Final Unknown Victim of Serial Killer Keith Jesperson Identified After 34 Years

<p>The final unidentified victim of serial killer Keith Hunter Jesperson, known as the "Happy Face Killer," has been identified more than three decades after her body was discovered along a California highway, authorities announced on August 28, 2026.</p><p>The Riverside County District Attorney's Office identified the woman, previously known to investigators as "Claudia," as Lydia Jane Wade McWhorter from Texas, after DNA testing confirmed a connection to a member of her maternal family.</p><p>McWhorter's body was discovered on August 30, 1992, along Highway 95 about seven miles north of Blythe, California.</p><p>Jesperson, a long-haul truck driver, confessed to killing eight women across multiple states and later admitted to killing McWhorter.</p><p>Jesperson referred to her as "Claudia," but authorities were unable to confirm if that was her real name.</p><p>The identification follows Riverside County investigators renewing their efforts to identify McWhorter in 2024, when genetic genealogy connected the unknown victim to relatives on her father's side but did not provide the maternal connection needed for confirmation.</p><p>DNA testing had identified Summer Gonzales as the victim's paternal half-sister. Gonzales expressed a desire to learn her sister's real name and to lay her to rest with family.</p><p>Investigators eventually identified a possible genetic connection to one of McWhorter's direct maternal relatives, leading to a DNA sample that confirmed the connection earlier this week.</p><p>McWhorter's sisters, who grew up with her, had spent decades without knowing her fate after she disappeared from Texas in the 1990s, according to prosecutors.</p><p>"I want to thank the public for the role you play in our investigations," said Billy Hester, supervising investigator of the Cold Case Unit, in a news release. "When people take the time to share information, submit a tip or simply pay attention to what is happening in their community, it can make a real difference. You may not know where a piece of information will lead, but our investigators will follow it. Most importantly, I hope this will finally bring closure to Lydia’s family."</p><p>The district attorney's Division of Victim Services is working with McWhorter's family as they decide how to honor her and lay her to rest.</p><p>Jesperson was arrested in 1995 and confessed to killing eight women between 1990 and 1995 in California, Washington state, Oregon, Florida, Nebraska, and Wyoming.</p><p>He became known as the "Happy Face Killer" after sending letters about his crimes to the media that he signed with a smiley face.</p><p>He pleaded guilty to McWhorter's murder in Riverside County on January 8, 2010, and was sentenced to 25 years to life in prison. He is currently serving multiple life sentences in Oregon.</p><p>With McWhorter's identification, Riverside County's cold case team has now closed the final unidentified-victim case tied to the murders for which Jesperson was convicted.</p>