Serial killer suspect identified using DNA family tree website

Does this impede the current enthusiasm for DNA-based genealogy? Continuous killers in California could have been identified by gene samples, and his distant relatives gave genealogy website.

While most people are willing to help keep track of serial killers, this may just be the beginning of police using commercial gene services to investigate other less serious crimes There is concern that.

Currently, major DNA lineage companies such as 23 AndMe show that unless there is a court order, they usually resist the police investigation. However, customers often choose to extend the search of branches lost in the long-term in the family tree by uploading raw DNA data to a free website called GEDmatch.

According to Mercury News, California investigators use GEDmatch to help identify suspects who believe they are so-called Golden State Killers.

In the 1970s and 1980s, serial killers were thought to have committed more than 50 rape and 12 murders in California. This week, the investigator arrested former 72-year-old police officer Joseph De Angelo and was charged with 8 murders.

They followed him by comparing the samples collected from the crime scenes decades ago with the individual genetic data in the GEDmatch database.

Sacramento investigators did not identify how they did it. Once a partial match is found in the database, you can use the public record to identify the relevant individual.

According to Sacramento Bee, the team's suspicion has increased as DeAngelo is in the right age group and lives in part of the place where the attack occurred. Before arresting him, they first secretly took out a new DNA sample from the item thrown away by DeAngelo to confirm DNA match.

According to a recent announcement at the GEDmatch website, those who are interested in non-genetic use of their DNA should not upload their DNA to the database and delete the uploaded DNA.

People participating in the DNA test site said, "We are doing this to find genealogies, family history, and possibly their biologists," Moore said. Before the suspects of "Golden State Killer" were arrested, "Most people did not think that their DNA could be used to identify continuous killers and all types of perpetrators ". According to the Lancashire County District Attorney's Office on December 21, 1992, 25-year-old Christie Mirac died in the East Lampert town. The prosecutor said that he was beaten, strangled, and sexually assaulted. The prosecutor said that the weapon used for the attack - the cutting board of wood - is close to the corpse of Milak

The news that happened yesterday morning was that the open source Citizenship Genetic Pedigree web site GEDmatch played a role in judging that Joseph James de Angro is a male suspected of being a "golden state killer". Rapists with criminals. As a genealogist, I've been using GEDmatch for many years, and I'm not entirely confident of my feelings about the criminal investigation on the other side of the Atlantic. Justice is accomplished and affected families can eventually be closed, but there are still many important ethical considerations to consider.

Another famous serial killer, Ted Bondi, was interviewed and asked him to help him understand the idea of ​​a serial killer. The result is harmful, and it is impossible to find a murderer from many suspect lists. Coincidentally I lost a lot of precious time with the wrong suspect. In addition, at the time, they had to rely on old police work to fill clues, not DNA analysis being used today. In 1983, after the former track painter Gary Leon Ridgway was added to the suspected list of killings by Green River, his truck was told to resemble the night victim Marie Malvar. Had disappeared. Richway denied contact with the victim and the lawsuit against him was put on hold as there is no further evidence. Richway is also satisfied with prostitution. He was accused of murdering his niece Rebecca Garde Guay, but insisted that he did so only to prevent her from biting him during oral sex.