After nearly 25 years, the remains of two Jane and John Does found in Sonoma County have been identified through the help of DNA technology, authorities said.
The Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office Facebook page posted about the news Wednesday morning.
In February 1998, skeletal remains were found near Hearn Avenue and U.S. Highway 101 in Santa Rosa, the Sheriff’s Office said. Forensic analysis identified the remains as those of a white male, approximately 50 years old. However, his identity remained unknown for over 20 years.
In 2022, the Sheriff’s Office partnered with the California Department of Justice and turned to advanced DNA technology with Othram, a corporation specializing in forensic genetic genealogy.
Santa Rosa remains identified as Robert Michael Ream (left) and Deborah Mitchell Cordier (right).
Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office
Investigators identified the man as Robert Michael Ream, born in February 1954. Ream died at the age of 44.
In January 1998, the remains of an unknown woman were discovered floating in the Pacific Ocean, several miles off the Point Reyes Peninsula, the Sheriff’s Office said Wednesday.
“The body had been in the water for an unknown period and was severely decomposed, making identification difficult,” said the Sheriff’s Office on social media. “Despite extensive efforts by the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office, the woman remained unidentified and was referred to as Sonoma County Jane Doe.”
In 2023, the Sheriff’s Office partnered again with the California DOJ and Othram to use DNA technology.
The DOJ DNA Laboratory criminalists made a breakthrough after the woman’s family submitted a DNA sample through the Richmond Police Department’s missing persons protocol. The Sonoma Sheriff’s Office also confirmed her identity through a fingerprint comparison.
Finally, they had a name for the Jane Doe: Deborah Mitchell Cordier, born in July 1952.
Ream’s was the 55th case in California solved with Othram’s technology, the Sheriff’s Office said.
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