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On December 6, 1991, Jennifer Harbison and Eliza Thomas, each aged 17, were closing up at the frozen yogurt shop where they worked. Remaining for a ride home were Jennifer’s younger sister, 15-year-old Sarah Harbison, and Sarah’s friend, 13-year-old Amy Ayers.

Shortly before the clock struck twelve, a inferno at the store attracted emergency crews, who uncovered the tragedy: the young victims had been bound, murdered, and showed signs of sexual assault. The fire destroyed the bulk of physical proof, with the exception of a bullet casing that had ended up in a drain and tiny traces of biological evidence, among them evidence under Ayers’ fingernails.

The Murders That Rocked Austin

These horrific killings profoundly shook the community in Austin and became one of the most infamous long-lingering investigations in the United States. After years of false leads and false accusations, the killings eventually contributed to a U.S. law enacted in the year 2022 that permits loved ones to petition unsolved investigations to be reinvestigated.

But the crimes remained unsolved for over three decades – up to this point.

Key Development

Investigators announced on Monday a "significant breakthrough" powered by new technology in bullet matching and forensic science, stated the local leader at a media event.

The evidence indicate Robert Brashers, who was confirmed posthumously as a multiple murderer. Further crimes may be linked to him as DNA analyses continue to improve and broadly applied.

"The sole forensic clue found at that scene has been matched to him," said the city's police chief.

The case hasn't reached conclusion, but this represents a "significant advance", and the suspect is thought to be the only attacker, authorities confirmed.

Families Find Answers

A family member, a therapist, expressed that her thoughts were divided when the tragedy occurred.

"One portion of my mind has been yelling, 'What occurred to my sister?', and the remaining part kept repeating, 'I'll never learn the truth. I'll pass away without answers, and I have to be OK with that,'" she stated.

When she learned of this progress in the case, "the conflicting thoughts of my thinking started melding," she explained.

"Now I understand the truth, and that does ease my pain."

Innocent Men Exonerated

The breakthrough not simply bring closure to the loved ones; it also completely clears two individuals, minors when arrested, who insisted they were pressured into admitting guilt.

Springsteen, who was 17 when the murders occurred, was sentenced to death, and Scott, aged 15 at the time, was given life imprisonment. Both men stated they only confessed following extended questioning in the year 1999. In the following decade, they were set free after their guilty findings were thrown out due to new precedents on admissions absent physical evidence.

The district attorney's office withdrew the prosecution against Springsteen and Scott in that year after a genetic test, called Y-STR, showed neither man corresponded against the samples recovered from the crime scene.

Modern Technology Solves Case

This genetic marker – suggesting an mystery suspect – would in time be the decisive factor in resolving the murders. In 2018, the DNA profile was reexamined because of improved methods – but a nationwide inquiry to law enforcement agencies yielded no results.

During the summer, Daniel Jackson assigned to the case in recently, had an idea. It had been since the bullet casings from the cartridge had been submitted to the NIBIN database – and in the interim, the system had seen substantial enhancements.

"The technology has improved dramatically. Actually, we're dealing with three-dimensional imaging now," the detective stated at the news event.

The system identified a link. An open homicide case in another state, with a similar modus operandi, had the identical kind of shell casing. Jackson and a colleague spoke to the local investigators, who are continuing to investigate their unidentified investigation – which involves processing samples from a rape kit.

Building a Case

This development prompted further inquiry. Could there be further clues that might match against crimes in different locations? He considered right away of the genetic testing – but there was a challenge. The Codis database is the countrywide system for police, but the yogurt shop DNA was not complete enough and limited to enter.

"I suggested, well, several years have gone by. A growing number of laboratories are conducting this analysis. Systems are expanding. I proposed a nationwide search again," he stated.

He sent out the historic Y-STR results to police departments nationwide, requesting them to check by hand it to their local systems.

There was another hit. The genetic signature matched perfectly with a DNA sample from a city in South Carolina – a killing that occurred in 1990 that was resolved with the aid of a genetic genealogy company and an expert in genetic genealogy in 2018.

Building a Family Tree

The genealogist built a ancestry profile for the offender and found a family member whose genetic material pointed to a close tie – likely a close relative. A judge approved that the suspect's remains be exhumed, and his DNA aligned against the crime scene sample.

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