After decades of mystery, the human remains found near Lake Tahoe in 1986 have finally been identified as those of missing nurse Donna Lass. Lass was only 25 years old when she was reported missing to the South Lake Tahoe Police in 1971. The case had remained unsolved for years, with all investigative leads exhausted. However, a breakthrough came when an unidentified human skull was discovered off of Highway 20 near Interstate 80, close to Lake Tahoe, in 1986.

The skull was preserved at the Placer County Coroner's Office, waiting for advancements in forensics that could help identify the remains. Recently, a cold case team was established by the Placer County Sheriff's Office and the district attorney's office to allocate additional resources to unsolved missing persons and suspicious death cases. It was this team that sent the skull to the California Department of Justice for DNA testing.

Using advancements in DNA technology, the California Department of Justice Bureau of Forensic Services was able to match the DNA from the skull with a DNA sample obtained from a member of Donna Lass's family. This breakthrough allowed them to positively identify the skull as the remains of Donna Lass. The Placer County Sheriff's Office notified Lass's surviving relatives last week, bringing closure to the family after decades of uncertainty.

However, the cause of Donna Lass's death still remains unknown. South Lake Tahoe Police Department is continuing the investigation and asks anyone with information related to the case to come forward. They can contact detectives at cybertips@cityofslt.us.

Donna Lass's disappearance in 1970 had left many unanswered questions. She was last seen walking with a young blonde man outside her apartment on September 7, 1970, according to a local newspaper clipping posted by the sheriff's office. Lass had just rented an apartment in South Lake Tahoe and was working as a nurse at a casino in nearby Stateline, Nevada.

Her car, clothes, and bank account were all left behind, adding to the mystery surrounding her disappearance. A cryptic postcard sent to the San Francisco Chronicle in 1971, featuring a symbol resembling that of the Zodiac Killer and the words "Sierra Club," "Sought victim 12," and "peek through the pines," had led to speculation that her disappearance could be linked to the still-unsolved serial killer case. However, authorities have not connected Lass's disappearance with the Zodiac Killer.

In 2007, while investigating a tip related to the Zodiac killings, South Lake Tahoe police and others searched near Lake Tahoe for a possible burial site but found nothing. The case remained cold until the recent breakthrough in identifying the remains.

The Placer County Sheriff's Office expressed gratitude for the team effort that brought closure to the Lass family and hopes that the cold case detectives can continue making advances in these cases. The investigation into Donna Lass's disappearance and death is ongoing, and authorities are hopeful that further leads will be uncovered to shed light on what happened to her.