Body found in forest almost 40 years ago identified as man who went missing

11 November 2023 , 14:37

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Jerry's body was identified after being exhumed this summer (Image: JACKSON COUNTY SHERIFF)

The body of a man who went missing more than 30 years ago has finally been found and identified as a cold-case murder victim.

Jerry A Mikkelson went missing from Sioux Falls, South Dakota, more than 40 years ago after graduating from high school in 1981. A relative eventually reported him missing, but police did not investigate because he was around 24 years old at the time and authorities did not suspect foul play. 36 years later, his body was identified after authorities in Colorado were able to use testing on a John Doe which proved the body to be that of Jerry.

Deputies with the Jackson County Sheriff's Office have long been trying to put a name to the suspected homicide victim. They used genetic testing and a titanium rod in his leg to identify Jerry's body last week after they took samples from his remains, which were exhumed in June this year. Jerry's family was able to confirm that he had broken his femur six years before he went missing, which led to the titanium rod being implanted.

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His body was found on October 18, 1987, on the side of a forest service road in Colorado just five miles from the Wyoming border. Using soil samples in the victim's hair, investigators say they believe Jerry was killed in Wyoming before being transported to Colorado. Police say he was found wearing a vest with the initials LBL written on a tag.

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Jerry willingly left his home in Sioux Falls on August 8, 1983, with investigators believing he travelled to Pittsburgh, Olathe, Kansas, Wyoming and possibly Colorado. Sioux Falls police spokesperson Sam Clemens said: "The officer informed [the relative] since Jerry was an adult there was nothing police could do.

Jerry was identified as a cold-case murder victim found in Colorado in 1987 (JACKSON COUNTY SHERIFF)

Jerry's body was identified after being exhumed this summer (JACKSON COUNTY SHERIFF)

"No police report was made, just the info that [the relative] left. At that point, there was no indication anything was wrong or anything criminal occurred, so there was no police investigation."

Now, however, authorities are on the hunt for his killer. The Jackson County Sheriff's Office are asking anyone with any information to come forward to help find out what happened to Jerry.

In a statement, the Jackson County Sheriff's office said: "After 36 years, a new light has been shed on the 1987 cold case homicide in Jackson County. Using Forensic Investigative Genetic Genealogy (FIGG) and other advancements in technology, the Jackon County Sheriff's Office worked closely with the Colorado Bureau of Investigations (CBI) and the Wyoming Department of Criminal Investigations (DCI) to identify the 1987homicide victim as 24-year-old Jerry A Mikkelson."

According to an obituary for his mother, Alice Mikkelson, who died in 2020, Jerry was one of seven children. He was raised in Sioux Falls where his father ran a towing company and his mother was the company's bookkeeper. Both of his parents died before Jerry was identified, not knowing what happened to their son.

Fiona Leishman