The person at the center of this case
Tammy Jo Alexander
Cold Case · Open
46 years waiting · since 1979
TAMMY JO ALEXANDER
Justice for Tammy Jo Alexander — the trail went cold in 1979, but the truth hasn't.
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Key leads to think about
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suspect
Lead #1Who shot Tammy Jo Alexander twice with a .38 caliber weapon and why was she in a New York cornfield?
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witness
Lead #2Did anyone see a young female hitchhiker or trucker activity near NY Route 20 in Caledonia in November 1979?
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evidence
Lead #3The man's red windbreaker with 'Auto Sports Products, Inc.' label and the distinctive two-piece locket keychain with 'He who holds the key can open my heart' inscription—do these items connect to a known person?
On November 10, 1979, a 16-year-old girl was found murdered in a cornfield off New York State Route 20 in Caledonia, New York, shot twice with a .38 caliber weapon. She remained unidentified for 36 years until DNA analysis in 2015 revealed her identity as Tammy Jo Alexander, a runaway from Brookesville, Florida who had disappeared in 1979. The killer remains unknown, and investigators seek information about who shot her and how she came to be in that remote New York field.
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More leads to consider
Beyond the top three above — each detail below could be the thread that pulls this case open.
⏰
timeline
Lead #4How did a runaway from Florida end up murdered in upstate New York? What was her journey between disappearing and being found?
📞
contact
Lead #5Anyone who knew Tammy Jo or encountered her in 1979, particularly truckers or people near truck stops, should contact the FBI.
Have information about any of these leads?
Even the smallest detail could be the key to solving this case.
Official wording
Source Narrative
Murder Victim Caledonia, New York November 10, 1979 On November 10, 1979, the body of an unidentified 16-year-old White female was located in a cornfield off of New York State Route 20 in Caledonia, New York. The girl had been murdered with a .38 caliber weapon.
She had been shot once in the head, dragged into the cornfield from the road, and then shot again in the back. On January 26, 2015, law enforcement officials in Livingston County, New York, announced that the female had been identified, through the use of DNA, as Tammy Jo Alexander of Brookesville, Florida.
Alexander had disappeared from her home in Florida in 1979. At the time, Alexander was known to run away from the area, sometimes hitchhiking with truckers, as she lived near a truck stop.
Remarks: Alexander was wearing the following items when she was found: tan corduroy jeans, a multi-colored plaid cotton/polyester shirt, blue knee socks, brown rippled-sole shoes, and a red nylon-lined man's windbreaker with black stripes down the arms and a collar label reading "Auto Sports Products, Inc." She was wearing a silver necklace with three small turquoise stones, one resembling a bird. She also had with her a two-piece locket keychain with one piece in the shape of a heart with a key-shaped slot cut in it and an inscription reading "He who holds the key can open my heart" and the second piece being the key that fits into the slot in the heart.
Timeline of Events
👤
1979-11-10
Tammy Jo Alexander Disappears
16-year-old Tammy Jo Alexander disappears from her home in Brookesville, Florida. She was known to run away and hitchhike with truckers.
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1979-11-10
Body Found in Cornfield
Unidentified female body discovered in cornfield off NY Route 20 in Caledonia, New York. Victim had been shot once in the head and once in the back with a .38 caliber weapon.
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2015-01-26
Victim Identified via DNA
Law enforcement announces identification of the victim as Tammy Jo Alexander through DNA analysis, 36 years after her body was found.
Key Locations
Interactive map showing important locations related to this case
Case Information
Incident:November 10, 1979
Last Updated:June 7, 2026
Up to $20,000 Reward
For information leading to the resolution of this case
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Case Information
Incident:November 10, 1979
Last Updated:June 7, 2026
Up to $20,000 Reward
For information leading to the resolution of this case