Frederick police say untested bedding area identified killer in 37-year-old cold case
Detectives in Frederick, Maryland, said an untested section of bedding held the key to identifying who killed a 23-year-old woman in her apartment more than 37 years ago.
Delores Marie “Mooda” Thompson was found dead in her apartment in the 100 block of S. Market on Feb. 1, 1988, according to a Frederick Police Department news release. Police said she died of “ligature strangulation” and that the case included evidence of a sexual assault.
At the time of her death, police said DNA testing was “in its infancy” and samples of evidence failed to find an “identifiable suspect profile.”
For nearly four decades, “her family has lived without answers,” said Frederick Police Chief Jason Lando. “Today, we can finally give them closure.”
This year, detectives looked again at the evidence in the case using updated DNA equipment and techniques on a small area of bedding not previously tested, police said in the release.
DNA on the bedding matched the profile of convicted offender Calvin Ziegler, police said. Ziegler was interviewed in the case following Thompson’s death and was known as having “frequently visited the victim’s apartment.”
Ziegler died in 2010, according to police.
After a review of the forensic findings, the Frederick County State’s Attorney’s Office issued a formal letter confirming that the evidence supports the identification of Ziegler as the contributor of the DNA and the person responsible for Thompson’s homicide.
“Because the identified individual is deceased, criminal charges are not possible; however, the case will be listed as closed based on the evidentiary findings,” police said.