A retired Los Angeles police detective says U.S. authorities should have better luck than their Japanese counterparts in prosecuting businessman Kazuyoshi Miura over the shooting of his wife 27 years ago, citing differences between the two countries' legal systems.

Jimmy Sakoda AP PHOTO

Jimmy Sakoda, 72, who led the investigation into the shooting with the Los Angeles Police Department and later as a district attorney's investigator, said March 2 he thinks U.S. authorities have a "solid case" against Miura, including evidence taken from his blog.

Miura and his wife, Kazumi, then 28, were shot in a daylight attack as they took photos of the downtown Los Angeles skyline in 1981. He was hit in the thigh and she was shot in the head, dying from her wounds a year later.

Authorities suspect Miura hatched a plot to have his wife killed so he could collect hefty life insurance payouts.