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A nearly 40-year-old, unsolved homicide now has a victim's name to go with the body of a teenage male found in a Tooele County landfill with two bullets in his head.
Tooele County Sheriff Paul Wimmer confirmed Thursday that DNA and dental evidence revealed the remains belong to David Arthur Stack, a 1975 New Milford, Conn., High School graduate. Stack had last been seen leaving Broomfield, Colo., in June 1976, intent on hitchhiking to California.
Suddenly, Wimmer said, a longtime "cold case" has thawed, putting the slaying back on sheriff's detectives' list of active investigations.
"This causes us to really take a second look as what was done with the investigation in the past, now that we have an idea of what family members and other associates to talk to," Wimmer said. "Also, getting the name out there may bring other people forward with information."
On June 10, 1976, the body of a 6-foot male with long hair was found at the landfill site 7 miles outside of Wendover, Utah. The victim had no identification and eventually was buried in the Tooele City Cemetery as a "John Doe."
Tooele County sheriff's detectives began to revisit the cold case last fall, working with the Utah Medical Examiner's Office. Using gender, age and physical features recorded by the National Missing and Unidentified Persons database, investigators found that dental records of their John Doe and Stack were similar.
On May 10, the body was exhumed and DNA samples taken. The results confirming Stack as the victim were released this week.
Wimmer said arrangements now will be made to return the remains to Stack's family for burial.
Anyone with information is asked to call 435-843-3351 or email Sgt. Shandy Lewis at slewis@co.tooele.ut.us.
Twitter: @remims