Texan arrested on Illinois warrant in 1973 death of wife

SUGAR LAND, Texas (AP) - A Houston-area man has been arrested on a warrant charging him in the 1973 death of his wife in suburban Chicago, authorities said Friday.

Donnie Rudd, who is 73, was being held Friday on $1 million bond at the Fort Bend County Jail outside Houston after being arrested at his apartment in Sugar Land, according to jail records and Sugar Land police spokesman Doug Adolph. The town is about 15 miles southwest of Houston.

The warrant charges Rudd with murder in the death of Noreen Kumeta Rudd in Barrington Township, but Adolph didn't know any details about the case. Arlington Heights police did not return calls from The Associated Press, and Cook County State's Attorney's spokesman Steve Campbell declined to discuss any details.

Arlington Heights police appeared to have been investigating Rudd for some time, Adolph said.

"They traveled down here about a year ago to interview him, and we hadn't heard anything from them until a couple of days ago," Adolph said.

Rudd was arrested at his apartment in Sugar Land, Adolph said.

Rudd waived his right to a hearing on his extradition, Texas records show. He is due in court in suburban Chicago on Monday, Campbell said.

Rudd was licensed to practice law in Illinois 1969 but disbarred in 1994, according to state records. The records do not include an explanation of why he lost his license.