The identity of a schoolgirl whose remains were discovered under tarp in Pennsylvania has remained a mystery for more than half a century.
Now 51 years later, thanks to an extensive investigation including genetic genealogy and facial reconstruction technologies, the girl finally has a name.
Pennsylvania State Police announced on Thursday that the remains found in 1973 belong to 14-year-old Ruth Elizabeth Brenneman.
Brenneman had set off for school from her home in York County one morning at the beginning of the 1973 school year and never returned home. She was never seen alive again.
“Ruthie”, as she was known to her family, was just shy of her 15th birthday at the time.
On October 10 1973, two Lebanon County Game Wardens came across the girl’s decomposed remains in a wooded area off Moonshine Road near Ridge and Tomstown Road in Lebanon County – a rural highway surrounded by thick woodland and a spattering of houses, about 47 miles from York County.
Her body was hidden beneath undergrowth and plastic tarp, said police.
No cause of death was determined, no one was ever charged in connection to the girl’s death and her identity also remained a mystery.
Investigators spent decades working to finally identify the remains.
In 2016, the young girl’s remains were exhumed from Mount Lebanon Cemetery and taken to Lehigh Valley Hospital for examination, police said.
A 3D facial reconstruction image and bust of the girl were also made.
Then, in October 2024, thanks to a genealogy lab, the Pennsylvania State Police, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and the Police Bureau of Criminal Investigation, the remains were identified as belonging to Brennemann.
Brennemann’s family said in a statement shared by police: “The family wishes to extend our gratitude to Trooper Keck and the others who work on the Pennsylvania State Police team who worked diligently to identify Ruthie.
“Their work has provided us with some closure on questions that have lingered for the past 51 years.”
The investigation into what happened to the teenager is far from over, though.
Pennsylvania State Police Sergeant Josh Lacey said at a press conference that there is “suspicion” surrounding her death.
“It was an equivocal death meaning there was some level of suspicion to it given the fact that she was found underneath a tarp and some brush,” he said.
Police would not confirm if there are any persons of interest in the case.
A $5,000 reward is being offered for information that helps solve the case.
Anyone with information should contact the Pennsylvania State Police Reading Station at 6103784454, their anonymous tipline at 1-800-4PA-TIPS (8477) or online at https://www.p3tips.com/tipform.aspx?ID=107.
