Trigger warning: The article discusses death and violence.
In 1985, investigators recovered human remains near Seattle, which at the time was only known as Bones 17. 40 years later, they confirmed that the remains belonged to a victim of the Green River Killer, aka Gary Ridgway.
According to CNN, King County authorities recently announced that the unidentified skeletal remains belonged to Lori Anne Razpotnik. In 1982, the teenager fled from her family’s home in Lewis County, which is in the south of Seattle. This was the last time members of her family saw her.
With the help of advanced DNA testing done by Virginia-based Parabon Nanolabs, Razpotnik’s identity was positively determined. The sheriff’s office said, “After extensive research, they concluded that the victim was Lori Anne Razpotnik.”
The sheriff’s office further stated, “The King County Sheriff’s Office is immensely grateful for the work Parabon Nanolabs, The University of North Texas, the countless number of members of the King’s County Sheriff’s Office, the King County Prosecutor’s Office, the King County Medical Examiner’s Office, and others who worked on helping identify Lori Anne Razpotnik, formerly known as Bones-17.”
Ridgway is currently serving life imprisonment without the possibility of parole at Washington State Penitentiary in Walla Walla, Washington.
Green River Killer: What did Gary Ridgway do?
Gary Ridgway, aka Green River Killer, is one of the most prolific serial killers in the history of the United States of America. On the record, the court convicted him of 49 murders, but his estimated victim count is allegedly more than that. Without modern investigation technology, his conviction wouldn’t have been possible.
According to Oxygen, officials arrested Gary in 2001 on charges of loitering. However, they examined his DNA and discovered that he was indeed a mass murderer. Furthermore, they were able to link him with the murders of Opal Mills, Marcia Chapman, Carol Christensen, and Cynthia Hinds.
The Green River Killer is currently 74 years old.
