Jessica Baggen's body was found days after her 17th birthday in 1996. Over the years, DNA comparisons have cleared more than 100 other potential suspects - until now.
ANCHORAGE, Alaska — A DNA match has solved the strangulation murder of a teenager in southeast Alaska, a case that was cold for 24 years and saw another man acquitted of the crime after confessing, Alaska State Troopers said Tuesday.
Troopers interviewed Branch at his Arkansas home on Aug. 3, when he denied involvement and refused to voluntarily provide a DNA sample. A half-hour after troopers left, they said he killed himself. “While Branch will never face a jury of his peers in this case, we can finally say that Jessica’s case is solved,” Alaska Department of Public Safety Commissioner Amanda Price said at a news conference.
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