A new sketch of Jane Doe was released this month. Submitted photo

For nearly 40 years, police have been trying to put a name to the face.

She’s known as Chautauqua County’s Jane Doe. Her body was found the morning of Dec. 6, 1983, in a drainage ditch along Route 17.

Evidence strongly suggests the woman was from western Europe and likely a mother to at least one child. Beaten and shot, her identity remains as much as a mystery as to how she ended up in the town of Ellery.

“She may not have been born here or lived here, but she died here and all the deputies and investigators who have worked on this case since the moment she was found on the highway have treated her like she is one of our own,” said Tom Di Zinno, an investigator with the Unsolved Crimes Unit of the Chautauqua County Sheriff’s Office.

By utilizing a process known as forensic genetic genealogy and word of mouth, Di Zinno hopes to solve one part of the mystery before tackling another.

“Goal one, reunite Ellery Jane Doe with her family, bury her with dignity and her actual name,” he said. “Goal two, find and prosecute the murderer.”

A GRIM DISCOVERY

Jane Doe was believed to be 30 to 37 years old at the time she was killed. She is described as being white, 5 feet, 4 inches tall and weighing about 128 pounds. She also had brown eyes, a wart above her left eye, a mole behind her left ear and a scar on her throat.

Discovered by a truck driver, the woman was shot four times — twice in the chest, once in the back and once inside the mouth.

Come to be known as “Jane Doe” due to a lack of identification, the woman was found face up and “partially clad” without a purse, shoes, jewelry or personal belongings.

Di Zinno said damage to the woman’s skull also indicates blows to the head.

“Between the beating and the style of shooting, the murder was personal,” he said. “Did she see something she shouldn’t have or say something that offended somebody? We believe this may be possible.”

LINKS TO EUROPE

About a week ago, the Unsolved Crimes Unit released new information in the case of Jane Doe.

Using forensic genetic genealogy — also known as investigative genealogy — the FBI was able to link Jane Doe’s DNA to the Netherlands, Belgium and western Germany.

She was long suspected as being European. Among the evidence: her clothing included a V-neck camisole originating in Italy; she had expensive dental work with gold fillings that led police to believe she wasn’t local; and she also had an IUD, a form of birth-control, that was foreign made and available in Canada at the time but not for distribution in the United States.

In general, forensic genetic genealogy involves comparing DNA from crimes scenes or unidentified remains to known genealogy databases. In the case of Jane Doe, Di Zinno said the DNA markers in her profile indicated links to the Netherlands, Belgium and western Germany.

Using forensic genetic genealogy as a crimefighting tool isn’t without its critics due to privacy concerns. In fact, many genetic genealogy databases — including Ancestry and 23andMe — bar law enforcement from participating for investigative purposes.

“The genetic genealogy is only as good as the potential database,” Di Zinno said. “But DNA technology has improved, and databases like the Canadian Missing Person and individual European and EU data bases have expanded since comparisons were last tried.

“Part of the effort to generate publicity is to reach media in those areas where we have some evidence Ellery Jane Doe may have originated from or traveled to.”

CRACKING THE CODE

Found in Jane Doe’s pocket was a note written on stationary from the Blue Boy Motor Lodge in Vancouver, British Columbia. The note contained three lines of scribbled letters followed by five numbers.

Di Zinno noted the speculation that has surrounded the mysterious note. Theories, he said, include Canadian mounted police badges with the letters identifying the barracks as well as lot numbers from rugs made in India and shipped to Canada.

Two other theories, though, seem to make more sense.

Dr. Kathleen Arries, a well-known forensic anthropologist in Erie County who helped with the case, matched the numbers — 24233 on the first line of the note, 68301 on the second line and 74261 on the third — to three Canadian telephone numbers for airlines.

That might be significant, as Di Zinno said Jane Doe likely was a traveler.

“Her origin is Europe,” he said. “We have an indication of her spending time in Canada and she ended up here in New York.”

However, another possibility recently uncovered is that the numbers match zip codes from British Columbia and Ohio.

SEEKING A BOOST

Di Zinno and Tom Tarpley, another investigator with the Unsolved Crimes Unit, have made a habit of drumming up interest in local unsolved homicides and missing person cases.

Through Facebook and press releases, the pair hope renewed public attention will bring forward possible leads in the Jane Doe case.

Last week, new sketches of Jane Doe were released along with photographs of the clothes she was wearing when she was discovered.

Di Zinno said they’ve received “several interesting and documented” missing person stories to follow.

The investigators are in the process of comparing DNA on at least two individuals. A match would indicate a family connection.

“One thing we have learned, which generated the new sketch, one of the comparable individuals who went missing the same year, from Europe, lived in the U.S. for a short time,” Di Zinno said. “But the time away from her family was significant enough that living relatives didn’t feel they could comment on the sketch of a 35-year-old woman when they remembered her as a young woman. We have collected DNA from the family and are in queue for a comparison.

“So, I guess the answer is DNA alone may not do the job, but in combination with getting the message out, it might be the verification tool we need.”