Teenager’s Killer Identified 36 Years After She Was Found Dead in River: 'An Emotional Relief'

Modern forensic testing has helped police identify Tracy Whitney’s killer more than three decades after she was murdered in Washington

More than three decades after 18-year-old Tracy Whitney’s body was discovered in the Puyallup River in northwestern Washington, her killer has been identified.

According to the Pierce County Sheriff's Department, Whitney’s body was discovered nude by fisherman on Aug. 28, 1988. An autopsy revealed her cause of death to be asphyxia from strangulation and probable smothering and her death was ruled as a homicide. She also had several blunt force injuries and was thought to have been sexually assaulted, per the police. 

According to Det. Sgt. Lindsay Kirkegaard from Pierce County Sheriff’s Department, Whitney — whose body was identified via dental records — had last been seen leaving a Burger King in Sumner, Washington, after an argument with her ex-boyfriend. Less than 24 hours later, she was found dead. 

“There were a lot of suspects ... current and previous boyfriends," Kirkegaard said in a video posted Dec. 1

However, despite collecting DNA samples from the body that were believed to belong to the killer, investigators were unable to pinpoint a suspect, per CBS.

Tracy’s sister Robin, who was 11 years old when her sister was killed, shared with CNN that her father had visited the sheriff’s office several times in the years since the murder, hoping to reignite the investigation and find his daughter's killer. 

In 2005, the sheriff’s office uploaded the DNA sample they took in 1988 to the FBI’s national genetic database, CODIS. However, this didn't yield any results, the sheriff's dept shared in a statement.

The breakthrough came in 2022 when the sheriff’s dept. received a grant from the State Attorney General’s Office enabling them to send the DNA sample to Parabons NanoLab in Virginia for genetic genealogy testing.

Five months later in August 2022, the results came back and the suspect was identified as John Guillot Jr.

Guillot Jr. could not be arrested however, as he died of cancer eight months before being connected to the killing, according to Kirkegaard. He was also cremated so there was no DNA to compare to the suspect DNA profile. He was therefore identified via the DNA of his son, who had also recently died so police were able to obtain his DNA from the medical examiner's officer and make a comparison.

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Detectives do not believe that Guillot Jr. and Tracy knew each other prior to her death. 

Tracy’s sister Robin told CNN that the “overwhelming” public support she and her family have received “feels like justice in a way.” 

“People are talking about her, and they remember her and they miss her," Robin said.

“On the other hand, he didn’t face the criminal process, so he got away with it," she added.

"I grieved her as a child, and now I’m grieving her as an adult,” Robin continued. “I’m allowing myself to feel all of it, though. It’s uncomfortable and I’m sad, but it’s an emotional relief that I needed.”