MO MO - West Alton, BlkFem 25-35, 'CHORUS BLUES' denim dress, clothes, anonymous letter, May'02

[YaYa_521]

No composite or photo of UID.

NamUs #UP17787
Female, Black / African American
Date Found. May 25, 2002
Location Found. West Alton, Missouri

Estimated Age Group. Adult - Pre 40
Estimated Age Range (Years) 25-35
Height. 5' 4"(64 inches) , Estimated
Weight. Cannot Estimate
Hair unknown
Eyes Unknown

Accessories - Torn piece of blue jean type material Fragment of thin white color cotton type material White cotton tube style sock. Near the Body

Clothing - CHORUS BLUES brand denim sleeveless dress with metal buttons and a blue shoe string type tie up back Black tank style spandex type material top Black and silver color V-neck style 3/4 sleeve stretch shirt. Near the Body

Circumstances
Type Unidentified Deceased
Date Found. May 25, 2002
NamUs Case Created. April 19, 2018

Location Found Map
Street Address200 feet West of Hwy 67West Alton, Missouri St. Charles County

Circumstances of Recovery
Anonymous letter sent to a reporter led to the discovery of a human remains.
Details of Recovery
Inventory of Remains. One or more limbs not recovered One or both hands not recovered
Condition of Remains. Not recognizable - Partial skeletal parts only

10 images; 0 exclusions.

 

[YaYa_521]

Link to Toi Mitchell's thread where I made a more detailed post regarding a potential match.

MO - Toi Mitchell 24 missing from St. Louis, Missouri 2000MO - Toi Mitchell 24 missing from St. Louis, Missouri 2000

 

[Laughing]

Chorus Blues clothing company, apparently existed from the mid-90's to 2002:

CHORUS BLUES Trademark of CHORUS LINE CORPORATION Serial Number: 74521953 :: Trademarkia Trademarks

Some items on Poshmark & ebay from this company.

 

[YaYa_521]

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

I'm sure y'all would prefer to see her NamUs profile details (e.g., changes, exclusions, etc.), so here's a link. I'd say I can't believe I did that but I can believe I did that.

ETA - Maybe one of the mods could insert that link into the OP. Shhh, no one will ever know.

 

[ChatteringBirds]

Bumping case up. It's sad to see a woman found in 2002 like this still unidentified. If she was found as the result of an anonymous letter, I think someone knows who she is, and someone out there misses her.
Does she have any rule-outs?

 

[Bit of hope]

Link to Toi Mitchell's thread where I made a more detailed post regarding a potential match.

MO - Toi Mitchell 24 missing from St. Louis, Missouri 2000MO - Toi Mitchell 24 missing from St. Louis, Missouri 2000

Was Toi ruled out?

I was also thinking about, but I wonder if the missing date would fit with the state the body was found in in approx. 1 1/2 month. PMI is not stated.
Stacey Chatman, Female, Black / African American
Date of Last Contact April 8, 2002
Missing From St. Louis, Missouri
Missing Age 31 Years
5'5
Clothing descriprion doesn't fit


The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

 

[Caring1]

No missing person exclusions listed in NamUs for UP17787.

 

[ChatteringBirds]

No missing person exclusions listed in NamUs for UP17787.

Oh no, I hope that doesn't mean there aren't any identifiers to compare against. I hope they at least have DNA.

 

[eoyste]

Adding the link for Doe Network - 1641UFMO

1641UFMO

 

[cyberpanda]

Just submitted Toi Mitchell as a potential match

 

[DS2021]

Sounds like she was a Maury Travis victim, as he was the one who wrote the letter. I would look for missing persons with a history of sex work.

Genetic Genealogy would probably be LEs best bet in solving this

 

[DS2021]

The map that led St. Louis police to ‘The Videotape Killer’

He was called “The Street Walker Strangler” and the “Videotape Killer.” Investigators linked Maury Travis to the murders of 12 sex workers in the St. Louis area. However, Tr…

fox2now.com

 

[DS2021]

1641UFMO - Unidentified Female​

Clothing from Decedent

Date of Discovery: May 25, 2002
Location of Discovery: West Alton, St. Charles County, Missouri
Estimated Date of Death: Months prior
State of Remains: Not recognizable - Partial skeletal parts only
Cause of Death: Unknown

Physical Description​

Estimated Age: 25-35 years old
Race: Black
Sex: Female
Height: 5'4"
Weight: Unknown
Hair Color: Unknown
Eye Color: Unknown
Distinguishing Marks/Features: Unknown

Identifiers​

Dentals: Unknown
Fingerprints: Unavailable
DNA: Unknown

Clothing & Personal Items​

Clothing: Sleeveless Chorus Blues denim dress with metal buttons and a blue shoe string-type tie-up in back (see photos); black spandex top (see photo); black and silver v-neck stretch shirt with 3/4 length sleeves (see photo); torn piece of blue jean-type material; thin white cotton fragment; white cotton tube sock
Jewelry: Unknown
Additional Personal Items: Unknown

Circumstances of Discovery​

An anonymous letter sent to a reporter led to the discovery of human remains. The remains were found west of Highway 67 and south of St. Charles Street and scattered over a 30 foot wide area.

The letter writer claimed responsiblity for 9 unsolved murders in the area. He wrote he would tell where many others were located and to prove he was indeed the killer he gave "directions to number seventeen."

Investigation into the letter led to the arrest of Maury Travis. Before he could stand trial, Travis committed suicide in jail.

This decedent, along with 3 others, are believed to be the victims of Travis: 327UFIL, 302UFIL, and 334UFIL.

Investigating Agency(s)​

Agency Name: Office of the Regional Medical Examiner
Agency Contact Person: Amy Buettner, Medicolegal Death Investigator
Agency Phone Number: 636-949-1878
Agency E-Mail: N/A
Agency Case Number: STCH-2002-0344

Investigating Agency(s)​

Agency Name: St. Charles County Police Department
Agency Contact Person: Cpt. Dave Tiefenbrunn
Agency Phone Number: 636-949-3000
Agency E-Mail: N/A
Agency Case Number: 02-3387

NCIC Case Number: Unknown
NamUs Case Number: 17787

Information Source(s)​

NamUs
St. Louis Post-Dispatch (St. Louis, MO) - May 26, 27, & June 11, 2002

Admin Notes​

Added: 8/29/21; Last Updated: 8/29/21

---

Questions or comments? Please contact appropriate member of the Area Team

** Listed information may be estimated.

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[cyberpanda]

I noticed that this article mentions this Jane Doe as being one of his victims. I would be shocked if Toi isn’t this Jane Doe- I’m equally shocked that none of the local LE has tried to make this match yet.

The map that led St. Louis police to ‘The Videotape Killer’

He was called “The Street Walker Strangler” and the “Videotape Killer.” Investigators linked Maury Travis to the murders of 12 sex workers in the St. Louis area. However, Tr…

fox2now.com

 

[DS2021]

I hope they at least have DNA.

The other 3 unidentified Maury Travis victims have dna according to Doe. I would hope that she would too.

 

[Bit of hope]

Sounds like she was a Maury Travis victim, as he was the one who wrote the letter. I would look for missing persons with a history of sex work.

Genetic Genealogy would probably be LEs best bet in solving this

I think you are right. He most likely prayed on vulnerable women who struggled with addiction, being sex workers and probably estranged from family. This story about one of his victims, Alysa Greenwade, is very illustrative. Conversation With a Serial Killer

We see this kind of predators over and over again. It's brings tears to my eyes.

 

[subaw0067]

Is there a copy of the letter available? What did it say? Just “there’s a body in this location?

 

[DS2021]

Is there a copy of the letter available? What did it say? Just “there’s a body in this location?

This article has some (if not all) of it

The map that led St. Louis police to ‘The Videotape Killer’

He was called “The Street Walker Strangler” and the “Videotape Killer.” Investigators linked Maury Travis to the murders of 12 sex workers in the St. Louis area. However, Tr…

fox2now.com

 

[subaw0067]

This article has some (if not all) of it

The map that led St. Louis police to ‘The Videotape Killer’

He was called “The Street Walker Strangler” and the “Videotape Killer.” Investigators linked Maury Travis to the murders of 12 sex workers in the St. Louis area. However, Tr…

fox2now.com

Thanks! I missed that ‍

 

[subaw0067]

Could This Jane doe be another one of his victims? Mascoutah is only 30 minutes from St Louis. She has a lot of healed fractures.