On October 16th, 2012, a driver in Houston pulled over along the shoulder of the traffic-heavy Walters Road, to check for a problem with their hubcap. While engaged in this pursuit, the driver noticed a large, black plastic garbage bag tossed in a pile of trash near the gate to a gravel road leading to a nearby private oil field. The bag looked somewhat suspicious, and when the driver reported the find to the police, these suspicions were confirmed: the bag contained another identical black garbage bag, which in turn housed the partially skeletonized remains of a young girl, curled up in the fetal position.
Forensic examination revealed that the victim was likely between fifteen and seventeen years old, and had been dead for three to six weeks prior to her body being found. She was probably mixed-race, Caucasian and African-American, and had curly, dark brown hair that had been dyed at some stage and was held back with a bobby pin. The victim was unusually small, perhaps between four-foot-seven and five feet tall, and the examination indicated that she had likely been frequently ill, or grown up in poverty, or both. She also had a facial asymmetry that may have been noticeable while she was alive, and her teeth were heavily decayed, with three fillings in her lower molars. An isotopic analysis of her remains suggested that she was probably not from Houston, but more likely hailed from South Texas, perhaps Austin or San Antonio.
The girl was found fully clothed, clad in size five cargo pants and a striking teal shirt with the character of Smurfette printed on it, and the words, “He Smurfs Me, He Smurfs Me Not.” This shirt gave the unidentified victim her nickname, Smurfette Jane Doe. Despite an exhaustive investigation as to where the distinctive shirt may have been purchased, law enforcement officers were never able to pin it down, and that promising lead went nowhere.
Because the victim’s underclothes were considered more “adult,” consisting of a black bra and lingerie-style pink panties, investigators theorized that the girl may have been a victim of sex trafficking, especially since the area near where her body was found was a known hotspot for brothels and trafficking activity.
Though the body of Smurfette Jane Doe was too decomposed to determine a cause of death, the fact that her remains were so obviously dumped gave a strong indication of homicide. The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children is involved in her case, and so far has ruled out seventeen missing girls as the victim. Sadly, however, neither the identity of Smurfette Jane Doe nor that of her killer is known at this writing.
Crime Immemorial 