LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — After 44 years, a California cold case victim has been identified as a Las Vegas man.
On Feb. 2, 1980, the Solano County Sheriff's Office was called to a property in Benicia, a city about 40 miles east of San Francisco, after a body was found in a creek bed.
At the time, investigators discovered that the man had died as a result of corrosive esophagitis, which happens from ingesting a chemical substance that is not meant for human consumption. However, they weren't able to identify who the victim was.
In July 2023, the case was re-opened and the body was exhumed.
Over the course of 15 months, investigators used facial reconstruction, new DNA testing, and forensic genetic genealogy to determine that the victim was 25-year-old Donald Horecka from Las Vegas.
The sheriff's office says Horecka went missing from Nevada sometime in the late 1970s to early 1980.
If you or anyone you know has information about the disappearance or death of Horecka, you can contact Coroner Investigator Jessica Dew at (707) 784-7500.
