CA CA - Blythe, WhtFem UP7048, 21-26, hitchhiking, maybe 'Claudia', Aug'92

[ChatteringBirds]

Bumping up for Jane Doe.

 

[imstilla.grandma]

#1992-75783​

Unidentified Victim Details​

Sex / Race:	Female / Caucasian
Date Died or Found:	August 30, 1992
Place of Death / Found:	Highway 95 north of 2nd Avenue, Blythe, CA
Estimated Age:	21 to 26 years of age
Hair / Eyes:	Blond or light brown. Unknown eye color.
Hair Length:	Possibly shoulder length.
Height / Weight:	Approximately 5 feet 4 inches, Unknown weight.
Location of Incident:	Unknown where death occurred, believed dumped where found.
Features or distinguishing marks:	Possibly using the name of Claudia and hitchhiking at truck stops.
Circumstances:	Found in open desert area, suspected homicide death.
Other:	Case Number 75783

#1992-75783 | Riverside County Sheriff, CA

Learn more about this suspected homicide victim found in 1992.

ca-riversidesheriff-hidden.civicplus.com

 

[Romulus]

130UFCA - Unidentified Female​

Reconstructions of the victim (far right by Barbara Martin-Bailey).

Date of Discovery: August 30, 1992
Location of Discovery: Riverside County, California
Estimated Date of Death: 2-6 weeks prior
State of Remains: Decomposed
Cause of Death: Suspected homicide

Physical Description​

Estimated Age: 21-26 years old
Race: White
Sex: Female
Height: 5'4"
Weight: 125 lbs.
Hair: Blond or light brown. Thin, very light-colored eyebrows.
Eye Color: Unknown
Distinguishing Marks/Features: Two small dots tattooed on right thumb between nail and knuckle. Gold glitter polish on her fingernails and toenails.

Identifiers​

Dentals: Available. Some missing teeth and amalgam fillings.
Fingerprints: Not available.
DNA: Available.

Clothing & Personal Items​

Clothing: Blue denim pants (waist 32" and inseam 30" with pantlegs rolled up), gray or white T-shirt with skeleton riding a Harley Motorcycle on the front, words under that say " Ride me Ride free".
Jewelry: Unknown.
Additional Personal Items: Unknown.

Circumstances of Discovery​

The victim was found in open desert area, in Blythe. 100 feet west of Highway 95 and one mile north of Second Avenue. It is unknown where the death occurred, it is believed she was dumped where she was found. Investigators determined that she had been dead for a number of weeks.

Serial killer Keith Hunter Jesperson confessed to her homicide. He claimed she was hitchhiking at truck stops and her name was Claudia and that she wanted a ride to Phoenix, Arizona with him.

Investigating Agency(s)​

Agency Name: Riverside County Coroner
Agency Contact Person: Dawna Wimsatt
Agency Phone Number: 951-443-2300
Agency E-Mail: N/A
Agency Case Number: 75783

NCIC Case Number: U767634511
NamUs Case Number: 7048

Information Source(s)​

NamUs
Riverside County Coroner
Crime Library
The Press-Enterprise

130UFCA

 

[DSCrime]

Just wanted to cross reference other WS threads here. DNA Doe Project successfully id another 1 of Jesperson's victims, Patricia Skiple, in April 2022:

Identified! - CA - Santa Clara Co., Wht/HispFem 497UFCA, 35-45, SK victim, Hwy 152, Jun'93 *Patricia Skiple*

They are currently working on

FL - FL - Holt, off I-10, WhtFem 36-45, 595UFFL, Suzanne, Suzette or Sue, Sep'94


Hope this means they will also work on Blythe, CA Jane Doe!


For general discussion on DDP:
DNA Doe Project - General Discussion #2

 

[John/Jane Doe]

@Caring1 Hey could you post the current NamUs exclusion list for this Jane Doe?

 

[Caring1]

@Caring1 Hey could you post the current NamUs exclusion list for this Jane Doe?

19 Missing Person Exclusions

 

[DS2021]

Bumping

 

[Caring1]

January 8, 2024

LAS VEGAS, Nev. (FOX5) - Las Vegas may have ties to the final unidentified victim of serial killer Keith Hunter Jesperson, known as “The Happy Face Killer.”

DNA analysis and forensic investigation led the District Attorney’s Office to “Claudia’s” biological father, but he had passed away. Some half-siblings were identified, but none had ties to her biological mother, and could not help identify her.

Cold Case Victim Claudia​

• 20-30 years old
• 5′6″ - 5′7″
• medium build
• 140-150 pounds
• found wearing a t-shirt printed with a motorcycle
• tattoo of two small dots on the left side of her right thumb

Woman with possible ties to Las Vegas last unidentified victim of the ‘Happy Face Killer’

Las Vegas may have ties to the final unidentified victim of serial killer Keith Hunter Jesperson, known as “The Happy Face Killer.”

www.fox5vegas.com

 

[I am not Sherlock H.]

https://www.cnn.com/2024/01/09/us/happy-face-killer-unknown-victim-california-cec/index.html

 

[dotr]

https://www.cnn.com/2024/01/09/us/happy-face-killer-unknown-victim-california-cec/index.html

Thanks, from link..

''Jesperson described her as being 20 to 30 years of age with blonde hair and a tattoo of two small dots on her right thumb. She had ties to Las Vegas and southern Nevada, and appeared familiar with Los Angeles and surrounding areas, he told investigators.

She was wearing a gray T-shirt with a photo of a motorcycle on it when her body was found.

Genealogists later determined that her biological father lived in southeast Texas but is no longer alive.''

 

[LookingForClues]

An article in The Independent:
Cold case investigators seek help identifying final victim of the ‘Happy Face Killer’

From link:

There have been significant improvements in forensic science that have allowed investigators and genealogists to determine some familial relatives, including her biological father, who is no longer alive.

Her father was from Cameron County, Texas, but travelled all over the country, including Texas; Santa Barbara County, California; Washington state and Oregon.

Several half-siblings were identified, but these living relatives are not biological matches to the victim’s mother, and so these individuals were not aware of “Claudia”, and cannot assist with her identification, according to investigators.

There is reason to believe the woman’s maternal side of the family has ties to the Louisiana and/or southeast Texas area.

 

[cvaldez1975]

a bio half sister has come forward, her bio father named in this link

Woman discovers last unidentified victim, Happy Face Killer is SISTER

A California woman recently discovered that the her sister was the last unidentified victim of the Happy Face Killer that was discovered through DNA testing.

www.dailymail.co.uk

 

[victoriarobinson642]

a bio half sister has come forward, her bio father named in this link

Woman discovers last unidentified victim, Happy Face Killer is SISTER

A California woman recently discovered that the her sister was the last unidentified victim of the Happy Face Killer that was discovered through DNA testing.

www.dailymail.co.uk

She said that none of her known family members was able to identify her newfound relative.

Investigators said the unidentified murder victim's mother may have been from southeast Texas or Louisiana.

Gonzales added, 'we are of Mexican descent, so it's more likely that the person that was my sister's mom, she would have lived among Mexican people.'

 

[Mrs. Badcrumble]

'Claudia's' phenotype snapshot.

 

[azure]

a bio half sister has come forward, her bio father named in this link

Woman discovers last unidentified victim, Happy Face Killer is SISTER

A California woman recently discovered that the her sister was the last unidentified victim of the Happy Face Killer that was discovered through DNA testing.

www.dailymail.co.uk

'Claudia's' sister looks a lot like an older version of the recon.

 

[Nate_Bro]

Canada's Missing | Case details

www.services.rcmp-grc.gc.ca

 

[SandyQLS]

DM posted another article with info on this case, dated 3/7/24:

'Happy Face Killer' Keith Jesperson claims he's been 'cured' in prison

Keith Jesperson, 67, from British Columbia, Canada , killed at least eight women while traveling America's highways as a long-haul rig driver in the 1990s.

www.dailymail.co.uk

 

[justbrowsingiguess]

Someone mentioned Patricia Schneider and Susan Zaharias in the thread earlier. I know Patricia Schneider was submitted to the Doe Network, but was Susan Zaharias ever submitted as a potential match? I'm assuming it's not Patricia Schnider since we haven't heard an update but it might be possible.

 

[CastleCat16]

Had a look at NamUS for possible MP matches, and while this MP cannot be 'claudia' because her father's obit is available online and he is not the man mentioned by LE above, the similarities in appearance, locations and circumstances are crazy, to the point that I am surprised there was not a test/rule out of this match years prior to the phenotype results and location of 'claudia's father:

Name [slight match but irrelevant as per above notes on father]	'Claudia' Gonzales (from father's family name	Donna Maria Gonzales
Age [match]	20-30	27
Height [slight match]	approx 5'4"	5'3"
Weight [match]	approx 125lbs	110-130lbs
Hair [slight match]	Strawberry Blonde to Light Brown with light eyebrows	Light reddish brown [albeit donna had dark eyebrows]
Eyes [no match]	Unknown - testing suggests green or blue	Brown
Dates [match]	August 1992, date of death estimated 1 month prior	April 1992
Locations [some key circumstantial matches]	- maternal family possibly linked to Louisiana - believed to have hitchhiked, with links to Nevada, Los Angeles, California and an intended destination of Arizona - found in California	- from Rayne, Louisiana - A truck driver reported that he believes he picked up a hitchhiking Donna after she had gone missing, giving her a lift to Barstow, California, during which she mentioned she was heading to LA. This sighting is unverified but the driver mentioned the woman was carrying a beat-up brown briefcase...which was the only item Donna was known to have with her. - her last known location (if the truck driver's report was correct) would be California
Circumstances [potential match]	picked up while hitchhiking in California	went missing while working as a door-to-door insurance salesperson. Circumstances initially indicate she may have been taken by force; however, the report from the truck driver mentioned above possibly suggests Donna instead left voluntarily and was hitchhiking to California.
Photo comparison of half sister to Donna

So, yeah, there isn't actually any chance that Donna and Claudia are the same person, since Donna's father is publicly known and Donna also appears to have been a highly religious person who at one point considered being a nun so I'm not sure this would quite match with the 'ride me' HD t-shirt but still I do think the other matches here are quite wild, given the small time frame and locations. Very odd/interesting that this match wasn't suggested or tested by LE, as, at least to me, it seems quite an obvious match to look into, if only to eventually rule it out as not a dna match.