PLACER COUNTY, Calif. — A skull found in Placer County in 1986 has been identified as a woman reported missing from South Lake Tahoe in 1970, deputies announced Wednesday. The identification updates a nearly 40-year-old cold case.
According to the Placer County Sheriff’s Office, Donna Lass was reported missing in 1970. The South Lake Tahoe Police Department (SLTPD) investigated leads, but the investigation into her disappearance went cold.
Then, in 1986, the Sheriff’s Office found a skull off Highway 20 near Interstate 80. Investigators did not find more evidence at the scene to help identify the individual, so the skull was sent to the Placer County Coroner’s Office.
The Sheriff’s Office says the skull was recently sent off to the California Department of Justice so they could use DNA technology to identify it.
The DNA matched with the DNA of one of Lass’ family members submitted as part of the missing-person case over 50 years ago.
The Sheriff’s Office said the SLTPD notified her surviving family members of the identification. Now, investigators are hoping anyone with information about her death will come forward.
You can contact the SLTPD Detective Division at cybertips@cityofslt.us.
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