Summit County Ties Bundy to 1974 Slaying of Utah Teenager

Summit County, Utah, authorities said Tuesday that DNA evidence connects convicted killer Ted Bundy to the 1974 homicide of 17-year-old Melissa Ann Smith, a case that had been listed as a cold case. The county sheriff and county attorney announced the findings at a news conference in Park City, Utah, and said they had closed the investigation into Smith's death. Her body was found by a hunter more than 50 years ago.

Smith was 17 when she was killed in 1974. Bundy was executed in 1989 by electric chair in Florida for the 1978 murders of two women at the Chi Omega sorority house at Florida State University. He has been dead for nearly 40 years, but advances in DNA testing have allowed investigators to confirm additional cases. Bundy killed at least 30 women and girls across several states during the 1970s, and other victims escaped or survived with injuries.

In April, Utah authorities said Bundy was responsible for the 1974 killing of Laura Ann Aime, 17, who disappeared on Halloween of that year. Bundy also gave a series of confessions in his final days, including to crimes previously unknown to police, though not all of those cases have been confirmed.

The Summit County sheriff's office said the sheriff and county attorney would provide information on the investigation, the findings behind the conclusion, and the decision to close the case. The announcement was made Tuesday in Park City, Utah.