A 1985 unsolved homicide case in Montana gets a big break in identifying the victim, thanks to DNA samples abc17news.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from abc17news.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
After 4 decades, Montana shooting victim is identified through DNA: Our family is broken-hearted
May 11, 2021 / 6:37 AM / AP Tracing family trees to catch killers
Officials in western Montana, working with a private DNA lab in Texas, have identified the victim of an early 1980s homicide and are now investigating to see if she may have died at the hands of a suspected serial killer, the Missoula County Sheriff s Office said Monday.
DNA obtained from the skeletonized remains, which were found in Missoula County in September 1985, was compared to commercial databases and was traced to the family of Janet Lee Lucas of Spokane, Washington. Lucas was 23 when she was last seen in Sandpoint, Idaho in the summer of 1983.
Bullet-ridden victim of serial killer dubbed Missoula Mauler is revealed to be mom-of-one, 23, thanks to DNA testing - 36 years after her body was found in Montana creek
Janet Lee Lucas, from Washington state, identified as homicide victim dubbed Christy Crystal Creek whose skeletal remains were found in Montana in 1985
Officials harnessed DNA analysis and genealogical research to identify remains
Lucas, a mother of one, was 23 when she was last seen alive in Idaho in 1983; bear hunter found her remains in Missoula, Montana, two years later
Officials are trying to determine whether Lucas had been murdered by suspected serial killer Wayne Nance, dubbed Missoula Mauler