The King County Sheriff’s Office has identified the Green River Killer‘s last victim almost 40 years after her disappearance.
Green River Killer’s Last Unknown Victim Identified
Since 2003, “Bones 20,” the remains, have been unidentified despite significant efforts. Othram, a forensic genetic genealogy lab, identified the victim as Tammie Liles using advanced DNA testing.
A dental record match to remains found near Tigard, Oregon identified Tammie Liles as a victim in 1988. Two anonymous ladies, Liles and Angela Girdner, were found dead near the Tualatin Golf Course in Tigard, Oregon, in 1985, according to the King County Sheriff’s Office. Gary Ridgway, the Green River Killer, first denied murdering them. Later, he took investigators to a corpse he claimed he left.
Ridgway, convicted of killing 49 people and confessed to 71, pled guilty to murdering “Bones 20,” Denise Bush, and Shirley Sherrill in November 2003. Ridgway terrorized Washington state in the 1980s. Investigators suspect he has more victims despite his convictions.
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Green River Killer’s Life Sentence: Tammie Liles Identification of the Power of DNA Testing in Cold Cases
Ridgway, the Green River Killer, is serving life at Walla Walla’s Washington State Penitentiary. The identification of Tammie Liles solves a decades-old mystery.
This shows the importance of forensic genetic genealogy and current DNA testing in solving cold cases, bringing closure to families, and bringing justice to prominent crime victims. Forensic scientists and technology continue to illuminate unsolved cases, giving victims’ families hope.