Woman’s Killer, Who Left Her 3-Year-Old Daughter Unharmed, Discovered 50 Years After Her Murder

An Indiana woman’s 50-year-old murder case is finally getting answers. 

Five decades after she was found dead in a ditch on the side of a road with her 3-year-old daughter unharmed by her side, Phyllis Bailer‘s killer has been identified by authorities.

Forensic genetic genealogy has led officials to determine Fred Allen Lienemann was the 26-year-old mom’s assailant, the Indiana State Police shared in an April 16 press release. 

Lienemann’s DNA was found on Bailer’s clothing, per police. He would have been 25 at the time of her 1972 murder, which occurred while she was traveling in her parents’ car from Indianapolis to Bluffton, I.N., with her 3-year-old daughter, per the release. 

“Lienemann had no known connections to Phyllis Bailer,” officials continued of the Michigan-born man in the release, “but had a significant criminal history.” 

And while authorities are confident that the DNA testing has led them to the correct killer, the Indiana State Police noted that they are unable to convict Lienemann, who sexually assaulted Bailer before fatally shooting her and leaving her on the side of the road, according to an autopsy obtained by the department.