OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — A human skull found in southwestern Oklahoma 16 years ago has been identified as that of a missing Muskogee woman, the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation announced Wednesday.
The skull is that of Rebecca Jean Boyd, who was 29 when she disappeared in 2002, the OSBI said.
The skull, found in a field by a farmer in Kiowa County in July 2005, was known only as Kiowa Jane Doe.
“We are happy that Rebecca’s family has her back and can give her the proper burial that she deserves,” said OSBI Director Ricky Adams. “Now our Cold Case Unit is going to determine how she ended up in that field and who is responsible.”
No other remains have been found and a suspected cause of death has not been determined, according to OSBI spokeswoman Brook Arbeitman.
“We have a lot of questions that need to be answered,” Arbeitman said. “The first step was to get her identified.”
Arbeitman said Boyd was visiting relatives in Lawton when she was last seen on July 26, 2002.
Boyd was reported missing four days later and was eventually identified when the skull matched a DNA profile of Boyd that had been entered into a national missing persons database.
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