It is not clear who strangled to death, but who disposed of his body. He was wrapped in plastic and duct tape, naked in a brown canvas bag that had been placed in the trash. A man trying to collect aluminum cans from a dumpster found the body. Investigators said Kim had been dead for four to seven days when his body was found.
The body found in a suitcase in a dumpster in Georgia 35 years ago was determined to be that of a South Korean woman, authorities announced Monday.
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation said they used DNA analysis paid for by donors to identify Chong Un Kim, 26, whose body was found in rural Millen in February 1988.
Found Dead
“There is still work to be done to solve the mystery of Kim’s death, and we will work tirelessly to bring justice and closure to her family,” the sheriff’s office said in a statement. The statement was included.
Investigators said Kim moved to the United States in 1981. He had lived for several years at Hinesville, which adjoins Fort Stewart and is 70 miles south of Millen.
Investigators were unable to identify Kim for decades despite the use of fingerprints, dental records and a forensic report.
The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NAMUS) investigated the case and also created a computer-generated outline.
The DNA found at that time could not be matched. The body became known as “Jane Millen Doe” and “Jenkins County Jane Doe.”
Jenkins County Sheriff Robert Oglesby, who took over the case from previous sheriffs, told WJBF-TV: “We interviewed a few people and thought they might have seen something, but nothing really panned out.”
The GBI recently sent DNA evidence to Othram, a Texas company that attempts to match DNA with unknown relatives using large genetic databases. Kristen Mittelman, Othram’s chief development officer, said the company was able to create a DNA profile using genetic material taken from a blanket found with the body.
Georgia investigators said earlier this month they notified Kim’s relatives that her body had been identified. GBI agents told the television station that Kim’s sister lives in New York.
Project Justice, a charity group that works to solve unsolved cases, paid for Othram’s work.