DNA links 1981 cold case homicide to suspect fatally shot at Stark County hotel [Video]

MANSFIELD, Ohio — The Mansfield Police Department announced on Monday that James Vanest, the suspect who was fatally shot during an arrest attempt by U.S. Marshals last month at a Stark County hotel, has been linked by DNA evidence to the 1981 killing of Deborah L. Miller. 

Investigators say Miller was brutally murdered in her West 3rd Street apartment on April 29, 1981. 

“Over the past 40 years, her (Miller) homicide has gone unsolved. During this time, the case has been reopened several times. One individual continued to draw investigators’ attention, but not enough evidence could ever be provided to sustain an indictment,” explained Mansfield Police Chief Jason Bammann during a press conference. 

In 2021, Mansfield police detective Terry Butler and DNA analyst Dan Freiback reopened the investigation and discovered that a “firm DNA profile began to show itself on numerous pieces …