Bodies found in 1970 and 1992 identified using DNA, genealogy
The remains of two bodies found decades ago in Lake County and Mesa County were recently identified with the help forensic genetic genealogy that led authorities to family members.
Also known as investigative genetic genealogy, the system relies on the analysis of DNA samples. Recent improvements in technology have contributed to the exoneration of innocent people who were previously convicted of crimes, according to the National Human Genome Research Institute.
But another source has allowed investigators to identify long-unknown crime victims -- the growing direct-to-consumer genetic testing industry. The more worldwide customers that pay for deep dives into their personal lineage, the greater number of potential relatives that investigators can match to each John Doe and Jane Doe.
Last week, Lake County and the Colorado Bureau of Investigation announced the discovery of one such John Doe's identity. The man's remains were found on Independence Pass in June 1970. No identification was made through fingerprints, DNA analysis, or facial reconstruction, according to the Lake County Sheriff's Office.
Investigators submitted previously extracted DNA to the Colorado Bureau of Investigation's Cold Case team last year. The forensic genetic genealogy testing produced a lead for investigators.
The man was eventually identified as Gardner Paul Smith. Smith, of Modesto, Calif., was 39 years old at the time of his death. He grew up in the Sierra Nevada range and became one of the nation's fastest ski racers, according to the East Bay Times.
"Obviously it is good to have closure," said Smith's daughter Jeanne Gaida, a 60-year-old Texas real estate agent, in an interview with the newspaper. "I feel sad that he seemed to have had a lonely, tragic ending. I'm still sorting it out. I am just sad — sad that he was alone."
Smith served as an Army paratrooper in the 1950s.
The Lake County Sheriff's Office investigators do not believe Smith died as a result of foul play.
In contrast, the Mesa County Sheriff's Office is certain Etus Thomas Romero was murdered. Romero's headless body was found in November 1992 in the Walter Walker State Wildlife Area in Grand Junction.
Last year, Mesa County sent DNA to a Texas laboratory for analysis. That analysis produced several leads, including one potential relative who agreed to submit their DNA. It was a match - a "sibling relationship," per Mesa County.
Romero, a native of New Iberia, Louisiana, was 26 years old when he died. He went by the initials "E.T." and had a tattoo of those initials, relatives told investigators. He was a military veteran who travelled to Colorado from Louisiana with two other people in October 1991. He resided in a Grand Junction home which no longer exists.
The identities are now known, but the circumstances of the deaths remain mysteries. Anyone with information on the two men are asked to call the Lake County Sheriff's Office at 719-486-1249 or Mesa County's investigators, Pete Burg at 970-244-3263 and Anthony West at 970-244-3270.
