RIVERSIDE, Calif. — Authorities in California are urging the public to help solve a 32-year-old mystery by identifying the only remaining unidentified victim of convicted serial killer, Keith Hunter Jesperson. The woman, known as “Claudia,” was killed and left along Highway 95 in Riverside County in 1992.
Officials have released rendering images of the victim, hoping to finally give her a name and some semblance of closure to her family. Jesperson, also known as the “Happy Face Killer” due to the smiley faces he drew on letters to the media and police, confessed to murdering Claudia and seven other women.
Despite the killer being behind bars, authorities are using advances in DNA technology and a recent jailhouse interview with Jesperson to identify Claudia, emphasizing the importance of giving her back her identity and providing closure to her family.
It’s believed Claudia was hitch-hiking and got into a truck with Jesperson, and after sharing a meal, they had a heated argument in which Jesperson killed her. Authorities described her as a white female with fair complexion, 25 to 35 years old, about 5 feet 7 inches tall, with a medium build and likely dyed blonde hair.
Authorities have also released images of the shirt she was wearing when found, as well as a distinct tattoo of two small dots on the left side of her right thumb. Genealogists have been able to determine some of Claudia’s relatives, including her deceased father and some half-siblings who were previously unaware of her existence.
This latest effort in identifying Jesperson’s victims follows a similar one in Florida, where DNA technology was used to identify another one of his victims. Investigators are urging anyone with information about Claudia’s identity or possible relatives to come forward as they continue to work to solve this decades-old mystery.