Yolanda Olejniczak Marodi, 54, pleaded guilty on Wednesday to second-degree murder in the stabbing death of her wife, Rebecca “Becky” Marodi, a decorated California fire captain who had fought the deadly 2025 Los Angeles wildfires. The plea comes more than a decade after Olejniczak Marodi served prison time for stabbing her previous husband to death.
Murder of Fire Captain Rebecca Marodi
Rebecca Marodi, 49, was found with multiple stab wounds to her neck, chest, and back at the couple’s home in Ramona, near San Diego, in February 2025. She was assigned to the French Valley Cal Fire station in Riverside County and had recently battled the Eaton blaze, which killed 19 people. According to investigators, Rebecca had told her wife she wanted to end their two-year marriage.
Home security footage showed Rebecca running from Olejniczak Marodi, screaming, “Yolanda! Please! I don’t want to die!” In the video, Olejniczak Marodi, holding a knife and with blood on her arms, allegedly replied, “You should have thought of that before.”
Flight to Mexico and Arrest
After the attack, Olejniczak Marodi loaded “pets, random items and some luggage” into an SUV, according to a warrant seen by ABC News. About 75 minutes later, homeland security records showed her crossing the border into Mexico. She messaged a friend: “Rebecca came home and told me she was leaving me. We had a big fight, and I hurt her. I’m sorry.”
Mexican law enforcement arrested her at a hotel in Mexicali in March 2025, and she was later handed over to US marshals in San Diego. She initially pleaded not guilty.
Previous Conviction for Husband’s Murder
Investigators soon discovered that Olejniczak Marodi had served time from 2004 to 2013 for voluntary manslaughter in the 2000 stabbing death of her then-husband, Jim Olejniczak. In that case, he had also recently told her he was ending the marriage.
Friend’s Account of Jealousy and Control
Andrea Winter, a friend of Rebecca, told the Los Angeles Times that Olejniczak Marodi was jealous of her wife’s popularity and exhibited “controlling, isolating behavior” before the killing. Winter said Rebecca had not disclosed that her wife had been convicted of stabbing her previous husband to death.
“Yolanda was very insecure,” Winter said. “Becky has this magnetic personality and everybody liked her. I think Yolanda was very jealous of that and that Becky was this bright light.” Winter added, “Becky was a kind person and paid the absolute price for that by trusting the wrong person.”
Sentencing Scheduled
Olejniczak Marodi is scheduled to be sentenced on 2 September and faces 36 years to life in state prison.
