PHOENIX — A 13-year-old cold case has finally been solved after investigators used genetic genealogy to identify a man found dead under a Phoenix bridge in 2011.
The Arizona Attorney General’s Office Cold Case Unit, created earlier this year, announced Thursday that the remains belonged to Kermit Wane Anderson, who was previously known only as John Doe. He died by suicide and had no identification on him when his body was discovered on Oct. 13, 2011.
The breakthrough came last year when the Maricopa County Office of the Medical Examiner sent a bloodstain from the case to the Investigative Genetic Genealogy Center at Ramapo College in New Jersey.
That sample was analyzed in collaboration with Genologue in Georgia and Parabon Nanolabs in Virginia. After genome sequencing and further analysis, the data was uploaded to GEDmatch Pro, a large online database used for investigative genealogy.
A student research group at the IGG Center helped trace the DNA to Anderson, leading the Cold Case Unit to request a confirmation sample from his son. The identity was officially verified on May 19.
Anderson’s identification adds another success to the Cold Case Unit’s early efforts.
“So many families have had to wait far too long for answers and justice,” said Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes in a statement. “I’m proud of our Cold Case Unit and the work they are doing to close these cases and deliver answers to the family members of missing and murdered Arizonans.”
