SAN DIEGO — Police are seeking to identify a woman found murdered more than 30 years ago in Blythe, California. A serial killer nicknamed the Happy Face Killer confessed to murdering the woman in 1992, but her name is still unknown.
The woman’s relative, Summer Gonzales, never knew she had a half-sister until law enforcement contacted her about a year ago. DNA testing on the remains of the woman determined Gonzales’ father was also the father of the unidentified victim.
“I want to get justice and to find the truth for my sister,” said Gonzales.
The father, Alfonso Saldana Gonzales, Sr., died in 2006. He had fathered at least nine children with five women. But none of his known family members was able to identify the woman found murdered in Blythe.
“I knew my dad's character was that he was a ladies’ man. He had a lot of women when he was younger, even in his old age, he had plenty of girlfriends hanging around everywhere. So, I was not shocked. But I was devastated,” said Gonzales.
The Seattle resident sent several photos of her father to CBS 8, hoping the mother of the murder victim might also be identified.
“If anybody recognizes the pictures of my father, and they knew his whereabouts between the years of 1964 and 1967, he would have lived either in Harris County, Houston, Texas, or Santa Barbara County, which is Santa Maria, California,” said Gonzales.
The Riverside County District Attorney’s office has already identified the murderer, Keith Hunter Jesperson, a serial killer nicknamed the Happy Face Killer for a number of confession letters he wrote with smiley faces. He worked as a long-haul truck drive during the 1990s.
“Jesperson is currently serving multiple life sentences for having killed eight women across the country. This woman is the last of all his victims to remain unidentified,” said Riverside County District Attorney, Michael Hestrin.
On Monday, the Riverside DA posted a YouTube video asking for the public’s help. The murder victim may have ties to Southern California, a spokesperson said.
“The killer referred to the women as Claudia, although that may not be her real name,” said Riverside County Sheriff investigator Amy Contreras. “It is suspected in the morning before her death, she caught a ride with a grocery store truck driver traveling from Las Vegas or the Barstow region along the I-15 near the Cajon Pass. Claudia then walked over to Keith Hunter Jespersen while he was working on his purple 1989 Peterbilt. They traveled down the I-10 east to the Burns Brothers truck stop near India. After eating, the two had a heated argument in Jespersen truck. This is where he killed her.”
The woman was between ages 25 and 35 at the time of her death, about 5 feet 7 inches tall with medium build, with brown hair possibly dyed blonde. She also had a tattoo of two black dots on the side of her right thumb.
“We are of Mexican descent, so it's more likely that the person that was my sister's mom, she would have lived among Mexican people,” said Gonzales.
The half-sister of the victim said she was not happy with Riverside officials, because they still won't release her sister's remains to the family so they can have a funeral.
“It would be nice to know her real name. It would be wonderful if I could find her mother's name so that I could include those items on her tombstone. But I know that she is my blood. And I want to lay her to rest with her family. I'm sure that she would have wanted that, too,” said Gonzales.
Investigators said the unidentified murder victim's mother may have been from southeast Texas or Louisiana.
If you have any information, contact the Riverside County District Attorney’s office by calling the Cold Case Hotline at (951) 955-5567, or by emailing coldcaseunit@rivcoda.org
WATCH RELATED: Riverside County District Attorney's office video, The Unknown Victim of the Happy Face Killer