A discarded cigarette butt helped crack the decades-old chilly case killing of a Boeing teacher who was raped and strangled 44 years in the past inside her Washington state house, in response to authorities.
Kenneth Kundert, 65, was captured this week in connection to the homicide of Dorothy Silzel, who was found lifeless on the second flooring of her Kent rental in February 1980, police introduced.
The 30-year-old aerospace firm employee, who labored part-time at a pizza place, was final seen alive on Feb. 23 of that yr. She was discovered lifeless throughout a welfare examine three days later.
A medical expert’s workplace decided Silzel was sexually assaulted, suffered blunt drive trauma to the top and died from strangulation, the Seattle Occasions reported this week.
Sperm was collected on swabs on the time of the homicide, however DNA expertise was nonetheless many years behind the place it’s at present and police have been unable to find out the identification of her killer.
The case ultimately went chilly till it was revived greater than 40 years later in March 2022 when a forensic genealogist uploaded a DNA profile to a pair of databases. The profile pinpointed 11 attainable suspects who’re all first cousins, the newspaper reported, citing courtroom docs.
Kent authorities zoomed in on Kundert in September and contacted an Arkansas sheriff’s workplace in regards to the suspected killer in hopes of acquiring his DNA.
The Van Buren County Sheriff’s Workplace, which was already investigating Kundert for a separate assault case, interviewed him at one level. In the course of the interview, the suspect smoked cigarettes however put each one he puffed into his pocket when he was carried out, in response to stories.
By March, Kent police made the journey to Arkansas the place they stealthy adopted Kundert right into a Walmart car parking zone whereas he was smoking an all-white cigarette as he parked. He threw the cigarette butt, main investigators to choose by way of the trash and discover three all-white cigarette butts, in response to the Seattle Occasions.
A kind of three matched unknown DNA taken from Silzel’s physique on the time.
Whereas there was no recognized connection between the suspect and sufferer, a relative of Kundert lived in an residence close to Silzel on the time of the slaying, and the suspect, then 20, labored in Washington round 1987, THV 11 reported.
Earlier information concerning his place of employment weren’t obtainable.
Kundert was taken into custody on Aug. 20 by Van Buren sheriff deputies and is being held on $3 million bail. He’s anticipated to be extradited to Washington at a later date.
Washington State Legal professional Common Bob Ferguson mentioned Kundert will face homicide fees as soon as he’s hauled again to the West Coast.
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