Additional Coverage:
- Breakthrough made in cold case of California school teacher whose remains were found 100 miles apart (the-independent.com)
A decades-long mystery surrounding the disappearance of a California teacher has taken a new turn, though answers remain elusive.
Kay Adams, 48, vanished from her Trinity County home on August 3, 1987, leaving behind her car, purse, and glasses. A large-scale search effort yielded no results.
Months later, a gruesome discovery: an anonymous package containing some of Adams’ remains and a letter directing authorities to more remains 45 miles from her home, was sent to the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Department. While the remains were positively identified, a cause of death could not be determined.
The case went cold until 1993, when a skull was found on a beach roughly 100 miles from the previous discovery. DNA technology at the time was unable to identify the skull.
Thanks to advancements in DNA analysis, and the work of Othram, that skull has now been confirmed as Adams’. Using a sample from Adams’ daughter, Othram provided a positive match, leaving investigators puzzled as to how the remains ended up so far apart.
Adams’ husband, who passed away in 2018, is not considered a suspect. The Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office is urging anyone with information about Kay Adams’ disappearance and death to contact Investigator Mike Fridley at 707-441-3024.