Body found in field 44 years ago identified as missing 19-year-old, Las Vegas cops say

A body discovered in a Las Vegas field 44 years ago has been identified as a 19-year-old from Ohio who went missing in 1979, Nevada police reported.

Gwenn Marie Story of the Cincinnati area left home in the summer to look for her biological father in California, Las Vegas police said in a Tuesday, Dec. 19, news release.

Two friends who went with Story later returned and told her family they had left her in Las Vegas, police said. Her family never heard from her again.

In August 1979, a man walking through a field discovered a body, which DNA testing has now identified as Story, police said.

“Finally after 44 years of not knowing what happened to our sister Gwenn Story, we have news that she (has) been identified,” Story’s family said in a statement to KLAS. “We are looking for some closure on this case. Our family just wants some answers.”

The family thanked police for their efforts in the decades-old cold case.

“If it wasn’t for you, we would still be wondering where Gwenn is,” the family said.

The body, found where a casino had once stood, had been dubbed Sahara Sue for nearby Sahara Avenue, police said.

In 2022, Las Vegas cold case investigators worked with Othram, a DNA analysis company, to develop a genetic genealogy profile, police said.

Investigators found family members of missing women who donated DNA for comparison to develop the profile, which identified the body as Story in November, police said.

Police ask anyone with information on Story or the two men she left Ohio with to call 702-828-3521 or leave an anonymous tip at 702-385-5555.

This story was originally published December 21, 2023 at 8:46 AM with the headline "Body found in field 44 years ago identified as missing 19-year-old, Las Vegas cops say."