Shadow205
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INDIAN RIVER COUNTY A fading piece of paper with the sketch of a middle-aged woman's face was posted in the Sheriff's Office lobby for almost five years.
The headline was "Your help is needed identifying body!"
<snip>
"It's very frustrating," said Robin Pettey, Sheriff's Office crime scene technician, who processed the scene where the woman was found five years ago. "I have five years to go until retirement, and I am going to find out who she is before I retire. That's my goal. That is my goal."
This past Thursday was the five-year anniversary of when the woman's body was found in a water-filled ditch near a dirt road 200 feet south of the 12100 block of County Road 512.
The woman was white or Hispanic, between 45 and 60 years old and weighed 140 to 170 pounds. She had light brown hair with gray streaks, brown eyes and wore a full set of dentures. She was named Jane Doe, as are all unidentified female bodies. But the name on her toe tag has stuck with her since all clues have led to a dead end.
<snip>
JUNE 22, 2001
Steven Lewis, owner of Indian River African Aquatic Inc., was leaving his 40-acre fish farm about 8 a.m. to deliver fish to Orlando when he noticed a flock of vultures gathering in a nearby ditch. Lewis didn't think much of them at the time because, "over the years, hogs and deer remains have been dumped on the road," he told the Press Journal later that day. But when he returned less than three hours later, he stopped to investigate and found the woman's body.
The woman's partly decomposed body was fully clothed when found. She was wearing a blue plaid shirt with a white tank top underneath it and dark blue pants.
Medical examiners later determined the woman died from asphyxiation from "trauma to the neck," according to Detective Todd Finnegan. However, he didn't find what was used in the apparent attack.
What he did find was her dentures, which usually have a number inscribed on them that can be traced to a dentist or person. However, these dentures were temporary, which do not have any identification devices.
"But she must have been having them made, so somewhere there may be a full set of dentures waiting to be picked up," Finnegan said.
A 12-inch, horizontal scar found on the woman's stomach is consistent with one from a Caesarian section, indicating she may have had a child, he said. The scar was the only mark on her body. "She had no tattoos, no identification. There was no evidence to indicate a sexual assault, either," Finnegan said. "If she has a child out there, assuming the child is still alive, don't you think he or she would be looking for mom?"
<snip>
A week-old receipt from a Melbourne department store was found with the body.
However, the items on it were paid with cash, so investigators couldn't trace a credit card linked to it. Video cameras in the store also didn't catch the woman or person who made the purchases, Finnegan said.
So without any other hard evidence, investigators turned to missing persons databases. They started with women reported missing in the state and focused on the Treasure and Space coasts.
When nothing materialized, Pettey went national.
"To date, I've probably made calls on at least 500 missing person cases," she said. "There have been many missing persons that have closely matched our Jane Doe, but something would come up and determine they weren't her. It's hard when you get your hopes up like that."
Pettey makes calls on missing persons cases every day hoping she will find her needle in a haystack.
Although the county buried the woman's body in a Winter Beach cemetery about a month after it was discovered, Pettey said a former sketch artist for the Brevard County Sheriff's Office was able to draw a picture of the woman for the public.
She even was able to do a clay reconstruction of the woman's face with both a thin and large build.
"It is just so hard to believe that she is an older lady and nobody is missing their mom or grandma. It blows your mind," Pettey said. "We have no clue why she was in this area, but we are determined to at least find out who she is."
DO YOU KNOW HER? Anyone with information about this 5-year-old Jane Doe case can call Sheriff's Office crime scene technician Robin Pettey at (772) 978-6137 or Treasure Coast CrimeStoppers at (800) 273-TIPS (8477). Callers can stay anonymous
Full article at the link http://www.tcpalm.com/tcp/local_news/article/0,2545,TCP_16736_4801174,00.html
I looked on the doenetwork and could not find where she is listed as an UI body. It would have helped if the sketch would have been in the article. If she is not listed on the doenetwork, then LE needs to get her listed.
The headline was "Your help is needed identifying body!"
<snip>
"It's very frustrating," said Robin Pettey, Sheriff's Office crime scene technician, who processed the scene where the woman was found five years ago. "I have five years to go until retirement, and I am going to find out who she is before I retire. That's my goal. That is my goal."
This past Thursday was the five-year anniversary of when the woman's body was found in a water-filled ditch near a dirt road 200 feet south of the 12100 block of County Road 512.
The woman was white or Hispanic, between 45 and 60 years old and weighed 140 to 170 pounds. She had light brown hair with gray streaks, brown eyes and wore a full set of dentures. She was named Jane Doe, as are all unidentified female bodies. But the name on her toe tag has stuck with her since all clues have led to a dead end.
<snip>
JUNE 22, 2001
Steven Lewis, owner of Indian River African Aquatic Inc., was leaving his 40-acre fish farm about 8 a.m. to deliver fish to Orlando when he noticed a flock of vultures gathering in a nearby ditch. Lewis didn't think much of them at the time because, "over the years, hogs and deer remains have been dumped on the road," he told the Press Journal later that day. But when he returned less than three hours later, he stopped to investigate and found the woman's body.
The woman's partly decomposed body was fully clothed when found. She was wearing a blue plaid shirt with a white tank top underneath it and dark blue pants.
Medical examiners later determined the woman died from asphyxiation from "trauma to the neck," according to Detective Todd Finnegan. However, he didn't find what was used in the apparent attack.
What he did find was her dentures, which usually have a number inscribed on them that can be traced to a dentist or person. However, these dentures were temporary, which do not have any identification devices.
"But she must have been having them made, so somewhere there may be a full set of dentures waiting to be picked up," Finnegan said.
A 12-inch, horizontal scar found on the woman's stomach is consistent with one from a Caesarian section, indicating she may have had a child, he said. The scar was the only mark on her body. "She had no tattoos, no identification. There was no evidence to indicate a sexual assault, either," Finnegan said. "If she has a child out there, assuming the child is still alive, don't you think he or she would be looking for mom?"
<snip>
A week-old receipt from a Melbourne department store was found with the body.
However, the items on it were paid with cash, so investigators couldn't trace a credit card linked to it. Video cameras in the store also didn't catch the woman or person who made the purchases, Finnegan said.
So without any other hard evidence, investigators turned to missing persons databases. They started with women reported missing in the state and focused on the Treasure and Space coasts.
When nothing materialized, Pettey went national.
"To date, I've probably made calls on at least 500 missing person cases," she said. "There have been many missing persons that have closely matched our Jane Doe, but something would come up and determine they weren't her. It's hard when you get your hopes up like that."
Pettey makes calls on missing persons cases every day hoping she will find her needle in a haystack.
Although the county buried the woman's body in a Winter Beach cemetery about a month after it was discovered, Pettey said a former sketch artist for the Brevard County Sheriff's Office was able to draw a picture of the woman for the public.
She even was able to do a clay reconstruction of the woman's face with both a thin and large build.
"It is just so hard to believe that she is an older lady and nobody is missing their mom or grandma. It blows your mind," Pettey said. "We have no clue why she was in this area, but we are determined to at least find out who she is."
DO YOU KNOW HER? Anyone with information about this 5-year-old Jane Doe case can call Sheriff's Office crime scene technician Robin Pettey at (772) 978-6137 or Treasure Coast CrimeStoppers at (800) 273-TIPS (8477). Callers can stay anonymous
Full article at the link http://www.tcpalm.com/tcp/local_news/article/0,2545,TCP_16736_4801174,00.html
I looked on the doenetwork and could not find where she is listed as an UI body. It would have helped if the sketch would have been in the article. If she is not listed on the doenetwork, then LE needs to get her listed.