1987 Colorado Homicide Victim Identified 36 Years Later as Police Seek Answers

Jerry Mikkelson.Photo:Jackson County Sheriff’s Office

Jackson County Sheriff’s Office

The body of a homicide victim found in 1987 has finally been identified after 36 years, but police are still seeking answers.

Jerry Mikkelson willingly left his home in Sioux Falls, S.D., on Aug. 8, 1983, according to theJackson County (Colo.) Sheriff’s Office. Four years later, the 24-year-old’s body was found near the border of Colorado and Wyoming. He was wearing a vest with the initials L.B.L. written on a tag, police say. It’s believed Mikkelson was killed in Wyoming and dumped in Colorado based on soil samples, the sheriff’s office said.

Jerry Mikkelson.Jackson County Sheriff’s Office

For years, Mikkelson’s body was unidentified. But in June, the sheriff’s office exhumed his remains, which led to new DNA samples as well as the discovery of a titanium rod in his right femur. Using investigative genetic genealogy and other techniques, Mikkelson was finally identified, the sheriff’s office announced. His family were able to confirm that he had broken his femur six years before going missing.

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Anyone with information about Mikkelson or the cold case can submit a tip totips@jacksoncountyco.gov, or at 970-875-7069.

source: people.com