In 1986, a human skull was found along Highway 20 and Interstate 80, 45 miles northwest of South Lake Tahoe, CA. At the time, investigators couldn't come to many conclusions other than the fact the skull belonged to a young woman, likely in her 20s, and she had been murdered. Years later DNA & genealogy would finally reveal the truth; the skull belonged to Donna Ann Lass, a 25 year-old nurse who vanished on September 6,1970 after finishing her shift at the Sahara Hotel Casino. An unknown man called Donna's employer to tell her Donna had left town for a family emergency, which turned out not to be true. Donna Lass was never seen again. It didn't take long for an infamous serial killer, 'The Zodiac', to seemingly latch himself to Donna's case, possibly providing clues, and taunting investigators. For decades, Zodiac's possible involvement muddied the waters in the Lass investigation. All these years later, we may know what happened to Donna, but we don't know who was responsible. 

The 1994 murder of Audrey Hoellein on her bed in her Vancouver, WA apartment led to a very complex investigation with a large number of suspects.  The case relied heavily on forensic testing, which found the DNA of two men on Audrey’s comforter. Investigators could identify only one of them, and he was, for a time, the prime suspect.  But it was the unidentified one – “Individual A” – whom the police zeroed in on.  Once IGG identified him, and authorities started to put together their case against him, it opened a whole can of worms.  The ending is not what you would expect. 

As in Marilyn Decker’s case last week, Lori Kearsey was found murdered and floating in a Davie, FL canal in the 1980s.  She remained a Jane Doe for decades, because she had no ties to the area.  And when she was identified by IGG, it turned out that she was very much missed.  Her killer remains at large, but detectives have a strong person of interest, and are actively working Lori’s case.