Camilla Jessen
FBI releases update on suspected serial killer linked to murders in Virginia over four decades ago.
New forensic advances have allowed investigators to revisit killings that haunted Virginia for decades. Federal authorities now say they have identified a suspect linked to two long-unsolved deaths along the Colonial Parkway.
The FBI said newly analyzed evidence links Alan Wade Wilmer Sr. to the 1986 murders of Cathleen Thomas, 27, and Rebecca Dowski, 21.
Their deaths had remained unsolved for nearly 40 years.
“Despite extensive investigative efforts at the time, the case remained unsolved for decades,” the FBI said in its update.
Wilmer Sr., a local fisherman, died in 2017 at the age of 63. The US Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia said this week that the evidence now available would have supported federal prosecution had he still been alive.
Pattern of violence
The two women were found together inside a car along the Colonial Parkway in 1986. Investigators had long believed their deaths were connected to a broader series of killings and disappearances in Virginia between 1986 and 1989.
According to federal authorities, Wilmer Sr. had already been suspected in at least six other homicides tied to the same corridor. Officials said advances in DNA and forensic science were key to establishing the new link.
In its statement, the FBI described Thomas as “vibrant,” “compassionate” and “intelligent,” while Dowski was remembered as “creative,” “kind,” and “a talented musician with a promising future.”
Virginia State Police Colonel Jeffrey Katz praised the “tireless work” of investigators and expressed condolences to the victims’ families, saying authorities would continue pursuing other cold cases.
Cathleen Thomas’ brother Bill told News 3 the news was difficult to process. “It’s kind of hard to absorb it all,” he said, adding: “We’ve had 150 persons of interest in this case and I was still surprised it was Wilmer.”
The FBI said investigations into other Colonial Parkway cases are ongoing.
Sources: FBI, US Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia, Virginia State Police, News 3, Unilad
