Human remains found in ‘gravel pit’ 16 years ago are now identified, Nevada cops say

Human remains found in a ”gravel pit” in 2008 have now been identified, Nevada officials said.

A pair found the remains buried near a highway in Churchill County, according to a Thursday, Feb. 15 news release by the Washoe County Regional Medical Examiner’s Office.

The “shallow dirt grave” was dug up and skeletal remains were found, along with an orange halter top, according to DNA Solves.

The woman’s remains were unidentifiable, but the body was sent to the medical examiner’s office where an autopsy was performed, officials said.

The cause of death was determined to be gunshot wounds, officials said. Her death was ruled a homicide.

In 2023, the medical examiner submitted the evidence to Othram’s laboratory in Texas, where a DNA profile was made using the remains, officials said.

The forensic genetic genealogy company said Texas based journalist Joe Pappalardo “donated the remaining funding needed to perform the testing.”

After locating a potential relative, the DNA sample was used for comparison and came back as a match, the medical examiner said.

The woman was identified as Betty Lou Japel, who was 70 at the time of her death, officials said.

Japel went missing in 2006 while traveling with Kenneth Miller, her boyfriend of 30 years, officials said.

In 2007, Miller’s body was found in a grave in Oregon, DNA Solves said.

The couple’s friend, Gregory Allen Cole, got into a shootout with police and later died by suicide, according to the Charley Project. It’s believed he killed Miller and Japel.

Japel’s family was notified and are now able to claim her remains, the medical examiner said.

Churchill County is about 220 miles northeast of Sacramento and about 420 miles northwest of Las Vegas.

This story was originally published February 16, 2024 at 9:12 AM with the headline "Human remains found in ‘gravel pit’ 16 years ago are now identified, Nevada cops say."