MINNEAPOLIS - Investigators are asking for help from the public after human remains discovered recently in Gooseberry Falls State Park were identified as a missing Minneapolis woman who was murdered.
The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) and the Lake County Sheriff's Office say the skeletal remains found May 6, 2014 were identified as belonging to Cassandra Rhines, a woman who was just 19-years-old when she went missing in 1985. The identification was made using DNA provided by her family.
An autopsy performed by the St. Louis County Medical Examiner revealed that Rhines had been murdered.
"Cassandra Rhines was last heard from in June 1985, when she called a friend to confirm her attendance at her Goddaughter's birthday party in Minneapolis the next day," said Lake County Sheriff Carey Johnson. "She never showed, and was never heard from again."
Investigators believe that Rhines may have been working as a prostitute and exotic dancer. She also may have been living with a man, and authorities are hoping that someone may recognize that man from a picture the BCA is circulating. They want to talk with that man about the days before Rhines disappeared.
"Investigators need the public's help to better understand who Cassandra Rhines knew and who may have sought to harm her," said BCA Assistant Superintendent Drew Evans. "The clearer picture we have of the time when she disappeared, the better chance we have of finding out who killed her."
Anyone with information about Cassandra Rhines is asked to call the Lake County Sheriff's Office at 218-834-8385, or the BCA at 651-793-7000, 877-996-6222. They can also use email to contact BCA investigators at bca.coldcase@state.mn.us or by using the BCA Tip Form.
Tips can be anonymous.
