IL IL - Nicole Bowers, 17, Morris, 2 Aug 2000

Fifteen years ago last night, Nicole Bowers was watching TV in the living room of her mother's townhouse in Morris. By 5 a.m. the next morning, she had vanished. Her mother waited about a week to report her disappearance to police, who initially treated the case as a runaway.

Almost three years after the teenager disappeared, a surveyor doing some work in a field about two miles from the family home uncovered a human jawbone. Police eventually uncovered about one third of a human skeleton, and determined using dental records that it belonged to Nicole Bowers.

The 17-year-old's death was eventually ruled a homicide by blunt trauma. And now, prosecutors and police revealed that evidence gathered near the skeleton has now yielded some DNA samples, thanks to technology that wasn't available at the time.

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"Evidence collected at the scene (was) recently sent to the crime lab and DNA returned," Helland said.

Bogart said further analysis is needed to check if the DNA can be matched to anyone inthe law enforcement database network.

"Upon review of this particular case, (investigators) pulled out several leads that weren't followed up on at the time," Helland said. "We feel someone in the public has relevant information and relationships have changed among those individuals."

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"This case for 14 years was stagnant," Helland said. "It was opened again last February when I asked Channahon Police Department to see the reports. Once I looked at the reports I felt there were several leads that needed to be followed."

He said when he spoke to Channahon police, they found several leads themselves that they thought should be followed up on.

Since that time, Helland said Channahon detectives have followed up on several leads and the investigation has gone nationwide.

"Witnesses have been interviewed outside of Illinois," Helland said. "Additional witnesses outside of the state have yet to be interviewed but will be in the coming months."

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