Remains found at the base of a tree in Centreville in 1993 have been identified as a woman who disappeared from Fairfax County in the 80s, police said Friday.
Fairfax County police identified Sharon Kay Abbott Lane on Nov. 21, with the help of "advanced DNA testing and forensic-grade genome sequencing," according to a news release about the case.
Lane was believed to be living in Fairfax County when her family last heard from her in 1987. A few years later, her now-deceased father got an anonymous call from a woman who told him his daughter was dead.
The remains were found in December 1993 by landscapers, in the woods near the 6800 block of Sharpsburg Drive, police said. They were found near "deteriorated clothing," a hair comb and a banana clip. Also at the scene, according to News4's reporting at the time, were a pair of shoes and an earring.
When examining the remains shortly after they were discovered, the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Quantico found evidence of several stab wounds to the upper body.
Investigators at the time attempted to extract DNA to search for matches in a missing persons database, in the hopes that they could find a match. But it wasn't until this year that the DNA evidence brought about a lead.
"This case has stumped us for nearly 30 years," one detective from the Fairfax County Police Department said.
DNA sequencing performed by Othram, Inc., a private lab that helps investigators solve similar cases, led Fairfax County police to a possible family member of Lane's. That family member led police to other family members, and eventually to her brother and children, who were a genetic match.
The DNA testing was paid for by an anonymous donor through DNASolves.
Lane's daughter Kim Lane -- seen as a baby in her mother's arms in the photo above -- expressed gratitude for the work police did to identify her mother.
"[I'm] very thankful to the Fairfax Police Department for not giving up, to actually help us get closure, and for pursuing this for so long," Kim Lane said through tears.
Though she was raised by her father and stepmom, she recalls speaking with her mother on the phone once, when she was a child.
"It did give me a little bit of relief that I knew, that I was aware that she had actually passed and that her not being in our lives was not a choice that she continued to make," Kim Lane said.
Nearly 30 years later, it's still not clear how and why Sharon Kay Abbott Lane was stabbed, or who may have killed her.
Investigators hope that the discovery of her identity will lead new people who knew her to come forward.
"The tragic death of Sharon Kay Abbott Lane is now closer to being solved with the help of advanced DNA testing," said Major Ed O’Carroll of the Major Crimes, Cyber and Forensics Bureau in the news release about the case. "Our detectives will use this new information to continue to seek justice for the victim in this case. We encourage anyone who may have known Sharon or her associates to contact our detectives."
Anyone with information can submit an anonymous tip by calling 1-866-411-8477, or online at the Fairfax Crime Solvers website here.
