Police investigating the unsolved murder of JonBenet Ramsey are attempting to use familial DNA technology to find the killer, but they do not believe the suspect will be a member of the family, The Messenger reports.
In a new development in the case, the news outlet says the Boulder Police Department has submitted previously untested evidence for DNA testing, and if a DNA profile can be generated, investigators intend to compare it to DNA data compiled by genetic testing services.
The process could identify the culprit or their relatives, at which point detectives could analyze family trees to narrow the focus of the investigation.
It’s the same technique that has led to breakthroughs in cold cases all over the country in recent years, such as bringing to justice the Golden State Killer.
An unnamed source inside the Boulder Police Department told The Messenger they believe the DNA will belong to someone unrelated to JonBenet.
“No one in the department expects the familial DNA to be a Ramsey, or even a distant Ramsey relative,” the source told The Messenger. “We expect it to be someone completely unrelated.”
On December 26, 1996, JonBenet was found dead in the basement of her family’s home in Boulder, Colorado.
Her mother, Patsy Ramsey, reported her daughter missing after finding what is said to be a ransom note seeking $118,000. The girl’s body was later located later in the basement.
An autopsy found the 6-year-old died by strangulation and had an 8.5-inch skull fracture.
No one has ever been convicted in connection with the killing. DNA initially recovered from the scene was tested and police subsequently excluded JonBenét’s immediate family.
John Ramsey has long been critical of the Boulder Police Department’s handling of the case and has been pressing authorities for years to retest evidence from the crime scene using more modern technology. Last year, he petitioned Colorado Gov. Jared Polis for an independent agency to analyze evidence that has gone untested for almost three decades.
In a recent interview with Fox News, Ramsey said he “met with the chief of police and the assistant chief several months ago, and they shared some words that were encouraging.”
Earlier this week, Ramsey explained his hopes for this new stage of the investigation.
“We know there’s evidence that was taken from the crime scene that was never tested for DNA. There are a few cutting edge labs that have the latest technology. That’s where this testing ought to be done,” Ramsey told NewsNation.
“And then use the public genealogy database with whatever information we get to research and basically do a backwards family tree, which has been wildly successful in solving some very old cases.”
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[Feature Photo: JonBenet/Family Handout]
