On July 11, 2011, the Larimer County Coroner’s Office responded to a local hotel in Fort Collins, Colorado, to investigate the death of an unidentified African
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On July 11, 2011, the Larimer County Coroner’s Office responded to a local hotel in Fort Collins, Colorado, to investigate the death of an unidentified African American female approximately 70-years-old. The decedent checked in with a name and address that was later discovered to be false information. Since then, all attempts at identifying the decedent have failed and no family was ever located.
This year, with the help of the Colorado Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and advancements in genetic genealogy, the decedent was identified, and her family was located.
The decedent is identified as 72-year-old Barbara Jean LEWIS of Los Angeles, CA.
"I deeply appreciate our partners at the CBI for their innovative problem-solving and application of forensic genealogy. Identifying Ms. Lewis brings bittersweet relief to her family and hope to others working on similar identifications."
-Stephen Hanks, J.D. Larimer County Coroner
Our office would like to thank the Colorado Bureau of Investigation along with the Larimer County Sheriff’s Office for their tireless efforts in identifying the decedent and bringing closure to her loved ones.
“We would like to express our gratitude for all the efforts in providing us with the essential information about our loved one, and for helping to bring much-needed closure to a very long and challenging chapter in Barbara's life.”
-Family of Barbara Jean Lewis