Body Found Nearly a Year Ago Identified

JACKSONVILLE — Cherokee County authorities have announced a body found nearly a year ago has been identified. The body found between Alto and Wells on September 3, 2014, has been identified as that of Julie Ann Wiggins, a transient, in her early 50s. Her body was found while TXDOT crews were mowing near the intersection of US Highway 69 and County Road 2620. It took a DNA sample to determine the woman’s identity.

Because the body was in the median for such a long time, it took forensic testing to determine her name. The initial autopsy was performed by a Tyler lab. The body was then sent to the University of North Texas Health and Science Center’s Department of Molecular and Medical Genetics Department. They collected the DNA and entered it into a national data base. The DNA profile matched that of Wiggins, whose DNA profile had been entered into the system by Arizona Department of Public Safety’s Crime Lab. As far as the cause of her death, that has yet to be determined.