Students in the WMU Cold Case Program assist Michigan State Police detectives in their investigations on some of Michigan's unsolved cold and missing person cases. We work with detectives from multiple districts in Michigan, and with victim’s family members in many cases that span decades. The Program has already helped detectives bring closure to two decades-old murders with possibilities for more solved cases on the horizon.
Solved Cases
Jeanette Wilton
WMU students from the Cold Case Program assisted detectives from the Third District Cold Case Team in reorganizing the case file and then digitizing it to allow for detailed searches of all digital material. The 57 year old woman Jeanette Wilton from Saginaw, MI was found dead in Flint River. Suspect charged in December 2024.
Roxanne Wood
A 30-year-old woman named Roxanne was found dead in her Niles, Michigan home on February 19, 1987. The identity of her killer remained a mystery for over 30 years. But in 2020, the Michigan State Police reopened the case and enlisted the help of the WMU Cold Case Team and Dr. Colleen Fitzpatrick of Identifinders International. With their combined efforts, the long-standing question of who murdered Roxanne was finally answered. The stunning revelation led to the arrest and conviction of Patrick Gilham in 2022.
Cathy Swartz
On a very cold, wintery day, December 2nd, 1988, 19-year-old Cathy Swartz was found dead on the floor of her bedroom apartment by her fiancé when he returned home from work in the afternoon. She appeared to have been beaten and stabbed to death. Detectives also noted there were signs of attempted rape and self-defense wounds. Cathy’s 8-month-old daughter was in her crib unharmed. There were no signs of forced entry into her home so she possibly knew her attacker. The only evidence left at the scene was DNA found on her body and bloody hand-prints in her home.
Current Cases
Brittany Shank
Students from the Cold Case Program have helped detectives from St. Joseph County Sheriff’s office and the Michigan State Police in their investigation into the disappearance of Brittany Shank. Students have created timelines and helped organize a massive case file. In 2018, Brittany, 23, was last seen around 9:00 PM after crashing her vehicle in a ditch near Fawn River Road in Sturgis, Michigan.
Linda Meteer
In the late afternoon of Thursday, April 27, 1989, the body of Linda Marie Meteer, a 41 year old mother of five children was discovered in Hoosier Valley, near Traverse City. Students in the program are helping detectives at the Grand Traverse County Sheriff’s Office by digitizing Linda’s case file and creating various documents like detailed timelines and other searchable documents to help their work.
Janis Sanders
The disappearance of Janis Sanders is a haunting mystery that has remained unsolved for nearly five decades. On July 20, 1975, Janis was last seen leaving her job as a waitress in Niles, Michigan. Her estranged boyfriend, whom she had recently ended things with, followed her to the parking lot as she left work. The following day, Janis was reported missing by her family. Despite their efforts, the case remained cold for years while her two children dedicated decades to finding new leads and convincing authorities to reopen the investigation. In September 2022, MSP reopened the case and enlisted the help of the WMU Cold Case team to help solve this chilling mystery. In November 2022, MSP updated Janis' classification from Missing Person to Homicide Abducted.
Anne Paetz
The mysterious murder of 23-year-old Anne Paetz still haunts investigators more than two decades later. Anne was driving from her Saginaw home to Montrose, but she never arrived at her destination. Her body was found 15 miles away from where her car was found on July 2nd, 1999. The case remains unsolved. But hope remains, as the WMU Cold Case Program works with detectives to help uncover the truth.
Randa Jawhari
2009, Randa Jawhari was reported missing from her apartment on Shiawassee Ave. in Fenton, MI. Seven WMU students have spent approximately 2000 hours assisting the Fenton Police Department in their investigation of Randa Jawhari’s disappearance. Some of the tasks they performed included creating a digital case file, index of people and a timeline.
Jacob Cabinaw
2010, Jacob Cabinaw played disc golf with a friend and headed home from work to do some homework. Five WMU students are assisting the Grand Traverse Sheriff’s Office in their investigation of Jacob Cabinaw’s disappearance. Some of the tasks they are performing include creating a digital case file, an index of people, social media, and phone records, and forming timelines and maps of his travel.
Note: Given the confidential nature of investigations and cold cases, the list of current cases is not necessarily reflective of all cases the WMU Cold Case Program is working on.