New search in cold case murders of Ohio, Pennsylvania girls
NORTH BENTON, Ohio -- The FBI and other agencies were searching a northeastern Ohio tract where the bodies of two teenage girls were found in 1994.
The FBI is working with investigators from Portage County, Ohio, and Beaver County, Pennsylvania, during Friday's search near the Berlin Lake Wildlife Area.
The body of 17-year-old Kathryn Menendez was found near the Berlin Reservoir on Aug. 25, 1994, four days after she was last seen near Alliance, Ohio.
The remains of 14-year-old Sarah Rae Boehm were found about a half-mile away on Nov. 4, 1994, five months after she was reported missing from Rochester, Pennsylvania, a Pittsburgh suburb about 50 miles away. Her remains weren't identified until 2003.
Investigators say there's been significant advances in DNA technology since the murders, and they are hoping to unearth new leads, reports CBS Pittsburgh.
"Sarah often wore large hoop earrings," FBI agent Greg Nelsen told the station. "Those earrings were never recovered. Is there a chance it could be here? We hope so. Also, there could be some DNA evidence just by dealing with different searches, something additional could be recovered that could lead us to a new suspect or pinpoint a suspect."
CBS Pittsburgh reports that when the Boehm was last seen, she said she was going to visit a friend just a few blocks away from her Rochester home.
The FBI is hoping to determine whether the two deaths are related.