After almost six decades of disappearance in the Nevada desert, the remains of a woman from Calgary have been identified, though the circumstances of her death remain unclear.
Anna Sylvia Just was reported missing by her sister when she was last seen boarding a bus in Calgary on August 17, 1966, at the age of 29.
Two years later, a missing person report was filed by Las Vegas police for Just when her belongings were discovered near Henderson, Nevada, approximately 26 kilometers away from Las Vegas.
It took more than fifty years for investigators to link the woman who boarded a bus in Calgary with the victim in the Mojave Desert using DNA technology.
“We understand the challenges Anna’s family faced while waiting for these answers for decades,” said Calgary Police Service (CPS) Staff Sgt. Sean Gregson during a press conference on Wednesday.
Last year, the Calgary Police Service’s Historical Homicide Team came across Just’s case while investigating other unsolved cases of missing women. Gregson mentioned that Just was not listed on any local, national, or international databases.
“Documentation and data retention policies were significantly different back then, leading to the loss of some information over the years,” he explained.
Subsequently, investigators reached out to the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department and discovered that Just was suspected to be a homicide victim, but her remains had never been found.
CPS then started the search for any living relatives of Just who could provide a DNA sample. Gregson mentioned that they located Just’s sister, a 97-year-old resident of Calgary, last November. They collected her DNA and submitted it along with Just’s missing person profile to various international databases, including the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs).
Last month, Las Vegas police informed CPS detectives about a positive match being made.
Connection to Gaming Union Leader
Just worked as a stenographer and resided in the Richmond neighborhood of southwest Calgary, as reported in local newspapers during her disappearance in 1968.
On March 6, 1968, the Calgary Herald reported that some of Just’s belongings were discovered outside Las Vegas. Three hikers found a purse handle protruding from the ground containing a plane ticket, passport, and human hair. Other personal items were found nearby, including clothing and a bloodstained cloth.
Las Vegas homicide detectives also came across the skeleton of a woman over 100 kilometers outside the city. However, after comparing it with Just’s medical records, they concluded it was not her.
“Although we lack new leads, there is still significant investigative work to be done,” stated Las Vegas police Lt. Glenn Simmons at the time.
It was revealed that Just was acquainted with Thomas Hanley, the head of the American Federation of Casino and Gaming Employees and a suspected mobster.
Allegations suggested that Just approached Hanley for money and that he, along with his associates, drove her to the desert and murdered her. However, these claims were never substantiated.
Hanley passed away in 1979 while in federal custody for