“I-196 Jane” has been identified
By Annette Christie
On October 12, 1988, the body of a young woman was found in Covert Township, Michigan near I-196 and CR-378 in Van Buren County. On that date, investigators from the Michigan State Police went to the scene and began an investigation.
Over time the young unidentified woman became known to investigators as “I-196 Jane”. As the years went by, investigators used all available technology and investigative means to try to identify “I-196 Jane”, however, all were unsuccessful, and the case went cold.
In late 2018, investigators began the process of utilizing genealogy DNA to help identify “I-196 Jane”.
In April 2019, the Paw Paw Post detectives partnered with BODE Laboratories for the DNA processing and received a generous grant from Kalamazoo Mortgage to pay the processing fees.
In July 2019, BODE Laboratories provided the processing results to detectives. The Paw Paw Post then partnered with the DNA Doe Project; a non-profit research group that help identify people from a large list of potential family members, which was developed through genealogy DNA.
In August 2019, the DNA Doe Project contacted Paw Paw Post detectives with investigative leads regarding the potential identity of “I-196 Jane”.
Paw Paw Post detectives then began the process of confirming the investigative leads furnished by the DNA Doe Project to identify “I-196 Jane”. In November 2019, DNA confirmation was received that “I-196 Jane” was Marcia Kaylynn Bateman from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
Marcia’s family members have been contacted and are grateful to know that their loved one has been located. Her family is hopeful that investigators will determine how she ended up deceased in Michigan.
Marcia was last seen in May 1988. Her family reported her missing in August 1988 to the Oklahoma City Police. Marcia was known to visit family/ friends in the Dallas, Texas and Los Angeles, California areas and may have visited these cities prior to going missing. She was 28 years old at the time of her disappearance. At this point in the investigation, investigators have been unable to determine how she made it to Michigan from Oklahoma.