Credit: Montrose County Sheriff's Office
Windy Point Jane Doe’s remains were found on July 7, 1994 in the area of Windy Point by a citizen who was hiking in the area with family. The hiker notified the Montrose County Sheriff’s Office (Colorado) and an investigation was opened to determine who and what happened to Windy Point Jane Doe. However, with little to go on, the case went cold.
In August 2020, Commander Ted Valerio of the Montrose County Sheriff’s Office requested to submit samples taken from Windy Point Jane Doe to the Colorado Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for genetic genealogy analysis.
The green light was given and investigators Dustin Harlow and Brittany Martinez submitted a letter of request to CBI for analysis to acquire DNA from the remains and to enter the markers into CODIS, as well as NamUS. There was hope that testing would result in the identification of relatives of Windy Point Jane Doe or even Jane Doe herself.
On April 19, CBI’s Cold Case Division identified Windy Point Jane Doe as Susan Hoppes, a woman from the state of Washington on August 9, 1993. Dental records confirmed Hoppes identity.
This case is now being investigated by the Montrose County Sheriff’s Office and the Montrose County Coroner’s Office as a homicide.