overview
In January 1971, an unidentified female victim was found in a desert area near a dirt road 2.2 miles east of US Hwy 93 on Hackberry Road. The victim was kept in a canvas bag tied at the top with a white cotton rope. The bag was a rough white cotton bag with the words “Deer-Pak Ames Harris Neville Co.” printed in green.
The female victim was described as being about 35-40 years old, 5 feet 4 inches tall, weighing about 125-140 pounds, with curly brown hair. She wore a size 14 multi-colored long-sleeve blouse, a black long-sleeve cardigan her sweater, and burnt her orange stretch pants with a tab on the inside that read: , she wore ankle-high boots and bobby socks, probably once white. The victim was not wearing her jewelry. The SIU team contacted an artist at the Northern Arizona Museum to sketch what the victim would look like based on the skull features. Members of the public were asked to contact her SIU division at the Mojave County Sheriff’s Office if they became aware that the person in the sketch or photograph was the possible identity of this woman or incident.
In the more than 51 years since the woman’s remains were discovered, investigators have pursued a plethora of clues to determine her identity. Early in the investigation, her fingerprints were sent to her FBI in Washington, and reports of her expensive dental work were circulated in prominent dental journals. These records were matched against thousands of patient files. A police artist sketched the portrait. Local hotels, motels and stores were checked. All missing persons reports from across Arizona, California, Nevada and Utah have been traced. In November 2021, this case was registered with her NamUs as her UP85987. None of these efforts led to investigators identifying the woman, and the case fell flat.
In 2022, MCSO Cold Case investigators will partner with Osram to find that advanced DNA testing and forensic-grade genome sequencing® will help gain insight into the identity of this woman and the circumstances surrounding her untimely death. decided whether The Mojave County Sheriff’s Office donated $1,000 and asked the community for help to give her justice and closure to her family who were looking for her. Othram launched her DNASolves crowdfund and raised her remaining $6,500 to perform the work necessary to generate investigative leads. I was hoping the community would open up and help her finally name her after her DNA Solves page in “Dear Gladys” was promoted and the community would open up and say Funded the lawsuit in just her five days. The testing process will begin in late 2022 for her.
In January 2023, victims found their voice. She is now identified as Colleen Audrey Rice. DNA testing of her family confirmed her identity after countless searches of her family tree and contact with her distant family relatives.
Colleen Audrey Rice was born in Portsmouth, Ohio on 3-17-31, the daughter of James C. Rice and Flossie Truitt. She attended Portsmouth High School, from which her early photo was obtained (the main photo used in this article). In 1946 she married William Davis in Ohio. Little is known about her life or how she came to live in Arizona, as she was estranged from her family. It is unknown if she had any children as no records of her have been found. An investigation into the suspect and/or suspects involved in her death is ongoing. The Mojave County Sheriff’s Office continues to seek public assistance to provide information about the victim’s later life.
If you have information about Colleen Audrey Rice or the incident, please contact the Mojave County Sheriff’s Office SIU. Call 928-753-0753 extension 4408 or toll-free. 1-800-522-4312 and reference DR# 71-0383.
