As required, Watta’s death will undergo an official review.