Allegheny County\u2019s longest cold case for an unidentified victim has been solved using DNA technology.<\/p>\n
On Wednesday, the Allegheny County Medical Examiner\u2019s Office announced the body of an unknown homicide victim discovered over 30 years ago \u2014 described as a 5-foot-10 white male, weighing 175 pounds \u2014 was identified as Allan Keener.<\/p>\n
Keener\u2019s identity was found using forensic technology from the genetic genealogy company Othram, which used DNA from the victim to build a DNA profile and narrow down possible matching individuals.<\/p>\n
Investigators were then able to use the DNA profile to contact potential family members and obtain a DNA sample from a living relative.<\/p>\n
Pittsburgh Police officers and River Rescue recovered Keener\u2019s body between the Sixth Street Bridge and Ninth Street Bridge on the Allegheny River after receiving a 911 call from a witness to an assault in 1992.<\/p>\n
\u201cHomicide Detective George Satler pinpointed this cold case as one that could benefit from the application of genetic genealogy to determine the identity of a man who was nameless for far too long,\u201d Pittsburgh Police Chief Jason Lando said in a statement.<\/p>\n
The medical examiner\u2019s office determined there were signs of blunt force trauma to Keener\u2019s head, but that his cause of death was ultimately drowning.<\/p>\n
Keener was born Feb. 5, 1940, and was originally from Kentucky. The county\u2019s news release said that he had no known address and was believed to be traveling around Pittsburgh and the region.<\/p>\n
Even without knowing Keener\u2019s identity, police located and arrested a suspect in his death, a man named Arthur Wiley. He was convicted in 1993 of third-degree murder; Keener was known as \u201cJohn Doe\u201d during the case.<\/p>\n
Wiley has since served his sentence.<\/p>\n
The Allegheny County Medical Examiner\u2019s Office has identified remains found in 1992 as Allan Keener, using Othram technology. #dnasolves<\/a>https:\/\/t.co\/LZ1gOF8PWN<\/a><\/p>\n