Four decades ago, the body of a Texas woman had been found burning in the woods and it wasn’t until May 11, 2021, that her murderer got arrested.
Laura Purchase was found on fire along Interstate 45 in Montgomery County, Texas on March 17, 1983.
She was burned beyond recognition and identified through her fingerprints. Detectives determined she was a rape victim.
That same year, serial killer Henry Lee Lucas admitted to Purchase’s murder and for decades was believed to be the perpetrator until 2007.
A Cold Case Squad investigating the murder resubmitted DNA samples from the scene and it was proven that Lucas had nothing to do with Purchase’s death.
Instead, genealogy testing results showed that a Kansas City resident matched the evidence gathered from the murder scene.
Thomas Elvin Darnell, 75, was arrested and charged with murder. He’d since been extradited to Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office Jail where he remains without bond.
