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From Autopsy 4: The Dead Speak |
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The Michelle Wallace Case
In 1974, 25-year-year-old Michelle Wallace went hiking and never returned. Less than two weeks later, her car was stopped in Colorado -- the driver was 37-year-old Roy Melanson (seen left). Though he was wanted on a Texas rape charge, and was even traced to Michelle through pawn tickets, Melanson was released, since there was no body. Devastated, Michelle's mother committed suicide four weeks later.
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In 1989, Investigator Cathy Young called a Colorado-based company, NecroSearch, to help locate the body linked to a hair braid found on a trail ten years earlier (seen right). In the hair, the team found parts of unbleached conifer needles known to grow only above 9,000 feet and in the shade, enabling investigators to pinpoint the area where Michelle had disappeared.
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Nearly 20 years after her disappearance, Michelle's skeletal remains were found. Melanson was convicted and sentenced to life, and Michelle was buried next to her mother.
A gold tooth (right) is seen shining in the jaw of this skull, which was positively matched to dental x-rays of Michelle Wallace.
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