...Name: Sonia Lente
NamUs case #: UID#2726 and MP#597
Person Missing: October 03, 2002
Body Found: 2004 Location: Albuquerque, NM
Body Identified: June, 2009
In June 2009, a citizen searching NamUs noticed a possible match between a woman who had been missing
since 2002 and an unidentified body found near Albuquerque two years later. Although authorities initially
thought the cases might be the same person, a DNA test was not close enough to make a definitive match
and the case grew cold. When the citizen cyber-sleuth saw a potential match in NamUs, she alerted the
NamUs contact on the case. A forensic odontologist, available through NamUs at no charge to agencies,
assisted in the identification of remains. Two days later, the family of woman who had been missing for over
six years was notified that their loved ones remains had finally been identified.
NamUs Role: NamUs allowed a private citizen to access information through a single system, where records
from across the nation are now stored in one place. Providing public access to the data was critical to the
success of solving the Sonia Lente case.
Name: Paula Beverly Davis
NamUs case #: UP #985
Person Missing: August 9, 1987
Body Found: August 10, 1987 Location: Englewood, Ohio
Body Identified: December 11, 2009 (Montgomery County)
On August 9, 1987, Paula Davis went missing from, Kansas City, Missouri. Fourteen hours after she was
reported missing, a body was found in Montgomery County, Ohio, but the two cases were never compared.
In October 2009, Davis sister, Stephanie Clack, was watching an episode of the forgotten and saw the
NamUs public service announcement. She went to NamUs.gov and searched the UP side with the
information she had about her sisters case. After looking at a number of records, she found a person she
suspected may be her sister through descriptions of her sistersunique tattoos a unicorn and a red rose
that the NamUs record contained. Family DNA reference samples were taken and on December 11, 2009,
Paula Davis was positively identified. She has been returned to her family and buried next to her mother.
NamUs Role: A family member was able to view the unidentified records that are publicly accessible.
Because her sister had knowledge of unique identifiers like the tattoos, she was able to identify her sisters
remains...
