{"id":1744,"date":"2026-06-05T06:03:51","date_gmt":"2026-06-05T06:03:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/scottsdalemovinghub.com\/?p=1744"},"modified":"2026-06-05T06:03:51","modified_gmt":"2026-06-05T06:03:51","slug":"remains-of-teenage-girl-identified-almost-four-decades-later","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/scottsdalemovinghub.com\/?p=1744","title":{"rendered":"Remains of teenage girl identified almost four decades later"},"content":{"rendered":"
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PHOENIX \u2014 The remains found in Bullhead City in 1989 have been identified almost four decades later, said the city’s police department.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Read more Arizona Supreme Court won\u2019t review rulings that crippled \u2018fake electors\u2019 case stemming from 2020 election<\/a><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

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Through the use of advanced DNA genealogy tests, the Bullhead City police were able to identify the skeletal remains of “Castleberry Kate” as Sonya Alice Langan.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

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A construction crew discovered skeletal remains buried in a vacant lot on Castleberry Lane in Bullhead City on May 15, 1989. Investigators believed the victim was between 17 and 19 years old, and evidence showed she had been dead for approximately two to ten years before the remains were found.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

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A bullet recovered from Langan’s skull confirmed the case was a homicide.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

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“Despite extensive investigative efforts over the years, the victim remained unidentified and the case went unsolved,” the Bullhead City Police Department said in a news release.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

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In 2004, the Bullhead City Police Department was approached by the Mohave County Sheriff’s Office Special Investigations Unit regarding a federal grant for forensic genealogy in the case, allowing evidence from the case to be submitted to the\u00a0DNA Doe Project.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

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Investigative genetic genealogists were able to develop a 99% match, identifying the victim as Sonya Langan in late 2025.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

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Bullhead City detectives contacted surviving relatives and learned that Langan was never formally reported missing to law enforcement. According to family members, Sonya was about 17 or 18 years old when she left home around 1982.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

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According to the news release, detectives also learned that “strained family relationships” and long periods of time without contact among relatives were not uncommon, which led the family to believe she left home voluntarily “due to unhappiness at home.”<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

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“Family members fully cooperated with investigators and provided DNA samples to assist in confirming Sonya\u2019s identity,” the Bullhead City Police Department said in a news release. “In May 2026, Sonya Langan was positively identified as the victim in this cold case homicide investigation.”<\/p>\n

Read more Data center \u2018heat waste\u2019 puts strain on nearby houses and drives up their AC bills, ASU researcher says<\/a><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

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Family said Langan dropped out of Kingman High School as a freshman in 1979, before they moved to Bullhead City. They lived near River Glen Drive in Bullhead City, and Sonya worked at Burger King before she left home.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

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The homicide case is open and under investigation. If anyone has any information regarding Langan or her disappearance or death, they should reach out to the Bullhead City Police Department.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

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PHOENIX \u2014 The remains found in Bullhead City in 1989 have been identified almost four decades later, said the city’s police department.\u00a0 Read more Arizona Supreme Court won\u2019t review rulings that crippled \u2018fake electors\u2019 case stemming from 2020 election Through the use of advanced DNA genealogy tests, the Bullhead City police were able to identify […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1743,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1744","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-arizona"],"yoast_head":"\nRemains of teenage girl identified almost four decades later - Scottsdale Moving Hub<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/scottsdalemovinghub.com\/?p=1744\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Remains of teenage girl identified almost four decades later - 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