DNA Evidence Confirms Ted Bundy Murdered 17-Year-Old Laura Ann Aime After 51 Years
Laura Ann Aime, a 17-year-old girl who disappeared on Halloween night in 1974 in Utah, has been definitively identified as a victim of serial killer Ted Bundy through advanced DNA testing 51 years after her death. Laura's body was found nearly a month later in American Fork Canyon, showing signs of strangulation and severe trauma. Despite longstanding suspicions linking Bundy to her murder, no forensic proof had conclusively closed the case until recently.
Taura Staki, Laura's niece, grew up with a single photo of her aunt and the painful family story of her disappearance and murder. Laura was described by family members as a strong, caring young woman who loved animals and helped on her family farm. On the night she vanished, she had left a party to buy cigarettes and likely tried to hitchhike before disappearing. Her body was identified by scars from a childhood accident, and the family held onto hope for justice for decades.
Bundy, who lived in Salt Lake City at the time and was studying law at the University of Utah, was known for targeting young women with a pattern of luring, assaulting, and strangling them. Taura learned from family and former investigators that Bundy had known and stalked Laura before her disappearance. He was executed in 1989 after confessing to 30 murders, including Laura's, but her case remained officially open due to lack of forensic confirmation.
In 2019, a documentary filmmaker connected Taura with a former investigator who revealed the case was still unresolved. Taura's mother, Laura's sister Evelyn, passed away in May 2025 without seeing the case closed. Finally, in March 2026, new DNA technology extracted a male genetic profile from preserved evidence that matched Bundy's DNA, providing the conclusive proof the family had waited for. Taura described the moment she received the news as overwhelming and said it brought a sense of closure.
Taura emphasizes the importance of remembering the victims by name rather than focusing solely on Bundy. She hopes advances in DNA technology will help other families of cold case victims find answers. Bundy was convicted of three murders between 1979 and 1980 and admitted to killing dozens more, but the true number of his victims remains uncertain, with estimates reaching up to 100 or more.
