Click a city to find Daniel more easily. Or to keep it anonymous, click here. From there, the Pensacola police, FDLE and Parabon constructed a family tree, starting with the distant relatives, that eventually led them to identify Wells as a suspect. According to the arrest report, there is a less than 1 in 700 billion chance that the DNA from the crime scene is a match to anyone other than Wells. She had been fatally strangled, and sexually assaulted, police said. When the emergency respondents arrived at the scene, they located the corpse lying next to the curb, with her pantyhose pulled down around her ankles and dress pulled up. Arrest: Pensacola police make arrest in 35-year-old cold case murder using familial DNA. He wasn't going to ever just say what he did on his own. "(Tonya) can rest now," Renee said after being told of Wells' arrest. Investigators collected semen, head hair and pubic from Tonya's body and the crime scene. In 1988, he was arrested on suspicion of solicitation of prostitution in Pensacola. However, forensic science was yet to evolve in 1985, and with the police having no leads or suspects, the case went cold. My mom, she never got to raise me, never got to be a part of my life, McKinleys now-grown son Timothy Davidson Jr. said according to the outlet. Wells was booked into the Escambia County Jail on Wednesday and held without bail. "This was a case that spanned three generations of detectives," said PPD Capt. Emailus. She was half-nude, strangled to death and sexually assaulted. According to the arrest report, there is a less than 1 in 700 billion chance that the DNA from the crime scene is a match to anyone other than Wells. Watch: PPD makes oldest cold-case arrest in Pensacola history. She was last seen alive around 1:30 a.m. at Darryls Bar & Grille in Pensacola, and in the early-morning hours of New Years Day, her body was found in an empty lot at the corner of Peacock Drive and Creighton Road, just one block off Scenic Highway. Tonya's older sister, Renee Ethridge, has run the "Tonya Ethridge McKinley Memorial" page on Facebook since 2012 in hopes of keeping her sister's case in the public eye. He was carrying it around with him and he was never going to tell anyone what he did. Now, it seems like we just have a lot more unanswered questions., [Mugshot via Pensacola Police Department], Have a tip we should know? Discover work experience, company details, and more. She said, Her (Tonyas) world revolved around her son.. She had last been seen at a Pensacola bar shortly after the start of the new year. Renee said Tonya loved Rod Stewart and KISS and was trying to make a better life for herself when she was killed. The arrest on Wednesday is the oldest . Wells, 57, was arrested by the Pensacola Police Department on March 18 for the 1985 murder of Tonya Ethridge McKinley. Phone Number: (816) 468-UYKW +3 phones. Years later, thanks to advances in DNA testing, all of the evidence was identified as being from the same person, but no matches were ever found in the national DNA database. The witness tampering charge was dropped after he pleaded no contest to the battery charge. Police surveillance teams then surreptitiously obtained his DNA from a discarded cigarette, which was tested and matched DNA found at the crime scene. "My mom, she never got to raise me, never got to be a part of my life," Davidson said after the arrest. From Haiti Through Liberty City to Top Federal Prosecutor in South Florida: the Unlikely Story of Markenzy Lapointe, Broward Judge to Allow Rapper Kodak Black to Enter Drug Treatment Program, Ex-UM Football Player Accused of Killing Teammate Granted $850K Bond. Pensacola Police announced Thursday that Daniel Leonard Wells, of Pensacola, was arrested Wednesday and charged with homicide and sexual battery. The 1985 killing of Tonya Ethridge McKinley, 23, has been solved, say police in Pensacola, Florida. Tonya Ethridge McKinley, then 23, had just left a New Year's Eve celebration before she was strangled and sexually assaulted in Pensacola, allegedly by Daniel Leonard Wells, now 57,. According to police sources, the alleged murderer had died from self-inflicted injuries. Daniel Wells was arrested in connection with the 1985 murder of Tonya McKinley in Florida. 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Jeffrey M Gallagher, Michelle L Phillips, and three other persons are also associated with this address. ", Download the NBC News app for breaking news and politics. After 35 years, an Escambia County man has been charged with murdering a woman in Pensacola. It seems that every couple of years a new lead would pop up and we would drop everything to run it down, Pensacola cops said in a statement. They found a dead body and immediately notified the authorities. He has been charged with murder and sexual battery. She had been strangled and sexually assaulted, officials said. The57-year-old pleaded not guilty on March 24 and was set for an arraignment in the first week of April. This was from an apparently self-inflicted injury, Escambia County Board of County Commissioners spokesperson Laura Coale told Law&Crime. His first hearing to face charges of first-degree murder and first-degree sexual battery had been scheduled for April 8, the Pensacola News Journal reported. On Wednesday, 35 years later, Pensacola police made an arrest in the case: Daniel Leonard Wells, 57, is facing charges of first-degree murder and first-degree sexual battery. For thirty-five years.. Police surveillance teams then surreptitiously obtained his DNA from a discarded cigarette, which was tested and matched DNA found at the crime scene. Weve your back if youre interested in finding out more about the case and the killers identity. "What is important is that no one forgot Tonya. Pensacola; Daniel Leonard Wells; Daniel Leonard Wells, Age 60. aka Dan Wells, D L Wells. . Wells was being charged with first-degree murder and first-degree sexual battery and was scheduled to be in court on April 8 for his first hearing in the case. Wells was being charged with first-degree murder and first-degree sexual battery and was scheduled to be in court on April 8 for his first hearing in the case. Pensacola, FL View Cell Phone Number View Background Report. "Despite having a good bit of physical evidence and dozens of interviews, over time, the trail went cold," police said in a statement Thursday. Police arrested 57-year-old Daniel Leonard Wells (Escambia County Jail) A 57-year-old man has been arrested 35 years after the murder of a young mother in Florida. Daniel Leonard Wells, 57, was responsible, cops say, according to The Pensacola News Journal. Police credit Parabon NanoLabs with helping them break the case. Davidson was 18 months old at the time of the murder. Court records viewed by Law&Crime show no attorney of record. The Escambia County Sheriff's Office confirmed Wells had been found dead in his cell. Court records did not indicate the outcome of that case. Search for birth, death, marriage, divorce, US Census, and military records. McKinley, the mother of an 18-month-old boy, was seen alive early New Years Day in 1985 at Darryls Bar & Grille. Their mother, Laverne, lives in Jay with Renee. Tonya's body was found shortly before 5 a.m. on New Year's Day by a family living on Peacock Drive who were taking their sick dog to an all-night veterinarian clinic. He was set for a court appearance in the case on April 8 at 8:30 a.m. "(Wells) is a coward he didn't even wait until the trial even started," said McKinley's son, Tim Davidson Jr., who was just 18 months old when his mother was murdered. McKinleys son Tim Davidson Jr. called Wells a coward, adding that the defendant didnt even wait until the trial even started.. I'm positive of that.". I'm positive of that.". Matthew Winkler Murder: Where is Mary Winkler Now. Browse . "Until today. But for most of the time, they had no suspect in the killing of McKinley, who was survived by an 18-month-old son. "I didn't really know if this [arrest] would ever happen," the victim's relieved sister, Renee McCall, 62, a nurse, told NBC News on Thursday. Have a tip or story idea? No suspects had been publicly named. Daniel Leonard Wells, 57, is charged with homicide and sexual battery in the death of 23-year old Tonya . Their children and Tonyas son were at a late-night daycare facility, and it closed at 1:00 am. "Each time, evil won, just out of reach," police said of the 35-year gap. Daniel Leonard Wells, 57, was found hanged in his cell at the Escambia County Jail early Thursday morning, according to the sheriffs office. Daniel Leonard Wells, 57, was found hanged in his cell at the Escambia County Jail early Thursday morning, according to the sheriff's office. PENSACOLA Tonya Ethridge McKinley was 23 years old and had an 18-month-old son waiting for her at home when she was killed in the early-morning hours of Jan. 1, 1985, in Pensacola. He is being held in Escambia County jail. In the meantime, a baby boy grew up without a mother, parents buried their daughter without knowing justice, and a killer was walking around free. The investigators initially could not find the cause of death or the identity of the body. "The reasons why this happened, how evil crossed Tonya's path, may never be answered and in the end may not be important," according to police. She was always his favorite," McCall said of this bittersweet day. Uncover Daniel's photos, videos, and more , Personal details for Daniel may include . If you need help with the Public File, call 407-291-6000. Daniel is related to Nicholas Lee Wells and Howard Snowden Wells as well as 3 additional people. ", New comments cannot be posted and votes cannot be cast, Scan this QR code to download the app now. The investigation hit numerous dead ends over the years, lasting so long that retiring detectives had to pass it on to their successors. In the meantime, a baby boy grew up without a mother, parents buried their daughter without knowing justice, and a killer was walking around free. Daniel has lived in a single family house in Liberty, MO with Mary. She said she did not have any more information to share. Wells, who was living in Pensacola at the time of his arrest, was identified after Parabon NanoLabs, a Virginia-based company working with the Pensacola Police Department and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, ran a DNA sample obtained from the scene of the crime through an open-source genealogy database and identified several different people believed to be distant cousins of the suspect. [Image of McKinley via Pensacola Police Department; mugshot of Wells via Escambia County], Have a tip we should know? "(Wells) got to live his life the last 35 years. Daniel lives at 5206 Cerny Rd, Pensacola, FL. His first hearing to face charges of first-degree murder and first-degree sexual battery had been scheduled for April 8, the Pensacola News Journal reported. Wells is being held without bond at the Escambia County jail. [emailprotected]. She was half-nude, strangled to death and sexually assaulted. 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