Clay County detectives have wondered how to crack their oldest cold case for 32 years.
"This was a brutal crime," they say.
Just last October, detectives found out Jane Doe was a young black woman, around 17 to 23 years old, and released her picture. They originally thought she was white.
Faced with a dead end, they're releasing more information about a crucial TIPS Hotline phone call from last year.
"That looks like somebody they used to work with by the name of Darlene. They didn't know the last name for sure. They believe she lived in Kansas City, Kansas, had two children, and that they'd ridden back and forth to work," Cold Case Unit Detective Jesse Stoker said.
Stoker said the name "Darlene" is just a possibility. The tipster said they worked at a metro envelope company. Their investigation turned up with some former employees thinking Jane Doe may have worked first shift, but no names.
"A lot of business records, employee records, they're only required to be maintained for seven to 10 years," Stoker said.
Because detectives found nothing at the company, they're not releasing its name.
Even more new information: Jane Doe was shot three times in the head, execution-style, based on the angle of the gunshot wounds.
She had been dead at least eight months before a dog found her skull and dragged it to someone's front yard near Boyer Road and Missouri 210 Highway in April 1985.
Stoker said they have no idea if she was shot in the field.
Officials found other body parts during the original search. The house where the dog dragged the skull is no longer there.
Detectives hope this new information spreads all over the United States, in case Jane Doe's relatives aren't in the area.
"There's a loved one out there who's lost a mother, a sister, a daughter, who is wondering what happened to that loved one and may not know we've come to the point we have," Stoker said.
Detectives need to talk to the tipster again.
Anyone who recognizes Jane Doe's picture, or possibly knows someone fitting the description and worked at a Kansas City envelope company in the early 80's, should call the TIPS Hotline at 816-474-8477.
