The murder of Sylvia Quayle
Cherry Hills Village, Arapahoe County, Colorado · 1981
Overview
Sylvia Quayle, 34, was sexually assaulted, stabbed, strangled, and shot to death inside her Cherry Hills Village, Colorado home, where her father found her on August 4, 1981. The case stayed cold for roughly four decades until investigative genetic genealogy traced crime-scene DNA to David Dwayne Anderson, a former local who had moved to Cozad, Nebraska. He was convicted of first-degree murder in 2022 and sentenced to life in prison.
How it was solved
Cherry Hills Village police began working with United Data Connect, the genetic-genealogy firm founded by former Denver District Attorney Mitch Morrissey, in 2020, uploading the unidentified male crime-scene DNA profile to the FamilyTreeDNA and GEDmatch databases. The resulting family tree of more than 3,300 people pointed investigators to David Dwayne Anderson, by then living in Cozad, Nebraska. An investigator secretly collected his discarded DNA — from a soda can pulled from his trash in January 2021 — and the lab confirmed it matched DNA recovered from the crime scene, leading to his arrest, conviction, and life sentence.
Sources
- Investigator's dumpster dive for DNA nets conviction in 40-year-old murder case
“On Feb. 10, 2021, Anderson was taken into custody in Nebraska and was charged with two counts of murder.”
- Colorado Man Convicted of Murder More Than 40 Years After He Raped, Stabbed and Shot Woman in Her Home
“DNA matched multiple items of evidence recovered from Sylvia Quayle's body and residence.”
- Colorado Cold Case Files — Case Detail: Sylvia Quayle
“Family members of Sylvia Quayle discovered her unresponsive at her residence.”
- 1981 Cold Case: David Dwayne Anderson Arrested For Murder Of Sylvia Quayle
“Investigators used Family Tree DNA and GEDmatch; the family tree analyzed contained over 3,300 people.”
- Convicted murderer sentenced in 1981 Cherry Hills cold case
“Life imprisonment with parole eligibility after 20 calendar years; sentencing date August 4, 2022, 41 years after the murder.”
- After four decades, justice finally arrived for Sylvia Quayle
“United Data Connect (UDC), founded by former Denver DA Mitch Morrissey; conviction June 30, 2022; sentencing August 4, 2022.”
- Cozad man found guilty of murder in 1981 Colorado cold case
“On January 17th of 2021, an investigator traveled to Cozad to secretly collect DNA from Anderson.”