Law Enforcement & Forensics

The FBI says advances in forensic science and DNA analysis have identified deceased fisherman Alan Wade Wilmer Sr. as the perpetrator of the Colonial Parkway murders, linking him to the 1986 slayings of Cathleen Thomas and Rebecca Dowski, who were last seen Oct. 9, 1986 leaving a College of William & Mary computer lab. The U.S. Attorney’s Office said there would have been sufficient evidence to prosecute had he been alive, and investigators — noting Wilmer was a Lancaster County fisherman who frequented Gloucester and Middlesex marinas — say he may be tied to additional unsolved crimes (including the sexual assault of 14‑year‑old Robin Edwards) and have released images of his vehicles as the probe continues.