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The Jane Done found dead on a Portland beach more than a decade ago has been identified as a South Korean woman.
Byung Ran Kim, 66, was found dead at East End Beach on May 22, 2015, but her identity remained a mystery until Tuesday, when the Maine medical examiner’s office positively identified her.
Unraveling the mystery took the diligent work of a Portland police detective, Andjelko Napijalo, according to the medical examiner’s office and Portland Police Department. Samples of Byung’s fingerprints and DNA turned up no leads within FBI databases, and no one came forward to identify her when a Maine police officer compiled a sketch of her face.
The DNA Doe Project conducted a forensic genealogical analysis of a sample from Byung, which determined she likely hailed from South Korea. But even that breakthrough failed to bring investigators any closer to her identity.
Finally, last month, police determined without a doubt who Byung was. Napijalo persisted in contacting South Korean authorities, who used her fingerprints to confirm her identity.
Before she died, Byung was last known to have lived in New York. Her family in South Korea has been notified of her death.
