SC Margit Schuller, 34, military wife,shot dead at laundromat,1 Nov. 1987,* Parabon image*

[dotr]

Search for murder suspect continues in Beaufort 30 years later

Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office believes composites could crack cold case murder
Sept 17 2019
"BURTON, S.C. (WSAV) – Authorities have released composite sketches of a suspect wanted in a Burton murder that happened more than 30 years ago.

According to the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office (BCSO), on the evening of November 1, 1987, Margit Schuller was washing clothes in the laundromat at Palmetto Apartments where she was shot and killed. She was found by her daughter, who was a child at the time.

BCSO says the unknown subject left behind body fluids, which were submitted in the early 2000s for DNA analysis as a part of Beaufort County Sheriff PJ Tanner’s cold case initiative.

Investigators worked with Parabon Nanolabs to perform phenotyping, which analyzes DNA and determines physical appearance."

 

[dotr]

Search for murder suspect continues in Beaufort 30 years later
November 3, 2017 rbbm
"Her daughter, a small child, found her. Margit's daughter found her lying outside the laundry mat. It doesn't get any worse than that," Captain Bromage said.

Thirty years ago, Margit was doing laundry one night around 8 p.m. Police don't know why, but they know a man shot her and ran from the scene. Investigators believe the bullet that struck Schuller ricocheted and hit the shooter. A blood trail marked the start of his escape route, but even with his substantial blood loss, nobody was found and no hospital has any trace.

"As far out to Charleston, to Savannah, to Columbia, and there was no record of anybody coming in with a gunshot wound within a 36-48 hour period," Captain Bromage said.

Several months later, a crew was clearing a lot off Highway 21 in Beaufort when they uncovered the murder weapon.

"It was a 22-caliber, semi-automatic pistol, and it had been buried."

The gun was a perfect match to the bullet shell casing outside the laundry room. In 1987, technology only allowed DNA to be tested for blood type. Once modern technology could create a profile, the DNA was resubmitted in 1999, but they can't link the profile to the suspect without a criminal record.

"Whoever the person is, he is not a convicted offender. He has not been arrested for a violent crime in the last few years for him to be compelled to provide a DNA sample. This is John Doe at this point," Captain Bromage said.


Even the murder weapon was dated as far back as the 1940s. Beaufort is a military mecca.


"A lot of people come back from WWII, may have brought it back. It was a French gun."

 

[jaejae]

Here is a video report about the developments in this case:

 

[Richard]

Three decades after Margit Schuller was shot to death in Beaufort, the identity of her killer remains a mystery, and the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office is asking the public for information.

Shortly after 8 p.m. on Nov. 11, 1987, 34-year-old Schuller was found shot to death in the laundry room at Palmetto Apartments on Harding Street, according to a Sheriff’s Office news release.

Months later, a handgun used in the murder was recovered a few miles from the scene. The owner of the handgun was never identified, as it was a foreign brand and may have been brought to the United States unrecorded, the release said.

In 1999, the blood evidence from the scene was resubmitted to the forensic laboratory for DNA analysis. A profile was developed by the laboratory and submitted to the FBI DNA database, which to this day has yet to return a match, according to the release.

If you have any information about the case, contact Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office Cpt. Bob Bromage at 843-255- 3402 or Crimestoppers at 888-274-6372.

At the time, investigators developed several suspects, but forensic science of the time could not establish any firm link, the release said.

LINK:
https://www.islandpacket.com/news/local/crime/article182163531.html

 

[Shade13]

Bumping for Margit

 

[dotr]

ARREST!
By Christopher J. Teuton Updated: 1 hour ago rbbm.

Mugshot, details released for suspect charged in 1987 Beaufort cold case

The Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office is sharing new details today about an arrest in the shooting death of 34-year-old Margit Schuller that occurred on the evening of November 1, 1987.

www.wtoc.com

''BEAUFORT COUNTY, S.C. (WTOC) - The Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office is sharing new details today about an arrest in the shooting death of 34-year-old Margit Schuller that occurred on the evening of November 1, 1987.''

“Through countless hours of research, the Cold Case Committee volunteer deduced the offender was likely 76-year-old Cortez Sabino Lake of Beaufort.”
Investigators obtained Lake’s DNA during an interview and subsequent analysis matched that DNA to the DNA found at the scene.
Officials say Lake lived in the same apartment complex as Schuller at the time of her murder.
Lake was served with an arrest warrant for murder and taken into custody on Tuesday, November 18, 2025.''

 

[dotr]

In an unsolved case, Margit Schuller, 34, was found shot to death in a laundry room at Palmetto Apartments on Harding Street on Nov. 1, 1987 in Burton. Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office

Read more at: https://www.islandpacket.com/news/local/crime/article312977269.html#storylink=cpy

 

[faithx]

Cortez Lake had an article written about him in The Beaufort Gazette on July 16, 1992.

Snipped by me:

“Lake's background in the military as a dental technician and a combat corpsman exposed him to medicine, and during that time, he grew to appreciate the artisticside of medicine.

"Keeping people comfortable is important to me," he says. "The quality of the care I give is important."”

The Beaufort Gazette from Beaufort, South Carolina

Get this The Beaufort Gazette page for free from Thursday, July 16, 1992 THURSDAY, JULY 16, 1992 THE BEAUFORT GAZETTE LIFESTYLES Posh pad caters to cats By JENNIFER L.. Edition of The Beaufort Gazette

www.newspapers.com

 

[Melquiades]

ARREST!
By Christopher J. Teuton Updated: 1 hour ago rbbm.

Mugshot, details released for suspect charged in 1987 Beaufort cold case

The Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office is sharing new details today about an arrest in the shooting death of 34-year-old Margit Schuller that occurred on the evening of November 1, 1987.

www.wtoc.com

View attachment 626015
''BEAUFORT COUNTY, S.C. (WTOC) - The Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office is sharing new details today about an arrest in the shooting death of 34-year-old Margit Schuller that occurred on the evening of November 1, 1987.''

“Through countless hours of research, the Cold Case Committee volunteer deduced the offender was likely 76-year-old Cortez Sabino Lake of Beaufort.”
Investigators obtained Lake’s DNA during an interview and subsequent analysis matched that DNA to the DNA found at the scene.
Officials say Lake lived in the same apartment complex as Schuller at the time of her murder.
Lake was served with an arrest warrant for murder and taken into custody on Tuesday, November 18, 2025.''

Jeez, grow out the beard and that age 55 approximation is absolutely dead on.

 

[dotr]

Dec 17, 2025 rbbm

Suspect in nearly 40-year-old Beaufort County cold case murder released on bond

Cortez Sabino Lake was arrested in November for the 1987 shooting death of a woman at an apartment complex laundromat.

www.wjcl.com

"BEAUFORT COUNTY, S.C. —

A man charged in a nearly 40-year-old Beaufort County cold case murder has been granted bond and released from custody, according to online records from the Beaufort County Fourteenth Judicial Circuit.

Cortez Sabino Lake faces a murder charge in the 1987 killing of Margit Schuller in Burton.''

'Lake, 76, was arrested in November after investigators announced a breakthrough in the decades-old case, crediting advances in DNA technology and genetic genealogy for identifying him as a suspect.''

''Nearly a month after his arrest, Lake bonded out of jail on Friday. His bond was set at $100,000 by circuit court judge Robert J. Bonds, according to court records. The bonds were paid in part by an individual and in part by a local bonding company. As conditions of his release, Lake must remain under house arrest from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m., have no contact with the victim’s family and is prohibited from possessing firearms. His preliminary hearing is scheduled for Dec. 19, according to court dockets.''
Read more at: https://www.islandpacket.com/news/local/crime/article313754147.html#storylink=cpy