AVA, Mo. — Authorities in Missouri say a 35-year cold case killing has been solved, thanks to someone who came forward with information about the crime.
Douglas County authorities announced Wednesday that three men have been arrested and indicted on first-degree murder, forcible rape and first-degree kidnapping charges in the 1989 killing of 24-year-old Kelle Ann Workman. Court records show that the men do not yet have listed attorneys. All three are jailed on $250,000 cash-only bond.
Workman was last seen cutting the grass at a rural cemetery in southwestern Missouri on June 30, 1989. Her body was found submerged in a creek more than 10 miles (16 kilometers) away a week later.
“I think we’re able to give Kelle some justice and hopefully give the family some closure, knowing that these guys are not here running around and simply getting away with it,” Douglas County Sheriff Chris Degase said at a news conference.
Douglas County Prosecuting Attorney Matthew Weatherman said the information from the person who came forward is “rock-solid.”
Asked if he was confident in the case, Weatherman said, “It’s as good as a 1989 case can ever be.”
Workman was last seen at the Dogwood Cemetery near a Baptist church in a rural area of Douglas County. Several people joined police in searching for her. Her body was found on July 7, 1989, in a creek near Oldfield, Missouri.
