Investigators have linked yet another murder to a notorious California serial killer nearly 45 years after a man’s body was found along an Oregon highway. The body of 30-year-old Larry Eugene Parks was identified by Oregon State Police earlier this year, according to the Orange County Sheriff’s Department. Randy Kraft, the infamous ‘Scorecard Killer,’ is the lone suspect authorities are investigating for the 1980 murder, according to Oregon State Police spokesperson Kyle Kennedy.
On July 18, 1980, police received a report of a body along I-5 south of Portland, sparking a homicide investigation as authorities unsuccessfully attempted to identify the individual. The case ultimately ran cold until authorities identified Parks nearly 45 years later. Before his death, Parks was a Vietnam veteran and had fallen out of communication with his family in 1979 – one year before his body was discovered. He was last seen in Pensacola, Florida, according to police.
Using forensic investigative genetic genealogy, authorities were able to develop a genetic profile from a blood sample taken from the remains, police said. Parks’ identity was ultimately confirmed after possible family members provided DNA profiles to be used in comparison – solving a decades-long mystery of what happened to Parks.