News broke recently that Joan Marie Dymond, a 14-year-old girl from Wilkes-Barre, was murdered in 1969. Joan was the daughter of George and Anne Rose Karaliunis Dymond. She was born in 1953 and lived at 267 Andover St in Wilkes-Barre.
She was last seen walking to Andover Street Park, just down the street from her home, and until recently, her whereabouts were unknown.
She has an older sister Suzanne, and a younger brother George. George Sr, a WWII vet, was a coal miner, and Anne Rose was a sewing machine operator.
The initial newspaper report came out on July 2, 1969, that Joan was last seen at 5:00pm on Wednesday, June 25, 1969, on her way to the park.
July 2, 1969
Months passed with no leads on the missing girl. Investigators spread the search to New York and New Jersey, including Atlantic City, and ask the public for more leads.
October 13, 1969
It was later reported that Joan’s sister, Suzanne, was pregnant, and Joan was excited to become an aunt. Tragically, Joan never got to meet her nephew. Suzanne gave birth just over a month after her disappearance.
Decades pass without a single mention of Joan’s whereabouts.
Tragic events like this can certainly take a toll on a family. Joan’s father, George Sr, would pass away in 1984 at the age of 70 – still living at the home down the street from the park. Perhaps unwilling to believe their daughter is dead, Joan is still listed as being alive and living in Wilkes-Barre.
August 6, 1984
Almost two decades later, in September 2000, her mother Anne passes away, and there was no mention of Joan in her obituary.
September 3, 2000
Twelve more years pass. An opportunity to get a break in the case comes. In November 2012, some people were allegedly rummaging through a “trash-filled mine depression” in an abandoned Alden mining area of Nanticoke and made a startling discovery.
These mines were shuttered in 1962 – seven years before Joan went missing.
May 31, 2012
A woman was reported to be searching for relics when she came across a morbid discovery – a human skull.
November 19, 2012
The location is about 8-1/2 miles down Main St and up to the abandoned mine.
Investigators brought in cadaver dogs to try to uncover any additional remains but were unsuccessful – leaving them with only the skull.
November 20, 2012
Still, detectives are optimistic that the remains will be identified as a missing person they’ve been tracking. But it wasn’t Joan. They had their minds on a more recent case. They test the remains to see if they match Phylicia Thomas – a 22-year-old woman that had been missing since 2004.
Meanwhile, investigators encourage any family members of any missing persons to come forward to see if they can identify the body. With her mother and father already dead, there is no mention of the Dymond siblings coming forward at this time.
November 20, 2012
The results come back in March 2013, but they don’t match Phylicia – nor could they positively identify the body. Yet there’s still no mention of missing Joan. The remains became known as “Alden Mountain Jane Doe.”
March 26, 2013
Why there’s no mention of the missing 14-year-old is a mystery to me. You would think the remains would be tested against all potential missing person candidates.
Almost a decade later, in February 2022, Pennsylvania State Police hold a press conference to announce that a 58-year-old Hazleton cold case has been solved with the aid of genetic genealogy performed by 20-year-old Eric Schubert. In this case, 9-year-old Marise Ann Chiverella was murdered at the hands of James Paul Forte in 1964 – five years before Joan went missing. The young girl had been beaten, raped, and strangled with her own shoelaces.
Forte died in 1980 of an apparent heart attack during his shift as a bartender at Genetti’s Motor Lodge in Hazel Township. He never faced justice for the heinous murder.
February 11, 2022
Marise’s body was found in Milnesville in, coincidentally, a coal stripping pit that was used as a dump. Could he be Joan’s killer?
This update, and modern investigative techniques, breathe new life into several cold cases. A foundation is established to help fund the DNA testing and genetic genealogy research that is required for this method of investigation. It’s estimated that each case costs around $5,000 to initiate.
March 2, 2022
In March 2022, investigators submit the DNA from the Alden Mountain Jane Doe to Othram, a genetic genealogy company – presumably with the aid of a grant.
In September 2022, the Pennsylvania State Police announce that they have identified the remains. They were expected to hold a press conference to release the name but had to postpone the event due to “circumstances beyond our control.” Still, they say the remains belong to a girl that went missing in 1969. Why the delay?
September 17, 2022
About two weeks later, in October 2022, PSP announce that they have positively identified the remains of a young female that were found in Nanticoke in November 2012. Joan was finally found – albeit years after her parents had passed.
October 5, 2022
Today, June 14, 2023, investigators announced that they believe that Joan was murdered. The investigation remains open, and they are optimistic that they will identify the killer.
State Police are still interested in talking to anyone with information related to this case – even if they believe it’s a minor detail. And Crime Stoppers is offering a $5,000 reward for any information that leads to an arrest. If you have any information, please contact the State Police Shickshinny Station at 570-542-4117 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-4-PA-TIPS.
Digitally Enhanced Photo
Additionally, consider a donation to the Luzerne Fund to help them close more cold cases and bring those responsible to justice.
Another way you can get involved in solving cold cases is to test your DNA and submit the results to Gedmatch. This DNA matching database not only helps you to identify relatives, but you have the option of allowing Law Enforcement to use your results in their searches. With DNA left at a crime scene, investigators can build a family tree to identify relatives of that person. From there, they zero in on their targets based on locations and timelines.
Victims of violent crimes, and their families, deserve justice – and you can help by sharing your DNA.
Exploring historical crimes in NEPA 