1990 Huntington Beach Jane Doe identified

[1990 UM fan]

No other information has been released at this time, but her profile says she has been identified: http://www.ocsd.org/gov/sheriff/divi.../9001853ly.asp

Unsolved Mysteries profiled her with other unidentified people on the January 20, 1995 episode.

[Todd Mueller]

This is great news! It's awesome to see so many of these old cases finally being solved. Hopefully it brings someone some peace and closure.

[cordwainer1453]

This case never had as much internet hype as some of the other unidentifieds on UM, but it is good to see it solved. I wonder what her real name was.

[hostedbyrobertstack]

I hope they release more details on this...I also always wondered what was up w/ the human hair "ring" on her finger, unless this was a trend back then. Crazy that it took so long to identify.

[LooksLikeCRicci]

Wow. Fabulous news.

Well, not fabulous in the sense that some family just got confirmation their loved one is gone. But I would imagine the sense of closure would be somewhat satisfying...

2017 has been on quite a roll...

[Awsi Dooger]

Very good news but I don't appreciate the way authorities handle situations like this. I checked the related Webslueths thread and there were many people frustrated that Jane Doe's identity has yet to be released. Some of them have posted for years and years in that thread, offering possibles.

The name should be released first, and the case solved later.

[kadrmaskb]

It is a relief that she has been identified. IT is nice that with the advance of technology more and more of these John and Jane Does are able to be identified and while it is sad and tragic they are deceased at least their loved ones have some answers.

[Killarney Rose]

I'm so happy to see this one solved. I'm going to be dissapointed if they don't tell us her identity.

[asmitty]

Originally Posted by Awsi Dooger

Very good news but I don't appreciate the way authorities handle situations like this. I checked the related Webslueths thread and there were many people frustrated that Jane Doe's identity has yet to be released. Some of them have posted for years and years in that thread, offering possibles.

The name should be released first, and the case solved later.

Yes, of course your curiosity should be the top concern of the law enforcement agency involved.

[RobinW]

I briefly discussed this case on my podcast minisode about the Jonelle Matthews disappearance since Jonelle was considered as a possible match to "Andrea". I never believed it was her, though there were some compelling similarities. I too am really anxious to learn more details about Andrea and how she was identified, but can totally respect if her next of kin wants the details to remain private. I wonder if there was any truth to Andrea's claims that her parents were pretty well-known.

[1990 UM fan]

OCSD Coroner’s Division IDs Jane Doe After Nearly 30 Years

SANTA ANA, Ca. (May 11, 2017) – The Orange County Sheriff’s Department Coroner’s Division has identified the victim of a vehicle crash from 27 years ago, bringing closure to her family after many years.

Coroner’s officials on Thursday, May 4, received confirmation the 26-year-old woman struck and killed by two vehicles on April 1, 1990 as she crossed Pacific Coast Highway in Huntington Beach was Andrea Kuiper of Fairfax, Va.

OCSD’s Coroner Division continued to work the case over the years, even pushing to have it featured on the television show, “Unsolved Mysteries,” and in numerous newspaper articles, but the woman’s identity continued to elude investigators.

“We never forgot her and would regularly pull out her file to see if we could think of anything new to try,” said Kelly Keyes, Supervising Deputy Coroner. “The investigators at the Coroner’s Office never stopped trying to figure out who she was, just as they do with the more than 90 unidentified decedents that we have.”

At the time of Kuiper’s death, her information was provided to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC). The organization recreated images of what Kuiper might have looked like. Those images were circulated in the media, but she remained unidentified.

In 2010, the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs) was created. NamUs provided a searchable database to assist in solving cases involving unidentified human remains. Shortly after its creation, the OCSD Coroner Division input Kuiper’s information and hoped for a hit.

Coroner investigators revisited the case as recently as eight months ago after learning Kuiper may have had connections in Newport News, Va., but their work didn’t turn out any new information.

In early 2017, NamUs partnered with the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) on a fingerprint project that more closely examines fingerprints of unidentified decedents against an ever-growing database that has old fingerprints regularly added.

On Thursday, May 4, 2017, the FBI notified the OCSD Coroner Division of the forensic match. Coroner investigators worked with Fairfax law enforcement to contact Kuiper’s parents and provide them closure after nearly three decades.

“We are thankful to know what happened to our daughter after all these years,” said Kuiper’s father, Richard Kuiper. “Andrea was loved and respected. She was beautiful. But she was manic depressive, and therefore we had been through quite an adventure.”

Kuiper’s family has asked their privacy be respected at this time.

_____________________

Additional Details on Jane Doe Identification

Date of death: Evening of April 1, 1990

Location: Pacific Coast Highway, west of Newland Avenue

Circumstances at the time of death: No identification and all methods of identification at the time proved unsuccessful.

Kuiper was wearing a black dress and pink sweater with size 6 pink heels. She had a ring made of human hair wrapped around her left ring finger. She wore black toenail polish.

Attempts to identify: Huntington Beach PD thoroughly investigated the case and information was put out in the news media and featured on “Unsolved Mysteries.”

A Facebook page was created by the public to highlight the case and a psychic was even hired. That psychic contacted the Coroner’s office to provide information.

https://www.facebook.com/AndreaJaneDoeCA

Family: Kuiper was one of two children.

She was described by her family as smart, clever, attractive and persuasive. As a child, she loved to ice skate and her mother made all her costumes.

Kuiper also loved art and often would create pictures for her parents, many of which they still have. She also struggled with mental health issues. Her parents said their only daughter suffered from manic depressive disorder and eventually started using drugs. She came to California at age 26. A couple of months before her death, a friend of Kuiper’s called her parents to let her know she was OK.

That was the last they heard. Richard Kuiper said his wife and son hoped one day their daughter would drive up with a “car full of beautiful children and say, ‘Hi, it’s me.’”

[1990 UM fan]

Here's a photo of Andrea Kuiper

[Todd Mueller]

Thanks for posting the articles and picture, 1990 UM fan.

What a sad, sad story. I'm happy to have closure for her family, but I'm sure this also brings up more pain. I hope they can find peace through this. As a parent myself, this line just breaks my heart: "Richard Kuiper said his wife and son hoped one day their daughter would drive up with a “car full of beautiful children and say, ‘Hi, it’s me.’”

It is great to see these cases getting solved, though. Never give up hope, I guess...

[dks64]

I'm so glad they were finally able to identify her. <3 Hopefully the family has closure now.

[cordwainer1453]

Those drawings of her, other than the one shown on UM are pretty horrible.