Cold case of woman’s murder in seaside town solved after 20 years due to DNA found on cigarette butt
How one cigarette butt solved a cold case murder two decades later
- Sussex Police have concluded a 20-year murder investigation into the death of Jennifer Kiely, who was found stabbed and set on fire in Eastbourne in January 2005.
- Keith Dowbekin, who died in 2014 aged 60, has been named as the suspected murderer based on "overwhelming" DNA evidence found on a cigarette butt at the crime scene.
- Dowbekin was identified through a familial DNA strategy, which was not available at the time of the murder, and his DNA was later confirmed by samples from previous rape arrests in Norfolk in 2003 and 2004.
- Police stated that current robust investigative practices would have identified Dowbekin earlier, as DNA was not routinely taken from arrested individuals in 2005 unless they were charged.
- Jennifer Kiely's family expressed gratitude for the resolution, describing her as a "gentle, funny and creative soul" and advocating for compassion towards those experiencing homelessness and mental health struggles.