Unidentified: Suspicious death of Ottawa County’s Jane Doe still a mystery nearly 50 years later

CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) - It’s a mystery out of Ottawa County that’s nearly 50 years old.

The identity of a young woman found in a creek in a remote, rural area is still unknown.

Could she have been murdered and dumped there?

Investigators haven’t given up hope on identifying this woman.

They believe she had a child who has spent a lifetime without answers.

Somebody out there knows who this Jane Doe was and could help solve this case.

There are just over 100 unidentified remains of people across Ohio.

Detectives across the state have been checking missing persons cases and looking at new DNA technology to find new leads.

Investigator Sara Goldenberg profiles some of their cases in our series Unidentified, in hopes of finding answers for their families.

What we know

Creeks and rivers cut through patches of farmland in Ottawa County, not far from Sandusky Bay.

On October 22, 1975, duck hunters found a woman lying naked and lifeless on the banks of Muddy Creek in Oak Harbor.

Since then, investigators have been searching to find out how she died and why she wound up there.

Ottawa County Sheriff Steve Levorchick took us to the scene.

We battled biting mosquitos and tall brush to get to the spot where her body was found.

Houses now line the creek in Oak Harbor.

“At that time this was a traveled roadway, it was a stone drive, but yet a lot of the kids would come out here and hangout in the evenings and that,” Sheriff Levorchick said.

The evidence

Here’s a look at the clues left behind.

The coroner determined the woman hadn’t been dead long, maybe a week or so.

Investigators released a post-mortem photo to the newspaper, hoping someone would recognize her.

They took dental impressions and checked missing persons cases.

Ottawa County’s Jane Doe was white, 20 to 35 years old, about 5′3″ and 140 pounds.

She had brown or reddish shoulder-length hair and brown or hazel eyes.

She also had pierced ears and was a smoker.

Aaron Leist, Captain of Operations, is now working the case.

“She had some distinctive things that they were looking at-- a ring. That was a Celtic knot or a love knot ring style. She also had a gap in her front teeth and damage to her teeth,” Leist said.

The coroner also believed she had at least one child.

Investigators said it’s very possible she’s not from the Oak Harbor area.

“This is a very remote area of Ottawa County and these creeks all drain and rivers all drain into the Lake and Bay, so it’s just one of those where-- you wonder-- you wonder if this was you know, was she dropped here, was she dropped further upstream-- somebody that might have just been out driving and this is the perfect opportunity,” Leist said.

The big question they have is whether this was a murder.

They believe it was a suspicious death.

Investigators are re-examining her cause of death, listed as a drowning at the time.

“Obviously finding her completely nude in October, it’s pretty unlikely that was an accident,” Leist said.

A new push for answers

About eight years ago, this cold case got fresh eyes from investigators and the FBI put up billboards in the Toledo area with a new artist sketch.

“I think that this type of drawing gives that face life through the eyes, that you can see-- I think it would draw the attention of somebody that maybe is missing a loved one or a friend that is trying to get answers. I think that’s a great picture,” Leist said.

Investigators exhumed Jane Doe’s body at some point for DNA.

They may try investigative genetic genealogy in hopes of matching her to a family member.

Right now, they’re working with Ohio BCI in hopes of drumming up new leads.

Captain Leist followed up on several tips recently, including trying to match up missing persons cases.

But they didn’t pan out.

“So we will follow every tip and work every tip,” Leist said.

So for now, Ottawa County’s Jane Doe remains in a pauper’s cemetery, next to a river.

A cross marks the spot where she’s buried without a name and a family.

Investigators hope they can crack this cold case so this isn’t her final resting place.

“This young lady was buried in a pauper’s cemetery. She should be with her family. If they’ve passed also, then she should at least be buried with them,” Sheriff Levorchick said.

“It would be a prayer answered to find out who she was, and I feel confident we’ll get some kind of answer. At least some more answers, for sure,” Leist said.

Case entered into NamUs

The details of this case have been entered into NamUs, the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System, which is a national database for missing, unidentified and unclaimed person cases across the United States.

It helps investigators compare and possibly match their unidentified cases to long-term missing persons cases across the country.

If you know who this woman was, call the Ottawa County Sheriff’s Office at 419-734-4404.

We will run our next Unidentified case next Friday.

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