Police struggling to identify remains of a woman found east of Toronto five years ago have turned to a forensic artist in the hopes her work will yield new clues.
The case dates back to 2006, when police discovered a woman's remains in a field in Clarington, about 80 kilometres east of Toronto.
The victim was a Caucasian female between 18 and 30 years old whose body could have been in the field for two to 10 years before it was found near the Darlington nuclear power plant and Highway 401.
A skull, femur and some other bones were all that were left when the remains were discovered.
Police believe animals probably carried off the rest of the woman's body, but found a women's size 9.5 gold ring, a multi-coloured shirt and a watch. The custom-made garnet ring was sold at an Oshawa jewelry store in the 1980s. Police believe Consumers Distributing was the exclusive seller of the digital watch found near the remains.
Diana Trepkov, Ontario's only forensic artist certified by the International Association for Identification, used the skull to create what she believes is an accurate portrait of the unidentified woman. She described the two-day process as a mathematical one that required very little guesswork, except when it came to the hairstyle.
"There was no hair with the skull," she told CTV's Canada AM on Monday. "But those are her teeth exactly. We're hoping someone will recognize her by her teeth."
Police hope the two-dimensional facial reconstruction will trigger someone's memory and help them identify the victim. They created a DNA profile for the woman last year but have not found any matches.
Anyone with information on this case is asked to call Durham Regional Police Det. Chuck Nash at 905-579-1520, extension 5402.
