Texas lab to use advanced DNA testing to help Westmoreland investigators with cold cases
Jul. 12—Westmoreland County investigators will tap into advanced DNA testing in an attempt to formulate new leads or identify suspects as part of an effort to solve violent crime cold cases.
District Attorney Nicole Ziccarelli this week announced the hiring of Othram Inc., a Texas-based company to evaluate and study DNA samples in older cases where the investigatory progress has stalled.
Othram will be paid through a $50,000 state grant to review evidence in as many as 10 violent crimes that for years have remain unsolved.
"Where we have a (DNA) sample, this company will help us with certain cases. They can do different testing than we have. For victims, I want them to have answers and this will help us determine what we can know and what we don't know. It will tell us if there is a family member we need to talk to," Ziccarelli said.
Michael Vogen, director of account management for Othram Inc., said proprietary techniques are used to identify and sequence thousands of DNA markers in a sample to help create new genealogical profiles that are compared to existing consumer ancestry databases such as GEDmatch and Family Tree DNA.
"We develop new profiles for advanced genealogy to help develop investigatory leads for detectives and identify people they can talk to," Vogen said.
He pointed to a recent Texas case Othram helped investigate in which DNA evidence was collected following the murder of a young woman in the late 1970s. Othram's work led to the identification, arrest and eventual 2021 conviction of her killer, a man who was originally a suspect decades earlier.
"We were able to develop a profile and managed to narrow it down to three brothers. The detective figured out two had alibis. They got a warrant to get a sample and matched it to (the killer)," Vogen said.
Westmoreland investigators have started to review older case files to identify which ones to forward to Texas for testing.
It's a process Ziccarelli said will expand her efforts to clear unsolved cases.
"I can't stand the term 'cold case.' They're just unsolved cases and we are working on these, it's always ongoing," Ziccarelli said. "This company will help us with certain cases where we can do different testing than what we already have."
Westmoreland, along with Bucks, are the only two county district attorney offices in Pennsylvania working with the company to enhance investigations of unsolved crimes, she said.
Ziccarelli said her office expects to identify and send samples to the company in the coming weeks.
"We will look at about 10 cases where we think this can make a difference. This is a new tool we can tap into and it will be a learning curve to figure out how we can use it and how we can't," Ziccarelli said.
Ziccarelli pointed to two examples in Pennsylvania of how Othram's involvement can help local investigators.
One case involved a human skull found in Bucks County in 1986. DNA testing by Othram linked it to a woman who was reported missing a year earlier.
In another case, a suspect was charged last year in connection with sex crimes in Lancaster County involving two juveniles in 1997. DNA evidence was submitted to Othram, which identified new new leads based on an updated DNA profile that led state police to make an arrest in 2023.
Vogen said his company has been involved in about 300 cases where new leads were developed and suspects identified.
"It's extraordinary to see more agencies start using this tool," Vogen said.
District Attorney Office spokeswoman Melanie Jones said there is no complete list of pending unsolved cases in Westmoreland County. A 2022 TribLive study identified about a dozen unsolved homicides since the late 1970s.
Ziccarelli in February seated a grand jury that convenes monthly to hear evidence in unsolved cases. No charges have been filed as a result of the grand jury's work.
Rich Cholodofsky is a TribLive reporter covering Westmoreland County government, politics and courts. He can be reached at rcholodofsky@triblive.com.
