Diann Tatum PHOTO/OHIO ATTORNEY GENERAL
The local woman who went missing and was later found murdered in Michigan has been laid to rest.
Diann Tatum, aged 28 at the time of her disappearance and formerly of 107000 U.S. 35 Northwest in Fayette County, has been laid to rest after being murdered and her body dumped in Michigan in 1994.
She was reported missing by family members on October 25, 1988 after leaving Fayette County to travel to her parent’s home in Warren, Michigan but never arrived, according to Fayette County Sheriff Vernon P. Stanforth.
Her car, a 1986 Renault, was located at a motel in Cincinnati, Ohio. She was not registered at the motel where the vehicle was found.
A few days later, her husband, Peter Tatum, reported her missing. It wasn’t until five years later that her unidentified body would be discovered in an abandoned house in Michigan by two kids, according to statements released by the St. Clair County (Michigan) Sheriff’s Office.
The Times Herald in Michigan reports that at the time of the discovery, officials said the woman had been shot in the head.
“In August of 1994, the St. Clair County, Michigan Sheriff’s Office discovered the unidentified skeletal remains of a female, the victim of an apparent homicide,” Stanforth said.
Nancy Manter’s grandson, Brent, was one of the boys who discovered the remains. She told The Times Herald that she often wondered about the woman who was discovered.
“I wondered about her until this very day,” Manter told The Times Herald. “I just can’t believe this..it does give it a little bit of closure, but I imagine the parents, my god, how do they feel.”
According to Stanforth, the body was moved to a forensics lab for further analyses.
107000 U.S. 35 located in northwest in Fayette County is an empty lot and a pile of bricks. The home, that Diann Tatum resided in, was demolished several years ago. ADVOCATE PHOTO/DEREK MYERS
“As the St. Clair County Sheriff’s Office continued their investigation, the skeletal remains were moved to the Michigan State University Anthropology Unit for further examination.”
In March of 2013, genetic data from Tatum’s family members and the skeletal remains were entered into a national DNA database called CODIS (Combined DNA Index System).
Almost instantly after being entered, a match was made and dental records confirmed it. The body was Diann Tatum.
“In April of 2013, a dental records comparison between Diann Tatum and the skeletal remains was conducted by the St. Clair County, Michigan Medical Examiner’s Office where it was determined that the skeletal remains discovered were those of Diann Tatum,” Stanforth said.
Tatum was laid to rest on July 8 in Clinton Township, Michigan. She was cremated and her ashes were given to family members stretching from Las Vegas, through Ohio and into Michigan.
The investigations are ongoing into her disappearance and murder.