DNA On 1992 Murder Victim Helps Investigators Create First Sketch Of Suspect

SPRINGFIELD (CBS/AP) - A trace of DNA found on a murder victim nearly a quarter century ago could finally provide a break in the case in western Massachusetts.

Hampden County prosecutors released a sketch of a suspect Wednesday that was created by using the genetic markers in that DNA to come up with the man's race, hair, eye and skin color, and other physical features.

This is new technology and Hampden District Attorney Anthony Gulluni hopes it will lead to the killer of Lisa Ziegert.

Ziegert, 24, was a middle school teacher's aide in Agawam back in April 1992 when she was kidnapped while working her second job on an overnight shift at a local card and gift shop.

She was reported missing by another employee who arrived at work in the morning to find the store open, the lights on, and Ziegert's car still outside. The money in the cash register and Ziegert's purse appeared undisturbed.

Her body was found four days later in a wooded area about four miles away. She had been raped and stabbed.

Prosecutors said Wednesday the DNA found on her body has been run multiple times through multiple databases but has never come up with a match.

The suspect is a white man with brown eyes and hair.  Two versions of the sketch were released Wednesday, one showing the suspect in 1992 and the other suggesting what he may look like today.

"For the first time in twenty-four years, we have a face to this crime," Gulluni said in a statement.

Anyone with information should call the Hampden District Attorney's Ziegert tip line at (413) 333-9148 or the Agawam Police Department at (413) 786-4768.

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