Virginville Jane Doe (1992)
Skeletonized remains of a white female were discovered on June 3, 1992 in a plowed farm field near Virginville, Berks County, Pennsylvania, where a farmer unearthed a shallow grave. She is estimated to have been between 25 and 40 years old at the time of death, with death estimated no later than 1992. The case remains open and her identity has not been established.[1]
Discovery
On June 3, 1992, a farmer plowing a field near Virginville, Berks County, Pennsylvania uncovered skeletonized human remains buried in a shallow grave. Investigators determined the body had been buried at the site for at least one year prior to discovery, placing the latest probable date of death no later than approximately June 1991. An exact cause of death could not be determined. Numerous bones of the lower extremities and neck were never recovered, and the hands were also absent from the recovered remains.[1]
The Berks County Coroner's Office, Reading, Pennsylvania, assumed jurisdiction under case number 92-0604.[1] The Radford University Serial Killer Database describes the discovery location as "near Lenhartsville," a community in Albany Township that lies in close proximity to Virginville, both being unincorporated settlements in northern Berks County.[2]
Description
The decedent was a white female estimated to be between 25 and 40 years of age, with a minimum estimated height of 5 feet 3 inches. Her hair was light brown and approximately 3 inches in length. Weight could not be estimated from the skeletal remains. Eye color was not determinable.[1]
Clothing
At the time of discovery she was wearing two upper-body garments: a dark blue or black thin long-sleeved front-button sweater with large white buttons, labeled "Benetton," size X-Large; and a light-colored pullover long-sleeved shirt made of lightweight material, with five buttons down the front, a small collar, and pleats in front.[1]
Personal effects
Several items were recovered with the remains:[1]
- A digital sport-type wristwatch with a small face and a plastic band in orange, pink, and yellow
- A gray metal ring without stones
- A cylindrical metallic structure approximately 4.5 inches in length and 3/32 of an inch in diameter
- A small object appearing to depict a dolphin
Investigation
The Berks County Coroner's Office is the case owner and has carried the case since 1992 under coroner's case number 92-0604.[1] No public record indicates that nuclear DNA has been extracted from the remains or submitted to CODIS, nor that investigative genetic genealogy has been applied to this case.
Larry DeWayne Hall
The Radford University Department of Psychology Serial Killer Database lists the June 3, 1992 discovery of a Jane Doe in Berks County, Pennsylvania near Lenhartsville as a case attributed to convicted kidnapper and suspected serial killer Larry DeWayne Hall. Hall is described in the database as a convicted sexual predator who has been investigated in connection with numerous unsolved homicides involving young to middle-aged white women in rural and semi-rural areas of the mid-Atlantic and Midwest. Hall is currently incarcerated. His inclusion in the database entry for this case represents an actionable investigative lead: any DNA profile obtained from these remains should be compared against Hall's known profile on file with federal authorities.[2]
Excluded candidates
Multiple missing persons have been evaluated as potential matches and formally ruled out, including Terry Slaugenhoupt, who disappeared from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on January 6, 1991,[3] as well as Barbara Miller and Tracy Kroh. Slaugenhoupt's disappearance timeline was temporally consistent with the estimated burial period, but she has been excluded as a match.
Adriana M. Bejarano, who disappeared from Ephrata, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania on November 28, 1988, has been discussed in community forums as a potential candidate due to geographic proximity.[4] However, significant descriptor discrepancies exist: Bejarano was 15 years old at the time of her disappearance, of Hispanic descent, and had black hair, whereas the unidentified woman is estimated to have been 25 to 40 years old, is described as White/Caucasian, and had light brown hair.[1][4] No official forensic exclusion of Bejarano has been documented in available sources.
How to Help
The investigating agency is the Berks County Coroner's Office in Reading, Pennsylvania, case number 92-0604. Anyone with information about this case can submit a tip through the NamUs case page at namus.gov/UnidentifiedPersons/Case#/1012.
References
- "NamUs Case UP1012." National Missing and Unidentified Persons System. namus.gov
- "Larry DeWayne Hall." Radford University Department of Psychology Serial Killer Database. maamodt.asp.radford.edu
- "Terry Slaugenhoupt." The Charley Project. charleyproject.org
- "Adriana M. Bejarano." The Charley Project. charleyproject.org