Identified! CA - El Cajon, WhtFem 344UFCA, 30s, Woodruff HS Class of '71 TShirt, Aug'98 - Alicia Ledezma Sanchez)

[azure]

Does anyone know why the Namus link is now not working?

Generally, a permission error means that an UID has been identified. The Doenetwork page is still up, though, so I'm uncertain in this particular case.

 

[iulia]

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

#UP56678
Date Body Found August 13, 1998
ME/C Case Number 98-01510

Sex Female
Race/Ethnicity Hispanic/Latino, Asian
Estimated Age Group Adult - Pre 40
Estimated Age Range 22-38
Estimated PMI 6 Weeks
Height 5' 2"(62 inches) , Measured
Weight Cannot Estimate

Location El Cajon, California 92020
County San Diego County

Circumstances of Recovery On 08/13/1998, the deceased was found at the edge of a private driveway.

Condition of Remains Not recognizable - Mummified

Hair Color Brown
Head Hair Description Light brown hair up to 3 inches long.

Accessories
Around the left wrist is a 6 inch herringbone bracelet. On the Body

Clothing
A pair of woven Dockers type black pleated pants with two buttons at the waist and a zipper withing 1 inch of the top.
A pair of black knee-hi stocking which are pushed down around the ankles.
Light blue mens XL shirt with a yellow logo printed on the front and back. The logo read "Woodruff Warriors 20th Year Reunion 1971-1991".
Dark blue mens T-shirt.

Footwear
A pair of black leather, lace-up Route 66 shoes, size 6 1/2, which are triple knotted and mildly worn.

 

[MarziPanda]

The title of this thread says white, but the namus says Hispanic/Latino or Asian? I didn't look closely, but the only woman who seems to fit those on the classmates that Carl posted here 9 years ago is the one on the bottom right. Though I personally don't think the shirt is all that relevant... probably just got picked up at a thrift store as others have suggested.

 

[MadMcGoo]

Refreshing the thread...

 

[MadMcGoo]

I’ve been looking through the ‘71 yearbook and came across #25 in Carl’s collage on the first page. I can’t find anything on her past a ‘78 marriage. Maybe someone else can take a look.

The shirt may be a red herring. What are the chances a shirt like that would end up in a thrift store in CA? I’m actually curious. Or would it be more that an actual graduate moved to CA, donated the shirt, and the decedent ended up with it?

 

[dotr]

El Cajon police use new technology to investigate 26-year-old cold case murder

El Cajon police are using new technology to investigate a cold case murder from a quarter century ago.

www.nbcsandiego.com

By Dave Summers • Published 3 hours ago • Updated 3 hours ago​

''Just how good is this new technology? Investigators won’t know for sure until someone can recognize the face.

"Her family should know. Somebody is related to her and is probably missing her,” Trotter said.

For now, Jane Doe’s remains are in a grave marked only by a number. The mystery of her life and murder are for now buried with her.

Investigators say this technology could prove extremely useful in cold cases. The El Cajon unit is currently working on 10 unsolved cases.''

• May 2024
• NEW El Cajon police use new technology to investigate 26-year-old cold case murder
  NBC San Diego nbcsandiego.com
  

  Parabon NanoLabs: Engineering DNA for Next-Generation Nanotech, Analytics, and Forensics

  parabon-nanolabs.com

 

[dotr]

Aug. 20, 2025

Cold case: Police ask for help identifying possible murder victim found in 1998

The woman in the cold case, who may have been in her thirties, was found dead on Aug. 13, 1998 in East County.

timesofsandiego.com

''In asking for help via social media, El Cajon police said on Tuesday that “DNA may hold the key to uncovering the identity of a woman lost to time – and justice … Someone out there knows who she is. More than two decades have passed, but her story is still waiting for an ending.”

They credited “advancements in forensic technology” for being able to determine her possible roots.

Anyone who might be able to help detectives identify the woman and determine the circumstances of her death is asked to contact the El Cajon police Cold Case Unit at 619-593-5774 or [email protected].''

 

[The4TierBridge]

"DNA tests confirm the identity of homicide victim as Alicia Ledezma Sanchez (5/13/1968).

On 08/13/98 the body of a female was found in a ravine in the 1300 block of Avocado, El Cajon. This ravine was covered in heavy shrubbery. The female was partially decomposed and believed to be deceased up to six weeks. There was no identification located at the scene, and traditional investigative methods were unsuccessful in identifying her.

In 2003 the death case was reexamined by the Cold Homicide Unit of the El Cajon Police Department. The victim’s skull was retrieved and sent to a forensic artist who completed a forensic sculpture. Photographs of the sculpture were released in hopes that a member of the public could assist in identifying the woman. However, no viable leads were developed and the case remained cold.

In 2008, DNA was obtained from the decedent and a DNA profile was developed. Unfortunately, there were no DNA matches in the database.

Over a 2-year period beginning in 2023, members of the ECPD volunteer Cold Case Unit worked with Othram Labs and Parabon Labs to conduct genetic genealogy and phenotyping, advanced DNA techniques to reveal human characteristics and potential family members.

In August, the El Cajon Police Department posted her story on the department’s social media pages, asking the public for assistance. The volunteer Cold Case Unit was contacted by a potential family member who believed she knew the woman’s identity. A DNA test with the decedent’s son confirmed a familial match, providing identification 27 years later.

If you have any information about Alicia Ledezma Sanchez, or knowledge of the homicide, please contact the El Cajon Police Department’s Investigation Division at 619-579-3320, or email the volunteer Cold Case Unit at [email protected]. Alternatively, tips can be shared anonymously through Crime Stoppers at (888) 580 -8477 or online at sdcrimestoppers.org."

El Cajon Police

DNA tests confirm the identity of homicide victim as Alicia Ledezma Sanchez (5/13/1968). On 08/13/98 the body of a female was found in a ravine in the 1300 block of Avocado, El Cajon. This ravine...

www.facebook.com

 

[dotr]

After 27 Years, El Cajon Jane Doe (1998) is Now Identified

El Cajon Police Department Teams with Othram to Identify a 1998 Homicide Victim

dnasolves.com

''One of the distant relatives identified through the initial forensic genetic genealogy search was contacted by law enforcement during the investigation. In an effort to assist, that individual shared the inquiry in a Facebook group focused on the Tumbiscatío region of Michoacán, Mexico, where the family was believed to have ancestral ties. This post led to a critical development: a member of the group reached out to authorities to suggest that the unidentified woman might be his mother’s sister, Alicia Sanchez Ledesma, who had been missing since 1998. Investigators followed up on the tip, obtained a reference DNA sample from the family, and conducted traditional short tandem repeat (STR) testing, which confirmed the identification. This case is a compelling demonstration of how the combination of forensic genetic genealogy and public participation can bring resolution to even the most complex cold cases.''

The El Cajon Police Department is continuing its investigation into the circumstances surrounding Alicia Sanchez Ledesma’s death. Anyone with information is urged to contact the department’s Investigation Division at (619) 579-3320, email the volunteer Cold Case Unit at [email protected], or share tips anonymously through Crime Stoppers at (888) 580-8477 or sdcrimestoppers.org.''

 

[The4TierBridge]

A lot of the original online effort in this case was going through yearbooks and such to find a match to the high school T-shirt. Now we know that she would have been about 3 years old in 1971, so that lead was a dud (the layered clothing made me think this person was probably homeless before identification, but that doesn’t seem to match with what is publicly available after identification).

For how time consuming this type of work is (and I get that it’s usually a last-ditch effort by people without access to law enforcement tools), it never really seems to generate viable leads.

EDIT; her estimated age range from before being identified also made her too young to have graduated high school in 1971 as well.

 

[othram]

Good example of how DNA testing, combined with public outreach, can solve cases.

 

[Friday Fan]

A lot of the original online effort in this case was going through yearbooks and such to find a match to the high school T-shirt. Now we know that she would have been about 3 years old in 1971, so that lead was a dud (the layered clothing made me think this person was probably homeless before identification, but that doesn’t seem to match with what is publicly available after identification).

For how time consuming this type of work is (and I get that it’s usually a last-ditch effort by people without access to law enforcement tools), it never really seems to generate viable leads.

EDIT; her estimated age range from before being identified also made her too young to have graduated high school in 1971 as well.

She was likely from Mexico based on this picture and from DNA and from a relative in Michoacán who said she was missing.

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