DNA
DNA and investigative work help identify murder victim in Connecticut nearly 50 years later
Nearly 50 years after the skeletal remains of two homicide victims were found in a shallow grave, one of the victims was finally identified, Connecticut State Police announced Wednesday. Linda Sue Childers was one of two people fatally shot in a double homicide on December 31, 1970, according to the release. Police say they found […]
Concerns Rise Over China Harvesting DNA Through Prenatal Tests
There are security concerns following the revelations of Beijing harvesting DNA from pregnant women across the world. Data collected from millions of pre-natal tests could be used for surveillance, deep fakes, or bioweapons. NTD discussed this with security correspondent Andrew Thornebrooke.
Virginia Authorities Used DNA to Create a Sketch in a Decades-Old Homicide; Then They Got a Phone Call That Unraveled the Case
Two Virginia detectives thought they might be closing in on a suspect in a decades-old cold case killing. Then they got a phone call. “I want to talk, and I want to talk right now,” the person on the line said, according to Fairfax County Police Chief Kevin Davis. It was Stephan Smerk, who detectives […]
850 Still Missing in Lahaina Wildfires: Mayor Asks for Family Members’ DNA to Identify Victims
In a Monday update in the wake of the Lahaina wildfires, Maui mayor Richard Bissen said 850 people currently remain missing. He also asked family members to submit DNA samples to help identify the deceased. “There are currently 850 names on the list of missing persons,” mayor Bissen said in a video posted on Facebook. […]
DNA Ties Man Who Died in Prison to 1984 NJ Killing, AG Says
TRENTON, N.J.—Authorities say DNA evidence has proven that a man who died in prison several years ago was responsible for the 1984 murder of a 19-year-old woman whose body wasn’t found for more than a decade after she disappeared from her family home in New Jersey. The state attorney general and the Mercer County prosecutor’s […]
What Made Beethoven Sick? DNA From His Hair Offers Clues
NEW YORK—Nearly 200 years after Ludwig van Beethoven’s death, researchers pulled DNA from strands of his hair, searching for clues about the health problems and hearing loss that plagued him. They weren’t able to crack the case of the German composer’s deafness or severe stomach ailments. But they did find a genetic risk for liver […]
Murder of Vermont Woman Solved After More Than 50 Years Using DNA Found on a Cigarette and the Victim’s Clothing
More than 50 years after Rita Curran’s roommate found her strangled to death in her room, police in Vermont say they have identified the killer using DNA found on a cigarette butt and Curran’s clothing. Investigators identified William DeRoos, a man who lived in Curran’s Burlington apartment building, as the person responsible with the help […]
Results Released in Girl’s Request for DNA Evidence of Santa
CUMBERLAND, R.I.—The Rhode Island Department of Health says it was not able “to definitively confirm or refute the presence of Santa” in a young girl’s home after she requested to have a partially eaten cookie and a couple of gnawed-on carrot sticks tested for DNA to see if Santa Claus is real. The department said […]
Suspect in Idaho Slayings Not Expected to Fight Extradition
STROUDSBURG, Pa.— A criminology graduate student facing first-degree murder charges in the November slayings of four University of Idaho students is not expected to fight extradition at a hearing Tuesday in Pennsylvania, where he was arrested last week at his parents’ home. Bryan Kohberger, a 28-year-old doctoral student and teaching assistant at Washington State University, […]
Washington State Man Charged in 34-Year-Old Wisconsin Murder
APPLETON, Wis.—A Washington state man has been charged in the 1988 slaying of a Wisconsin woman after he was identified using “familial DNA searching” to examine records of people who may be related to the suspect. Gene C. Meyer, 66, is charged with first-degree murder and first-degree sexual assault with use of a dangerous weapon […]
DNA Analysis Helps Philadelphia Police Identify a Child Found Dead Inside a Box 65 Years Ago
More than six decades after a boy was found dead in a box in Philadelphia, investigators have identified the child with the help of DNA, police announced Tuesday. In what would come to be known as the “Boy in the Box” case, the child was discovered wrapped in a blanket inside a cardboard box on […]
DNA Match Reunites Missing Daughter With Her Family 51 Years After She Was Kidnapped, Family Says
A family in Fort Worth, Texas, has been reunited with their daughter who was kidnapped as a baby more than five decades ago thanks to a DNA match from the ancestry service 23andMe, the family announced Sunday. Melissa Highsmith was just 22-months old in 1971 when she was allegedly abducted by a woman who was […]
NTD UK News Full Broadcast (Nov. 1)
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak says the NHS will be prioritised in spending decisions when the government addresses a black hole of up to 50 billion pounds ($57 billion) in public finances. Plans to relax rules around changing the DNA of crops and livestock raise concerns for animal welfare. Oxbridge universities are admitting fewer private school students […]
Arizona Death Row Inmate Seeks Forensic Tests in 1980 Deaths
PHOENIX—A judge is mulling an Arizona death row prisoner’s request to have fingerprint and DNA tests conducted on evidence from the two 1980 killings for which he is scheduled to be executed next month. A lawyer for Murray Hooper said at a hearing Wednesday that her client is innocent, that no physical evidence ties him […]
Texas Schools Handing out DNA Kits to Parents to Help Identify Kids in Emergencies
Texas public schools will soon be sending students home with DNA and fingerprint identification kits in an effort to help parents identify them in case of an emergency. Approximately 3.8 million students in Texas are expected to bring home a kit, ABC13 reported, with some schools set to begin distributing them as early as this week. The decision comes […]
Pennsylvania Identifies Discovered Remains as Teenager Missing Since 1969
Authorities in Pennsylvania have identified a set of human remains as those of a Wilkes-Barre teenage girl who went missing more than 50 years ago, state police said. In an Oct. 4 press release, Pennsylvania State Police said the remains were discovered in Luzerne County on Nov. 17, 2012, by people digging for relics in […]
DNA Leads to an Arrest in 2014 Killing of Houston Family
HOUSTON—Authorities say newly tested DNA evidence helped them make an arrest in the killings more than eight years ago of a family, including two boys, who were shot in their suburban Houston home. Feng Lu, 58, who had long been considered a suspect in the case, was arrested on Sunday by police in San Francisco […]
Prosecutor: Official’s DNA Found in Slain Reporter’s Fingernails
LAS VEGAS—The DNA of a jailed elected official who was angered by past and upcoming newspaper stories was found on the hands of a Las Vegas investigative reporter who fought for his life while being stabbed to death outside his home, authorities said Thursday. County Public Administrator Robert Telles stood handcuffed in court with bandages […]
China Boosts Tibet DNA Collection Campaign
Now we shift to a new report from Human Rights Watch. It says the Chinese Communist Regime is hugely boosting its DNA collection efforts in Tibet—something the New York-based organization says has been happening for a decade.