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On a Friday in December 1991, seventeen-year-old Jennifer Harbison and her coworker Eliza Thomas, both 17, were finishing their shift at the yogurt store where they worked. Waiting for a ride home were Jennifer's sister, Sarah Harbison, aged 15, and Sarah’s friend, Amy Ayers, who was 13.

Just before midnight, a blaze at the business summoned emergency crews, who made a grim discovery: the four teenagers had been tied up, fatally attacked, and showed indicators of assault. The configration wiped out nearly all evidence, with the exception of a bullet casing that had fallen into a gutter and trace amounts of DNA, including evidence found in her nail scrapings.

The Murders That Rocked Austin

The yogurt shop murders deeply affected the city of Austin and became one of the best-known cold cases in America. Following decades of investigative roadblocks and false accusations, the murders in time contributed to national legislation enacted in 2022 that permits loved ones to petition unsolved investigations to be reviewed.

But the killings continued to baffle investigators for nearly 34 years – until now.

Key Development

Investigators announced on Monday a "important advance" made possible by advanced techniques in firearms analysis and forensic science, said the Austin mayor at a media event.

Forensic clues indicate Brashers, who was confirmed posthumously as a repeat offender. Further crimes are likely to be added to his record as DNA analyses become more advanced and more commonly used.

"The only physical evidence found at that scene corresponds directly to him," said the top law enforcement officer.

The murders isn't closed yet, but this is a "huge leap", and the individual is believed to be the only attacker, police said.

Families Find Answers

A family member, Sonora, expressed that her mind was split when the tragedy occurred.

"One part of my consciousness has been screaming, 'What took place to my sister?', and the other half kept insisting, 'It will remain a mystery. I will die not knowing, and I must accept that,'" she stated.

After discovering about this breakthrough in the investigation, "the conflicting thoughts of my mind began merging," she said.

"Finally I comprehend what happened, and that does ease my pain."

Wrongful Convictions Overturned

The breakthrough not only bring resolution to the grieving families; it also fully exonerates two suspects, who were teens then, who insisted they were pressured into admitting guilt.

Robert Springsteen, who was 17 at the time of the killings, was sent to death row, and Scott, aged 15 at the time, was received a life sentence. The two asserted they gave confessions after marathon interviews in 1999. In the following decade, the two were released after their convictions were thrown out due to legal changes on admissions without forensic proof.

Legal authorities dropped the case against the defendants in 2009 after a genetic test, known as Y-STR, indicated neither individual corresponded against the samples recovered from the crime scene.

The Investigation Advances

The DNA signature – indicating an unidentified male – would in time be the decisive factor in resolving the murders. In 2018, the genetic data was submitted for retesting because of technological advancements – but a countrywide check to law enforcement agencies returned no genetic matches.

During the summer, the lead detective assigned to the case in 2022, had an idea. Several years had passed since the firearms evidence from the cartridge had been entered to the NIBIN database – and in the years since, the database had been significantly improved.

"The system has gotten so much better. In fact, we're dealing with three-dimensional imaging now," he said at the media briefing.

The system identified a link. An unresolved killing in the state of Kentucky, with a similar modus operandi, had the identical kind of bullet casing. Jackson and another official met with the law enforcement there, who are continuing to investigate their unidentified investigation – including processing samples from a rape kit.

Connecting the Dots

The new lead made the detective wonder. Was there any other evidence that might match against crimes in different locations? He considered right away of the Y-STR analysis – but there was a problem. The national DNA registry is the national DNA database for investigators, but the genetic material from the scene was insufficiently intact and limited to upload.

"I suggested, well, time has passed. A growing number of laboratories are performing these tests. Databases are getting bigger. I proposed a countrywide check again," the detective stated.

He circulated the years-old Y-STR results to police departments across the United States, asking them to check by hand it to their own databases.

There was another hit. The profile corresponded precisely with a genetic evidence from another state – a killing that occurred in 1990 that was resolved with assistance from forensic experts and a celebrated genealogist in recent years.

Genetic Genealogy Success

The expert built a ancestry profile for the South Carolina killer and identified a family member whose genetic material pointed to a immediate family link – probably a sibling. A judge approved that the deceased individual be dug up, and his genetic material aligned against the crime scene sample.

Typically, the genealogist is can move on from solved cases in order to focus on the next one.

"But I have {not been