Attempt to Match: NamUs #UP149967 Compared to Local Missing Women

Thank you for reading. Below, I look at a Jane Doe who was found in St. Louis City, Missouri, and compare the case details to the missing women in the area. - Shane Lambert

Table 1: Summary of Jane Doe (NamUs #UP149967)

Field	Details
NamUs Number	#UP149967
Biological Sex	Female
Race/Ethnicity	Uncertain
Estimated Age Group	Adult - Pre 50
Height	5'4" (64 inches), Estimated
Weight	Cannot Estimate
Date Body Found	September 21, 1993 (Tuesday)
Location Found	St. Louis City, MO (near Hall St & Humboldt Ave, 38°41'59.8"N 90°13'11.2"W) Google Maps goes back to October 2009 for the area, well after the remains were found. I did note some train tracks with bushes nearby in what looks like an industrial area.
County	St. Louis City County, MO
Condition of Remains	Not recognizable - Near complete or complete skeleton
Estimated Time of Death	I would think likely March–August 1993 (1–6 months prior), possibly earlier if the remains were well hidden
Circumstances	Decomposed remains discovered in St. Louis City
Physical Description	No hair, eye color, or distinctive features reported
Clothing/Accessories	No information entered
ME/C Case Number	CITY-1993-1948

Table 2: Missing Women Ranked by Likelihood of Matching Jane Doe

I looked at missing women who were 5'1" to 5'7", aged 50 or younger, from St. Louis City County or neighboring counties (St. Louis County, Jefferson County, St. Charles County, Franklin County, Madison County, St. Clair County), and who went missing before the Jane Doe was found on September 21, 1993. With few details on the Jane Doe's demographics, I developed the list below. The list only reflects my speculation and opinion.

I deemed a missing person more likely to be the Jane Doe based on the time of disappearance (early 1990s, 1990–1992, is most likely, as the ruled-out cases of Janice Dietz and Donna Jenson suggest a death around that time), age (closer to 50 is more likely, given the pre-50 designation), and proximity to the discovery location. The Jane Doe did not appear in the newspaper archives I have access to, nor did she have many details in her NamUs profile, making this a difficult case.

Two cases below have been included with the strikethrough feature. These are missing women in the area, but they are already listed among the rule-outs at NamUs for this Jane Doe.

Janice Dietz would be the most-likely match for the Jane Doe but the authorities have already ruled her out. My top guess would be that the Jane Doe was Lisa Beste, meaning I will take a close look at her case.

Rank	Name	NamUs #	Last Contact	Age	Location	County	Distance (miles)	Time Score	Age Score	Geo Score	Weighted Score
1	Janice Dietz	MP84771	09/10/1991	33	St. Louis, MO	St. Louis City	~5	100.0	66.0	83.3	83.0
2	Lisa Beste	MP19739	01/07/1992	24	Affton, MO	St. Louis County	~9	100.0	48.0	70.0	75.4
3	Nancy Brannon	MP228	11/26/1986	34	Shrewsbury, MO	St. Louis County	~8	80.0	68.0	73.3	74.4
4	Deborah Dean	MP1506	05/03/1985	23	St. Louis, MO	St. Louis City	~5	80.0	46.0	83.3	70.8
5	Donna Jenson	MP43420	04/22/1990	30	Collinsville, IL	Madison, IL	~20	100.0	60.0	33.3	68.3
6	Patricia Girou	MP3871	06/11/1975	45	St. Louis County, MO	St. Louis County	~10	40.0	90.0	66.7	63.0
7	Donna Mezo	MP6401	02/18/1992	16	Belleville, IL	St. Clair, IL	~20	100.0	32.0	33.3	59.6
8	Pauline Szwedo	MP43418	01/14/1975	46	East Saint Louis, IL	St. Clair, IL	~15	40.0	92.0	50.0	58.6
9	Diana Braungardt	MP3253	03/11/1987	18	Festus, MO	Jefferson, MO	~15	80.0	36.0	50.0	57.8
10	Mary Weekly	MP24532	03/03/1978	25	St. Louis, MO	St. Louis City	~5	40.0	50.0	83.3	55.9
11	Sandra Stanek	MP43419	05/01/1986	23	O'Fallon, IL	St. Clair, IL	~20	80.0	46.0	33.3	55.8
12	Kathy Pendelton	MP108901	05/31/1976	22	St. Louis, MO	St. Louis City	~5	40.0	44.0	83.3	54.2
13	Marie Mueller	MP33954	03/05/1972	43	Frontenac, MO	St. Louis County	~10	20.0	86.0	66.7	53.8
14	Phyllis Corbin	MP50556	11/01/1963	16	St. Louis, MO	St. Louis City	~5	10.0	32.0	83.3	38.5
15	Tammy Surdam	MP34986	08/10/1979	13	St. Charles, MO	St. Charles, MO	~15	40.0	26.0	50.0	38.8

How You Can Help

Try to enhance the details of the Jane Doe's case. Finding a newspaper article would help with that. At time of writing, the Websleuths forum for this Jane Doe was not well developed.

Why is Lisa Marie Beste the Top Pick?

Lisa Marie Beste, missing since January 7, 1992.

Lisa Marie Beste (NamUs #MP19739) is the top non-ruled-out candidate to match the Jane Doe (NamUs #UP149967), found skeletonized on September 21, 1993, in St. Louis City, Missouri, due to her weighted-average alignment with key criteria: time of disappearance, age, and geographic proximity. 

The exclusion of Janice Dietz (missing since 1991) and Donna Jenson (missing since 1990) suggests investigators estimated the Jane Doe’s death in the early 1990s, making Beste’s disappearance on January 7th, 1992, highly relevant. Skeletonization could occur fairly rapidly in St. Louis due the warm and humid climate but the exact conditions aren't available.

Beste was 24 years old when she went missing from Affton, St. Louis County. That's not the best age for the Jane Doe, who was listed as pre-50. I assumed that their designation of pre-50 implied that they had some reason to think she might be closer to 50 than other Does, who receive lower-age estimates (ie. pre-40).

Beste's height was also a close match, NamUs says she was 5'1" to 5'3" and the Jane Doe was estimated at 5'4". The difference is not significant as morticians often struggle with height estimates when looking at skeletonized remains.

Beste was last seen just 9 miles from the Jane Doe’s discovery site at Hall Street and Humboldt Avenue. Beste’s temporal and geographic alignment makes her the strongest candidate, though her younger age slightly tempers the match. Further forensic analysis, like dental records, could confirm or refute this hypothesis. Furthermore, more case details that may be available in newspapers or online would be welcomed to improve match potential.