ROCK RAPIDS, Iowa -- One day after Lyon County Sheriff Blythe Bloemendaal led a press conference to announce the real name of the Jane Doe discovered 27 years ago near Rock Rapids, there was a possible break in the case.
Friday afternoon, the sheriff's department issued a statement saying that a phone call was received from a young woman claiming to be the daughter of Wilma June Nissen.
According to the press release, the sheriff's department has verified most of the information the caller gave and believes it to be true.
"The final test will be a DNA match, which we are in the process of doing," said Bloemendaal in the release.
Nissen's identity was learned after her fingerprints were matched with law enforcement records in California. The woman is believed to have used aliases including Wilma June Wellington, Boots Wellington and Wilma June Belt.
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From the information the sheriff's department has uncovered so far, the woman lived in various towns in California. Her last known whereabouts was in Long Beach, Calif., in 1975.
It is not known how she ended up dead and laying in a Lyon County ditch in 1978 -- or who killed her.
Bloemendaal credited the media for their coverage of Thursday's press conference, which ultimately led to the young woman's phone call.
"Because of your press, we received this and we want to thank the media for this huge break," he said.
