http://z13.invisionfree.com/Ms_Missing_and_UID/ar/t952.htmOfficials hope to put names to murdered South Mississippi women's facesPublished: November 2, 2013
Facial renderings from their remains found in 1980 may help identification
By MARGARET BAKER � mbbaker@sunherald.com
HARRISON COUNTY -- In October 1980, hunters discovered the skeletal remains of a woman who had been murdered and dumped on a dirt road off Mississippi 26 in Wiggins.
The woman, referred to by authorities as Ms. Wiggins because of where her remains were found, had been stripped, bound and placed in a large green garbage bag.
Her identity remains unknown.
She's one of two women
whose skeletal remains were discovered the same year.
On Nov. 10, 1980, a man on White Plains Road, an old logging road off Lamey Bridge Road in Harrison County, discovered the second woman's remains, later determined to be another homicide victim. Authorities refer to her as Ms. Harrison because of where her body was found. She, too, was found unclothed. She, too, remains unidentified.
Now, two Harrison County cold case investigators, Sgt. Coley Judy and crime scene investigator Kristi Johnson, are hoping that by generating facial-reconstruction renderings of the women, investigators will be able to identify them and aid the investigations into their murders.
"We just really want to know who they are," Johnson said. "We want to be able to tell their families what happened to them and where they are, and bring them back home. People deserve to know."
Ms. Wiggins
Harrison County investigators have worked with Mississippi and out-of-state forensic experts and others to gain leads. So far, they have obtained dental records on the victims and have sought through forensic examiners any type of physical details that could aid identification.
In addition, they are working with experts to have DNA extracted from the remains. After the DNA is extracted, they hope to make greater strides in their investigation.
So far, Judy and Johnson said over the last four months they have been able to determine the woman found in Wiggins was white, 36 to 46 years old and 5 feet 1 to 5 feet 7 inches tall. She had a healed fracture of her right clavicle and had medium to dark brown hair.
Experts estimate she died between April and September 1980.
She also had undergone very expensive dental work, they said. Her dental records did not match any of the thousands of people listed in the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System, or NamUs, database. Both women's information has been submitted to NamUs.
Judy and Johnson said they have been working with a team of cold cases investigators throughout South Mississippi, among them Pascagoula police Detective Darren Versiga and Stone County sheriff's Lt. Ray Boggs.
Ms. Harrison
A man who was squirrel hunting discovered the remains of the woman found on the logging road in Harrison County. He told investigators then he called the owner of a nearby business to report the find to authorities.
Harrison County investigators said they have learned from experts the woman was white, likely had medium-length light-brown hair, was 19 to 25 years old, 5 feet 2 to 5 feet 5 inches tall and had a curvature in her spine that may have made her appear slightly hunchbacked.
Experts believe she died between May 1979 and August 1980.
She had 12 fillings but no other dental work and it was unlikely she ever gave birth.
Judy and Johnson are working with law enforcement officers from surrounding agencies to try to solve unsolved murders such as these.
Harrison County alone has 21 unsolved murders, Judy said, and cold case investigators are sharing information in an effort to get leads in them.
As for Ms. Wiggins and Ms. Harrison, "We've checked all the missing persons in the area at the time the remains were found, but never found anybody that matched," Judy said. He said information on the two has been entered into the National Crime Information Center database.
"We're hoping to identify the victims of these homicides, and we are hoping to have closure for the families," Johnson said. "They've got families who want to know what happened to them. It's kinda sad to know they are still waiting on answers."
To report information, call the Harrison County Sheriff's Office at 896-0678 or Crime Stoppers at 1-877-787-5898, text CSTIP plus your message to 274637 or go to mscoastcrimestoppers.com.
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