Teenage Girl Suspect in Brutal Murder Caught in the US for the First Time in 49 Years

Suspect Barry Lee Wellplee, arrested 49 years ago on murder charges, and victim Julie Ann Hanson. Photo by Naperville Police, Illinois, USA

[Asia Economy Reporter Seoyoung Kwon] A suspect in a murder case that occurred in the early 1970s in a suburb of Chicago has been arrested after 49 years.

According to the Illinois police and the Wil County prosecutor's office on the 4th (local time), a suspect in the murder of Julie Ann Hanson (then 15 years old), which occurred in a residential area of Naperville in July 1972, was arrested after 49 years. Subsequently, Chicago media reported that 76-year-old Barry Lee Wellpley, who lives in Mounds View, Minnesota, was arrested the day before on charges including first-degree murder, and a bail of 10 million dollars (approximately 11 billion KRW) was set.

The victim Hanson disappeared while going to watch a baseball game in which her younger brother was participating. She was found dead in a nearby cornfield a day later, and the police revealed that the investigation showed signs of sexual assault on Hanson's body and more than 30 stab wounds.

The suspect Wellpley, who was 27 years old at the time, lived about 1.6 km away from Hanson's house but was not initially considered a suspect. However, the judicial authorities stated, "We did not give up and continued to track clues." They were able to solve the case thanks to advanced investigative techniques such as DNA and genealogy analysis.

Meanwhile, Hanson's siblings expressed their feelings in a statement, saying, "It has been a very difficult time." They also sincerely thanked everyone who worked hard for a long time to solve the case and expressed their gratitude to the authorities.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.