Jane Doe found murdered in Ohio 35 years ago could have been from Pennsylvania
TROY, OH - Police in Ohio are still seeking assistance in identifying an unknown female homicide victim from 35 years ago.
According to a press release, an unidentified female homicide victim was found 35 years ago on April 24, 1981 in Miami County, Ohio.
The woman was found in a ditch alongside Greenlee Road, which is located west of Troy, Ohio.
The press release states that the woman had been dead less than 2 days before she was found.
She was in her late teens, to early 20's, 5'6" in height, and 125 pounds. She had long reddish-brown hair, styled in two side braids and parted down the middle, and appeared to be Caucasian with a ruddy, freckled complexion.
The woman had several scars, one beneath her chin, one on her left arm, two on her left wrist, right hand, right ankle, and right foot.
She had also seen a dentist in her life as she had a porcelain-metal crown on her top right central incisor.
She was found wearing bell bottom blue jeans, a brown turtleneck sweater with an orange crisscross design on the front, and a handmade tan buckskin pull-over jacket with leather fringe around the seams with a deep purple lining.
In February 2016, detectives along with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children provided forensic scientists with case details on Jane Doe. They then conducted a facial reconstruction with new technology and additional lab testing on the clothing.
Officials then sent the clothing Jane Doe was wearing to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Southwest Regional Science Center in Houston, TX to test pollen collected from the clothing.
Detectives received lab results from the pollen testing on the clothing on April 24, 2016.
The press release states, "Pollen analysis of the clothing recovered on the female suggest that she was from or spent a significant amount of time in the northeastern dry-oak forest region, which includes areas in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island.
"A high level of soot from vehicle traffic and/or industrial activity was also found on her clothing suggesting that she spent a significant amount of time in an urban area within the Northeastern region or possibly from hitchhiking. Some pollen grains in excellent condition, from a more arid region in the western U.S. or northern Mexico, were found on the outer layers of her clothing, including her jeans and jacket.
"This suggests that the female traveled to an arid region in the western U.S. or northern Mexico shortly before she was killed."
More testing will be performed in the near future to narrow down the region/location of the country Jane Doe may have been from, the press release states.
Anyone with information regarding Jane Doe's identity should contact Detective Steve Hickey with the Miami County Sheriff's Office, 937-440-3965 ext. 6629, or the Miami County Communication Center at 937-440-9911.