DNAon an ancestry website tracked down a killer– 40 years after he raped and stabbed his victim
Helene Pruszynski, 21, had moved 2,000 miles from home to follow her dreams, but she ended up in a nightmare which took four decades to solve…
It was an opportunity that Helene Pruszynski was so passionate about, she’d moved over 2,000 miles to take it up. Helene, 21, was from Massachusetts where she’d been to college and longed for a career in journalism. So, when she heard there was a chance to be an intern at commercial radio station KHOW in Denver, Colorado, talented Helene jumped at the chance to make her dreams come true.
In early 1980, Helene moved to Englewood, Colorado, and stayed with her aunt and uncle. She’d ride the 11-mile journey to the radio station in Denver every day on the bus, then return on the same bus route before walking a few blocks back to her aunt’s house where she’d chat excitedly about her day. She’d only been there two weeks, but she loved it already.
On January 16, Helene finished her shift and headed to get the bus for her normal journey home, but although she boarded the bus, she never made it back to the house that night. Helene’s worried family called the police and a search began. They prayed she would turn up and all would be well but in the early hours of the next morning, a body was found in a remote field. It was Helene and someone had killed her. Her halfnaked body was found with her hands tied behind her back. She’d been kidnapped by someone after getting off the bus. Her attacker had raped her then stabbed her nine times in the back before dumping her broken body in the field. Helene’s family were devastated.
She left behind two older siblings – a sister and a brother – and heartbroken parents who struggled to recover from the shock. Helene was a young woman following her dream and had crossed paths with evil. It was a case that struck to the heart
Helene had crossed paths with evil – it struck to the heart of the community
Helene was remembered for her kindness
of the community, but finding the culprit wasn’t straightforward.
CASE RAN COLD
Investigators recovered DNA at the scene but in 1980 forensic technology was still in its infancy and without a suspect, there could be no DNA to try to match. A sketch was made up from a description given by a witness who had seen a man near the field. They were even put under hypnosis to strive for accuracy but when the likeness