3 woman approach a house to promote chewing gum. And just like that two cold case murders from the 1980s were solved

The resolution of two cold case murders from the 1980s came down to a surprisingly simple, yet clever, undercover operation involving a stick of chewing gum. Mitchell Gaff, a 68-year-old man, ended up providing the exact DNA evidence investigators needed to link him to the deaths of Judy Weaver and Susan Vesey, according to a report from CNN.

In January 2024, undercover detective Susan Logothetti and two colleagues approached Gaff’s home in Everett, Washington, disguised as representatives for a chewing gum company. Gaff opened the door, invited the team inside, and was happy to participate in a taste test. “I remember watching him spit the first piece of gum into the ramekin and seeing the saliva, and it was very hard for me to contain my excitement,” she recalled.

This was the final piece of a puzzle that had been missing for decades. Gaff, who is a convicted rapist, admitted to the murders of both Weaver and Vesey on April 16th. He is now facing up to life in prison, with his sentencing scheduled for May 13th.

That was how close they were to justice for decades

Susan Vesey was only 21 when she was murdered in July 1980, and Judy Weaver was killed four years later in 1984. For a long time, these cases were treated as separate cases, and detectives couldn’t find a path to prosecution. 

Everything changed with the introduction of modern DNA technology. Forensic scientists used software called STRmix to analyze degraded samples, allowing them to isolate specific DNA profiles even when they only had tiny amounts of material to work with. It has identified criminals and even exonerated many of the falsely accused.

When considering evidence in Weaver’s case, scientists were able to narrow down a profile from a binding found at the crime scene. They then checked this against the national database known as CODIS in November 2023, and found a match, Gaff. He was already in the system due to his 1984 conviction for raping two teenage sisters.

Just that match wasn’t enough for a prosecution. The detectives still needed to confirm it with a fresh sample. Logothetti admitted that the gum ruse was a unique approach for her team, “which I thought was kind of crazy at the time.” She noted that she had “never been a part of anything this elaborate.”

The results were definitive. The DNA from the gum was a consistent match with evidence found on Weaver’s body. After this breakthrough, the investigation into Vesey’s death also gained momentum. Logothetti found startling similarities between the two cases after speaking with Vesey’s husband. Testing on a piece of cord from that crime scene confirmed Gaff’s involvement there as well.

The impact of these closures is profound for the families involved. Prosecuting attorney Craig Matheson noted the massive shift in forensic capabilities. “The things they can do now compared to what they were able to do or not do 20 years ago is very significant,” he said. In fact, DNA analysis is slowly helping deal with many cold cases, like the case of baby Rebecca.

For Logothetti, the goal was always about giving these families the truth they deserved. As she put it, the cases “just needed science to catch up.”