ST PAUL, Minn — Researchers used DNA to identify a murder victim whose remains were found over four decades ago in Rock County, Minnesota.
Louis Anthony Gattaino, of Omaha, Nebraska had been missing since October 1971, according to a Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) news release.
Gattaino was 25 at the time.
On March 13, 1981, a highway worker found a man's skeletal remains near a culvert along Minnesota Interstate 90 near County Highway 23 in Beaver Creek Township.
Investigators tried to identify the body but it remained a mystery for 41 years.
This past summer, a likely genetic match was found in Gattaino's family by researchers from the Doe Network, a nonprofit organization dedicated to identify missing persons.
BCA agents and investigators from the Rock County Sheriff's Office collected DNA samples from several family members in Omaha.
DNA results confirmed the identity, according to the release.
Last week, Rock County investigators notified Gattaino's family members of the break through.
The BCA obtained DNA results that support the familial relationship last week and Rock County investigators notified Gattaino's family members of the results.
"While it's not news anyone wants, Louis Gattaino's family at long last has some answers," Rock County Sheriff Evan Verbrugge said in the news release. "And while there is still much to be learned about Mr. Gattaino's death, knowing his identity – even decades after he died – is a critically important new clue in this case."
The Rock County Sheriff's Office, the BCA and the Ramsey County Medical Examiner's Office are asking anyone who knew Louis Gattaino between 1971 and 1981 or who has information about his death to contact the Rock County Sheriff's Office Tip Line at 507-283-5000.
