All articles tagged with #dna testing
Archaeologists in Maastricht say a grave found beneath St Peter and Paul Church could belong to the 17th‑century musketeer Charles de Batz de Castelmore d’Artagnan, with DNA testing planned against descendants; clues include a 1660 coin and a lead bullet, and a note that he was buried in consecrated ground under an altar, though confirmation is not yet certain.
Authorities in Pima County continue probing the disappearance of Nancy Guthrie, the 84-year-old mother of NBC's Savannah Guthrie, after she vanished from her Tucson home. Investigators are analyzing biological evidence and a glove found near the property with DNA testing, while no evidence has emerged that she was abducted across the U.S.-Mexico border. Police are seeking Jan. 1–Feb. 2 doorbell footage and have not ruled out an accomplice; a lead involving a 'purchase' tied to Sonora has been ruled out.
DNA found on a glove near Nancy Guthrie’s Tucson home was submitted to CODIS and produced no matches, while additional DNA at the residence remains under analysis. Guthrie’s family have been cleared as suspects, and the FBI has raised the reward to $100,000 for information. Investigators released new surveillance images and updated a suspect description as the search for Guthrie continues.
Ghana has temporarily halted its citizenship-by-ancestry program for the African diaspora to simplify the process after complaints about tight DNA-document deadlines, multiple steps, and high costs. Since 2016, more than 1,000 people (including Stevie Wonder) have obtained Ghanaian citizenship, but the one-week DNA deadline and fees (application $136; shortlisted candidates $2,280) have drawn criticism. The government will issue updated timelines and guidelines when ready, with no resumption date announced yet.
Genetic ancestry tests from companies like 23andMe and Ancestry.com often oversimplify or distort human history, relying on arbitrary reference populations and statistical approximations that do not accurately reflect individual lineage or the complex, interconnected nature of human migration and genetic diversity.
Fossils initially thought to be the youngest mammoth remains in Alaska were later identified through DNA testing as whale bones, revealing a case of mistaken identity and raising questions about how whale bones ended up far inland.
Julia Wandelt, who claimed to be Madeleine McCann, was found guilty of harassment against the McCann parents and sentenced to six months in prison, having already served her sentence. The court confirmed she is not Madeleine based on DNA tests, but she remains uncertain about her identity. Wandelt's actions included persistent contact and attempts to obtain DNA, causing distress to the McCann family.
An army veteran, Stephan Smerk, was arrested and pleaded guilty to a 1994 Virginia murder after DNA testing linked him to the crime scene, leading to his 70-year sentence.
DNA evidence indicates that the human remains found behind a vacant school in Philadelphia are those of missing woman Kada Scott, with authorities linking the remains to her case and arresting a suspect connected to her disappearance.
The names of 16 victims presumed dead in a Tennessee explosives plant explosion have been released, with identification efforts ongoing through DNA testing due to extensive damage. The cause of the blast at Accurate Energetic Systems remains under investigation, and the small community is mourning the loss.
After 34 years, authorities linked the 1991 Austin yogurt shop murders to Robert Eugene Brashers through new DNA testing, ballistics, and traditional police work, leading to the case's resolution and the identification of Brashers as the killer, who died by suicide in 1999.
The 1991 Yogurt shop murders in Austin have been solved after 34 years through DNA testing, linking the crime to serial killer Robert Eugene Brashers, who died by suicide eight years after the murders, ending a long-standing cold case and bringing closure to the families and community.
Authorities are conducting DNA tests on skeletal remains found near Grindstone Mountain in Washington, which preliminary results suggest may belong to Travis Decker, a man wanted in connection with the deaths of his three daughters, whose bodies were found earlier near the same area. Decker, a former soldier, is suspected of suffocating his daughters, who were last seen with him after a visit from their mother. The investigation involves extensive search efforts and forensic analysis to confirm the identity of the remains.
DNA testing has confirmed Travis Decker as the sole suspect in the murders of his three daughters in Washington, with evidence found on bags over their heads and near their bodies. The search for Decker continues as he remains at large, considered armed and dangerous, with a reward offered for information leading to his arrest.
DNA testing confirmed Travis Decker as the sole suspect in the murder of his three daughters at a Washington campground, with evidence found on plastic bags used for suffocation; authorities are still searching for him, considering him armed and dangerous.