Green River Killer’s youngest known victim identified through genetic genealogy
Updated Jan 26, 2021;
Posted Jan 26, 2021
Gary Ridgway sits in court during the sentencing portion of his 2003 trial in Seattle. Ridgway recieved a life sentence, without the possibility of parole. (Photo by Elaine Thompson-Pool/Getty Images)Getty Images
Facebook Share
SEATTLE Genetic genealogy helped identify the youngest known victim of one of the nation’s most prolific serial killers almost 37 years after her remains were discovered near a baseball field south of Seattle.
Wendy Stephens was 14 and had run away from her home in Denver before Gary Ridgway, the Green River Killer, strangled her in 1983, the King County Sheriff’s Office announced Monday.
Enter your number to get our free mobile app
The Green River Killer is one of those disgusting and horrible killing sprees that went on for a decade and scared many people for years.
Since the killer was identified years ago as Gary Ridgway more and more of the facts have come out, a lot having to do with deals that are made to get more information out of the killer about the victims in these cases.
Gary Ridgway was convicted of 48 separate murders before another conviction was added making him the second most prolific serial killer in United States history. Detectives are still working on many cases from decades ago trying to find closure for many families still wondering where their loved ones might have gone.
Denver girl identified as victim of notorious Green River Killer
Wendy Stephens was 14 years old when she ran away in 1983. She is believed to be notorious serial killer Gary Ridgway s youngest victim. Author: Darren Whitehead Updated: 8:13 AM MST January 26, 2021
KING COUNTY, Wash. A girl from Denver has been identified as one of the victims of Washington state s infamous Green River Killer.
Wendy Stephens was 14 years old when she ran away from her home in Denver in 1983, the King County Sheriff s Office (KCSO) said. Stephens remains were found in 1984 in an area that is now part of Seattle-Tacoma International Airport.
Stephens was one of four of Gary Ridgway s victims who had not been identified. Stephens is believed to be Ridgway s youngest victim, according to the KCSO.
Genetic genealogy helps ID victim of Green River Killer
by The Associated Press
Last Updated Jan 25, 2021 at 3:14 pm EDT
SEATTLE Genetic genealogy helped identify the youngest known victim of Green River Killer Gary Ridgway the Pacific Northwest serial killer who admitted killing dozens of women and girls after her remains were found almost 37 years ago near a baseball field south of Seattle.
Wendy Stephens was 14 and had run away from her home in Denver in 1983, the King County Sheriff’s Office announced Monday.
Ridgway pleaded guilty in 2003 to murdering 48 women and girls. Four of the victims including Stephens had not been identified at the time.
January 25, 2021 at 1:52 pm
In this undated photo, investigators search for the remains of one of Green River killer Gary Ridgway s victims at a unknown location (Photo by King County Prosecutor s Office via Getty Images)
Infamous Pacific Northwest serial killer Gary Ridgway known more widely as the Green River Killer confessed to murdering 48 women in 2003, four of whom had remained unidentified to this day. As of Monday, one of those four has now been successfully identified.
This comes as a result of work from the King County Sheriff’s Office, forensic anthropologist Dr. Katherine Taylor, the DNA Doe Project, and others. Together, they were able to identify the victim as Wendy Stephens.