(CNN) — For more than 33 years, investigators in Norton Shores, Michigan tried to find out what happened to Stacey Lyn Chahorski, a young woman who left home to travel the country, and most recently to her mother in September 1988 At the same time, Georgia detectives were working to identify remains that two Department of Transportation employees discovered near a freeway in December 1988. Both cases soon went cold — until this month, Crash Dad learned his son died on a horseback ride in Florida in the fall from a horrifying video on social media. A Savannah couple own a mansion that inspired “Gone With the Wind” using advanced DNA technology like Chahorski’s and will soon be returned to their Michigan family. “Today is the day we hunt for the killer now,” GBI Special Agent in Charge Joe Montgomery said in a Thursday news conference “I think we have a good chance of solving this case and bringing the killer to justice,” he added. How She Was Identified Over the years, GBI agents and Dade County investigators have returned to the case in hopes of finding an identity, according to a GBI press release. A forensic artist drew a composite image hoping it would lead to an identity. In the mid-2000s, investigators sent additional evidence to an FBI lab for testing, which helped develop a DNA profile — but that didn’t match anyone already in any system. Meanwhile, Michigan authorities decided to collect a fingerprint card from Chahorski’s relatives in 2010, according to a news release from the Norton Shores Police Department. Members of the GBI contacted the FBI again a few years later to solve the case using genealogical investigative methods. The process usually combines DNA evidence and traditional genealogy to find biological connections between people — in other words, related lists of other cold cases. The lab helped uncover the identity of “Little Miss Nobody,” a young girl discovered more than 60 years ago in an Arizona desert, authorities there said this month. Last year it also helped identify a victim found in Mississippi more than four decades ago who authorities believe was killed by Samuel Little, America’s most prolific serial killer. We are grateful for that and for the work that Othram has done,” FBI Special Agent Tim Burke said in Thursday’s news conference. Chahorski would have been 52 today, the GBI said. “A Little Peace” Chahorski had been buried in Dade County in an unmarked grave since 1989. Her body will now be returned to her family, authorities said. A few weeks ago, authorities notified her mother, who reported her missing. “We were able to message her and bring her some peace,” Burke said. “We were also able to provide some jewelry that was found here at the crime scene on Stacey’s and give this back to her,” he told loved ones in Michigan so that she could can finally rest in peace,” he added.
DADE COUNTY, Georgia —
(CNN) — For more than 33 years, investigators in Norton Shores, Michigan tried to find out what happened to Stacey Lyn Chahorski, a young woman who left home to travel the country, and most recently to her mother in September 1988 spoke.
At the same time, Georgia detectives were working to identify remains that two Department of Transportation employees discovered near a freeway in December 1988.
Both cases soon went cold — until this month.
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Authorities from the Northwest Georgia Dade County Sheriff’s Office and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) announced that the remains have been identified as Chahorski’s using advanced DNA technology and will soon be returned to her family in Michigan.
“Today is the day that we now hunt for the killer,” GBI Special Agent in charge Joe Montgomery said in a news conference on Thursday. “The biggest problem in solving this case was that we didn’t have the identity of the victim, so we didn’t have a starting point. Now we have a starting point and this is a big leap for us.”
“I think we have a good chance of solving this case and bringing the killer to justice,” he added.
How she was identified
According to a GBI press release, GBI agents and Dade County investigators have been going back to the case over the years in hopes of finding an identity.
A forensic artist drew a composite image hoping it would lead to an identity. In the mid-2000s, investigators sent additional evidence to an FBI lab for testing, which helped create a DNA profile — but that didn’t match anyone already in any system.
Meanwhile, Michigan authorities decided to collect a fingerprint card from Chahorski’s relative in 2010, according to a press release from the Norton Shores Police Department.
A few years later, members of the GBI again approached the FBI to use investigative genealogical methods to solve the case. The process usually combines DNA evidence and traditional genealogy to find biological connections between people — in other words, relatives.
For that effort, they hired Othram, a Texas-based lab that works with law enforcement and is credited with helping solve a long list of other cold cases.
The lab helped uncover the identity of “Little Miss Nobody,” a young girl discovered more than 60 years ago in an Arizona desert, authorities there announced this month.
Last year it also helped identify a victim found in Mississippi more than four decades ago who authorities believe was killed by Samuel Little, America’s most prolific serial killer.
“We wouldn’t have been able to help and have this success without the advances in DNA technology, so we’re grateful for that and for the work that Othram has done,” FBI Special Agent Tim Burke said in the news conference on Thursday.
Chahorski would have been 52 today, the GBI said.
“A bit of peace”
Chahorski had been buried in an unmarked grave in Dade County since 1989.
Her body will now be returned to her family, authorities said.
A few weeks ago, authorities notified her mother, who reported her missing.
“We were able to message her and bring her some peace,” Burke said. “We were also able to provide some jewelry that was found here at the crime scene on Stacey’s and give it back to her,” he said.
“We look forward to assisting in any way with the remaining investigation and returning Stacey’s remains to her loved ones in Michigan so she can finally rest in peace,” he added.
