Cold case of missing woman solved, search for her killer continues

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KCTV) - A grieving daughter, who was a toddler when her mother disappeared, now knows what happened to her mom after a Kansas City Police Department detective and crime analyst recently solved a 39-year-old cold case.

The daughter filed a missing person report this summer, and Intelligence Analyst Darin Lee and Detective Nathan Kinate uncovered the truth.

“I spent my entire life looking for my mother wondering where was she at and what happened to her,” said Deoina Mitchell. “I assumed the people in her life did everything possible to locate her. No one cared enough to do what should have been done. It is never too late to do what needs to be done.”

Someone killed Gwendolyn Robinson in 1983, discarding her body in rural Clay County.

When Lee saw Robinson’s picture, he instantly recalled a composite he’d seen five years earlier, and DNA would prove him right. After matching DNA tests from Mitchell to the bones found, Kinate and Lee found Mitchell’s mother.

“It was hard for her to hear,” Kinate said of telling Mitchell. “The one saving grace was that your mom didn’t leave you. She was taken from you.”

Police addressed the cold case findings Thursday morning.

“We are asking for the public’s help in finding justice and truth for her mother,” said Zach Thompson, an assistant prosecutor in Clay County. “If you have any information relevant to this case we would ask you to contact the Clay County Sheriff’s Department or the Kansas City Missouri Police Department.”

The Clay County’s Sheriff’s Office is asking anyone with information on Robinson’s murder to come forward. Contact Sergeant Chris Johnson at 816-407-3723. You can also remain anonymous by visiting https://www.kccrimestoppers.com/.

This story will be updated.

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