The Orange County Sheriff's Department says remains found on Aug. 30, 1987, were confirmed this month to be those of 20-year-old Tracey Coreen Hobson, who was living in Anaheim at the time she disappeared
The department credits the identification to breakthroughs in investigative genealogy techniques and a partnership with the nonprofit DNA Doe Project, a volunteer-run, forensic genealogy organization.
A passer-by discovered the remains in an unincorporated area near Anaheim. The only items recovered nearby were a red handkerchief and a length of cord.
The victim was determined to have been stabbed in the torso and her hands had been cut off.