Cold case victim identified, killed by Daytona Beach serial killer Gerald Stano in 1980

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Updated  October 18, 2024 7:51pm EDT
FOX 35 Orlando
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Cold case victim killed by serial killer: Sheriff

After 43 years, a 1980 homicide victim, previously known as "Jane Doe," has been identified as Pamela Kay Wittman, a 25-year-old woman from Indiana. Genetic genealogy confirmed that Wittman was murdered by the Daytona Beach serial killer, Gerald Stano, Volusia County Sheriff Mike Chitwood announced Thursday.

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - After more than 40 years, a woman murdered in 1980 by a convicted serial killer, has a name – Pamela Kay Wittman, a 25-year-old woman from Indiana.

On Nov. 5, 1980, a roadway worker found a woman's body in the median of Interstate 95, north of Port Orange. She had no ID on her, so her identity has been unknown since then.

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Cold case victim identified; murdered by serial killer

CREDIT: Volusia County Sheriff's Office

Through genetic genealogy via FHD Forensics, officials identified the woman as Wittman.

Officials believe Wittman was murdered by serial killer Gerald Stano, who was convicted and sentenced to death for the murders of many girls and women during the 1980s in the Daytona Beach area. Stano was executed by electrocution on March 23, 1998, after 14 years on death row.

Credit: Volusia County Sheriff's Office

"This brings closure to a family that has spent decades wondering what happened to their loved one," Sheriff Chitwood said. "While the truth is heartbreaking, I’m grateful for the hard work that allowed us to give Pamela the dignity she deserves with a proper memorial."

The woman's remains were given to her sister, who recently met with detectives and analysts assigned to her case, VSO said. That sister was able to provide details on Wittman's travels and whereabouts in 1980.

Credit: Volusia County Sheriff's Office

A memorial in Wittman's honor was also placed along I-95 where her body was found.

"She had the voice of an angel," it reads.

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