OH OH - Amy Mihaljevic, 10, Bay Village, 27 Oct 1989

[clevelandsparkle]

Adding to this, partly to bump and partly for a question.

Someone mentioned earlier in the thread that the affidavit was filed with the Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas. How do you know it came from there and not from the BVPD itself?

 

[gemini614]

I'm anxious to know if they have or will be matching the DNA to any ancestry/recreational DNA testing databases. Like the GSK.

 

[Betty P]

Adding to this, partly to bump and partly for a question.

Someone mentioned earlier in the thread that the affidavit was filed with the Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas. How do you know it came from there and not from the BVPD itself?

The affidavit was filed by a Bay Village police detective who interviewed a woman who had information about someone she suspected may have been involved in Amy's murder. The detective filed the affidavit with the Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas because that is the court that handles murder cases. Bay Village is a small town in Cuyahoga County that doesn't have a court.

EXCLUSIVE: Court documents reveal startling new developments in Amy Mihaljevic murder investigation

In an investigation that’s been ongoing for 31 years, physical evidence, witness accounts and suspicious statements are among the new developments found in court documents recently filed in connection with the kidnapping and murder case of Amy Mihaljevic.

www.news5cleveland.com

According to a sworn affidavit from a Bay Village detective, the woman told police at the time of Amy’s disappearance, the man and his former girlfriend lived less than a mile and a half from the shopping center where Mihaljevic was last seen alive talking to an unidentified man.

Another news report

 

[Betty P]

I'm anxious to know if they have or will be matching the DNA to any ancestry/recreational DNA testing databases. Like the GSK.

They've talked about this over the years, without giving a lot of details. Apparently, they don't have a lot, so are waiting until technology advances so they have a good test with the material they have. At least that's the last I read.

 

[loveplace]

Perhaps, but it likely would be working in the back of the business, not interacting with customers. The poxters with the sketch of the killer were plastered everywhere. People worried about their kids were looking for that face everywhere.

I would have agreed with you totally until the Delphi arrest recently. It seems hard for people to make the psychological jump to suspect someone they regularly see in those neighborhood jobs. It still puzzles me though.

 

[Betty P]

I would have agreed with you totally until the Delphi arrest recently. It seems hard for people to make the psychological jump to suspect someone they regularly see in those neighborhood jobs. It still puzzles me though.

On that, I agree. A lot of people want to believe no one in their community would do such a thing.

 

[finsfan]

Any updates on this? The DNA results should be in now... In October 2022 they said 4 months...

33 years since her kidnapping, new developments in the Amy Mihaljevic murder mystery

“We’re pursing more so the angle of science now than we ever have in the past because DNA changes every couple of months,” says Det. Sgt. Jay Elish of the Bay Village Police Department.

www.cleveland19.com

 

[imstilla.grandma]

It was sometime around mid-October, 1989, when the phone rang at the Mihaljevic household and 10-year-old Amy answered. The unknown male caller told the fifth grader, who was home alone, that he needed help buying a gift for her mother, who had recently received a promotion at work. The man convinced Amy to meet him at the Village Square shopping center in the Cleveland suburb of Bay Village on Friday, Oct. 27.

On that day, two classmates at the shopping center saw a white male in his 30s approach Amy before putting his hand on her shoulder and leading her through the parking lot. When she didn’t come home, her parents called the police. Her disappearance took on a new sense of urgency when investigators learned Amy may have received additional phone calls from the same unknown caller days earlier.

The massive search for Amy, which was one of the largest in Ohio history, involved hundreds of federal, state, county and local law enforcement members. The search came to a sad end on February 8, 1990, when a jogger discovered Amy’s decomposing remains in a wheat field off a rural county road in Ashland County, about 50 miles from the shopping center.

Investigators believed that Amy, who died from a stab wound to the left side of her neck, was dumped in the field days after her abduction.

A thick olive green homemade curtain was discovered about 300 yards from Amy's body.
Cuyahoga County Prosecutorâs Office

Years after her killing, authorities discovered that two more young girls received similar calls around the same time as Amy. “We don’t know if he was grooming anybody that would bite,” says Bay Village Police Department Sgt. Jay Elish about the suspect. “Or if it was somebody that may have met Amy. That’s one of the things we’ve been trying to determine for years.”

Crack This Cold Case: Girl, 10, Lured to a Shopping Mall and Disappeared 33 Years Ago

The body of Amy Mihaljevic was found in a wheat field in Ashland County, Ohio

people.com

 

[GoBuckeyes]

They've talked about this over the years, without giving a lot of details. Apparently, they don't have a lot, so are waiting until technology advances so they have a good test with the material they have. At least that's the last I read.

I was in school when this happened, and it has stayed with me these many years. It was my first insight into the world not always being a friendly place. I would be so thrilled for this case to have resolution and justice for Amy.

 

[Facinatingtimes]

I hope they can solve this in the near future with advancing technology. I’m surprised that with the sketch, other girls contacted, Nature Center connection and what is known about timing and location, it hasn’t been solved. Perhaps someone has come forward, but they just don’t have the evidence to arrest? I know the police and community really want to solve this.

 

[Richard]

View attachment 435287
It was sometime around mid-October, 1989, when the phone rang at the Mihaljevic household and 10-year-old Amy answered. The unknown male caller told the fifth grader, who was home alone, that he needed help buying a gift for her mother, who had recently received a promotion at work. The man convinced Amy to meet him at the Village Square shopping center in the Cleveland suburb of Bay Village on Friday, Oct. 27.

On that day, two classmates at the shopping center saw a white male in his 30s approach Amy before putting his hand on her shoulder and leading her through the parking lot. When she didn’t come home, her parents called the police. Her disappearance took on a new sense of urgency when investigators learned Amy may have received additional phone calls from the same unknown caller days earlier.

The massive search for Amy, which was one of the largest in Ohio history, involved hundreds of federal, state, county and local law enforcement members. The search came to a sad end on February 8, 1990, when a jogger discovered Amy’s decomposing remains in a wheat field off a rural county road in Ashland County, about 50 miles from the shopping center.

Investigators believed that Amy, who died from a stab wound to the left side of her neck, was dumped in the field days after her abduction.

A thick olive green homemade curtain was discovered about 300 yards from Amy's body.
Cuyahoga County Prosecutorâs Office

Years after her killing, authorities discovered that two more young girls received similar calls around the same time as Amy. “We don’t know if he was grooming anybody that would bite,” says Bay Village Police Department Sgt. Jay Elish about the suspect. “Or if it was somebody that may have met Amy. That’s one of the things we’ve been trying to determine for years.”

Crack This Cold Case: Girl, 10, Lured to a Shopping Mall and Disappeared 33 Years Ago

The body of Amy Mihaljevic was found in a wheat field in Ashland County, Ohio

people.com

Thank you for this update and photos. The photo of the Olive Green "Curtain" is interesting. Although I doubt that it has anything to do with Amy's abduction and murder, I couldn't help but think it might be a home made flag rather than a curtain.

Boy Scouts often would make such flags to attach to a hiking stick or pole. These were known as guidons or patrol flags. They would vary in size but generally they would be a little larger than 12 inches by 18 inches. Olive Green is certainly a color associated with Boy Scout equipment and uniforms.

There appears to be some writing on this item in the lower left of the photo. I wonder if that was made by the police or if it was already there when they found it.

What are the dimensions of this "curtain"?

 

[Yemelyan]

Thank you for this update and photos. The photo of the Olive Green "Curtain" is interesting. Although I doubt that it has anything to do with Amy's abduction and murder, I couldn't help but think it might be a home made flag rather than a curtain.

Boy Scouts often would make such flags to attach to a hiking stick or pole. These were known as guidons or patrol flags. They would vary in size but generally they would be a little larger than 12 inches by 18 inches. Olive Green is certainly a color associated with Boy Scout equipment and uniforms.

There appears to be some writing on this item in the lower left of the photo. I wonder if that was made by the police or if it was already there when they found it.

What are the dimensions of this "curtain"?

Curtain, blanket could be key to solving 1989 Amy Mihaljevic murder

That link contains a photo of a detective standing next to the curtain for scale so you can get an idea of the dimensions of the curtain.

 

[Richard]

Curtain, blanket could be key to solving 1989 Amy Mihaljevic murder

That link contains a photo of a detective standing next to the curtain for scale so you can get an idea of the dimensions of the curtain.

Thanks for the link. This is obviously a curtain of some sort. It might have been used in place of a closet or pantry door or as one half of a pair of curtains. If any suspects are identified, and personal photos found, it might show up in the background of pictures taken.

A blanket is also mentioned and shown in the link. According to the article, hairs associated with Amy's dog were affixed to it, perhaps transferred to the blanket from Amy's clothing.

 

[Betty P]

Thanks for the link. This is obviously a curtain of some sort. It might have been used in place of a closet or pantry door or as one half of a pair of curtains. If any suspects are identified, and personal photos found, it might show up in the background of pictures taken.

A blanket is also mentioned and shown in the link. According to the article, hairs associated with Amy's dog were affixed to it, perhaps transferred to the blanket from Amy's clothing.

I've wondered if the curtain came from one of the older homes (early 1900's) that you see in the rural farmland area where Amy's body was found. A lot of those old fashioned farm houses had high ceilings, tall windows and doors. The curtain appears to be for a window or doorway that's taller than the average modern home. JMO

One of LE's theories early on was that Amy was taken to a house or other building in that general area before being dumped. It must have been a familiar place to the killer, where he felt safe disposing of her body without being seen.

Here are a couple of examples of this type of 1900s era Ohio houses. These are just examples, not anything suspicious.

 

[imstilla.grandma]

 

[Falling Down]

I've wondered if the curtain came from one of the older homes (early 1900's) that you see in the rural farmland area where Amy's body was found. A lot of those old fashioned farm houses had high ceilings, tall windows and doors. The curtain appears to be for a window or doorway that's taller than the average modern home. JMO

One of LE's theories early on was that Amy was taken to a house or other building in that general area before being dumped. It must have been a familiar place to the killer, where he felt safe disposing of her body without being seen.

Here are a couple of examples of this type of 1900s era Ohio houses. These are just examples, not anything suspicious.

Windows in the top image are exactly what I pictured when the curtain info was shared by LE. Common across rural Ohio, late-1800's to early-1900's houses.

 

[Betty P]

Windows in the top image are exactly what I pictured when the curtain info was shared by LE. Common across rural Ohio, late-1800's to early-1900's houses.

Yes, I agree. There are also some older homes from this era scattered around the western and southern suburbs of Cleveland, too.

 

[mothwings]

It is so sad and frustrating Amy's killer has not been found. I thought the missing items were going to be a key to solving this case. They may be someday. I bet at least the binder will turn up but it could be a long time from now and the monster who murdered her will be dead.

 

[AAApopo]

I see why the teacher a town over was one of the main suspects as he matches the sketch and taught a similar age group as Amy. I think given this was pre social media, cell phones, and security cameras for the most part - the suspect would feel a little more comfortable than today out in a public area. But there would have to be evidence he could have left his classroom early enough and drove 30 minutes to the mall in Bay Village... both witnesses also said the man had dark hair, but one shows with and without glasses which was always odd to me. You either had them on or you didn't.

I think the person had to have some connection with the girls he called who were in the same age group and went to the same school. BUT I think the person also couldn't have been someone too known to them as going to the strip mall close to the school would be a major risk. I also think the body was moved at some point as it was right off the road where a runner could see her. To sit there for a few months without notice seems unlikely, but possible.

 

[loveplace]

I see why the teacher a town over was one of the main suspects as he matches the sketch and taught a similar age group as Amy. I think given this was pre social media, cell phones, and security cameras for the most part - the suspect would feel a little more comfortable than today out in a public area. But there would have to be evidence he could have left his classroom early enough and drove 30 minutes to the mall in Bay Village... both witnesses also said the man had dark hair, but one shows with and without glasses which was always odd to me. You either had them on or you didn't.

I think the person had to have some connection with the girls he called who were in the same age group and went to the same school. BUT I think the person also couldn't have been someone too known to them as going to the strip mall close to the school would be a major risk. I also think the body was moved at some point as it was right off the road where a runner could see her. To sit there for a few months without notice seems unlikely, but possible.

Maybe they show both so that whichever way he appeared that day, he could be recognized from the sketches either way with less effort since glasses are such an easy thing to change?