MONROE — A bright- colored sleeve could be the key to a mystery and help catch a killer.
Snohomish County sheriff’s cold-case detectives are asking the public to take a careful look at a sleeve that was recovered at a 2000 homicide scene. The sleeve was found with the remains of Cynthia Rearden.
Rearden, 31, was last seen June 20, 1999 leaving the Hay Loft Saloon in downtown Monroe.
Her family knew something was wrong. She never would have left behind her son, 8.
Rearden’s remains were discovered about eight months later in a marshy area off Woods Lake Road, east of town. Investigators used the woman’s dental records to identify the skeletal remains.
Her death was ruled a homicide. The case remains unsolved.
Rearden is featured on the state’s first deck of cold-case playing cards. The cards were handed out in jails and prisons in an attempt to solicit leads from inmates.
Sheriff’s detectives also recently released a photograph of a sleeve that was found with Rearden’s remains.
The multi-colored sleeve with a blue cuff appears to have been part of a tight-knit pullover shirt or sweater. Detectives didn’t find the rest of the shirt at the scene.
“We’re not sure where it came from. We know it’s not part of any of her clothing. It definitely was part of the crime scene,” sheriff’s detective Jim Scharf said.
Scharf is hoping someone will recognize the sleeve and call him.
Rearden lived with her son in a small trailer near the motel where she cleaned rooms. Sometimes her fiance stayed with them. Rearden had planned to get married later that summer.
Detectives believe she was alone when she stopped by the Hay Loft Saloon. Some witnesses said she left alone. Others say she was with someone.
Anyone with information about the case is asked to call the sheriff’s tip line at 425-388-3485
Diana Hefley: 425-339-3463; hefley@heraldnet.com.
Most wanted
The unsolved homicide of Cynthia Rearden, of Monroe, will be featured on “Washington’s Most Wanted.” Rearden’s remains were found in 2000 in a marshy area off Woods Lake Road. She’d been missing since June 20, 1999. The program is scheduled to air on KCPQ-Channel 13 at 10:30 p.m. tonight and Saturday.
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