CA CA - Karen Klaas, 32, Hermosa Beach, 30 Jan 1976

The 1976 murder of Karen Klaas, the ex-wife of Righteous Brothers‘ singer Bill Medley, has finally been solved according to multiple reports — though the public will have to wait until Monday to find out just who did it.

The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department investigators announced Friday that they’ve scheduled a press conference for Jan. 30 where they will finally reveal who killed the Hermosa Beach mother of two...

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A statement issued Friday by the department said investigators believe the case has been solved through the use of “familial DNA,” which identified the killer. The process involves detectives searching law enforcement databases to identify likely relatives of the suspect...

Klaas was attacked just after returning home from taking her youngest child to a local pre-school. Police said the home showed signs of a struggle and had been ransacked.

Police have not said if an arrest has been made in the case or if the suspect is even alive after all these years.

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The 32-year-old Klaas was allegedly killed by Kenneth Troyer, sheriff's officials said. Troyer, who allegedly committed a number of sexual assaults and robberies, was fatally shot by law enforcement authorities in Orange County in March of 1982.

The familial DNA technique allows investigators to search law enforcement databases to identify likely relatives of the person who may have committed the crime.

A sheriff's detective said a "first degree relative" was the source of the DNA sample -- collected six years ago -- that led to the identification of Troyer. An example of such a relative is a father or son.

...an initial familial DNA search in 2011 failed to turn up any possible suspects. Detectives requested another search in 2016, which led to Troyer, he said.

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