EVERETT, Wash. (KOMO) – A jury in Washington State convicted a man in the nearly 32-year-old cold case double murder of a Canadian couple Friday.
56-year-old William Earl Talbott was found guilty in the 1987 murder of 18-year-old Tanya Van Cuylenborg and her 20-year-old boyfriend, Jay Cook.
The case brought against Talbott focused heavily on DNA evidence that was decades old and genealogical technology that is rather new.
Authorities were able to charge Talbot after identifying him as the person who left DNA on clothing belonging to one of the victims.
Investigators identified him by entering crime scene DNA profiles into public genealogy databases.
Prosecutors convinced the jury the physical evidence proved Talbot raped Van Cuylenborg and killed both her and Cook.
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