DNA from Chewed Gum Leads to Breakthrough in 44-Year Cold Case in the US

Bereaved Family: "Good News... We Had Given Up"

A suspect in a sexual assault and murder case from 44 years ago was arrested using DNA collected from chewed gum.

According to foreign media including CNN, the Multnomah County District Attorney's Office recently arrested Robert Plimpton (60), a suspect in a long-unsolved murder case, based on DNA found on discarded gum.

Plimpton is accused of kidnapping, sexually assaulting, and beating to death Barbara Tucker (then 19), a student at Mountain Hood Community College, in the campus parking lot on January 15, 1980. Witnesses at the time identified Plimpton as the perpetrator, but due to lack of evidence to prove the crime, the case remained unsolved for a long time.

Suspect Robert Plimpton in a long-unsolved murder case and victim Barbara Tucker, who was raped and murdered in 1980. [Image source=Multnomah County District Attorney's Office]

However, with advances in forensic technology, police were able to obtain a suspect DNA profile from the victim Tucker's body. Subsequently, the police requested the Virginia-based DNA technology company Parabon NanoLabs to provide physical characteristics matching the suspect's DNA profile. Through genetic genealogy, the company speculated that the suspect likely had red hair.

The previously halted investigation then resumed. Authorities collected a wad of gum spat out by Plimpton and compared the DNA with that collected from Tucker. The DNA from the gum matched the suspect profile obtained during the autopsy, and Plimpton was finally arrested on June 8, 2021, after 44 years. Tucker's younger sister, Susan Feiter, called it "really good news" and said, "I had given up hope for many years that the perpetrator would be caught."

On the 15th, the court found Plimpton guilty of four charges, including first-degree murder. Currently detained and on trial, Plimpton maintains his innocence and has expressed his intention to appeal through his attorney. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for June.