Genetic genealogy testing identifies Henry B. Leland of British Columbia as a suspect in the 1986 murder of Carol A. Traicoff.
WENATCHEE, Wash. — The Wenatchee Police Department announced Thursday that the 40-year-old cold case homicide of Carol A. Traicoff has been solved.
On May 14, 1986, 35-year-old Trajkov was found dead behind the Stanley Civic Center. Detectives determined it was a homicide.
“This investigation spans four decades, across the country and into Canada,” a spokesperson for the Wenatchee Police Department said in a statement.
Police investigated Trekov’s death for two years but were unable to identify a suspect. Detectives collected evidence and submitted it to the FBI for analysis and searched the area for witnesses. Investigators conducted interviews and administered multiple polygraph tests.
In January 2023, a Wenatchee detective sergeant began reviewing the case and determined that DNA evidence initially collected at the scene allowed for forensic genetic genealogy testing.
The sample was submitted to Othram Labs in July 2024.
Five months later, results showed a possible familial ancestry match in the continental United States and Canada. The results were run through the Canadian equivalent of the Combined DNA Index System. The Washington State Patrol Crime Laboratory reported on February 24, 2025 that the suspect was identified as Henry B. Leland of Kamloops, British Columbia.
Leland died in December 2007.
Leland’s sister, his only known living biological relative, spoke with Gold Bar detectives and cooperated with the investigation. Detectives said a sample of her DNA further identified Leland as the person who killed Trekov.
Police said there was no evidence of another suspect. Investigators believe Leland and Trakov were alone at the time of the crime.
