A Missouri man has been charged with murder and rape in the fatal stabbing of a 19-year-old woman, more than three decades after she was found dead in her Indianapolis apartment, authorities said Tuesday.
Dana Shepherd, 52, was arrested Aug. 20 after being used by investigators in the 1993 murder of Carmen Van Hus. Genetic genealogy — a technique that uses DNA evidence and genealogical research — to help identify her suspected killer, the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department said in a news release.
Authorities in Boone County, Missouri, tracked down Shepherd and took him into custody, Deputy Police Chief Kendall Adams told reporters.
Boone County Jail records show Shepherd is being held without bond. Prosecutors in Marion County, Indiana, are seeking his extradition to that state, according to the news release.
It was not clear Tuesday if he has an attorney to speak on his behalf.
Shepherd declined to speak with investigators after being taken into custody, the police department said.
Speaking at a news conference Tuesday, Van Huss’ brother said his sister was killed when she was a freshman in high school.
“Carmen has been missed by so many people over the years,” said Jimmy Van Huss. “She had a lot of family, a lot of friends. She had cousins who loved her like a sister. She had an aunt and uncle who loved her like a daughter.
“My father needs to find his daughter after the brutality that was done to her makes this day bittersweet,” he added. “I wish he was here to see.”
Carmen Van Huss was found dead in her apartment north of downtown Indianapolis on March 24, 1993.
A co-worker at Pizza Hut told her father that after she didn’t show up for work, he found signs of a struggle in her apartment and her daughter’s body on the floor. Indianapolis’ NBC affiliate WTHR reported.
Citing the Marion County Coroner’s Office, the station reported that Van Huss had been stabbed 61 times.
In the decades that followed, detectives interviewed dozens of people and followed up on hundreds of leads, but the case remained cold until a detective provided a DNA sample in 2018 to Parabon Nanolabs, a genetic genealogy company that has worked with law enforcement agencies across the country. United States to solve cold cases.
Five years later, in the summer of 2023, a combination of that analysis and investigative work pointed to Shepherd as a suspect, the department said. Additional DNA testing showed Shepherd’s genetic material matched evidence found on the victim’s body and in her apartment, the department said.
“For 31 years, the family of Carmen Van Hus has been searching for answers and justice,” Adams said. “While nothing can ever replace their loved one, we hope today’s arrest brings them some peace.”
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