Overview
- Southern California Edison workers found the woman's body on Oct. 20, 1994, in open desert on Eagle Mountain Road about 0.6 miles north of I‑10 in Desert Center.
- Initial efforts using fingerprints and dental records failed to identify her, and the case produced no sustained leads for decades.
- In 2023 investigators recovered bone samples that were sent to OTHRAM for DNA analysis and the resulting profile was uploaded to a consumer ancestry database for genealogical searching.
- A 2024 Parabon ancestry snapshot and photo rendition indicated the victim was of Southeast Asian descent with brown eyes, black hair and a light brown complexion, and on Tuesday investigators released a new facial approximation to the public.
- Officials are asking people to report tips to Investigator Ebony Caviness at (951) 955-0257 or coldcaseunit@rivcoda.org and are encouraging voluntary DNA uploads to Family Tree DNA or GedMatch to help establish familial matches and bring possible closure to relatives.