Kim Hakes, 42, was found dead in Alan B. Berg Park on the morning of Feb. 15, 2015. An autopsy said she had been bludgeoned to death. This much, Corvallis police said in 2015, and little more have they said since then.
Kim’s cousin Tena Casey recently told KEZI, “We just want justice. We want this case closed so she can rest.” Of the seven year wait, she said, “It’s heart-wrenching. I just wish we could have her back, but that’s not going to happen.”
Casey said her cousin is missed by her friends and her family, including her five children. “She was mouthy, but that’s why everybody loved her. She was blunt, but she’d give you the shirt off her back if you needed it.”
Corvallis Police have interviewed more than 120 people about the case and looked into 108 tips, Lt. Gabriel Sapp told KEZI.
“As of today, we have 443 pages of written reports. Included in that, we have collected 275 items of evidence, and we have sent 79 items to the Oregon State Police Forensics Lab.” Asked if new advances in DNA science and other forms of evidence analysis since 2015 hold out any hope, Sapp said that no new techniques were applicable to the case. “That does not preclude future advances from being utilized to assist us in this investigation.”
Casey remains in touch with Lt. Sapp. “Anytime a lead comes up or that I find out, I’ll get a hold of him and I’ll let him know, ‘Hey have you heard this, or have you heard that?’”
Casey is convinced that the person who killed Kim Hakes is still out there and aware that police are still looking for him or her. She addressed the killer, saying, “Turn yourself in, just get it done and over with. She needs closure. Her family needs closure. Her kids need closure.”
If you have information that could help to close this case, contact the Corvallis Police Department at 541-766-6924 or by email at police@corvallisoregon.gov.
By John M. Burt
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