Genetic testing cracks two cold cases with bodies found in Columbus area over 10 years ago
The Ohio Attorney General's office said Tuesday that two men who had been missing — one of them for three decades — have been identified using genetic genealogy and DNA testing on bodies that were found in central Ohio.
The men were identified as Chow Chan, whose body was found in September 1992, and Randy Raines, whose body was found in March 2006.
Related coverage: Northeast Side man identified through DNA 31 years after body was found in Pickaway County
The case of Chow Chan, who was fatally shot in 1992
On Sept. 20, 1992, the body of an Asian male was found along Big Darby Creek in the area of the 7000 block of Lockbourne Road. It was determined that the man, who has now been identified as Chan, was killed after being shot in the head.
When Chan's body was found, DNA technology was still relatively new and efforts to obtain a DNA profile were not successful. Fingerprint matches were not successful either.
In 2000, Chan's remains were submitted by the Franklin County Coroner's office to the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation. A DNA profile was able to be obtained at that time but there was no luck in identifying the person.
In 2022, archives had been digitized and records were obtained that led investigators to a couple who believed they were the unidentified person's parents in Queens, New York. The couple had given a DNA sample in 1993 for comparison to the John Doe, but that comparison was not done at the time because of the lack of a profile of the victim.
Related coverage: Cold case DNA match was too late for attempted murder conviction, Ohio Supreme Court rules
Agents with BCI reached out in January 2023 to the Manhattan District Attorney's office to get an additional DNA profile from the woman who believed she was the victim's mother. In February, DNA testing showed the woman's sample was consistent with that of a biological child and the victim was identified as Chan.
He was 19 at the time his body was found.
His death remains an unsolved homicide investigation being conducted by the Franklin County Sheriff's office. Anyone with information is asked to call Det. John Thompson at 614-525-3352.
The case of Randy Raines, whose body was found in the Scioto River
The other man, whose body was found on March 30, 2006, was identified as 39-year-old Randy Raines.
The man's body was found in the Scioto River and the man's cause of death was unable to be determined.
Related coverage: After 36 years, Delaware County detectives solve slaying of 15-year-old Columbus boy
A DNA sample was submitted to BCI's Project LINK (Linking Individuals Not Known) and compared to DNA samples of other missing people, which yielded no results. A search through the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS) was also unsuccessful.
In 2022, the coroner's office asked for the help of the DNA Doe Project, a nonprofit effort using investigative genetic genealogy to help identify remains with crowdfunding covering the costs of advanced DNA extraction and the genealogical work.
In March, a sample from a person who was possibly the brother of the victim was collected and a successful comparison was done, identifying the man who was found as Raines.
"We work cold cases because everyone counts and everyone deserves justice," Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost said. "Each time we crack a cold case, the emotions of empathy and anticipation are bittersweet."
The Franklin County Coroner’s Office’s website has a database of unidentified persons, including six cases from 1989 to 2022. Anyone with information about those cases are asked to call the Investigations Section of the coroner’s office at 614-525-5290.
bbruner@dispatch.com
@bethany_bruner
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: DNA, genetic genealogy lead to identification of two local John Does
