Car Of Denver Murder Victim Uncovered
Vehicle Found Buried In Wyoming
POSTED: 7:58 a.m. MDT August 1, 2002
UPDATED: 8:45 a.m. MDT August 1, 2002
CASPER, Wyo. -- Investigators may have found the car
belonging to a young woman who was murdered 14 years ago, a
television station reported Wednesday.
The body of Lisa Marie Kimmell, 18 (pictured, left), was discovered April 2, 1988, in the North Platte River in Natrona
County.
Kimmel had been struck on the head, stabbed in the chest and
sexually assaulted. Police recovered a DNA sample of her attacker, but have never been able to match it to anyone.
On March 25, 1988, Kimmell had been driving from Denver, where she lived, to Cody along Interstate 25 and never arrived. She had planned to drive from
Cody to Billings the next day.
Her car, a 1988 black Honda CRX with a sunroof and Montana
license "LIL MISS," was never found, although as many as 300
people reported seeing the distinctive vehicle.
On Wednesday, authorities dug up a car in Moneta, an
unincorporated town about 75 miles west of Casper, KTWO-TV
reported.
The Natrona and Fremont County sheriff's departments were
supervising the recovery, along with Natrona County District
Attorney Kevin Meenan, the station reported.
Kimmell's body was found nine days after she was last seen near
Douglas, Wyo., but no weapon ever was found. The search for the car
stretched from Buffalo, Wyo., to Canada.
Even a year later, after the TV show "Unsolved Mysteries"
aired a story about the teen's death, the Natrona County sheriff
received more reports of sightings of the car.
At the time of her death, Lisa Kimmell had been promoted to unit
manager for Arby's restaurants, for whom she had worked since she
was 14. She had started working at a Denver restaurant in December
1987. The car was her first.
Kimmell was originally from Billings, Mont.
Anyone with information regarding this case is urged to contact the Natrona County Sheriff's Office at (307) 235-9282 or the Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation at (307) 777-7181.
Additional Resources:
The body of Lisa Marie Kimmell, 18 (pictured, left), was discovered April 2, 1988, in the North Platte River in Natrona
County.
Kimmel had been struck on the head, stabbed in the chest and
sexually assaulted. Police recovered a DNA sample of her attacker, but have never been able to match it to anyone.
On March 25, 1988, Kimmell had been driving from Denver, where she lived, to Cody along Interstate 25 and never arrived. She had planned to drive from
Cody to Billings the next day.
Her car, a 1988 black Honda CRX with a sunroof and Montana
license "LIL MISS," was never found, although as many as 300
people reported seeing the distinctive vehicle.
On Wednesday, authorities dug up a car in Moneta, an
unincorporated town about 75 miles west of Casper, KTWO-TV
reported.
The Natrona and Fremont County sheriff's departments were
supervising the recovery, along with Natrona County District
Attorney Kevin Meenan, the station reported.
Kimmell's body was found nine days after she was last seen near
Douglas, Wyo., but no weapon ever was found. The search for the car
stretched from Buffalo, Wyo., to Canada.
Even a year later, after the TV show "Unsolved Mysteries"
aired a story about the teen's death, the Natrona County sheriff
received more reports of sightings of the car.
At the time of her death, Lisa Kimmell had been promoted to unit
manager for Arby's restaurants, for whom she had worked since she
was 14. She had started working at a Denver restaurant in December
1987. The car was her first.
Kimmell was originally from Billings, Mont.
Anyone with information regarding this case is urged to contact the Natrona County Sheriff's Office at (307) 235-9282 or the Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation at (307) 777-7181.
Additional Resources:Copyright 2002 by TheDenverChannel.com. The Associated Press contributed to this report. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
