After 35 years of uncertainty, the Georgia Bureau of Investigations (GBI) has cracked a cold case, identifying remains found in 1988 as those of Chong Un Kim.

She was a 26-year-old woman who moved to the U.S. from Korea in 1981.

This significant breakthrough brings closure to a mystery that has confounded investigators for decades.

The grim discovery was initially made on February 14, 1988, when a large suitcase containing a body wrapped in plastic and duct tape was found in a dumpster near Millen, Georgia.

Called in to assist the Jenkins County Sheriff’s Office, GBI conducted an autopsy, determining that the victim had been dead for about four to seven days.

The cause of death was asphyxiation.

To identify the victim, investigators compared Kim’s fingerprints and dental records to those of other missing persons nationwide.

They even had an artist sketch what the victim might have looked like.

Efforts were ramped up with the involvement of both the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NAMUS) and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC).

NCMEC even spread a computer-generated image of the victim, seeking public input.

A significant turning point came with advances in DNA technology.

Armed with modern methods, evidence was sent back to the GBI crime lab for new tests.

Although the DNA profiles discovered couldn’t be added to the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS), they still gave investigators new leads.

GBI then partnered with Othram, Inc., a Texas-based company specializing in advanced DNA testing.

Othram’s genealogical search eventually led to the identification of the remains as Kim’s.

GBI has notified Kim’s family, finally offering them some degree of closure after more than three decades of painful waiting.

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