CA CA - Fresno Co, near I-5, WhtFem 17-25, HC866, in shallow grave, Jul'93

[Tired Professor]

Thank you. If you do, please let us know what they say. I did a little research and it looks like they bury the unclaimed every so many years in a mass grave. I don’t know if that includes the unidentified as well, but I have an awful feeling it probably does .

 

[Suglo]

Bumping.

 

[Tired Professor]

Bump

 

[Tired Professor]

Bumping. This month marks the 32 year anniversary of her being found. I really wish she could be identified.

 

[Romulus]

1405UFCA - Unidentified Female​

Date of Discovery: July 12, 1993
Location of Discovery: Three Rocks, Fresno County, California
Estimated Date of Death: 2 or more months prior
State of Remains: Decomposed
Cause of Death: Homicide

Physical Description​

Estimated Age: 35-40 years old
Race: White
Sex: Female
Height: 5'4"
Weight: 120-130 lbs.
Hair Color: Dark to medium brown. 10-18" long
Eye Color: Unknown
Distinguishing Marks/Features: Unknown

Identifiers​

Dentals: Available. Gold cap on an upper right molar.
Fingerprints: Unknown (sources differ).
DNA: Not available.

Clothing & Personal Items​

Clothing: She was wearing a tan-colored T-shirt with "California" and three rats on the front and back of the shirt; a white long-sleeved shirt with navy pinstripes; white lace bra; cutoff jean pants size 34/30. A white sock and light yellow full armed shirt with the left arm area being recently torn were found with the remains.
Jewelry: A silver cross and a ring on her right ring finger. Mounted on it was a picture of a boy, about 3 or 4 years old. He appears in a tiny black-and-white photograph with light-colored hair, wearing what appears to be a dark polo-type shirt. There's no clue where the picture was taken, and police have no idea who the boy might be.
Additional Personal Items: Unknown

Circumstances of Discovery​

The victim was located when an anonymous caller, likely a passing motorist, telephoned the Sheriff's Department and reported seeing a hand protruding from dirt along the Kamm Avenue off ramp, near Three Rocks, a tiny farming community about 50 miles southwest of Fresno.

The badly decomposed body of a woman was unearthed. It could have been there more than two months.

A fingerprint check with the state's Department of Justice computer records, which also includes records from other western states, came up empty.

Missing-persons cases from throughout the state were checked with no matches. With the body so close to I-5, investigators assumed the woman could have been from almost anywhere.

Although the cause of death has not been determined, Fresno County sheriff's detectives are handling the case as a homicide.

Investigating Agency(s)​

Agency Name: Fresno County Sheriff - Coroner's Office
Agency Contact Person: Kelly Matlock
Agency Phone Number: 559-600-3400
Agency E-Mail: Coroner(at)fresnosheriff.org
Agency Case Number: 93-07.029

Agency Name: Fresno County Sheriff's Department: Homicide Cold Case Unit
Agency Contact Person: N/A
Agency Phone Number: 559-488-3638
Agency E-Mail: N/A
Agency Case Number: Unknown

NCIC Case Number: Unknown
NamUs Case Number: 16016
Former Hot Case Number: 866

Information Source(s)​

NamUs
The Fresno Bee

1405UFCA

 

[Hannahgmq]

Since doe was found by the interstate, how far do we believe is plausible for her to have come from? Sandy Michelle Lane age 25 was from North Carolina, brown hair, 5’3, 115lbs, went missing on May 20th 1993 (unsure how they got that exact date as the only information available is that her mother last heard from her in the month of may, and there is literally no other information on Sandy whatsoever, which is a shame) Doe was believed to have died 2+months prior so that would add up, but there isnt information on whether she had a child/brother or anything that could connect her to the ring. Very unlikely to be doe but it did raise the question for me of how far in distance is ruled in or out, given as investigators were open to her having come from a range of places.

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

By bringing people, information, forensic science and technology together, NamUs helps resolve cases.

www.namus.gov

 

[Tired Professor]

Since doe was found by the interstate, how far do we believe is plausible for her to have come from? Sandy Michelle Lane age 25 was from North Carolina, brown hair, 5’3, 115lbs, went missing on May 20th 1993 (unsure how they got that exact date as the only information available is that her mother last heard from her in the month of may, and there is literally no other information on Sandy whatsoever, which is a shame) Doe was believed to have died 2+months prior so that would add up, but there isnt information on whether she had a child/brother or anything that could connect her to the ring. Very unlikely to be doe but it did raise the question for me of how far in distance is ruled in or out, given as investigators were open to her having come from a range of places.

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

By bringing people, information, forensic science and technology together, NamUs helps resolve cases.

www.namus.gov

I don’t feel like any distance can be ruled out. Up thread, I was comparing her to a missing woman from Texas whose son is looking for her. I think this doe could be her or Sandy or just about any female from anywhere. If we don’t have DNA, I wish we at least had a picture of the little boy.

 

[Jerri Blank]

Since doe was found by the interstate, how far do we believe is plausible for her to have come from? Sandy Michelle Lane age 25 was from North Carolina, brown hair, 5’3, 115lbs, went missing on May 20th 1993 (unsure how they got that exact date as the only information available is that her mother last heard from her in the month of may, and there is literally no other information on Sandy whatsoever, which is a shame) Doe was believed to have died 2+months prior so that would add up, but there isnt information on whether she had a child/brother or anything that could connect her to the ring. Very unlikely to be doe but it did raise the question for me of how far in distance is ruled in or out, given as investigators were open to her having come from a range of places.

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

By bringing people, information, forensic science and technology together, NamUs helps resolve cases.

www.namus.gov

In stories like this I always think of the case of Michelle Garvey, a teenager went missing in the 70s from New London, CT, and was identified decades later as a doe in Texas. There was no indication she had gone that far away, but luckily a sleuth with an open mind suggested her as a match anyway.