Stafford County investigators made a significant breakthrough in two decades-old murder cases, leading to the arrest of a suspect through DNA forensics advancements.
Elroy Harrison, 65, was apprehended on Tuesday , March 5, 2024, after being indicted on charges related to the murders of Jacqueline Lard in 1986 and Amy Baker in 1989.
Harrison faces charges of first-degree murder, abduction with intent to defile, and aggravated malicious wounding in connection with Lard’s death.
Jacqueline Lard, 32, was last seen on November 14, 1986, while working at Mount Vernon Realty in Stafford County.
When employees found signs of a struggle the next morning, both Lard and her vehicle were missing. Her body was discovered two days later in Woodbridge, Virginia.
The case remained unsolved for decades until recent advancements in DNA forensics allowed investigators to link the DNA found at the crime scene to Harrison. Working with Parabon NanoLabs, detectives were able to connect Lard’s murder to the unsolved case of Amy Baker, who was killed in Fairfax County in 1989.
Amy Baker, 18, disappeared on March 29, 1989, after leaving a relative’s house in Falls Church. Her car was found abandoned on Interstate 95, and her body was discovered two days later in a wooded area off the same interstate.
Following the DNA match, Harrison was arrested and placed in the Rappahannock Regional Jail without bond.
Fairfax County Police Department is collaborating with prosecutors to establish charges against Harrison for Baker’s murder.
The breakthrough in these cold cases serves as a testament to the persistence of law enforcement and the potential of advancements in forensic technology to bring justice to victims and closure to their families, even decades after the crimes occurred.
