Police investigators used genealogy technology to determine the killer of a Michigan woman who had been missing for 33 years before her remains were identified using the same technique earlier this year, officials said.
Stacey Lyn Chahorski was reported missing in January 1989, but it took more than three decades for investigators to determine that a body found in Dade County, Georgia, in December 1988, was her, the Georgia Bureau of Investigations announced in beginning of this year.
Now, the killer has been identified as Henry Fredrick “Hoss” Wise, a truck driver who drove through Dade County on his regular route, FBI Special Agent in charge of the Atlanta Field Office Keri Farley told a news conference. on Tuesday (6).
In Chahorski’s case, it’s “the first time we know that investigative genealogy was used to identify the victim and the killer in the same case,” Farley noted.
Wise, who was also a racing stuntman, died in a car accident in 1999, Farley said. He had a criminal record that included theft, assault and obstruction of a police officer, the Georgia Bureau of Investigations said in a statement.
“Investigators found what was believed to be the killer’s DNA at the (crime) scene, but for years it could not be linked to the person,” Farley said.
Investigators from the Georgia Bureau of Investigations and the FBI were able to link Wise to the Chahorski murder, enlisting the help of Othram, a Texas lab credited with helping to solve a long list of other cold cases. Othram also helped authorities identify Chahorski’s remains.
After Othram received a positive genealogical DNA analysis result of crime scene evidence, Georgia investigators began interviewing possible family members and collecting DNA samples, the Office said. Finally, they were able to identify Wise as the killer, officials said.
Genealogy technology was crucial to the case, as Wise’s criminal history predated mandatory DNA testing following criminal arrests, according to the Georgia Bureau of Investigations.
While advances in DNA analysis have been instrumental in solving the crime, Farley also acknowledged the work of those involved in the case.
“Technology alone did not solve this case,” she said. “The determination of FBI agents and the Georgia Bureau of Investigations, along with all officers who have worked on this case for over 33 years, helped bring it to a close.”
When Chahorski’s remains were identified, authorities said his body would be returned to his family. The remains had already been buried in 1989 in an unnamed mass grave.
FBI Special Agent Tim Burke said at the time that the news of Chahorski’s identification brought his mother, Mary Beth Smith, “a little bit of peace.”
“We were also able to provide some jewelry that was found on Stacey here at the crime scene and return it to her,” Burke said.
*With information from Jamiel Lynch and Christina Maxouris of CNN.
Source: CNN Brasil
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