HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) - A teenager found slain in Texas more than 30 years ago has been identified as a Connecticut girl who disappeared in 1982, state police said Friday.
Michelle Garvey was 14 when she was last seen on June 1, 1982, and authorities believe she had run away from her home in New London.
The girl's remains were found on a field in Houston on July 1, 1982, but her identity remained a mystery until DNA from Garvey's family recently confirmed the match, said Lt. J. Paul Vance, a spokesman for Connecticut State Police.
Vance said the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and authorities in Texas contacted Connecticut police about the case in August. The Harris County Sheriff's Office in Houston exhumed the girl's body to obtain DNA samples, Vance said.
"Our missing person detectives got involved and got DNA and submitted it to Texas," he said.
It was not immediately clear what led authorities in Texas to reach out to Connecticut authorities in connection with the case.
At the time that Garvey went missing, authorities said, it was believed she was possibly traveling to New Jersey or North Carolina.
Connecticut State Police say Garvey's family has been notified and efforts are being made to have her remains returned to Connecticut for burial. The police investigation is continuing.