Victim in 1982 Long Island cold case identified as missing teenage girl from Queens
Nassau County Police have identified the victim in a 1982 cold case. The body, which was found in a dumpster, was identified as 15-year-old Susan Mann.
Cutting edge DNA technology made it possible, but the investigation is still ongoing in New York.
DNA technology helps ID Freeport Jane Doe
On Nov. 4, 1982, a body was discovered inside a dumpster in front of a Freeport glass factory. The body could not be identified at the time, and was buried at Holy Rood Cemetery as a Jane Doe.
Then, in 2023, the remains were exhumed when DNA genetic technology took great strides forward.
"It used to be that when you had a [single-nucleotide polymorphism] profile from a cold case like this, if it didn't match anything in the database, it was a dead end," said Nathan Lents, a professor of biology at John Jay College of Criminal Justice. "But now with this new technique of investigative genetic genealogy, investigators can look for matches with family members."
Wednesday, police announced the victim has been identified as Susan Mann, a 15-year-old girl from Queens who vanished in May 1980.
She was described as a good student from a tightknit family. Her parents died never knowing what happened to their young daughter.
Queens resident Daniel Little said he lived across the street from the Mann family at the time of Susan's disappearance, and it's a relief to have at least some answers.
"It's been a horror," he said. "It was a devastating loss."
Nassau County Det. Stephen Fitzpatrick described the reaction from Susan's family as "sadness but happy, a total spectrum of emotion."
Susan Mann homicide investigation continues
The investigation into Susan's disappearance and death remains ongoing decades later.
"Susan left the house that day on a bicycle looking to locate her sister's pocketbook," Nassau County Det. Stephen Fitzpatrick said.
Police said when Susan's body was found in the dumpster, she was wearing the clothing and the pendant she was last seen wearing before her disappearance.
Investigators believe she may have initially been buried in a makeshift grave in Hollis, then moved two years later to the dumpster in Freeport.
Investigators said Susan's siblings deserve closure.
Police and the FBI are asking the public for help. The reward for information leading to an arrest has been increased to $25,000.
Anyone with information should call Nassau County Crime Stoppers at 1-800-244-TIPS.