Episode 64 Doe ID 'Beth Doe' Evelyn Colon
When a dismembered body was found in 3 suitcases along the Lehigh River in Carbon County in December, 1976, it began a decades long mystery. When investigators combed the area where the body had been found, they also discovered the body of a fetus; that of an almost full term baby girl.
An ME concluded that the body belonged to a young woman who was in her teens or early 20s, and that the baby found nearby was hers. The woman who was dubbed 'Beth Doe' had been shot and strangled prior to being dismembered, and according to the ME, it had happened just prior to the remains being discovered. With no ID to go on, police searched for missing women and girls who fit Beth Doe's description in PA and neighboring states, and despite clues to work with including very speicifc dental history, they came up empty. Beth Doe and her baby girl were laid to rest in a local cemetery, and for decades, local people visited their grave to pay their respects.
Finally, advances in DNA, and genealogy allowed investigators to finally learn the identity of Beth Doe. Her name was Evelyn Colon, and she went missing from Jersey City, NJ in 1976 when she was just 15 years old. When her family was tracked down, they told investigators how she had suddenly vanished after becoming pregnant. They also were able to give them the name of her baby's father who she had lived with prior to vanishing; Luis Sierra. Sierra had sent a letter to Evelyn's family after she vanished saying she was okay and living her life. In reality, she had been found dead by this point alongside their baby in Pennsylvania. Sierra was arrested in New York where he had been living, and charged with murder. He is currently awaiting trial.
Beth Doe' finally has her name again; it's Evelyn Colon, and this is her story.