OAKLAND, Calif. (Gray News) – A teenage girl found strangled inside a downtown Oakland hotel in 1969 has been identified 57 years later.
The victim was identified as 16-year-old Joann Yvonne Burdick, known to her family as Joanie.
Police have identified Taylor Morris Teaford, a former FBI 10 Most Wanted Fugitive known colloquially as the “Crew Cut Killer,” as a potential suspect in her murder, a press release said.
The victim was identified as 16-year-old Joann Yvonne Burdick, known to her family as Joanie.(Source: Oakland Police Department)
“We don’t have an actual answer as to where he’s at right now or if he’s even still alive,” Oakland Police Chief James Beere said.
Burdick was found dead inside a room at the St. Louis Hotel on the 500 block of 7th Street on Oct. 2, 1969.
Witnesses and hotel staff reported seeing the victim enter the room with a white or Native American male just after 2:45 p.m. Less than 30 minutes later, staff heard a scream.
An autopsy determined she had been strangled. Toxicology testing found no alcohol or drugs in her system.
“For decades, her family lacked the answers they deserved about what happened,” Beere said.
Investigative genetic genealogy eventually led investigators to Burdick’s brother, who voluntarily provided a DNA sample. That sample allowed investigators to confirm the unidentified victim was his sister.
Police are now working with other law enforcement agencies and say additional searches and technology could help determine what happened to Teaford.
Investigators also aren’t ruling out the possibility that he could be connected to other cold cases.
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