Oakie
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Image of Thies:
(From: https://turnto10.com/news/local/pol...old-case-from-exeter-rhode-island-nov-17-2022 )
DNA Solves Cold Cases/Parabon Nanolabs & GED/Match.
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(From: https://turnto10.com/news/local/pol...old-case-from-exeter-rhode-island-nov-17-2022 )
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Cold-case murder trial in Clark County that used genealogy database dismissed amid new evidence
The same technique used to catch the Golden State Killer brought murder charges in a 25-year-old cold case in Vancouver. But, less than a week before trial, Clark County prosecutors had the case dismissed.
www.opb.org
SolVic
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What the hell? How? Genetic genealogy doesn’t lie!Cold-case murder trial in Clark County that used genealogy database dismissed amid new evidence
The same technique used to catch the Golden State Killer brought murder charges in a 25-year-old cold case in Vancouver. But, less than a week before trial, Clark County prosecutors had the case dismissed.www.opb.org
Legally Bland
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I guess it's because of the other semen sample belonging to the neighbour.
margarita25
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Philadelphia police reveal identity of child found dead inside a box 65 years ago | CNN
The "Boy in the Box" finally has a name.
“The “Boy in the Box” finally has a name.
Police on Thursday publicly identified a boy found dead in a box in Philadelphia 65 years ago as four-year-old Joseph Augustus Zarelli, the victim of what police say is one of the city’s oldest unsolved homicides.
The identification, made through DNA analysis, represents investigators’ biggest break in the decades-old cold case.”
[...]
““The child’s identity has remained a mystery despite numerous attempts to identify him over the years, Philadelphia Police said earlier this week, when it announced they had successfully identified the child using “detective work and DNA analysis.””
—-
BREAKING: Philadelphia Police sources confirm they have identified the 1957 murder victim known as “The boy in the box.” The department is expected to provide an update on the case next week. DNA and genealogical information helped detectives crack the case @CBSPhiladelphiapic.twitter.com/xN9sjFrYWT
— Joe Holden (@JoeHoldenCBS3) November 30, 2022
——
WS:
Identified! - PA - Philadelphia, 'Boy in the Box', WhtMale 4-6, 4UMPA, Feb'57 #2 - Joseph Augustus Zarelli
https://www.fox29.com/news/boy-in-the-box-police-announce-press-conference-to-unveil-new-details-in-decades-old-cold-case link works for me
www.websleuths.com
Right - if they dismiss the charges now, they can always re-file them after amassing more evidence. Much smarter than proceeding with iffy evidence and risking double jeopardy attaching.
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Former Hartford charter school CEO found guilty of kidnapping four women who were attacked in their homes in the 80s
As the elevator doors closed inside the Hartford Superior Courthouse on Wednesday, a woman known to jurors only as “Jane Doe 1? leaned against the wall and closed her eyes. “It’s …www.courant.com
Connecticut man gets max 72-year sentence for '80s attacks
A Connecticut man has been sentenced to 40 to 72 years in prison on kidnapping charges in connection with the 1984 home invasion attacks on four women who say they were sexually assaulted — crimes that were solved in 2020 with the help of a genealogy database.
www.ctpublic.org
Becky Starkey
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Man charged in Pontoon Beach cold case murder 10 years after woman's disappearance
Metro East authorities say they've found the man responsible for the cold case killing of a woman who disappeared from East St. Louis in 2013.
Trina does have a thread here.
IL - IL-Granite City, BlkFem, 35-50, UP98148, Found in a wooded area south of 4212 Sams Road, Dec '22
The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs) Date Body Found December 2, 2022 Location Found Granite City, Illinois Estimated Age Range 35-50 years Sex Female Race/Ethnicity Black/African American Estimated Age Group Adult-Pre 60 Estimated Year of Death 2015-2016 Height...
www.websleuths.com
JosieMae
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1971 cold case solved.
RIP Rita Curran.
www.courttv.com
RIP Rita Curran.
Discarded cigarette butt, DNA tests solve 52-year-old murder | Court TV
By WILSON RING Associated Press BURLINGTON, Vt. (AP) — A discarded cigarette found near the body of a 24-year-old Vermont school teacher in her apartment
www.courttv.com
SeesSeas
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23-016 Mississippi Man Arrested for 1987 Pinellas County Cold Case Murder
PINELLAS COUNTY – On January 26, 2023, detectives assigned to the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office (PCSO) Robbery/Homicide – Cold Case Unit arrested 55-year-old Michael Lapniewski, Jr. for a murder that occurred in 1987. Detectives conducted an extensive investigation over a period of several years. A suspect was developed after advancements in DNA testing.
According to detectives, on February 9, 1987, deputies responded to a residence in unincorporated St. Petersburg for a deceased person. The victim, 82-year-old Opal Weil was located deceased by her sister-in-law after not answering her telephone. Weil had obvious and visible signs of trauma. Deputies discovered the suspect fled the scene prior to their arrival.
lawandcrime.com
Detectives began an undercover operation to confirm a forensic match, including collecting discarded red coffee straws and a restaurant spoon with Lapniewski’s DNA, which matched the profile from the hairs at Weil’s home.
Officers said they were able to collect the restaurant spoon with the help of a Bay St. Louis Police Department detective, who owned a restaurant and personally knew the suspect. As part of the plan, he set up a local promotion offering a free meal, thanking local customers, and promoting the restaurant to residents. Investigators said they lured Lapniewski there with a flier, and accordingly, they got a spoon and fork he used.
PINELLAS COUNTY – On January 26, 2023, detectives assigned to the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office (PCSO) Robbery/Homicide – Cold Case Unit arrested 55-year-old Michael Lapniewski, Jr. for a murder that occurred in 1987. Detectives conducted an extensive investigation over a period of several years. A suspect was developed after advancements in DNA testing.
According to detectives, on February 9, 1987, deputies responded to a residence in unincorporated St. Petersburg for a deceased person. The victim, 82-year-old Opal Weil was located deceased by her sister-in-law after not answering her telephone. Weil had obvious and visible signs of trauma. Deputies discovered the suspect fled the scene prior to their arrival.
Police Use Restaurant Promotion to Crack Elderly Woman's 1987 Cold Case Murder
Police investigators believe they have solved an elderly woman's cold case murder with the help of a fake restaurant promotion, announcing the suspect's arrest just short of the grim anniversary.
lawandcrime.com
Officers said they were able to collect the restaurant spoon with the help of a Bay St. Louis Police Department detective, who owned a restaurant and personally knew the suspect. As part of the plan, he set up a local promotion offering a free meal, thanking local customers, and promoting the restaurant to residents. Investigators said they lured Lapniewski there with a flier, and accordingly, they got a spoon and fork he used.
Friday Fan
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Suspect was only 20 at the time!23-016 Mississippi Man Arrested for 1987 Pinellas County Cold Case Murder
PINELLAS COUNTY – On January 26, 2023, detectives assigned to the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office (PCSO) Robbery/Homicide – Cold Case Unit arrested 55-year-old Michael Lapniewski, Jr. for a murder that occurred in 1987. Detectives conducted an extensive investigation over a period of several years. A suspect was developed after advancements in DNA testing.
According to detectives, on February 9, 1987, deputies responded to a residence in unincorporated St. Petersburg for a deceased person. The victim, 82-year-old Opal Weil was located deceased by her sister-in-law after not answering her telephone. Weil had obvious and visible signs of trauma. Deputies discovered the suspect fled the scene prior to their arrival.
Detectives began an undercover operation to confirm a forensic match, including collecting discarded red coffee straws and a restaurant spoon with Lapniewski’s DNA, which matched the profile from the hairs at Weil’s home.Police Use Restaurant Promotion to Crack Elderly Woman's 1987 Cold Case Murder
Police investigators believe they have solved an elderly woman's cold case murder with the help of a fake restaurant promotion, announcing the suspect's arrest just short of the grim anniversary.
Officers said they were able to collect the restaurant spoon with the help of a Bay St. Louis Police Department detective, who owned a restaurant and personally knew the suspect. As part of the plan, he set up a local promotion offering a free meal, thanking local customers, and promoting the restaurant to residents. Investigators said they lured Lapniewski there with a flier, and accordingly, they got a spoon and fork he used.
Gotta wonder what he has left in his wake?
Maybe he was previously incarcerated??
Can't image he led a clean life!
Georgia case:
A woman vanished in 1989 after getting into a tractor trailer. Now there's a murder arrest.
The sheriff's office in Monroe County said Thursday that it had solved a three-decades-old cold case involving a 23-year-old woman who disappeared after being seen entering a tractor-trailer with a man in 1989.
According to the Monroe County Sheriff's Office, the body of 23-year-old Mary Willfong was found near I-75 by deer hunters on Nov. 21, 1989. An autopsy later determined she had been sexually assaulted, and her cause of death had been strangulation.
...
Then the case was reopened in 2019.
A sheriff's office investigator, Marc Mansfield, "took the original evidence and re-submitted it to the GBI crime lab due to new technology." He also took the evidence to Miami for a genealogy trace.
The re-opened investigation led to a suspect in Indiana. With the help of local authorities there, further DNA evidence was collected and matched to DNA taken from the body of the 1989 victim, Willfong.
Larry Padgett, 59, was then arrested on Wednesday.
A woman vanished in 1989 after getting into a tractor trailer. Now there's a murder arrest.
The sheriff's office in Monroe County said Thursday that it had solved a three-decades-old cold case involving a 23-year-old woman who disappeared after being seen entering a tractor-trailer with a man in 1989.
According to the Monroe County Sheriff's Office, the body of 23-year-old Mary Willfong was found near I-75 by deer hunters on Nov. 21, 1989. An autopsy later determined she had been sexually assaulted, and her cause of death had been strangulation.
...
Then the case was reopened in 2019.
A sheriff's office investigator, Marc Mansfield, "took the original evidence and re-submitted it to the GBI crime lab due to new technology." He also took the evidence to Miami for a genealogy trace.
The re-opened investigation led to a suspect in Indiana. With the help of local authorities there, further DNA evidence was collected and matched to DNA taken from the body of the 1989 victim, Willfong.
Larry Padgett, 59, was then arrested on Wednesday.
iamshadow21
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ifindedout
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RSBM
A note on the stories about this breaking case: the image of Mary Willfong being used by these and other sources is actually that of former UID Stacey Lyn Chahorski. Perhaps there is no image of Mary available, MOO
Identified! - GA - Rising Fawn, WhtFem 26UFGA, 16-25, On East Side of NB I-59, Dec'88 - Stacey Lyn Chahorski
Rest in peace, Stacey
iamshadow21
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That's awful! How on earth did that happen? A placeholder silhouette is better than a Doe being given someone else's face!
JosieMae
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DNA leads to murder suspect in Kentucky teen's 1976 cold case | Court TV
By LAUREN SILVER Court TV BOONE COUNTY, Ky. — Nearly fifty years after her body was found brutally murdered and left in a roadside ditch, detectives in
www.courttv.com
Great to see nonprofits helping to cover costs for advanced DNA testing, including genetic genealogy
Identified! - OH - Sandusky, Lake Erie, Wht/Fem 25-40, UP76029, Sz 12 beige cocktail party dress, Mar'80 - Patricia Eleanor Greenwood
DNA testing reveals identity of woman's body found on Lake Erie shore 43 years ago
"On March 30, 1980, a woman's body was found on the shore of Lake Erie in Sandusky. Her identity remained a mystery for more than four decades until genetic genealogy DNA testing revealed her identity.
The body has been identified by authorities as Patricia Eleanor Greenwood, born in 1948.
"Recently, while investigating a separate missing person's case file, the U.S. Marshals Service came across a teletype from 1980 regarding the unidentified woman."
...
The U.S. Marshals partnered with the Porchlight Project, a nonprofit dedicated to solving cold cases, to have the remains' DNA tested. The Porchlight Project offered to fund the testing, and a tissue sample was sent in 2021 to the forensics lab Bode Technology which has previously worked with the nonprofit on other cases.
The firm analyzed the woman's DNA and then looked through genealogy databases as well as evidence to "generate a single strong lead" given to the Sandusky Police Department.
The lead was a family tree of 12 children who were given up for adoption in Michigan. Police investigators tracked down a man who said he hadn't heard from his sister in 40 years. Another family member told police her missing sister might have been working as a sex worker when she disappeared.
While Greenwood's identity has been confirmed, the circumstances surrounding her death remain unresolved. Police said her death is being considered a possible homicide. Authorities are hoping that identifying Greenwood may prompt someone who may remember her to provide a tip about anyone she was with when she disappeared.
Anyone with information about Greenwood is asked to call Sandusky Police at 419-627-5980."
Identified! - OH - Sandusky, Lake Erie, Wht/Fem 25-40, UP76029, Sz 12 beige cocktail party dress, Mar'80 - Patricia Eleanor Greenwood
DNA testing reveals identity of woman's body found on Lake Erie shore 43 years ago
"On March 30, 1980, a woman's body was found on the shore of Lake Erie in Sandusky. Her identity remained a mystery for more than four decades until genetic genealogy DNA testing revealed her identity.
The body has been identified by authorities as Patricia Eleanor Greenwood, born in 1948.
"Recently, while investigating a separate missing person's case file, the U.S. Marshals Service came across a teletype from 1980 regarding the unidentified woman."
...
The U.S. Marshals partnered with the Porchlight Project, a nonprofit dedicated to solving cold cases, to have the remains' DNA tested. The Porchlight Project offered to fund the testing, and a tissue sample was sent in 2021 to the forensics lab Bode Technology which has previously worked with the nonprofit on other cases.
The firm analyzed the woman's DNA and then looked through genealogy databases as well as evidence to "generate a single strong lead" given to the Sandusky Police Department.
The lead was a family tree of 12 children who were given up for adoption in Michigan. Police investigators tracked down a man who said he hadn't heard from his sister in 40 years. Another family member told police her missing sister might have been working as a sex worker when she disappeared.
While Greenwood's identity has been confirmed, the circumstances surrounding her death remain unresolved. Police said her death is being considered a possible homicide. Authorities are hoping that identifying Greenwood may prompt someone who may remember her to provide a tip about anyone she was with when she disappeared.
Anyone with information about Greenwood is asked to call Sandusky Police at 419-627-5980."
Man charged in rape cases dating back to 1999 & 2000 in Michigan & Pennsylvania:
West Bloomfield Township man charged in decades-old sexual assaults in Oakland Twp., Pennsylvania
"Kurt Alan Rillema, 51, was linked to the Oakland Township assault by DNA evidence from a similar assault case at a Penn State University golf course in 2000.
...
In 2021, evidence from the Oakland Township case was submitted to Virginia-based Parabon Nanolabs for genealogy testing.
Following an extensive search, which included work by both the sheriff's office and Penn State police, as well as tracing genealogy as far back as the 1700s, the search for possible suspects was narrowed down to one of three brothers. Further investigation determined that Rillema, who owns a construction company, was the main suspect. His DNA matched evidence in both cases."
West Bloomfield Township man charged in decades-old sexual assaults in Oakland Twp., Pennsylvania
"Kurt Alan Rillema, 51, was linked to the Oakland Township assault by DNA evidence from a similar assault case at a Penn State University golf course in 2000.
...
In 2021, evidence from the Oakland Township case was submitted to Virginia-based Parabon Nanolabs for genealogy testing.
Following an extensive search, which included work by both the sheriff's office and Penn State police, as well as tracing genealogy as far back as the 1700s, the search for possible suspects was narrowed down to one of three brothers. Further investigation determined that Rillema, who owns a construction company, was the main suspect. His DNA matched evidence in both cases."
Oakie
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There's been a new identification w/ genetic genealogy but I can't find the case on any thread (Unidentified, Missing Persons, etc) in WS... so I'm posting it here:
Claudette Powers was identified as the Jane Doe found on Feb. 16, 1986 in Warner Springs, California.
Genetic Genealogy Identifies 1986 Jane Doe
"Powers' body was discovered near campsites on Los Coyotes Indian Reservation in Warner Springs. A second murder victim was found around the same time and area. The man’s body has not been identified. There is a possibility these two cases are connected."
Who Killed Claudette Powers? DNA Helps ID 1986 Warner Springs Homicide Victim
"Powers, a Michigan native, moved to San Diego County in 1983 or 1984, according to sheriff’s officials. She is believed to have lived in San Diego or Escondido, possibly residing on Fig Street in the latter city and working at a neighborhood restaurant just prior to her suspicious death"
Claudette Powers was identified as the Jane Doe found on Feb. 16, 1986 in Warner Springs, California.
Genetic Genealogy Identifies 1986 Jane Doe
"Powers' body was discovered near campsites on Los Coyotes Indian Reservation in Warner Springs. A second murder victim was found around the same time and area. The man’s body has not been identified. There is a possibility these two cases are connected."
Who Killed Claudette Powers? DNA Helps ID 1986 Warner Springs Homicide Victim
"Powers, a Michigan native, moved to San Diego County in 1983 or 1984, according to sheriff’s officials. She is believed to have lived in San Diego or Escondido, possibly residing on Fig Street in the latter city and working at a neighborhood restaurant just prior to her suspicious death"