Victims in decades-old 'Babes in the Woods' cold case identified: Vancouver police

The victims in a decades-old cold case have finally been identified, police in Vancouver announced Tuesday.

The major breakthrough came nearly 70 years after the remains of two young boys were found in Stanley Park.

"These murders have haunted generations of homicide investigators, and we are relieved to now give these children a name and to bring some closure to this horrific case," said Insp. Dale Weidman.

"Although significant folklore has surrounded this case for years, we must not forget that these were real children who died a tragic and heartbreaking death."

Since they were discovered in 1953, the remains of the so-called "Babes in the Woods" have been examined several times over, but couldn't be identified.

The boys had obvious head wounds and their bodies were covered up when they were found. A woman's fur coat, a picnic basket of food and a hatchet that was likely the murder weapon were found nearby.

On Tuesday, Vancouver police said the pair was identified as brothers David and Derek D'Alton. David was six years old when he died and Derek was seven.

The identification came after extensive research by Vancouver police, the BC Coroners Service and U.S.-based Redgrave Research Forensic Service.

Police employed Redgrave's services last year to help move the investigation forward. The team specializes in identifying victims of crime through genetic genealogy. After obtaining a DNA profile from the deceased, the team searches public databases linked to genealogy websites like Ancestry.com and 23 and Me to find close and distant relatives.

"We knew there were good odds of finding a living family member out there somewhere," says Det. Const. Aida Rodriguez in a news release.

"But, once we discovered that DNA match, we still had a significant amount of work to do to locate family members, check school records, and confirm specific details about the victims so we could be absolutely certain about their identities."

Crime novelist and researcher Eve Lazarus was contacted by a family member who wanted to know more about the case. The boys' great niece was devastated by the news.

"It’s kind of like the dark side of Stanley Park, it’s been a mystery for seven decades," Lazarus said.

Rodriguez confirmed homicide investigators connected with a family member of the victims last week.

"One can only imagine what it feels like to have a homicide detective call you and say, 'Well, we think you might be related to a couple of victims in a historical file," she said. "We had the opportunity to sit with the family member and learn more about these boys."

That family member told investigators the absence of the two boys was never discussed by other relatives, but they believed it was important to get answers. The family member decided to upload their DNA to a genealogy website, and Redgrave was eventually able to confirm the victims' relation to the family.

Investigators said they think the D'Alton brothers were descendants of Russian immigrants. It's believed a family member lived near the entrance to Stanley Park when the boys died. Police said one of their theories is that the person who killed the boys was a close relative who died about 25 years ago.

"At this stage in the investigation, it was never about seeing someone charged for these crimes," Rodriguez said. "It was always about giving these boys a name and finally telling their story.”

The case captivated the public’s interest and puzzled investigators for decades. At first, police believed the children were a boy and girl.

But in the late 1990s, retired Sgt. Brian Honeybourn took the remains to Dr. David Sweet of the Bureau of Legal Dentistry at the University of British Columbia, and they discovered the victims were in fact, two boys.

“You know it’s a forensic reality that some cases remain unsolved,” said Dr. Sweet. “I was so relieved and so happy when this one was solved in the sense that these names were given back to these young boys.”

Honeybourn, who pondered the case well into retirement, remained optimistic more answers were coming.

"God bless them for what they’ve done," said Honeybourn to the current team on the case. "This is a historic event, not in just the Vancouver Police Department but policing. It really is."