GOLDEN, CO — While Jefferson County Sheriff Jeff Shrader would have preferred to put handcuffs on the person responsible, he said he still hopes finally identifying the man who abducted, sexually assaulted and killed 18-year-old Jeannie Moore 38 years ago will bring some degree of closure to her family.
Shrader on Tuesday identified Donald S. Perea as the suspect in Moore’s murder. Moore was killed Aug. 25, 1981, after hitchhiking on her way to work. Authorities said Perea, a 23-year-old convicted rapist at the time of Moore’s murder, died for undisclosed health reasons in May 2012 at the age of 54.
“I appreciate the hard work of our investigators, our crime lab professionals, and the public-private partnership that helped uncover new information, leading to the identity of our suspect,” Shrader said. “Our goal then and now has been to bring justice to Jeannie and her family.”
Moore’s case was reexamined in 2008, officials said. The Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office and CrimeStoppers worked with United Data Connect to solve the case through the use of genetic genealogy, which uses crime scene DNA and public genealogy websites to build family trees tracing back to the suspect.
On Aug. 25, 1981, Moore left her home for work at the Tenneco gas station at 13th and Wadsworth, according to the Jefferson County Cold Cases website. Moore began hitchhiking at the onramp from Harlan to westbound I-70 at about 7:10 a.m.
According to the website, an employee and a customer at a nearby gas station, along with other witnesses, saw a vehicle pull over. Moore tried the passenger door of the vehicle, but she appeared to have problems with it. The driver leaned over and opened the door from within, the website said.
The vehicle was described as a 1969 or 1970 red Ford LTD or Galaxy, and it possibly hada black vinyl top. Moore was wearing blue jeans and a peach-colored sweater. She was carrying a brown leather purse with a mushroom design and blue bandana for a strap.
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On Aug. 30, 1981, picnickers found Moore’s body in Genesee Park south of I-70. An autopsy showed death was caused by blows to the head, according to the website.
This is the first case in Colorado to be solved through genetic genealogy, Shrader said. Investigators linked DNA evidence from the crime scene to a family member of Perea. Further investigation led investigators to identify Perea as being “3.3 trillion times more likely than anyone else to have committed the murder.”
In a statement read by Jeffco Sheriff’s Office officials, Moore’s surviving family described their sister and aunt as “loving and kind in all her ways. She was sincere and true in her heart and mind, and has left behind beautiful memories.”