Author Topic: SANTA FE JANE DOE: WF, 14-19, found near Santa Fe, NM - 2 December 1974  (Read 241 times)

Akoya

  • Administrator
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 8173
    • View Profile
https://www.newspapers.com/newspage/211937001/

May 30, 1976
A Publisher Extra Newspaper
The Santa Fe New Mexican from Santa Fe, New Mexico · Page 66

JANE DOE The area's most baffling murder puzzle Sheriff Paul Baca studies the mass of evidence that has piled up in the mysterious "Jane Doe Murder Case," where the body has never been identified and no good leads established. The "Jane Doe Murder Case" is still the most baffling in recent police history. It is perhaps more puzzling because not a shred of evidence has led to a slight break in the case since the sexually mutilated body was found on December 2,1974. "It's the most frustrating single case I've ever been involved with," says Sheriff Paul Baca, who has been tracking the crime since he became sheriff in January of 1975. The most devastating single factor in the puzzle is the anonymity of "Jane Doe." Since the brutal murder there have also been no clues to her identity. "And we have tried everything; tracked down every phone call and followed up every letter," says Sheriff Baca. He's faced the dead end that, in most cases, provide at least a clue to a victim's identity. "Families have come from all over the United States to look at photos and evidence," said Baca, pulling out a file on the case that's now more than two feet high. "They left us — all of them — with an unidentified victim." Clues, likewise, have dwindled to nothing in the search for a killer of the girl. But, small piece by small piece, the sheriff and Santa Fe County Un- dersheriff Levi Martinez have put together the "possibilities" that may tell the sketchy story of Jane Doe and what happened to her. F'irst, Jane Doe was about 15-years- old when she came through the Santa Fe area a few days after Thanksgiving in 1974. The final report of medical examiners in Albuquerque show that she was "well-groomed, neat and had reddish-blonde hair." The medical examiner has also concluded, in a final opinion, that Jane Doe was brutally and sexually mutilated. In other words, says Sheriff Baca, she was attacked "probably before she died and probably by a very strong man. I say this because there were signs of a struggle but not a severe struggle." Jane Doe was, apparently, never fingerprinted anywhere in the United States or Canada. "We plugged into the national fingerprint network for several months," said the sheriff. "All computer and other checks turned up nothing." This bears out the medical reports that now pinpoint Jane Doe's age at about 15 "She may never have had a driver's license from any state," says Baca. She may have been hitching a ride through the Northern New Mexico area; she may have been brought here by the killer. One thing is almost certain; she probably never spent any time in the Santa Fe area. "In the 17 months that we've been showing the Jane Doe photographs to people in this area, we've hit literally all the places frequented by young people in Santa Fe and surrounding communities," said Martinez. "No single person — except for a few on the outskirts of town — remembers seeing anyone of her description in Santa Fe." Third, Jane Doe was probably not from New Mexico or any of the surrounding states. "We have compared notes with too many of the other surrounding agencies and publicized the ease, locally, too well," said Baca. "If the girl were from the nearby area, something would have turned up no matter how vague." Fourth, the unkwown girl was probably not killed by any of the well known sex killers who have been nabbed since her death. "We have had several close possibilities," said Baca. "At one time, we were fairly certain it involved the Zodiac murders. Now 10 Sunday, May 30,1»7« everything points against that. Then we felt it might involve an Albuquerque man who was arrested with pictures of bound girls on his person. He was taken in for another crime, but lie detector tests here ruled that out." So Baca is left with a set of tire prints that could not be moulded by crime labs and the good imprint of a shoe found and photographed next to the body. Fifth, Jane Doe was probably killed somewhere besides the discovery site. "She was found in a knoll 80 yards from U.S. 185. Indentations on her body and the report of the examiners now indicate she was killed somewhere else — maybe in the car, "Baca said. Those are the known facts about Jane Doe. But there are unknown but speculative clues that lend traces of evidence to the case. A waitress in a small cafe on the highway thinks she saw the girl about two days before the body was discovered. She feels certain from the pictures ... but... Was Jane Doe a hitchhiker? Did she stop in the restaurant with a male companion? The waitress can't remember. A used car salesman on St. Michael's Drive believes Jane Doe came into the sales office about two days before the murder to get a drink of water? He's pretty sure but... Did Jane Doe walk into the used car office? Did she drive up with a companion? Those are local clues. Then a young man was arrested in Oregon for similar murders on old U.S. Highway 101 in the wild Northwest. "We don't know if he's connected. But that's the slim possibility we have now," said Sheriff Baca "The man has admitted to a number of killings very much like this one. There is the possibility he may have travelled all across the country including to Northern New Mexico." "We will soon ask for money to go out and question this man personally. How close a connection will be made is still a major question." Another speculation by all the investigators in the case is that Jane Doe and her murderer came into the state from the north and never entered Santa Fe. We don't really know about this, but the clues show this " Baca said. Speculation is also that there was only one killer involved. "There was only one type of shoe marking at the scene. There were no matches, no cigarettes or other indications around or near the body. There was evidence that one person made a scant effort to cover the body with brush and hoped for snow - which never came," Baca said. So, investigators are left with the known and tragic facts. They are: Jane Doe was found badly mutilated and naked with only plain gold earrings and a gold finger band providing a link with a past The jewelry was yellow gold with silver color center designs on the ring and plain gold design on the earrings. The girl's body was left in the open morgue from December 2 until February - the longest in recent history. "We held the body until a whole parade of possibilities came here to look at the girl," Baca said. "They came from all across the country — families missing a daughter, brothers missing a sister. But nothing turned up." By PETER BROWN