Cold and Missing: Jenny Lin

1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:13,780 The views and opinions expressed in Cold and Missing are exclusively those of the hosts. 2 00:00:13,780 --> 00:00:18,400 All parties mentioned are considered innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. 3 00:00:18,400 --> 00:00:22,160 Cold and Missing also contains adult themes and languages. 4 00:00:22,160 --> 00:00:24,560 Listener discretion is advised. 5 00:00:24,560 --> 00:00:27,280 I'm your host, Ali McLaughlin-Sulkowski. 6 00:00:27,280 --> 00:00:29,680 And I'm your co-host, Eli Sulkowski. 7 00:00:29,680 --> 00:00:34,360 And this is Cold and Missing, where we cover cold cases and missing person cases. 8 00:00:34,360 --> 00:00:36,760 Hello everyone and welcome back to Cold and Missing. 9 00:00:36,760 --> 00:00:38,200 I'm your host, Ali. 10 00:00:38,200 --> 00:00:40,000 And I am your co-host, Eli. 11 00:00:40,000 --> 00:00:41,920 We're back together for this week. 12 00:00:41,920 --> 00:00:45,400 Yeah, we're always together. 13 00:00:45,400 --> 00:00:50,920 I got a new job on top of all my other little jobs. 14 00:00:50,920 --> 00:00:57,440 One that I'm very happy at, but it was an adjustment. 15 00:00:57,440 --> 00:01:05,320 Going back to just a different schedule, but yeah, I'm trying to be as consistent as possible 16 00:01:05,320 --> 00:01:09,000 in my co-host place here. 17 00:01:09,000 --> 00:01:11,360 But we are together always. 18 00:01:11,360 --> 00:01:13,440 Yes, we have not broken up. 19 00:01:13,440 --> 00:01:16,720 We are together always. 20 00:01:16,720 --> 00:01:19,000 I don't know where we're at. 21 00:01:19,000 --> 00:01:21,920 Episode 60 something. 22 00:01:21,920 --> 00:01:23,600 I think it's episode 67. 23 00:01:23,600 --> 00:01:24,600 All right. 24 00:01:24,600 --> 00:01:30,520 Is this a cold or missing person's case? 25 00:01:30,520 --> 00:01:31,800 This is a cold case. 26 00:01:31,800 --> 00:01:34,680 All right, let's jump into it. 27 00:01:34,680 --> 00:01:38,240 Today we are talking about the cold case of Jenny Lin. 28 00:01:38,240 --> 00:01:44,040 And this takes place in May of 1994 in Castro Valley, California. 29 00:01:44,040 --> 00:01:46,280 But first a little bit about Jenny. 30 00:01:46,280 --> 00:01:49,580 Jenny was 14 years old in 1994. 31 00:01:49,580 --> 00:01:54,120 She had just celebrated her 14th birthday two days before her murder. 32 00:01:54,120 --> 00:01:56,760 She would be 43 years old today. 33 00:01:56,760 --> 00:02:01,200 Jenny was just weeks away from her middle school graduation where she was an exceptional 34 00:02:01,200 --> 00:02:02,200 student. 35 00:02:02,200 --> 00:02:06,480 She was slated to be the valedictorian and was an accomplished musician playing both 36 00:02:06,480 --> 00:02:08,840 the viola and piano. 37 00:02:08,840 --> 00:02:12,520 Jenny was well liked and had a lot of friends at Canyon Middle School. 38 00:02:12,520 --> 00:02:16,600 Jenny lived with her mother and father in an upscale neighborhood with a very low crime 39 00:02:16,600 --> 00:02:17,600 rate. 40 00:02:17,600 --> 00:02:20,080 Her older sister was at Stanford University. 41 00:02:20,080 --> 00:02:23,180 Jenny had a usual routine after school. 42 00:02:23,180 --> 00:02:27,900 She would usually get off the bus between 2.30 and 2.45, walk the block from the bus 43 00:02:27,900 --> 00:02:34,080 stop to her home, play with the family dog, watch TV, and then start on her homework. 44 00:02:34,080 --> 00:02:38,920 She would usually fit in a little music practice and chatting on the phone in there as well. 45 00:02:38,920 --> 00:02:41,640 And now a timeline of events. 46 00:02:41,640 --> 00:02:48,720 On Friday, May 27th, 1994, Jenny had a normal day at school and got home at her usual time 47 00:02:48,720 --> 00:02:51,520 between 2.30 and 2.45. 48 00:02:51,520 --> 00:02:56,760 Jenny's mother, May Leanne, calls the house that afternoon but Jenny doesn't pick up. 49 00:02:56,760 --> 00:03:01,160 However, we do know that Jenny talked with two friends on the phone that evening and 50 00:03:01,160 --> 00:03:02,600 she sounded fine. 51 00:03:02,600 --> 00:03:05,840 Her last phone call was around 5.15 p.m. 52 00:03:05,840 --> 00:03:10,000 Now I'm not sure if that's when she hung up or when she started the call. 53 00:03:10,000 --> 00:03:13,160 But this would be the last time anyone spoke with Jenny. 54 00:03:13,160 --> 00:03:18,600 When her father arrives home at 6.45 p.m., he notices that a sliding glass door that 55 00:03:18,600 --> 00:03:20,780 led into the backyard was open. 56 00:03:20,780 --> 00:03:25,880 When he goes upstairs into the master bathroom, he stumbles into a horrible scene. 57 00:03:25,880 --> 00:03:28,040 Jenny is found in a pool of blood. 58 00:03:28,040 --> 00:03:32,840 She had multiple stab wounds in her abdomen and her clothes had been forcibly removed 59 00:03:32,840 --> 00:03:34,520 according to police. 60 00:03:34,520 --> 00:03:36,320 She was bound with duct tape. 61 00:03:36,320 --> 00:03:38,120 There were no signs of a struggle. 62 00:03:38,120 --> 00:03:42,200 The home had not been ransacked and nothing was missing or stolen. 63 00:03:42,200 --> 00:03:46,080 There was very little blood elsewhere in the home outside of the bathroom. 64 00:03:46,080 --> 00:03:52,280 John immediately calls the police who are baffled by the gruesome crime scene in the quiet neighborhood. 65 00:03:52,280 --> 00:03:56,800 Police begin processing the scene and despite her clothes being removed, Jenny did not appear 66 00:03:56,800 --> 00:04:00,960 to be sexually assaulted, but police will wait for the autopsy results before this is 67 00:04:00,960 --> 00:04:02,760 ruled out as a motive. 68 00:04:02,760 --> 00:04:08,320 Lieutenant Ted Nelson says, quote, There aren't even signs of any intent to rob the home. 69 00:04:08,320 --> 00:04:12,080 The whole thing appears very controlled, end quote. 70 00:04:12,080 --> 00:04:16,920 Jenny's body is removed from the home in the early hours of Saturday, May 28th and 71 00:04:16,920 --> 00:04:21,600 despite the odd hour, neighbors are outside just waiting to say goodbye to the sweet girl 72 00:04:21,600 --> 00:04:24,760 they all knew who always had a smile on her face. 73 00:04:24,760 --> 00:04:28,840 The neighborhood is shocked by the gruesome murder of Jenny and the overall safety that 74 00:04:28,840 --> 00:04:31,480 the neighbors had felt had been shattered. 75 00:04:31,480 --> 00:04:35,120 People used to leave their doors open before the murder of Jenny. 76 00:04:35,120 --> 00:04:37,640 But after that is no longer the case. 77 00:04:37,640 --> 00:04:44,240 A neighbor Sophia Limanos says, quote, I moved here because it's safe, but not now. 78 00:04:44,240 --> 00:04:45,920 She was a friendly, nice girl. 79 00:04:45,920 --> 00:04:48,720 We are all so upset, end quote. 80 00:04:48,720 --> 00:04:53,120 Police reach out to the FBI to try to get help in their investigation, specifically a 81 00:04:53,120 --> 00:04:56,680 profiler to help give shape to the suspect. 82 00:04:56,680 --> 00:05:00,840 Police spend Saturday processing the crime scene and searching the wooded hilly area 83 00:05:00,840 --> 00:05:05,480 behind the Lin home to see if there's any evidence out there as investigators believe 84 00:05:05,480 --> 00:05:09,560 that the killer could have slipped out through the back and not been seen by anyone. 85 00:05:09,560 --> 00:05:15,400 On Sunday, May 29th, just two days after Jenny's murder, her autopsy is conducted, but it sheds 86 00:05:15,400 --> 00:05:17,200 no light on the motive. 87 00:05:17,200 --> 00:05:21,880 The autopsy confirms what police thought that she had not been sexually assaulted. 88 00:05:21,880 --> 00:05:24,600 She had been stabbed several times in the stomach. 89 00:05:24,600 --> 00:05:26,600 Police have very little to go off of. 90 00:05:26,600 --> 00:05:30,820 They wonder if the killer was a drifter who just happened to find an open door or if the 91 00:05:30,820 --> 00:05:34,560 intent was to rob the home, but Jenny's presence interrupted them. 92 00:05:34,560 --> 00:05:40,040 Lieutenant Ted Nelson says, quote, it appears that the motive was to kill her, but why? 93 00:05:40,040 --> 00:05:44,880 She's just a cute little sweetheart of a girl, just a nice kid, end quote. 94 00:05:44,880 --> 00:05:48,440 Police are stumped as to why the murderer would take off her clothes if she was not 95 00:05:48,440 --> 00:05:49,440 assaulted. 96 00:05:49,440 --> 00:05:54,160 Again, Lieutenant Ted Nelson says, quote, we'd sure like to know why he did that. 97 00:05:54,160 --> 00:05:56,720 It's one of the big issues, end quote. 98 00:05:56,720 --> 00:06:01,920 Police pretty quickly believe that a man committed the murder due to how quickly Jenny was overpowered 99 00:06:01,920 --> 00:06:04,760 and police believe that Jenny did not know him. 100 00:06:04,760 --> 00:06:09,120 Police continue to search the woods behind her home and question neighbors. 101 00:06:09,120 --> 00:06:13,520 Her family and friends set up the Jenny Lin Trust Fund to start to collect donations for 102 00:06:13,520 --> 00:06:17,100 a reward for information leading to the arrest of her killer. 103 00:06:17,100 --> 00:06:22,480 On Tuesday, May 31st, 1994, police hold a press conference to plead to the public for 104 00:06:22,480 --> 00:06:24,840 information about Jenny's killer. 105 00:06:24,840 --> 00:06:29,720 Her father, John, speaks at the press conference and he recalls a strange interaction that 106 00:06:29,720 --> 00:06:31,980 happened two weeks before the murder. 107 00:06:31,980 --> 00:06:36,760 He tells the police and the public that a man had approached him in the Bayfair BART 108 00:06:36,760 --> 00:06:38,800 station parking lot. 109 00:06:38,800 --> 00:06:43,720 So BART stands for the Bay Area Rapid Transit, so a train parking lot. 110 00:06:43,720 --> 00:06:47,880 John was headed home after working in San Francisco when a disheveled man approaches 111 00:06:47,880 --> 00:06:52,720 John's car and says something along the lines of, quote, I have a proposition for 112 00:06:52,720 --> 00:06:53,720 you. 113 00:06:53,720 --> 00:06:56,000 I got your daughter, end quote. 114 00:06:56,000 --> 00:06:58,320 John dismisses the man as a kook. 115 00:06:58,320 --> 00:07:02,760 He knows that Jenny is at her viola lesson and when he gets home, he calls his daughter 116 00:07:02,760 --> 00:07:05,320 at Stanford and she is fine and well. 117 00:07:05,320 --> 00:07:10,040 John doesn't report this encounter to police or even think about it again until after Jenny's 118 00:07:10,040 --> 00:07:11,040 murder. 119 00:07:11,040 --> 00:07:15,940 Police have never been able to ID the man who approached John at the station, but police 120 00:07:15,940 --> 00:07:18,780 believe the events are not connected. 121 00:07:18,780 --> 00:07:22,680 John had never seen the man before and can only give police a vague description of what 122 00:07:22,680 --> 00:07:24,160 he looked like. 123 00:07:24,160 --> 00:07:27,680 Police share that they believe the killer entered the home either through the sliding 124 00:07:27,680 --> 00:07:32,560 glass door or through a window that was broken and that the only intent of the person was 125 00:07:32,560 --> 00:07:37,320 to kill Jenny or someone else in the family since nothing else happened at the home. 126 00:07:37,320 --> 00:07:42,520 John tells the media, quote, we are a very simple, hardworking family with outstanding 127 00:07:42,520 --> 00:07:46,000 children, living a straightforward American lifestyle. 128 00:07:46,000 --> 00:07:48,280 We never did anything to hurt anyone. 129 00:07:48,280 --> 00:07:53,280 We cannot imagine how Jenny could be the target of such a murder, end quote. 130 00:07:53,280 --> 00:07:59,160 On Thursday, June 2nd, just six days after Jenny's murder, over 1200 people gathered 131 00:07:59,160 --> 00:08:02,200 to celebrate her life at her memorial service. 132 00:08:02,200 --> 00:08:07,600 Her casket is lined with stuffed animals, troll dolls, and she is buried with her viola. 133 00:08:07,600 --> 00:08:11,540 Her mother accepts all of her school awards she would have gotten at her graduation that 134 00:08:11,540 --> 00:08:14,320 are awarded to her at her memorial service. 135 00:08:14,320 --> 00:08:19,440 On June 8th, 12 days after the murder, Jenny's family, friends, and community have raised 136 00:08:19,440 --> 00:08:22,520 $50,000 for the reward fund. 137 00:08:22,520 --> 00:08:27,000 Now at this point in the timeline, Jenny's case takes a little bit of a sideline in the 138 00:08:27,000 --> 00:08:32,520 press because on June 12th, the Nicole Brown Simpson murder takes place and that dominates 139 00:08:32,520 --> 00:08:34,240 the headlines. 140 00:08:34,240 --> 00:08:40,560 But on Tuesday, June 14th, 18 days after the murder, police begin to walk back their statement 141 00:08:40,560 --> 00:08:44,160 that sexual assault was not a motive in this case. 142 00:08:44,160 --> 00:08:47,620 They believe that the murderer could have been a serial rapist. 143 00:08:47,620 --> 00:08:52,320 In talking about the crime scene, Lieutenant Ted Nelson says, quote, it indicates that 144 00:08:52,320 --> 00:08:56,860 this may have been some type of sexual assault that was interrupted. 145 00:08:56,860 --> 00:09:00,480 This is all a theory at this point, but we can't rule anything out. 146 00:09:00,480 --> 00:09:03,100 We can't afford to put our blinders on. 147 00:09:03,100 --> 00:09:07,500 This was a cold and calculated killing and the fact that the crime scene was limited 148 00:09:07,500 --> 00:09:12,100 to just the upstairs bathroom where the girl was killed indicates that the suspect took 149 00:09:12,100 --> 00:09:15,000 pains to keep evidence to a minimum. 150 00:09:15,000 --> 00:09:19,400 We think that the killer took her clothes off, which supports sexual assault as a possible 151 00:09:19,400 --> 00:09:20,560 motive. 152 00:09:20,560 --> 00:09:24,200 And if the suspect did this once, he could have done it before, which leads us to the 153 00:09:24,200 --> 00:09:27,040 possible serial aspect of this case. 154 00:09:27,040 --> 00:09:28,240 End quote. 155 00:09:28,240 --> 00:09:33,400 Police are slowly working their way through the 125 tips they have received and FBI profilers 156 00:09:33,400 --> 00:09:37,600 are assisting on the case in creating a profile of the suspect. 157 00:09:37,600 --> 00:09:42,560 Over the next week, police are able to track down and eliminate three motorcyclists that 158 00:09:42,560 --> 00:09:46,080 were seen in the neighborhood that day that Jenny was murdered. 159 00:09:46,080 --> 00:09:50,200 With these leads eliminated, police return to the hills behind the Lin home, hoping 160 00:09:50,200 --> 00:09:51,960 to find more evidence. 161 00:09:51,960 --> 00:09:56,260 Lieutenant Ted Nelson says, quote, We've already gone over the area with dogs and 162 00:09:56,260 --> 00:09:58,420 on foot for physical evidence. 163 00:09:58,420 --> 00:10:03,080 What we want to have another look at is the layout of the landscape and tactical possibilities 164 00:10:03,080 --> 00:10:08,120 like routes of egress or staging areas that could have been used by the killer. 165 00:10:08,120 --> 00:10:12,060 If we are going to find anything, it will probably be over that ridge. 166 00:10:12,060 --> 00:10:15,040 That would be the most likely way for someone to go. 167 00:10:15,040 --> 00:10:18,120 But we'll go over the whole area just in case. 168 00:10:18,120 --> 00:10:19,120 End quote. 169 00:10:19,120 --> 00:10:23,320 The ridge that Lieutenant Nelson is talking about was a grove of trees to the left of 170 00:10:23,320 --> 00:10:26,440 the Lin home on Wednesday, June 29th. 171 00:10:26,440 --> 00:10:29,540 So it's been over a month since Jenny's murder. 172 00:10:29,540 --> 00:10:34,760 Police announced to the public that they are looking for two vehicles in 1960s, two door 173 00:10:34,760 --> 00:10:37,480 Chevy two and a newer pickup. 174 00:10:37,480 --> 00:10:41,120 So this would be an early 90s pickup truck that is red in color. 175 00:10:41,120 --> 00:10:46,520 Lieutenant Ted Nelson says, quote, These vehicles were in the Palomari Hills area at the time 176 00:10:46,520 --> 00:10:49,280 of the killing and they remain unaccounted for. 177 00:10:49,280 --> 00:10:53,240 We'd like very much to know who was in them and what they were doing there. 178 00:10:53,240 --> 00:10:54,240 End quote. 179 00:10:54,240 --> 00:10:58,500 It's unclear if police ever tracked down the drivers of these vehicles. 180 00:10:58,500 --> 00:11:01,620 And if they do, they never talk about it publicly. 181 00:11:01,620 --> 00:11:06,680 On Thursday, August 11th, it's now been over two months since Jenny's murder. 182 00:11:06,680 --> 00:11:11,120 John Lin commissions an artist to draw a composite sketch of the man who approached 183 00:11:11,120 --> 00:11:13,000 him at the BART station. 184 00:11:13,000 --> 00:11:17,560 The police did have their own sketch artists create a sketch closer to Jenny's murder, 185 00:11:17,560 --> 00:11:20,700 but the police believe the encounter is unrelated to the murder. 186 00:11:20,700 --> 00:11:22,880 So they never released the sketch to the public. 187 00:11:22,880 --> 00:11:26,920 But John Lin believes that they are connected. 188 00:11:26,920 --> 00:11:31,640 Police say that they do not consider this man a suspect, but would like to ID him. 189 00:11:31,640 --> 00:11:36,960 Ultimately, John Lin releases the sketch on his own without the police officially releasing 190 00:11:36,960 --> 00:11:39,000 their composite sketch. 191 00:11:39,000 --> 00:11:43,760 On Thursday, September 1st, so it's now been over three months since the murder of Jenny 192 00:11:43,760 --> 00:11:48,720 Lin, the family has set up the Jenny Lin Foundation with their own tip line to try 193 00:11:48,720 --> 00:11:50,960 to solve the case. 194 00:11:50,960 --> 00:11:54,960 Police reveal that they believe the killer did break in through the small downstairs 195 00:11:54,960 --> 00:11:56,320 window. 196 00:11:56,320 --> 00:12:00,280 They believe the killer acted alone and was familiar with the neighborhood and the schedule 197 00:12:00,280 --> 00:12:02,180 of the Lin family. 198 00:12:02,180 --> 00:12:06,320 Police also mentioned that they are interested in IDing a man that was seen on the day of 199 00:12:06,320 --> 00:12:10,960 the murder walking away from the Lin home carrying a small canvas bag. 200 00:12:10,960 --> 00:12:14,800 He was headed towards an athletic field in the neighborhood, but there were no official 201 00:12:14,800 --> 00:12:18,040 activities on the field that night. 202 00:12:18,040 --> 00:12:21,760 And after this, the case drops out of the media for a while. 203 00:12:21,760 --> 00:12:26,480 Again, the case was happening alongside the Nicole Brown Simpson murder and ultimately 204 00:12:26,480 --> 00:12:29,240 the OJ Simpson murder trial. 205 00:12:29,240 --> 00:12:33,260 The next update comes at the one year mark of Jenny's murder. 206 00:12:33,260 --> 00:12:38,280 Police believe that the murder was a carefully planned and prepared for act. 207 00:12:38,280 --> 00:12:43,440 Police have been working with the FBI profiling team to create a profile of the suspect. 208 00:12:43,440 --> 00:12:49,040 They believe that the killer is a man with well developed social skills and is educated. 209 00:12:49,040 --> 00:12:52,860 He would not normally show aggressive or abhorrent behavior. 210 00:12:52,860 --> 00:12:56,360 That the killer would have had legitimate reasons to be in the neighborhood, either 211 00:12:56,360 --> 00:13:01,480 professionally or socially and would not seem out of place at all in the neighborhood. 212 00:13:01,480 --> 00:13:05,480 The killer probably took time to learn the Lin family routine and they wouldn't be 213 00:13:05,480 --> 00:13:11,480 surprised if he had a past criminal history of exhibitionism, burglary, and or was a peeping 214 00:13:11,480 --> 00:13:13,000 tom. 215 00:13:13,000 --> 00:13:18,480 By the way that Jenny was bound with duct tape, he may also have a history of bondage. 216 00:13:18,480 --> 00:13:24,120 Mary Ellen O'Toole from the FBI Behavioral Science Unit says, quote, most people assume 217 00:13:24,120 --> 00:13:29,040 in a crime as egregious as this that no one they know could do such a thing. 218 00:13:29,040 --> 00:13:32,920 The person who did this will appear to others as normal and well adjusted. 219 00:13:32,920 --> 00:13:36,520 He will not seem bizarre or like a loner. 220 00:13:36,520 --> 00:13:40,200 He has compartmentalized this part of his life. 221 00:13:40,200 --> 00:13:44,600 Right after the event, his anxiety was high because of paranoia about what clues he left 222 00:13:44,600 --> 00:13:45,600 behind. 223 00:13:45,600 --> 00:13:46,600 End quote. 224 00:13:46,600 --> 00:13:51,760 Again, while Jenny was not sexually assaulted, they do believe that the crime could be sexually 225 00:13:51,760 --> 00:13:52,760 motivated. 226 00:13:52,760 --> 00:13:57,960 Agent O'Toole says, quote, offenders can enjoy the planning or the interaction with 227 00:13:57,960 --> 00:14:00,840 the victim before the crime takes place. 228 00:14:00,840 --> 00:14:05,600 There are pre and post crime encounters with the victim that might be pleasant to him. 229 00:14:05,600 --> 00:14:09,800 A year later, he would recall this almost in a dreamlike fashion. 230 00:14:09,800 --> 00:14:12,440 He would think back and relive the fantasy. 231 00:14:12,440 --> 00:14:13,440 End quote. 232 00:14:13,440 --> 00:14:18,160 The FBI is reviewing all the evidence collected at the scene and the Jenny in Foundation 233 00:14:18,160 --> 00:14:23,640 has now raised $100,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the 234 00:14:23,640 --> 00:14:24,980 killer. 235 00:14:24,980 --> 00:14:31,120 At the three-year mark in 1997, and what should have been Jenny's 17th birthday, the police 236 00:14:31,120 --> 00:14:34,960 and FBI still believe the killer is in the area. 237 00:14:34,960 --> 00:14:40,120 The FBI profiler team add that the killer likely went through behavioral or mood changes 238 00:14:40,120 --> 00:14:43,140 in the days leading up to Jenny's murder. 239 00:14:43,140 --> 00:14:47,760 Some stressor in his life, such as losing a job or a relationship. 240 00:14:47,760 --> 00:14:50,960 After Jenny's murder, he would have been withdrawn. 241 00:14:50,960 --> 00:14:53,920 Police are worried that the killer will strike again. 242 00:14:53,920 --> 00:14:58,580 Over the next two decades, police will name and eliminate several suspects in the murder 243 00:14:58,580 --> 00:15:00,040 of Jenny Lin. 244 00:15:00,040 --> 00:15:05,040 For one time, the prime suspect in the case was a man named Sebastian Shaw, but police 245 00:15:05,040 --> 00:15:08,440 were ultimately able to eliminate him. 246 00:15:08,440 --> 00:15:14,160 The last update on the case that I could find actually comes from 2022, when police and 247 00:15:14,160 --> 00:15:20,060 FBI re-examine the evidence from the crime scene with new, more sensitive technology. 248 00:15:20,060 --> 00:15:24,720 Through this re-examination, police are able to develop new leads in the case. 249 00:15:24,720 --> 00:15:29,520 Sheriff A. Hearn says, quote, we have a couple of possibilities that we are holding close 250 00:15:29,520 --> 00:15:30,520 to our vest. 251 00:15:30,520 --> 00:15:37,280 We want to make sure we don't disclose too much to a potential suspect, end quote. 252 00:15:37,280 --> 00:15:42,520 And that is the last update that I could find that was really adding information to the 253 00:15:42,520 --> 00:15:44,440 Jenny Lin murder. 254 00:15:44,440 --> 00:15:51,520 So if you know anything about the murder of Jenny Lin in May of 1994, please call the 255 00:15:51,520 --> 00:16:06,400 Alameda County Sheriff's Office at 510-667-3622 or the FBI San Francisco office at 415-553-7400. 256 00:16:06,400 --> 00:16:13,080 And the sources for the timeline today come from ABC7, the FBI, the San Francisco Examiner, 257 00:16:13,080 --> 00:16:18,640 the Desert Sun, the Press Democrat, Camarillo Star, North County Times, Oakland Tribune, 258 00:16:18,640 --> 00:16:24,960 the Napa Valley Register, the Sacramento Bee, the Modesto Bee, and the Tribune. 259 00:16:24,960 --> 00:16:28,440 So that is the case of Jenny Lin 260 00:16:28,440 --> 00:16:35,840 My first reaction is just really sad for her parents. 261 00:16:35,840 --> 00:16:43,120 You gave us gratefully a lot of information, or not a lot, definitely not enough because 262 00:16:43,120 --> 00:16:49,320 still the ultimate question has yet to be answered. 263 00:16:49,320 --> 00:16:59,620 But in learning quite a bit about her parents in particular, it's just like it's so beautiful 264 00:16:59,620 --> 00:17:05,320 that they've dedicated their lives to finding the answer, you know? 265 00:17:05,320 --> 00:17:13,960 And it's also heartbreaking that it's like what their lives turned into, you know? 266 00:17:13,960 --> 00:17:21,120 My heart just really goes out to them and you can tell that just every part of their 267 00:17:21,120 --> 00:17:29,920 existence seems to have gone into figuring out like who took their beautiful child from 268 00:17:29,920 --> 00:17:30,920 them. 269 00:17:30,920 --> 00:17:35,400 Yeah, and I didn't get a chance to mention this during the timeline, but her parents 270 00:17:35,400 --> 00:17:42,160 are very active in, you know, victim advocacy and trying to get answers and legislation 271 00:17:42,160 --> 00:17:46,680 passed, you know, for victims' rights, for families of victims. 272 00:17:46,680 --> 00:17:54,440 So what you said sums it up perfectly that their life has really been dedicated to not 273 00:17:54,440 --> 00:18:00,300 only helping solve Jenny's murder, but also helping other families that unfortunately 274 00:18:00,300 --> 00:18:02,240 go through things like this. 275 00:18:02,240 --> 00:18:14,400 Yeah, just to add to that, yes, they're looking to solve their daughter's murder, but also 276 00:18:14,400 --> 00:18:19,880 that they are doing it for the community too, you know? 277 00:18:19,880 --> 00:18:28,960 Not immediate community, but like, I don't know, I just think it's beautiful work for 278 00:18:28,960 --> 00:18:39,320 what it is, you know, to do that from that kind of losses, it's incredible. 279 00:18:39,320 --> 00:18:45,640 You know, I think it just takes an incredible amount of strength to do something like that. 280 00:18:45,640 --> 00:18:50,240 I don't know if I have a ton of questions. 281 00:18:50,240 --> 00:19:00,360 Yeah, I guess I want to know more about what you think about the possibilities around finding 282 00:19:00,360 --> 00:19:01,360 an answer. 283 00:19:01,360 --> 00:19:08,520 Yeah, I think this is one of those cases where there's a really good chance that it could 284 00:19:08,520 --> 00:19:10,520 be solved in the next few years. 285 00:19:10,520 --> 00:19:16,780 I was really encouraged by the update from 2022, where police and FBI were retesting 286 00:19:16,780 --> 00:19:20,160 the evidence and they seem to get new leads from this. 287 00:19:20,160 --> 00:19:27,480 So I'm guessing that that is some kind of DNA profile that they were able to generate 288 00:19:27,480 --> 00:19:30,780 from evidence at the crime scene. 289 00:19:30,780 --> 00:19:37,880 And whether that has led them to, you know, a pool of suspects, or maybe they're going, 290 00:19:37,880 --> 00:19:44,240 you know, kind of through the genealogy of, you know, open DNA databases. 291 00:19:44,240 --> 00:19:45,240 I'm not sure. 292 00:19:45,240 --> 00:19:46,240 I would love to know. 293 00:19:46,240 --> 00:19:50,000 I would be very curious about what they're doing with that information that was generated. 294 00:19:50,000 --> 00:19:57,200 But it does feel like this is a case that has remained pretty active and has been revisited 295 00:19:57,200 --> 00:19:59,400 again and again as technology advances. 296 00:19:59,400 --> 00:20:03,920 So I think we could really see a resolution in this case in the next few years. 297 00:20:03,920 --> 00:20:10,240 And hopefully the person is still alive and can be held accountable for the crimes that 298 00:20:10,240 --> 00:20:12,680 they did. 299 00:20:12,680 --> 00:20:18,600 One thing that kind of kept sticking in my mind as I was researching this case and going 300 00:20:18,600 --> 00:20:26,500 through the old newspaper articles, I just, I know that the police believe that it was 301 00:20:26,500 --> 00:20:32,680 a man because of how quickly Jenny was overpowered. 302 00:20:32,680 --> 00:20:36,120 And I do think that's correct. 303 00:20:36,120 --> 00:20:42,000 But I also just kept coming back to like, could this have been a woman who removed the 304 00:20:42,000 --> 00:20:47,120 clothes as almost like a distraction to like point towards a man? 305 00:20:47,120 --> 00:20:50,840 Like that's just one thing that I kept kind of coming back and back to again that just 306 00:20:50,840 --> 00:20:55,080 kind of started eating at my brain a little bit was, could this have been a woman that 307 00:20:55,080 --> 00:20:56,560 did this? 308 00:20:56,560 --> 00:21:00,400 Because somebody snuck in through a pretty small downstairs window. 309 00:21:00,400 --> 00:21:05,360 So I just am curious about that. 310 00:21:05,360 --> 00:21:08,660 But again, that's just me kind of speculating. 311 00:21:08,660 --> 00:21:12,680 But it's a thought that I kept having cross my mind again and again. 312 00:21:12,680 --> 00:21:17,520 So you know, if I got to sit down and look at the police file and just review everything 313 00:21:17,520 --> 00:21:23,040 and talk with investigators, that's one thing that I would just want to ask them about in 314 00:21:23,040 --> 00:21:24,320 a little bit more detail. 315 00:21:24,320 --> 00:21:28,160 Like could a woman have done this? 316 00:21:28,160 --> 00:21:33,040 You know, Lieutenant Ted Nelson talks about putting blinders on that the police couldn't 317 00:21:33,040 --> 00:21:36,480 afford to do this because it was very cold and calculated. 318 00:21:36,480 --> 00:21:44,800 So to me, I just I want to consider everything in this case because it is so egregious that 319 00:21:44,800 --> 00:21:49,760 it's like everything has to be considered until it can absolutely be eliminated. 320 00:21:49,760 --> 00:21:52,680 And you know, it is possible to do that through DNA. 321 00:21:52,680 --> 00:21:57,200 So maybe the DNA they have developed does show something like that to where they are 322 00:21:57,200 --> 00:21:59,280 able to eliminate a little bit. 323 00:21:59,280 --> 00:22:06,120 It's very strange to think about this suspect that is well educated, would not seem out 324 00:22:06,120 --> 00:22:11,260 of place in the neighborhood, could easily kind of slip in and out that like neighbors, 325 00:22:11,260 --> 00:22:15,680 even after the murder wouldn't be like, oh, this person, this person was in the neighborhood, 326 00:22:15,680 --> 00:22:19,260 they would just like write them off very quickly and not even think about it. 327 00:22:19,260 --> 00:22:26,560 So yeah, it's just a horrible case and a calculated case. 328 00:22:26,560 --> 00:22:31,720 And it makes me wonder, has this person done anything like this since then? 329 00:22:31,720 --> 00:22:32,960 I don't know. 330 00:22:32,960 --> 00:22:38,960 But it just seems like one of those murders where you probably wouldn't stop at one. 331 00:22:38,960 --> 00:22:44,200 And even the police think that at one point that they're nervous that the suspect will 332 00:22:44,200 --> 00:22:46,200 strike again. 333 00:22:46,200 --> 00:22:53,480 I echo you that like it really could until we know just even just a few more details, 334 00:22:53,480 --> 00:23:04,160 it could be a multitude of horrifying storylines, you know, or events. 335 00:23:04,160 --> 00:23:10,560 You know, in this case, the FBI and the police, they created this profile with like very specific 336 00:23:10,560 --> 00:23:15,160 points on who the suspect could be, you know, what happened to him in the days leading up 337 00:23:15,160 --> 00:23:22,240 to the murder, how he was acting afterwards, his mindset, his education level, all of that 338 00:23:22,240 --> 00:23:25,680 is out there. 339 00:23:25,680 --> 00:23:28,800 Kind of like making this like shadow of a suspect. 340 00:23:28,800 --> 00:23:32,960 And it's hard not to like want to fill it in yourself. 341 00:23:32,960 --> 00:23:40,960 But with all this specificity, I almost wonder if police kind of have a suspect in mind, 342 00:23:40,960 --> 00:23:46,240 and they're kind of loosely describing him hoping that more people will call in with 343 00:23:46,240 --> 00:23:52,560 this person's name, or maybe this person will like trip up somehow and talk to somebody 344 00:23:52,560 --> 00:23:59,520 or, you know, kind of revisit the crime scene, drive by it, you know, kind of catch him in 345 00:23:59,520 --> 00:24:01,040 that way. 346 00:24:01,040 --> 00:24:05,560 So I do wonder if the police do have somebody in mind. 347 00:24:05,560 --> 00:24:09,560 And we know over the years they have named other suspects. 348 00:24:09,560 --> 00:24:13,560 But I wonder if there's somebody that they haven't named yet that's kind of sitting 349 00:24:13,560 --> 00:24:17,400 in their file, just kind of waiting for those pieces to fall into place. 350 00:24:17,400 --> 00:24:23,120 And hopefully with this 2022 update, they do have more DNA, they are able to put those 351 00:24:23,120 --> 00:24:28,680 pieces into place and really finally find the person who did this because they do believe 352 00:24:28,680 --> 00:24:33,320 it was one person that that part they seem pretty sure of. 353 00:24:33,320 --> 00:24:39,200 But again, if you know anything about the murder of Jenny Lin, please call the Alameda 354 00:24:39,200 --> 00:24:51,920 County Sheriff's Office at 510-667-3622 or the FBI San Francisco office at 415-553-7400. 355 00:24:51,920 --> 00:24:57,160 And I just want to give a quick shout out we had a new written Apple podcast review, 356 00:24:57,160 --> 00:24:59,240 which was so kind, so thoughtful. 357 00:24:59,240 --> 00:25:02,760 Thank you so much for taking time out of your day to do that. 358 00:25:02,760 --> 00:25:07,600 And if you maybe have a couple extra minutes today before you move on to your next podcast 359 00:25:07,600 --> 00:25:11,640 or your next task, if you could just leave us a written review if you're an Apple or 360 00:25:11,640 --> 00:25:16,600 a five star thumbs up whatever the metric is in your favorite podcast player, it would 361 00:25:16,600 --> 00:25:22,080 be so helpful in others finding these cold cases and missing people cases and just getting 362 00:25:22,080 --> 00:25:23,760 their names out there. 363 00:25:23,760 --> 00:25:30,840 You can also visit our website www.coldandmissing.com where we have transcripts of all of our podcast 364 00:25:30,840 --> 00:25:35,400 episodes so if you or someone you love is hard of hearing, they can follow along and 365 00:25:35,400 --> 00:25:39,320 learn about these cases through our transcripts of each episode. 366 00:25:39,320 --> 00:25:42,160 We also have our YouTube videos up on there. 367 00:25:42,160 --> 00:25:46,280 You can subscribe to our YouTube channel if that's maybe where you like to intake your 368 00:25:46,280 --> 00:25:47,280 media. 369 00:25:47,280 --> 00:25:51,100 There's lots of conversations happening in the comments so you can join us over there 370 00:25:51,100 --> 00:25:54,520 to kind of chat in real time if that's what you're into. 371 00:25:54,520 --> 00:25:59,800 And of course, we will be posting pictures of Jenny on our Instagram this week as well 372 00:25:59,800 --> 00:26:06,200 as the suspect sketch that her father John Lin had commissioned about the man who approached 373 00:26:06,200 --> 00:26:10,360 him talking about his daughter two weeks before Jenny's murder. 374 00:26:10,360 --> 00:26:15,320 We'll also be posting that this week so if you're not following us yet, please find us 375 00:26:15,320 --> 00:26:18,560 on Instagram at cold and missing will pop right up. 376 00:26:18,560 --> 00:26:23,520 Our logo is the same as it is in your podcast player so we should be pretty easy to find. 377 00:26:23,520 --> 00:26:28,000 And we also post throughout the week on our stories of active missing person cases that 378 00:26:28,000 --> 00:26:34,440 are happening or developments in other cases around the country that fall into cold and 379 00:26:34,440 --> 00:26:35,440 missing. 380 00:26:35,440 --> 00:26:40,260 So please follow us there if you like just taking in true crime and kind of being part 381 00:26:40,260 --> 00:26:48,520 of the advocacy work of cold cases and missing people and specifically cases that need a 382 00:26:48,520 --> 00:26:51,760 little bit more attention that haven't gotten the media coverage. 383 00:26:51,760 --> 00:26:55,200 But that is all I have. 384 00:26:55,200 --> 00:26:57,000 Thanks for listening to cold and missing. 385 00:26:57,000 --> 00:27:02,640 I'm your host, Ali McLaughlin, so Kowski and I'm your co host Eli so Kowski. 386 00:27:02,640 --> 00:27:04,440 Have a great week and stay safe y'all. 387 00:27:04,440 --> 00:27:31,440 Stay safe y'all.