In the spring of 1977, 15-year-old Cindy Marcell Blizzard ran away from her home in Monkton, Maryland. A photo from that time shows a young woman with light hair and blue eyes. For nearly half a century, what happened to her after she left remained a mystery, a painful void for those who knew her. The answer, when it finally came, would emerge from a wooded area hundreds of miles from her home, bringing with it a new name for a long-unidentified victim and a renewed search for justice.
On December 29, 1977, a person walking in a wooded area near the Firestone plant at 3001 Firestone Parkway in Wilson, North Carolina, made a grim discovery. Skeletal remains, along with pieces of clothing, were found scattered on the ground. The Wilson County Sheriff’s Office and the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation (NCSBI) were called to the scene.
An examination by the state's chief medical examiner determined the remains belonged to a white female, likely between 16 and 23 years old. Based on the condition of the bones, it was estimated she had been there for anywhere between six months and two years. Though a specific cause of death was officially listed as undetermined, the circumstances surrounding the discovery led investigators to treat the case as a homicide from the beginning.
Investigators worked to identify the young woman, comparing her dental records against missing persons files, but no matches were found. The forensic tools of the era were limited, and with no name and no leads, the case eventually went cold. For decades, she was known only as the Wilson County Jane Doe, her case file entered into the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System as UP6681. The first break came in 2010 when a state anthropologist reopened the case and submitted the victim's teeth for DNA testing. The resulting profile was uploaded to national databases, but again, there was no match.
The case was revisited in 2024 by Andy Murr, a special investigator with the NCSBI's Cold Case Investigative Team. Believing the case could benefit from modern forensic tools, Murr worked with the medical examiner's office to send a bone sample to Othram Inc., a private lab in Texas specializing in advanced forensic genetic genealogy. Scientists at Othram successfully extracted a DNA profile and used it to build a family tree, which generated new investigative leads. The search pointed investigators toward the family of Cindy Marcell Blizzard. With the assistance of the Maryland State Police Homicide Unit, the Raleigh Police Department, and the FBI, investigators were able to obtain reference DNA samples from potential relatives.
In September 2026, nearly 49 years after her remains were found, law enforcement officially announced that the Wilson County Jane Doe was Cindy Marcell Blizzard. The science that had not existed when she died had finally given her back her name. While one part of the mystery was solved, the central question of who was responsible for her death remained unanswered.
As of September 2026, Cindy's death is an active and unsolved homicide investigation. The Wilson County Sheriff’s Office and the NCSBI are urging the public to come forward with any information, no matter how insignificant it may seem. They are seeking to learn more about Cindy's life in 1977, her associates, her activities, and where she might have been between the time she ran away from Maryland in the spring and when her body was found in North Carolina that winter. Investigators hope that after all these years, someone who knew Cindy or saw something can finally provide the answers that will lead to justice.
Anyone with information about the case of Cindy Marcell Blizzard is asked to call the SBI Cold Case Tip Line at 919-582-TIPS or email [email protected]. Tips can also be directed to the Wilson County Sheriff’s Office at 252-237-2118.
