Human remains located near Lower Lake, California, in 1976 have actually been recognized as coming from Leopoldo Torres Melendez. Courtesy picture.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif.– The Lake County Sheriff’s Workplace stated today that DNA technology has assisted it resolve a decades-long secret involving the identity of a killed male whose remains were located near Lower Lake.Lt.
Corey Paulich claimed today that the investigation has recognized the remains as belonging to Leopoldo Torres Melendez, whose household claimed he had actually gone missing nearly 50 years ago.Paulich claimed
that on Nov. 28, 1976, the Lake County Sheriff’s Office received a report pertaining to human remains situated in a heavily wooded location near Freeway 29 in Lower Lake.
Throughout the investigation, it was established the death was a homicide as a result of blunt force injury to the head, Paulich said.Despite extensive investigatory initiatives, Paulich said the remains were not identified and the murder target’s identity continued to be a mystery. In January 2007, the victim’s head and also teeth were sent out to the California Division of Justice for analysis. In December 2007, a partial DNA account was published to the Mixed DNA Indexing System, or CODIS. Nevertheless, Paulich stated the constable’s workplace never ever got a suit because of the destruction of the bone and also the target’s DNA likely not being in CODIS. In January 2020, Det. Jeff Mora asked for help from Parabon
Nanolabs, which is a DNA technology company, concerning the opportunity of recognizing the decedent via investigative hereditary ancestry, Paulich said.In August 2020, the remains were sent to Marshall University Forensic Scientific Research Center in West Virginia. Paulich said a DNA example appropriate for hereditary genealogy was removed from the skull.In June 2021, Parabon Nanolabs delivered a hereditary family tree report. Paulich said the record provided possible matches for
the target and also a list of relative to contact. After numerous family meetings, Paulich stated authorities believed the remains to be those of Leopoldo Torres Melendez, who
was birthed in Puerto Rico and stated in the genetic family tree report as a potential match.A dental swab was gotten from a relative that recognized herself as his biological sister. The swab was sent out to the California Division of Justice to be compared to the DNA drawn out from the sufferer’s skull, Paulich said.This past August, the DNA results validated the relative remained in reality the biological sibling of the sufferer. Based on the totality of the proof, Paulich said the sheriff’s office was able to positively determine the victim as Torres Melendez and also inform his family. Through interviews with the household, it was uncovered that Torres Melendez was believed to have gone missing in the early 1970s, Paulich reported.Paulich claimed Torres Melendez would have been roughly 41 years of ages at the time of his death and also was last known to stay in the San Francisco area. Member of the family searched for Torres Melendez, but were never ever able to identify what occurred to him previously, Paulich said.The sheriff’s workplace thanked Parabon Nanolabs, Marshall College Forensic Science Center and the California Division
of Justice for their assistance. Paulich claimed the sheriff’s office will continue this examination, noting they intend to have actually given a feeling of closure to the household.”Obviously this examination is old as well as the suspect(s) are most likely elderly or deceased,”Paulich said.If any person believes they have information concerning this situation, please get in touch with Det. Jeff Mora by e-mail at This email address is being secured from spambots. You require JavaScript enabled to watch it. or by telephone at 707-262-4224.