Cops finally solve 1988 murder of teen found naked on riverbank but her killer escapes justice: Empty feeling

Cops have finally solved the murder of an 18-year-old woman found naked on a riverbed in Washington state more than 30 years ago — although it’s too late to bring her killer to justice.Tracy Whitney’s murderer, John Guillot Jr., was identified as a suspect in her 1988 slaying only two years ago — already eight months after his death.Recent DNA testing finally confirmed his killer link to the case.“It’s kind of an empty feeling because now we know who did it.

… But we’ll never find out the true story of what actually happened,” said Whitney’s father, Ronald Whitney. Tracy was last seen storming out of a Burger King in August 1988 after an argument with her friends.The next day, a fisherman stumbled upon her nude body in a gravel bed where the Puyallup and White rivers meet near Sumner, about 12 miles east of Tacoma.Whitney was strangled to death and is believed to have been raped, officials said.Her homicide stumped investigators for decades until new DNA evidence and genetic genealogy revealed suspect John Guillot Jr.

in 2022.But Guillot was already dead, having passed away at age 65 eight months earlier, according to the Pierce County Sheriff’s Office.Further DNA testing recently confirmed Guillot was the killer, officials said.“If John G.

Jr.had been alive today, law enforcement would have probable cause to arrest,” Pierce County Sheriff’s Detective Lindsay Kirkegaard said.

“From our standard, he was the suspect, and he would have been arrested for the crime.”There were no known connections between Witney and Guillot.Guillot was also questioned in connection to the death of his girlfriend in 2010 and the death of his wife in 2020, although he was never charged in either of those cases.Ronald Whitney told King5 News that he had been watching DNA technology advancements lead to several cold cases being solved over the years, giving him hope that his daughter’s killer would eventually be found.“When the Golden State Killer go...