LANCASTER COUNTY, Pa. — Lancaster County Coroner Dr. Stephen Diamantoni announced on Monday that DNA analysis led to the positive identification of skeletal remains discovered 12 years ago in West Donegal Township.
The remains are those of Mitchell L. Mendelson, 60, of Elizabethtown, Diamantoni said in a press release.
They were discovered by a hunter in a wooded area off Cemetery Road in West Donegal Township on Nov. 1, 2012.
Diamantoni said the remains were identified through genetic genealogy and mitochondrial DNA testing methods.
The cause and manner of Mendelson's death are undetermined, Diamantoni said.
"This case highlights the difficulty in working cold cases and the considerable efforts taken to identify and return unclaimed and unidentified persons back to their loved ones," Diamantoni said in a press release.
To determine how long the remains had been in the woods, Diamantoni said that a forensic entomologist was used during the recovery of the remains in 2012. DNA extraction was done a year later, followed by a skeletal analysis by a forensic anthropologist.
Using the skull, the Federal Bureau of Investigation developed a facial sketch that was circulated through local media.
It took until 2023, when genetic genealogy was first utilized, for there to be a breakthrough in the case, Diamantoni said. A potential identification was made earlier this year and confirmed by mitochondrial DNA testing in November.
Mendelson's next of kin have been notified, Diamantoni said.
Mendelson was a retired bus driver with the Red Rose Transit Authority who moved from Lancaster to Elizabethtown in 2011, according to Diamantoni.
