More than a year later, she got the news that Earl Sanders was the person she had been wondering about.
“It’s so important. It was like Christmas two weeks ago knowing it was about to happen,” Yelkin said. “It was the greatest Christmas of my life because I finally got to know Robert (Sanders) and to know his name. It’s insane when you think about somebody that often,” she said. “You want to know where they ended up.”
DNA technology identified Sanders
The identification was the result of the detective work of Youngstown Police Department Detective Sgt. Dave Sweeney, the Ohio Attorney General’s Office, and Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation forensic artist Sam Molnar.
Simon gave credit for advanced DNA testing from Othram Labs of Texas and genetic geology from the Ohio organization Porch Light Project. Porch Light paid for the DNA analysis and carried out the genetic genealogy at no cost to the police department.
At the end of the process, Porch Light provided a family tree. With the tree Sweeney was able to reach a family member, who provided DNA. And it confirmed that Youngstown’s John Doe is Sanders.
