cheemsg
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I guess maybe identity theft or something? Such an odd thing to say.
Identified! NC - Orange Co, WhtFem 15-25, 558UFNC, pink sweatshirt w/bunnies, Sep'90 - Lisa Coburn Kesler
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HopeRains
My name is Lisa Coburn Kesler.
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Orange County deputies now have a person of interest in 30-year old cold case
Lisa Marie Coburn Kesler
(L) Yearbook Photo, age 17; (R) Photo in newspaper announcing engagement
Orange County deputies now have ‘person of interest’ in 30 year old cold case, sheriff says
by: Steve Sbraccia
Orange County deputies now have ‘person of interest’ in 30 year old cold case, sheriff says
Updated: Oct 5, 2023 / 05:59 AM EDT
Posted: Oct 4, 2023 / 06:47 PM EDT
Updated: Oct 5, 2023 / 05:59 AM EDT
HILLSBOROUGH, N.C. (WNCN) — There are new developments in a 33-year-old Orange County cold case first reported last week on CBS 17.
It was then that detectives with the Orange County Sheriff’s Office finally identified the victim as Lisa Kesler.
The discovery of her identity was a last ditch effort to get DNA and it paid off.
The case began coming together last week when a new kind of analysis technique found DNA from a degraded strand of hair that an investigator had stored back in 1990.
That led to DNA matches of relatives as well as the victim’s ex-husband.
Those developments helped investigators put together the back story of her life and point them in a new direction.
The discovery of Lisa Coburn Kesler’s identity led them to Jackson County Georgia where she grew up.
Within days of the story going public, some digging by a local reporter at the Jackson Herald revealed something investigators couldn’t find.
“We’ve got a journalist out there in her hometown who had done some really good work and found these photographs where actually some really talented investigators had not been able to find in Georgia–a picture of her,” said Orange County Sheriff Charles Blackwood. “I think that was remarkable, a very good find if you will.”
The high school yearbook photographs show Lisa Coburn at 17.
Coburn was her name until she married and became Lisa Kesler. It was a brief marriage.
“At this point in time, the husband is no longer a person of interest,” said the sheriff.
Former classmates of Lisa told the local reporter from the Jackson Herald she was a quiet person who kept to herself, but the sheriff says there was more to her life than that.
“As you began to read the book of the person, there are unique qualities that are who we become,” said Blackwood. “Her book was very complex and without getting into any details at this time, I’ll just say that it was a very, very complex life that she lived.”
That complex life ended when her strangled body was tossed by the side of Interstate 40 back in 1990.
Being able to backtrack her life under her maiden name has also led investigators to someone who may provide answers about her death.
“We do have a person of interest that we intend to interview,” said the sheriff. “We have interviewed that person before.
“We are working with an individual who has a very unique skill set in interrogation in cases like this,” said Blackwood.
It was the yearbook photo with her maiden name that the sheriff said really played a role in these latest developments.
After DNA helped identify her last week, investigators kept hitting dead ends looking for pictures under the name Lisa Kesler. When they unearthed the Lisa Coburn high school photo, things started to come together.
In a previous interview with CBS 17’s Steve Sbraccia, Sheriff Blackwood said the positioning of Lisa’s body and clothing at the murder scene was very unique.
He said descriptions relating to that are being used by forensic detectives who are combing databases to find similar crimes which may also play a role in this investigation.
Lisa Marie Coburn Kesler
(L) Yearbook Photo, age 17; (R) Photo in newspaper announcing engagement
Orange County deputies now have ‘person of interest’ in 30 year old cold case, sheriff says
by: Steve Sbraccia
Orange County deputies now have ‘person of interest’ in 30 year old cold case, sheriff says
Updated: Oct 5, 2023 / 05:59 AM EDT
Posted: Oct 4, 2023 / 06:47 PM EDT
Updated: Oct 5, 2023 / 05:59 AM EDT
HILLSBOROUGH, N.C. (WNCN) — There are new developments in a 33-year-old Orange County cold case first reported last week on CBS 17.
It was then that detectives with the Orange County Sheriff’s Office finally identified the victim as Lisa Kesler.
The discovery of her identity was a last ditch effort to get DNA and it paid off.
The case began coming together last week when a new kind of analysis technique found DNA from a degraded strand of hair that an investigator had stored back in 1990.
That led to DNA matches of relatives as well as the victim’s ex-husband.
Those developments helped investigators put together the back story of her life and point them in a new direction.
The discovery of Lisa Coburn Kesler’s identity led them to Jackson County Georgia where she grew up.
Within days of the story going public, some digging by a local reporter at the Jackson Herald revealed something investigators couldn’t find.
“We’ve got a journalist out there in her hometown who had done some really good work and found these photographs where actually some really talented investigators had not been able to find in Georgia–a picture of her,” said Orange County Sheriff Charles Blackwood. “I think that was remarkable, a very good find if you will.”
The high school yearbook photographs show Lisa Coburn at 17.
Coburn was her name until she married and became Lisa Kesler. It was a brief marriage.
“At this point in time, the husband is no longer a person of interest,” said the sheriff.
Former classmates of Lisa told the local reporter from the Jackson Herald she was a quiet person who kept to herself, but the sheriff says there was more to her life than that.
“As you began to read the book of the person, there are unique qualities that are who we become,” said Blackwood. “Her book was very complex and without getting into any details at this time, I’ll just say that it was a very, very complex life that she lived.”
That complex life ended when her strangled body was tossed by the side of Interstate 40 back in 1990.
Being able to backtrack her life under her maiden name has also led investigators to someone who may provide answers about her death.
“We do have a person of interest that we intend to interview,” said the sheriff. “We have interviewed that person before.
“We are working with an individual who has a very unique skill set in interrogation in cases like this,” said Blackwood.
It was the yearbook photo with her maiden name that the sheriff said really played a role in these latest developments.
After DNA helped identify her last week, investigators kept hitting dead ends looking for pictures under the name Lisa Kesler. When they unearthed the Lisa Coburn high school photo, things started to come together.
In a previous interview with CBS 17’s Steve Sbraccia, Sheriff Blackwood said the positioning of Lisa’s body and clothing at the murder scene was very unique.
He said descriptions relating to that are being used by forensic detectives who are combing databases to find similar crimes which may also play a role in this investigation.
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Susikatze
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I wonder what "complex life" means. Many friends? Multiple relationships? Multiple jobs? Multiple identities? Sexwork of whatever sort? Crime involvement? Many hobbies? Homelessness/transience? Large family? Moving all the time? Really, no idea what that means. Can be super harmless, e.g. if she had many friends and 2 jobs at once which means many people to trace and ask. But can be more, maybe kind of a Kelly El Dorado scenario. Really, no no idea at all.
I guess we stay tuned.
Poor sweetheart, happy you got your name back and justice is hopefully on its way.
Jmoo
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HopeRains
My name is Lisa Coburn Kesler.
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I think we are all very complex, stories within stories. Her identity closed one chapter and opened another. Her book is not finished, but I don't know that I or anyone else here will read it.
masquerading
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Rest easy, Lisa. It sounds like LE knows a lot more than we do about her life and possibly her killer, so I’m hopeful that she’ll get justice soon too.
carbuff
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(snipped by carbuff)
This part jumped out at me. It sounds to me like they think her death might be connected to other crimes.
This part jumped out at me. It sounds to me like they think her death might be connected to other crimes.
Skigirl
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The other part that stood out to me is that they are interviewing a suspect, someone whom they have interviewed before. Since they didn't even know who she was until now, it must have been someone who was seen with her, or who was a suspect in other cases like that? I wonder if they are just covering their bases by looking at the database, or if they think it's unlikely that this person whom they are re-interviewing is actually the killer.
Beekarina
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'It was very emotional for everyone': Family of woman killed in Orange County over 30 years ago gather to honor her memory
On Wednesday, the family of Lisa Coburn Kesler created a roadside memorial for her just months after new technology allowed investigators to identify her.
www.wnct.com
"
“It was very emotional for everyone,” said Hendricks. “Getting to reveal the name of this victim and have her family come and tell them the story of her final weeks before she was killed, it brought closure for them and helped out with everyone that was on scene.”
Curious_in_NC
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Although she was said to be from Georgia, she had ties to Michigan. Back in post #108 @lilacs traced the shirt graphics to artist Jim Benton whose shirts were being sold in Michigan around that time.'It was very emotional for everyone': Family of woman killed in Orange County over 30 years ago gather to honor her memory
On Wednesday, the family of Lisa Coburn Kesler created a roadside memorial for her just months after new technology allowed investigators to identify her.
"
“It was very emotional for everyone,” said Hendricks. “Getting to reveal the name of this victim and have her family come and tell them the story of her final weeks before she was killed, it brought closure for them and helped out with everyone that was on scene.”
Skigirl
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The graphics/textile research was some stellar sleuthing!
DS2021
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Im wondering if WLA could be tied to this murder. He killed Nona Cobbs in NC in 1992
www.google.com
DNA links 1992 North Carolina murder to CA strangulation cold case; suspect pleads not guilty
A 73-year-old man was charged decades later with strangling and killing three women in California.
HopeRains
My name is Lisa Coburn Kesler.
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Goble was considered and fairly certain given his confessions in other murders and not hers (and other considerations as I recall - maybe he wasn't truck driving at the time(?))) and determined to be unlikely.
The suspect they thought most likely at the time was the cab driver who committed suicide when OCSO was hoping to speak with him - Keith Allen (sp) Brown.
Certain WLA is being/has been considered as well.
The suspect they thought most likely at the time was the cab driver who committed suicide when OCSO was hoping to speak with him - Keith Allen (sp) Brown.
Certain WLA is being/has been considered as well.
Skigirl
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A recent article in the local newspaper written by the elected county sheriff, who was a young patrol deputy at the time she was found, from the article:
Throughout the decades, some of our finest investigators kept plugging away. When you can’t close a case, it gets under your skin. You might set the file aside for a while, but you keep coming back to it, looking to see something you didn’t notice before, or hoping information gathered in ensuing cases has relevance to your cold case.
www.newsoforange.com
Throughout the decades, some of our finest investigators kept plugging away. When you can’t close a case, it gets under your skin. You might set the file aside for a while, but you keep coming back to it, looking to see something you didn’t notice before, or hoping information gathered in ensuing cases has relevance to your cold case.
Lowdown: 33 years later, a big break in a cold case
Thirty-three years ago, crews working on the side of I-40 found the remains of a young woman near the New Hope Church Road exit. I remember that day – I
branmuffin
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Was Lisa ever reported missing by her immediate family? Was she reported missing by her husband? Did the husband advise her family that she was missing? I find it odd that when LE were creating digital images of the JS, they showed her with her mouth closed. After seeing the photograph of Lisa, I can see she was self conscious about her teeth from the way she smiled. You can see she had teeth with gaps in her teeth and different sizes than normal. It was a unique characteristic of the JD. I wonder whether she may have been identified earlier if the forensic artists had shown her teeth.
I, too, wonder about the unique aspects of her life that LE refer to. It's an all-encompassing yet strangely obscure way to advise the public of her life. It could mean anything and everything. She lived in Jackson County, GA and was found in Orange County, NC which is about 5 hours away. Do her family give any indications as to how long she had been missing based on the date her body was found. The date between her estimated date of death and the date she was found could be at least used to give an indication between the time her family last saw her and the estimated date of death.
I, too, wonder about the unique aspects of her life that LE refer to. It's an all-encompassing yet strangely obscure way to advise the public of her life. It could mean anything and everything. She lived in Jackson County, GA and was found in Orange County, NC which is about 5 hours away. Do her family give any indications as to how long she had been missing based on the date her body was found. The date between her estimated date of death and the date she was found could be at least used to give an indication between the time her family last saw her and the estimated date of death.
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