LAS VEGAS, Nev. (FOX5) – Investigators are still looking for suspects in a 1979 cold case in which a woman was found dead at near the Hoover Dam.
On Jan. 3, 1979 at around 9 a.m., Hoover Dam security found a woman in an embankment on Highway 93 at mile post 7. The woman was suffering from a gunshot wound to her abdomen and investigators believed she was dead for less than 12 hours, Mohave County Sheriff’s Office said. Witnesses said they saw a powder blue 1976-77 Chevrolet Blazer or Ford Bronco with a removable top backed up to a guard rail in the area, but the front license plate was covered by a rag.
A medical examiner collected fingerprints but they were unable to identify the victim at the time, MCSO said.
It wasn’t until Feb. 4, 1981 that Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department was notified that a private investigator in Ohio had possibly identified the victim.
Marion Berry Ouma, 25, from Dayton, Ohio closely resembled the victim, according to investigators. They contacted Ouma’s stepfather and mother and confirmed her identity, which was later confirmed again via fingerprint testing.
Ouma is described as a white female, approximately 5′5″ and weighing 106 lbs, with hazel eyes and brown hair, often worn in a ponytail. She was wearing green sweatpants and a darkblue short-sleeved blouse at the time of her death.
Ouma had also spent time in Las Vegas. Ouma lived at an apartment at 750 E. Sierra Vista Drive in November and had to vacate the apartment in December due to not paying rent. Police discovered that Ouma had made two bank transactions in Las Vegas prior to her death as well.
Detectives are looking for any information on Ouma’s whereabouts between the time she was last seen leaving the bank on Dec.13, 1978, and when her body was found on Jan. 3, 1979. They are also looking for any information on the vehicle that was seen near where she died.
Anyone with information can call the MCSO Special Investigations Unit at 928-753-0753 ext. 4408,reference DR# 79-022.
Copyright 2024 KVVU. All rights reserved.
