Boulder To Test New JonBenet DNA Samples

BOULDER, Colo. -- Boulder police will analyze samples of hair and bodily fluid sent by an Internet tipster for possible leads in the long-cold JonBenet Ramsey murder investigation.

Boulder Police Chief Mark Beckner said little is known about the sample and he doesn't know if it will produce a viable lead in the investigation, which has failed to produce any arrests since 6-year-old JonBenet was found beaten and strangled in the basement of her family's Boulder home on Dec. 26, 1996.

The tipster, who runs a Web site about the case under the name Jameson, said the sample was from a man who lived in Boulder at the time of the killing. She said it was mailed to her eight months ago by someone close to the man.

"I don't have enough information on where it came from to even tell you whether it's worth a look," Beckner said Wednesday. "We're doing it just to cover all our bases, and if something pans out, super, great."

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Police have said JonBenet's brother Burke is not a suspect, but they still regard the parents, John and Patsy, as being under suspicion. The entire family was at home the night JonBenet was killed.

Unknown male DNA was found underneath JonBenet's fingernails and in her underwear. The Ramseys are not the source.

While police say more than 100 suspects have been considered, and people continue to be interviewed, Beckner said DNA testing has dwindled lately.

Lou Smit, a retired homicide detective who originated the theory that an intruder killed JonBenet, said he was encouraged by the decision to test the sample.

"I really do think JonBenet got a piece of her killer, and he left something behind," Smit said. "Some day, that is going to catch him."

Smit believes an intruder entered the Ramseys' home through a basement window, used a stun gun to incapacitate her and took her to the basement. Beckner has strongly criticized Smit for taking the theory public.