Identified! HI - UnkRaceFemale, 2-6, Inside Metal Receptacle in Box, Honolulu, 29 June 2014 - Mary Sue Fink

[Gardener1850]

Unidentified Person / NamUs #UP57800
ME/C Case Number 14-1171

Female, Uncertain
Date Body Found June 29, 2014
Location Found Honolulu, Hawaii

Estimated Age Group: Pre Adolescent
Estimated Age Range: (Years)2-6

Height: 2' 9"-2' 11"(33-35 inches) , Estimated
Weight: Cannot Estimate

Circumstances
Type Unidentified Deceased
Date Body Found June 29, 2014
NamUs Case Created June 5, 2019

Location Found Map
General Location -- Honolulu, Hawaii 96818
Honolulu County

Circumstances of Recovery
Metal receptacle inside of a box contained skeletal remains
Details of Recovery

Condition of Remains
Not recognizable - Near complete or complete skeleton

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

 

[YaYa_521]

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

HI - HI - Therese Rose Vanderheiden, 5, Kailua, 22 June 1990

From NamUs profile:
Circumstances of Disappearance
Therese's photo is shown age-progressed to 26 years. She may be in the company of an adult female relative. Therese, whose full last name is Vanderheiden-Walsh, has pierced ears and moles on her back and shoulders. She may be using the alias last name Smith, Doherty, Hamm, Johnson, or Cochran.


Therese Rose Vanderheiden-Walsh – The Charley Project

Therese was allegedly abducted by her mother. The Charley Project's write up describing the circumstances of her disappearance is quite detailed and interesting. I'd imagine Francis, her father who was involved with creating Hawaii's missing children clearinghouse, would have had these remains compared to Therese's DNA back in 2014 when these remains were found, but he passed away in 1998. There are no NamUs exclusions listed for this UID or Therese whose profile was created in 2012.

Time frame from her 1990 disappearance and the 2014 discovery of skeletal remains fits as well as the age (UID 2-6yo / Therese 5yo) and height (UID 2'9" - 2'11" / Therese 3'0") descriptors. There isn't much more info listed to compare except a 30-min. drive time between Honolulu and Kailua, HI.

I think I'll email the NamUs rep to suggest a comparison or determine whether one has already been done.

 

[Goecke]

Sarah Elgohary isn't in NamUs, but I found her on the Hawaiian missing children database Missing Children (she's on the last page). She was 3 years old when she went missing in 1997, and she was allegedly abducted by her father and taken to Egypt.
I'm confused because it says there's a picture of her at age 15 (although she looks 3 in the only picture I can find) and she's listed at 5'0" and 100 lbs. So I don't know if that means they have evidence she's alive and living in Egypt or what, but it's still a possibility.

Another possible from the site is Razil Pinheiro. She went missing in 1969 and there's next to no info on her, not even how old she was, so there's no way to confirm if she was even in the UID's age range. Again, not in NamUs.

 

[KaylaraOwl]

Any idea if these remains are connected to the little girl's fingers they found in a dumpster in 2012?

 

[John/Jane Doe]

@Caring1 Hey could you post the current list of NamUs exclusions for this Jane Doe? I would greatly appreciate it.

 

[Caring1]

@Caring1 Hey could you post the current list of NamUs exclusions for this Jane Doe? I would greatly appreciate it.

I am unable to access NamUs. I believe the site is down. It has been for the past hour, maybe longer. As soon as it’s back up I will get the rule outs.

 

[John/Jane Doe]

I am unable to access NamUs. I believe the site is down. It has been for the past hour, maybe longer. As soon as it’s back up I will get the rule outs.

It's okay.

 

[Caring1]

@Caring1 Hey could you post the current list of NamUs exclusions for this Jane Doe? I would greatly appreciate it.

0 Missing Person Exclusions

 

[John/Jane Doe]

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

HI - HI - Therese Rose Vanderheiden, 5, Kailua, 22 June 1990

From NamUs profile:
Circumstances of Disappearance
Therese's photo is shown age-progressed to 26 years. She may be in the company of an adult female relative. Therese, whose full last name is Vanderheiden-Walsh, has pierced ears and moles on her back and shoulders. She may be using the alias last name Smith, Doherty, Hamm, Johnson, or Cochran.


Therese Rose Vanderheiden-Walsh – The Charley Project

Therese was allegedly abducted by her mother. The Charley Project's write up describing the circumstances of her disappearance is quite detailed and interesting. I'd imagine Francis, her father who was involved with creating Hawaii's missing children clearinghouse, would have had these remains compared to Therese's DNA back in 2014 when these remains were found, but he passed away in 1998. There are no NamUs exclusions listed for this UID or Therese whose profile was created in 2012.

Time frame from her 1990 disappearance and the 2014 discovery of skeletal remains fits as well as the age (UID 2-6yo / Therese 5yo) and height (UID 2'9" - 2'11" / Therese 3'0") descriptors. There isn't much more info listed to compare except a 30-min. drive time between Honolulu and Kailua, HI.

I think I'll email the NamUs rep to suggest a comparison or determine whether one has already been done.

Did you submit Therese? I definitely think it could be her.

 

[lightofmine99]

Her NamUs was modified 10/07/2024 but there are still no exclusions.

 

[Goecke]

Sarah Elgohary isn't in NamUs, but I found her on the Hawaiian missing children database Missing Children (she's on the last page). She was 3 years old when she went missing in 1997, and she was allegedly abducted by her father and taken to Egypt.
I'm confused because it says there's a picture of her at age 15 (although she looks 3 in the only picture I can find) and she's listed at 5'0" and 100 lbs. So I don't know if that means they have evidence she's alive and living in Egypt or what, but it's still a possibility.

Another possible from the site is Razil Pinheiro. She went missing in 1969 and there's next to no info on her, not even how old she was, so there's no way to confirm if she was even in the UID's age range. Again, not in NamUs.

Replying to myself four years later, but there's now a more recent picture of Sarah on her listing: Missing Children So that probably rules her out.

Therese is 1000% the most likely possibility if this girl was reported missing.

 

[iulia]

Her NamUs page has been removed.

I wonder if @othram has worked on this case?

Honolulu hopes to unravel mysteries of long-unclaimed bodies using advanced DNA testing

Forensic pathologists hope advanced DNA testing technology will enable them to attach names to all the unidentified people at the Honolulu Medical Examiner's Office.

www.cbsnews.com

Forensic pathologists hope advanced DNA testing technology will enable them to attach names to all of the agency's unidentified people. But for now, five cases - all children and teens - have been sent for additional testing thanks to a $50,000 grant from Texas-based cold case resolution company Othram.
They include the partial skeleton of a teenager found in Keehi Lagoon near the Daniel K. Inouye International Airport in 2002; parts of the body of a 7- to 10-year-old boy discovered in Waianae in 2000; six fingers of a girl under the age of 4 who was found in Honolulu in 2012; and the skeletal remains of an adolescent found mixed with animal bones inside of a vase purchased in Honolulu in 2015.
[...]
One case is connected to a 2014 homicide, so the medical examiners office declined to provide information while the investigation continues.

 

[SimsGuy67]

Her NamUs page has been removed.

I wonder if @othram has worked on this case?

Honolulu hopes to unravel mysteries of long-unclaimed bodies using advanced DNA testing

Forensic pathologists hope advanced DNA testing technology will enable them to attach names to all the unidentified people at the Honolulu Medical Examiner's Office.

www.cbsnews.com

Forensic pathologists hope advanced DNA testing technology will enable them to attach names to all of the agency's unidentified people. But for now, five cases - all children and teens - have been sent for additional testing thanks to a $50,000 grant from Texas-based cold case resolution company Othram.
They include the partial skeleton of a teenager found in Keehi Lagoon near the Daniel K. Inouye International Airport in 2002; parts of the body of a 7- to 10-year-old boy discovered in Waianae in 2000; six fingers of a girl under the age of 4 who was found in Honolulu in 2012; and the skeletal remains of an adolescent found mixed with animal bones inside of a vase purchased in Honolulu in 2015.
[...]
One case is connected to a 2014 homicide, so the medical examiners office declined to provide information while the investigation continues.

You were right! ID'd as Mary Sue Fink.

After a decade, Honolulu Jane Doe (2014) is now Identified

Honolulu Department of the Medical Examiner and Honolulu Police Department Team with Othram to Identify a 2014 Jane Doe

dnasolves.com

She had been there since the 1960s, it seems.

Rest in peace, Mary.

 

[DS2021]

Her NamUs page has been removed.

I wonder if @othram has worked on this case?

Honolulu hopes to unravel mysteries of long-unclaimed bodies using advanced DNA testing

Forensic pathologists hope advanced DNA testing technology will enable them to attach names to all the unidentified people at the Honolulu Medical Examiner's Office.

www.cbsnews.com

Forensic pathologists hope advanced DNA testing technology will enable them to attach names to all of the agency's unidentified people. But for now, five cases - all children and teens - have been sent for additional testing thanks to a $50,000 grant from Texas-based cold case resolution company Othram.
They include the partial skeleton of a teenager found in Keehi Lagoon near the Daniel K. Inouye International Airport in 2002; parts of the body of a 7- to 10-year-old boy discovered in Waianae in 2000; six fingers of a girl under the age of 4 who was found in Honolulu in 2012; and the skeletal remains of an adolescent found mixed with animal bones inside of a vase purchased in Honolulu in 2015.
[...]
One case is connected to a 2014 homicide, so the medical examiners office declined to provide information while the investigation continues.

The 4 cases mentioned

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

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

www.namus.gov

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

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

www.namus.gov

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

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

www.namus.gov

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

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

www.namus.gov

 

[Palisades]

Her NamUs page has been removed.

I wonder if @othram has worked on this case?

Honolulu hopes to unravel mysteries of long-unclaimed bodies using advanced DNA testing

Forensic pathologists hope advanced DNA testing technology will enable them to attach names to all the unidentified people at the Honolulu Medical Examiner's Office.

www.cbsnews.com

One case is connected to a 2014 homicide, so the medical examiners office declined to provide information while the investigation continues.

You were right! ID'd as Mary Sue Fink.

After a decade, Honolulu Jane Doe (2014) is now Identified

Honolulu Department of the Medical Examiner and Honolulu Police Department Team with Othram to Identify a 2014 Jane Doe

dnasolves.com

She had been there since the 1960s, it seems.

One case connected to a 2014 homicide....Mary Sue's remains were found in 2014.

 

[victoriarobinson642]

Not really able to find much of anything on Mary Sue, but very happy to see her identified.

 

[MarziPanda]

RIP Mary. Hopefully some more info comes out. Her parents could potentially still be alive but they'd be quite elderly by now if they are.

 

[Melt71]

RIP Mary. Hopefully some more info comes out. Her parents could potentially still be alive but they'd be quite elderly by now if they are.

Parents are apparently deceased and her sister would not have been old enough to remember anything.

 

[dotr]

Dec 27, 2024

https://www.khon2.com/hawaii-crime/dna-evidence-identifies-victim-in-hpd-cold-case/

''Scientists at Othram used “forensic grade genome sequencing” to develop a DNA profile. From that profile, they found a potential relative and made a positive identification after testing.

“And again, the biggest unknown, the biggest difficulty for everybody in the world is for a young child to be able to figure out what the sex of that child is,” said Mann. “Puberty hadn’t kicked in all these different sexual dimorphic features that make boys and girls different in their bones. They’re not there yet. So thank goodness they did the job that they did.”

Since only the skeletal remains of a young child were found, all authorities knew was the victim was a young female, approximately 33 to 35 inches tall and between two and six years old.
Forensic anthropologist Dr. Robert Mann said every small detail is examined.''

 

[Daphne Dennis]

I apologize if this information is redundant, but I'm just getting the hang of the threads here. I'm an investigative genealogist happy to help in whatever way I can.
Birth records, as reported in the Honolulu Star, May 8, 1958, show a daughter born on April 29, 1959 to "Mr. And Mrs." Lee R, Fink of1849-a Kaioo Drive.