3 decades after the gruesome murder of an 84-year-old woman, DNA found on her underwear clasp linked the crime to her neighbor
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- Idaho authorities said they've solved the 28-year-old cold-case murder of Wilma Mobley.
- Mobley, 84, was strangled and attacked with an "axe type instrument" in 1995.
- Police found DNA on the clasp of Mobley's underwear that matched her neighbor, Danny Lee Kennison.
When 84-year-old Wilma Mobley was found dead in her Idaho home in August of 1995, investigators looked into three possible suspects, including her neighbor, Danny Lee Kennison. But no conclusive evidence emerged, and the case grew cold.
Mobley had been strangled and attacked with an "axe type instrument," and her death remained a mystery until December 18, 2023, the Jerome Police Department said in a press release this week.
Idaho State Police Lab technicians who analyzed the nearly three-decade-old evidence found "a significant amount of a DNA profile" on a clasp of Mobley's undergarments that matched Kennison, the press release said.
Police said the DNA profile excluded all other possible suspects that had previously been identified, and no other DNA profiles were found in the available evidence.
Authorities said Kennison and Mobley had no personal relationship beyond being neighbors. Kennison died by suicide in 2001.
Sgt. Clinton Wagner of the Jerome Police Department first picked up Mobley's cold case in June 2022 and inquired about submitting the evidence for DNA analysis, police said.
Wagner worked with lab technicians to review the available evidence and select items for testing and submitted them to the Idaho State Police Forensic Lab in March of 2023.
"Advancements in DNA science have the power to unveil the truth even after years of uncertainty. Science, when combined with relentless investigative dedication, can unravel mysteries and bring closure to victims and their families," the Idaho State Police said in a statement.
Wagner met with Mobley's family members on December 19 to give them the news and inform them that the case was closed.