Fawn Cox: DNA Solves 31-Yr Old Kansas City Case

Fawn Cox was born on March 24, 1973, in Kansas City, Missouri. She lived with her family in an old two-story house located in an area that could be considered rough and dangerous.

From an early age, Fawn did what she could to help her parents look after her younger sisters. Every Sunday, Fawn went to church with the rest of her family and enjoyed swimming when she had time to herself.

As soon as Fawn turned 16, she got herself a part-time job to help support the household. Little did anyone know that later that night she would be found dead; murdered in her own bedroom without any of her relatives hearing or suspecting anything out of the ordinary at all. It took 31 years for authorities to solve this case, and no one could have anticipated such an outcome.

By 1989, her family was living in poverty and the young girl sought to make a few extra bucks during her spare time away from school.

During the summer months, she spent a great deal of time laboring; normally standing behind the cash register selling tickets for amusement rides.

On Wednesday 26th July, her workday concluded at 10 PM and so she was collected by her mother and younger sister in their motor vehicle since it would have taken too long to walk home.

Fawn knew she needed a good night's rest since the next morning was her return to work.

She ascended the staircase to her bedroom on the second floor. It was typically shared with her younger sister, Amber, but that evening she had it all to herself.

Unfortunately for Fawn, Amber wasn't home either; she had been hired to babysit for someone close by.

It was an especially hot night, so Felicia chose to sleep on first floor in order to take advantage of its cooler temperature.

Their parents did as well, since that was where their working air conditioner was located.

Yet when nine o'clock rolled around and morning alarms began sounding off, it didn't seem like Fawn had any intentions of silencing hers. Subsequently, her mother and younger sister made their way upstairs to investigate.

Upon entering her room, the parents were met with a shocking sight - Fawn was lying on the bed, motionless.

Her neck had several dark bruises and there was no sign of life. An ambulance was quickly called but it became apparent that their daughter had already passed hours prior.

After a detailed inspection of the body, medical professionals reported that she had died from strangulation as well as abuse. From that moment the police knew they were dealing with an challenging case to investigate.

Fawn's Sister had taken note of the uneasiness her poodle was displaying during the night, but she had thought it was simply due to its pregnancy. As it turned out, the cause was more sinister; Fawn had been murdered right in her room which was located in a home with sub-par soundproofing.

Upon investigation, this fact became clear.

Arriving on scene, law enforcement saw some crucial clues. It seemed that whoever had broken in had likely used a trailer parked nearby to access a window in an upper floor of Fawn's house; due to lack of air conditioning, this window was left open.

Inspecting Fawn's room further, experts uncovered other details.

The detectives began their investigation by uncovering a few defining elements; small hairs were discovered, alongside traces of blood and semen on the bed sheets.

To gain further insight, all clues were forwarded to the lab for analysis. Evidently, some items had been taken from inside the house including radios, a Nintendo game console and a stereo recorder.

Interestingly, several other goods were located outside in front of the residence - as though they had been chucked from the window but left behind for an undisclosed reason.

An interesting observation was made about various possessions that were still present within the home.

The police found something unusual when they investigated the scene of the crime.

Within a closet in an adjacent room on the second floor, items had been taken.

It seemed that the criminal might have hidden inside while waiting for everyone to fall asleep; Fawn's sister usually occupied this space but not that night, so no one noticed what was going on.

In addition, an old army cap was discovered in Fawn's bedroom with none of her family members recognizing it as belonging to her.

This led detectives to assume that the perpetrator must have left behind this fascinating clue by mistake.

Despite the vast store of evidence, police were unable to locate the culprits of the crime with any speed.

It was 1989; technologies for DNA forensics had yet to be advanced and genetic databases did not exist. Detective Benjamin Caldwell, the one assigned to this case, had his version of what happened: he reckoned there could have been multiple perpetrators who were familiar with the layout of the house.

Having reached a dead end, the police began to look for witnesses in order to make progress on their investigation.

They spoke with those closest to Fawn such as her neighbors, friends and family but had no luck in finding any helpful information.

However, one puzzling detail remained - not just how did someone know how to get through the backyard in darkness and find their way around the second floor of the house - but who?

A weighty issue lay in the area where the house was situated, which happened to be poverty-stricken and rife with criminal gangs.

A month after Fawn's murder, action started being taken as a witness had presented information on three potential offenders.

This individual had facts of great significance that law enforcement never possessed before.

The case surrounding Fawn's classmate was taken seriously and three teenagers were brought in for questioning.

Despite their denials of any involvement in the murder, police found stolen items from the victim's room during a search of one of the teens' homes.

This was enough evidence to charge all three suspects with murder, however no further solidifying evidence could be discovered.

To the dismay of law enforcement, the sole eyewitness retracted their testimony and halted their cooperation with police.

Subsequently, an evaluation of blood, hair, and semen present at the scene of the crime did not yield a definite match with samples from the suspect. At this time in history, there was no reliable method to make a positive identification based on DNA evidence; all tests conducted presented inconclusive results - not enough to conclusively declare either a complete correlation or absolute incompatibility.

Yet despite this setback, authorities still managed to gather valuable information from one of the detainees.

One of the interrogations he confessed that he had indeed broken into fawn's house that night and the company of other boys and stolen some things he painted.

How he made his way to the second floor through the canopy of the canopy and even revealed unknown details according to him when he threw a tape recorder out the window its handle fell off the boy hid it under a nearby Bush and the police did.

At first, the young man indicated to the police where they could locate the stolen item in question.

However, he soon changed his mind and refused to cooperate with them any further, meaning his confession could not be used either.

This left law enforcement with no choice but to release the suspects; it was clear that without witness testimony there would be little chance of making any progress on this case - possibly because they had been scared off.

All that is known is that one individual spent eight months incarcerated for stealing from Fawn's House before authorities closed the investigation for good. It wasn't until much later, early in fact, that police decided to reopen it again.

In the early 2000s, the Fawn killer investigation was propelled forward by a major advancement - CODIS.

Established several years prior, this database held samples of DNA from people who had been tried for serious crimes.

To their disappointment, no matches were present in the system for the murderer they sought.

This, however, got experts to rethink and collect DNA samples from three original suspects.

Through more advanced tests, they established that hair semen and blood found at the crime scene did not come from any of them - peculiar news indeed.

When police uncovered the suspects having Fawn's property, it became evident that the trio had plundered her house during the night.

However, there was one more person with them who was responsible for attacking and murdering the young girl.

This only raised further questions: Was it a team of four criminals who managed to enter and leave quietly without being seen? Unfortunately, this query remains unanswered as the investigation has stopped in its tracks over time.

The Fawn family had all but given up that the homicide would be solved, though they still maintained their conviction that the trio of suspects had been in their abode on the night of the murder.

However, without a DNA sample kept in the Police lab since 2018, there seemed no hope of ever discovering who was behind it.

In an exciting twist, Amber fawn's little sister divulged some startling facts regarding the crime on a renowned American website for unsolved mysteries.

This site has operated for two decades and earned quite the esteemed reputation, with its users having contributed to solving several significant criminal cases. It has since been confirmed that Amber indeed is genuine.

The nanny had worked from Monday to Friday, leaving her at home during weekend days.

She had slept peacefully in the Very Room on the second floor, not knowing of the burglar's plan to sneak in.

Now many are questioning whether or not she is truly who she claims to be and so her post has caught attention.

Had it not been for their criminal behavior, those responsible would have been caught right away.

They had even kept an eye on Fawn's residence and waited until her mom and tiny sister arrived to pick her up from work.

Still, Amber's report did not advance this case to a resolution.

It was the year 2018, and scientific technology had improved immensely when it came to DNA research.

Suddenly, hundreds of unsolved cases were finding new hope as cutting-edge analysis tools were helping bring long-forgotten mysteries to light.

Fawn's family members noticed the police weren't pushing for a reopening of their relative's murder case and they continually questioned why.

Each time they asked, the answer remained unchanged.

The family of the victim of the heinous crime endured an agonizing wait for funding and a turn to get the needed DNA testing done.

But they decided to take matters into their own hands by launching a fundraiser in 2019, in order to cover the full cost of these samples.

In addition, they offered a $10,000 reward for anyone who could provide information leading to the capture of those responsible.

Thanks to extensive media coverage and interviews given by them, many donations towards this cause were received.

In response to an urgent plea for assistance, generous individuals stepped forward and managed to raise the needed funds.

However, despite their efforts, the police department declined to finance this investigation with money from the family of the victim.

The head detective explained that it could create a difficult dilemma should only certain relatives be able to pay for examination and speed up investigations.

For hundreds of families searching for the murderer of their beloved family members, the right to have access to innovative DNA tests should be accessible.

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In the course of investigating Fawn's murder, paraben nano Labs was brought in to study the samples taken from her bedroom.

This particular lab has been at the forefront of advances in DNA research, from mapping a person's relatives based on small genetic samples to producing approximate images of individuals associated with it.

Such expertise was thought necessary for unlocking the mystery surrounding Fawn's death, and her loved ones were hopeful that it would be able to uncover vital clues as to who had committed such a terrible act.

Rather than a sense of urgency, it seemed the police were unconcerned with the murder as the family in question hailed from a less prosperous neighborhood. In an interview,

Fawn, sister to the deceased stated her belief; had this been a murder of a richer or more influential family, then every step possible would have already been taken to find closure for those affected.

It took several years for the Breakthrough to take place, but it was only until late 2020 when this occurred.

The family weren't fully prepared for the Truth that would follow, so the FBI provided funding which allowed police to send samples from fawn's room off to a lab.

There a detailed examination of DNA was conducted alongside a search for any potential relatives connected with it. Chiefly they focused on the semen sample found at the murder scene and in November 2020 their work had been concluded.

When Fawn's family received the results of the DNA test, it was revealed to be their cousin Donald Cox.

The entire family was stunned - at the time of her death, Donald had only been 21 years old and no one had even thought about his participation in the tragedy.

That being said, Donald had a history of difficulties and could have very well been involved.

For more than a decade, Donald was locked up for petty crimes such as stealing and carrying illegal substances.

However, the police had yet to take an important step in criminal investigations - collecting DNA evidence - which could have shed light on this case much sooner.

Tragically, he passed away due to an overdose in 2006 but even after his death, authorities still looked into it further.

The police investigation into the circumstances of an individual's passing unearthed a sample of their DNA, which was then secured.

Despite this being a case of victimization not criminality, the evidence was unfortunately not logged with the FBI at that time.

Subsequently however, when experts made their findings known to law enforcement it revealed that the sample correlated perfectly with the semen located near where the murder occurred.

Despite the immense significance of this revelation, the relatives finally have an answer to a question that has been weighing on them for three decades.

Yet, one very important point remains in this unbelievable story.

The police investigated the Fawn home invasion very closely and it seemed that all signs pointed to the original three suspects.

It was obvious that they had an intimate knowledge of the house, its layout, and how the family operated day-to-day; Donald being frequent visitor could explain this.

However, no further charges were brought against those involved and law enforcement put an end to their probes.

Sister Fawn declared that it would be of no use to extract any confessions from the three suspects, despite them being in the house during the evening hours.

It was possible that Donald had been by himself at that time and only then acted against Fawn.

Felicia further elucidated that all three men had already suffered for their behavior throughout the period while the murder stayed unsolved.

With absolute certainty, everyone in that particular neighborhood knew they were responsible for what had happened.

Consequently, Sister Fawn and both suspects endured considerable disapproval and suffered terribly.

As it later transpired, police originally suspected them due to a family member noticing a Nintendo set-top box among one of their belongings - exactly what had been stolen from Fawn's residence and reported on in breaking news.

In the town, individuals were well-versed on the specifics of the situation; it was inconceivable to demonstrate his culpability.

After all these years, relatives of the sufferer at last found out who had done this deed.

He went without retribution for 17 years as though no such matter took place; he kept in touch with his family during that period, yet eventually his illegal drug compulsion brought about his own demise.

and he was no longer a threat to anyone share your opinion on this story in the comments.