RIVERSIDE, Calif. — Authorities in Riverside County are seeking the public’s help in identifying the last remaining unidentified victim of serial killer Keith Hunter Jesperson on the 14th anniversary of his conviction in her murder.
The woman’s body was discovered on Aug. 30, 1992, along Highway 95, approximately seven miles north of Blythe, the Riverside County District Attorney’s Office said in a news release. Despite advances in DNA technology, authorities have been unable to positively identify the victim in the more than 30 years since her death.
With the help of Jesperson’s account, investigators have created renderings using DNA technology to depict what the woman may have looked like before her death. Jesperson confessed to meeting the woman, referred to as “Claudia,” while working as a long-haul truck driver in August 1992. He claims to have killed her during an argument about money, then dumped her body in Blythe. The woman’s body was found wearing a T-shirt printed with a motorcycle and had a tattoo of two small dots on the left side of her right thumb.
Known as the “Happy Face Killer,” Jesperson has admitted to eight killings across the country. He received a fourth life sentence in 2010 for the murder of the unidentified victim in Riverside County. Authorities believe the woman had ties to Los Angeles, San Bernardino, and Riverside counties, as well as Las Vegas and Southern Nevada.
The woman is described as a frequent hitchhiker, approximately 20 to 35 years old, standing 5 feet 6 inches to 5 feet 7 inches tall, and weighing around 140-150 pounds. She had brown or dyed-blonde hair and was believed to have been a cigarette smoker. Additionally, authorities were able to identify potential family relatives using her DNA, including her biological father who has since died.
Anyone with information regarding the woman’s identity is encouraged to contact the Cold Case Hotline at 951-955-5567, or by emailing coldcaseunit@rivcoda.org.
These details are crucial in reuniting the woman with her family, who have been searching for her for over three decades. While there are still unanswered questions, authorities remain hopeful that someone may remember something that could assist in identifying and reuniting this woman with her family.