Dexter police get leads in identifying remains found in New Mexico

DEXTER, Mo. -- The search to identify a body found in New Mexico holding three Stoddard County Fair ribbons has been narrowed, at least on the Dexter front, to three individuals.

Lt. Det. Trevor Pulley said in a Wednesday interview that the department has received numerous contacts in regard to the case and has been following up on all leads.

"We've had several people call in regard to the composite drawing [the newspaper] put out," Pulley said. "We're following up on everything."

He said in many cases their leads have been from people saying the person in the composite looks like someone they know.

"Once we get a lead the first thing we do is try to determine whether the person is alive or dead," he said adding that they then try to locate either where they live or where they are buried.

Dexter police have recently sent some information to the New Mexico authorities regarding one potential lead.

Pulley also noted that another department has sent a DNA sample from a family member tied to the same individual.

The remains of a white female were found July 31, 1999, in a shallow grave off of Interstate 40 near Gallup, N.M., according to a news release from the FBI's Albuquerque Division.

The New Mexico Office of the Medical Investigator reports the woman was between 5 feet 1 inch and 5 feet 7 inches tall and between 35 to 50 years of age. Her hair color reportedly was brown with gray mixed in.

The OMI believes the woman was deceased for about one to two years before the discovery of the remains.

"We received the case on Dec. 12, 2008," Pulley said in a previous interview. "We were contacted by the FBI about the three blue ribbons that were found with the remains ... because the blue ribbons said Dexter, Mo."

The ribbons reportedly originated from the Stoddard County Fair and were presented by the Association of Retarded Citizens in Stoddard County.