Share and speak up for justice, law & order…
TAMPA, Fla. — A baby who went missing after her parents were killed in Texas has been found alive more than 40 years later, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announced in a press release.
Holly Marie Clouse was identified as the missing infant, and she is alive and well in Oklahoma. She is also the mother of five children and two infant grandchildren, The Houston Chronicle reported.
Holly Marie’s parents, Harold Dean Clouse, 21, and Tina Gail Clouse, 17, vanished suddenly in 1980. The couple had recently moved from Volusia County, Florida to Texas so Harold could pursue carpentry work. Their daughter was born in Texas, according to KHOU.
In 1981, a dog discovered the couple’s remains in some woods in Harris County. According to the news outlet, the couple suffered a violent death.
Authorities revealed that Harold Clouse had been beaten, bound and gagged while Tina Clouse had been strangled. There was no sign of a baby, and the couples’ identities remained a mystery for years, WFLA reported.
The Clouse’s bodies were exhumed in 2011 and a decade later, in 2021, they were positively identified using new DNA technology.
This couple was killed in 1980, but their remains weren’t ID’d until Oct. 2021. As two mysteries were solved, another was uncovered. @Allison_Peacock learned the couple had a one year old baby. @TXAG cold case unit took on the case & with help they found Holly Marie alive. @KHOU pic.twitter.com/vmQnXKI61L
— Xavier Walton (@xmanwalton) June 9, 2022
Thus far, no arrests have been made in their deaths.
This week, authorities announced they found their daughter. They said Holly Marie, now 42, is alive and residing in Oklahoma.
Investigators visited her at her workplace on Tuesday, serendipitously, her father’s birthday, and informed the woman of the case. Within hours, she met her biological family on a Zoom call, the Chronicle reported.
“Finding Holly is a birthday present from heaven since we found her on Junior’s birthday,” her grandmother, Donna Casasanta said, in a statement released by a family spokeswoman. “I prayed for more than 40 years for answers and the Lord has revealed some of it.”
“I believe Tina is finally resting in peace knowing Holly is reuniting with her family,” Sherry Green, Holly’s aunt said, according to KHOU.
The case was pieced together by the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office in Florida, officials in Texas, and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.
“It’s one of the most meaningful things I’ve ever been a part of,” Det. Steve Wheeler of the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office said. “It’s a once in a lifetime thing to play even a small part in reuniting a family after 40 years.”
The investigation into the murders of Tina and Dean Clouse is ongoing.
Authorities plan to release more details during a press conference Thursday afternoon.
Share and speak up for justice, law & order…
Source: www.lawofficer.com