ORLANDO, Fla — Detectives in Orange County are turning to forensic sculpting to help identify a woman whose body was found in 1993, hoping this new approach will finally solve the decades-old cold case.
The woman’s body was discovered under a piece of scrap metal in a wooded area along Route 411, wearing a Super Bowl 25 shirt, a blue bathing suit and sandals. Despite efforts to identify her through sketches and public appeals, she remains unidentified, known only as “Miss Wekiva.”
“It’s an unsolved case. We had the remains, and we had some evidence,” said a representative from the Orange County Sheriff’s Office, explaining the decision to use forensic sculpting.
In 1993, the site where the woman’s body was found became a crime scene. But despite the discovery of her clothing and jewelry, no one came forward to identify her. The medical examiner determined she was likely in her late teens or early 20s and had been shot.
Cpl. Jazmin Rembis-Licari, one of the few trained in forensic sculpting, is involved in the reconstruction process. Using a 3D printer to create a model of the woman’s skull, clay is applied to approximate her appearance.
“We don’t take any artistic licensing,” Rembis-Licari said, emphasizing the scientific nature of the process.
Genealogy testing has suggested that the woman was Dominican and possibly from New York, but her identity and the reason she was in Orange County remain unknown.
The Orange County Sheriff’s Office hopes that by revealing the reconstructed face of “Miss Wekiva,” someone will recognize her and help bring closure to this long-standing mystery.
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