The child of two parents who were found murdered in Texas more than 40 years ago has been located alive and well, the state attorney general has said.
“Baby Holly” Clouse, now 42 years old, was not found with her parents at the 1981 murder scene. The couple was not identified until 2021 using DNA tests.
At a news conference, officials of the US state said they ‘rejoice’ that she is safe, but the two murder cases remain open.
Officials say a mysterious religious cult may be responsible for the deaths.
Tina Gail Linn Clouse and Harold Dean Clouse Jr had moved from Florida to Texas shortly before they were found apparently murdered in the woods in Houston.
It was not until last year that they were positively identified with the help of Identifiers International, the National Centre for Missing and Exploited Children and police in Texas, Florida and Arizona.
In a statement, the Texas attorney general’s newly formed Cold Case and Missing Persons Unit announced that Holly had been found after 42 years.
She now lives in Oklahoma, and is the mother of five children. Further details are not being released, in order to protect her privacy.
Clouse first learned of her identity when she was visited at her workplace by police on Tuesday – on what would have been her father’s 63rd birthday.
Texas First Assistant Attorney General Brent Webster said the girl was brought to a church in Arizona by two women. He said the foster parents who raised Holly are not suspected of playing any role in the murders.
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