More than three decades after Amy Mihaljevic disappeared, investigators have never charged a suspect.
The case is not cold in the operational sense; Bay Village police continue to run active DNA testing, process new tips, and maintain an FBI reward.
What makes it especially haunting is the combination of a carefully orchestrated abduction, decades of forensic dead ends, conflicting witness accounts, and a named person of interest who has repeatedly denied involvement yet remains under scrutiny.
This breakdown covers who Amy was, how the abduction unfolded, the physical evidence recovered, the key suspects, major investigative theories, and every significant development.
Who was Amy Mihaljevic?
Amy Renee Mihaljevic was born on December 11, 1978, in Little Rock, Arkansas. By 1989, she was living in Bay Village, Ohio, a quiet suburb west of Cleveland.
She attended Bay Middle School as a fifth grader in Cleveland.
She was known for her love of horses and had one older sibling, her brother Jason.
Her mother, Margaret McNulty, worked at Trading Times Magazine. Her father, Mark Mihaljevic, traveled frequently for work.
Bay Village was the kind of town where children walked to corner stores without a second thought. The abductor appears to have known this and used it.
How Was the Abduction Planned and Carried Out?
Investigators in the case discovered that Amy Mihaljevic’s abduction was not a random encounter but a carefully planned scheme carried out over several weeks
- The Phone Call: An unknown male contacted Amy at home, claiming he worked with her mother at Trading Times Magazine. He told her that her mother had been promoted and wanted Amy’s help selecting a gift.
- The Visitor Logbook: Investigators later confirmed that several girls in nearby North Olmsted had received nearly identical calls. All had recently signed the visitor logbook at the Lake Erie Nature and Science Center. The caller appears to have used that logbook to identify potential victims by name, address, and phone number.
- Amy was the Only One Who Agreed: She was the last girl he contacted. The others declined or did not respond.
- The Last Sighting: On October 27, 1989, Amy walked from Bay Middle School to Bay Square Shopping Center. Two classmates saw her speaking with a white male in his 30s, wearing a navy blue sweater. She was last seen walking through the parking lot with him.
Physical Evidence Recovered in the Amy Mihaljevic Case
On February 8, 1990, a jogger found Amy’s body near County Road 1181 in Ruggles Township, Ashland County, approximately 50 miles south of Bay Village.
Authorities identified her through dental records. The coroner confirmed she died from multiple stab wounds to the neck and blunt force trauma to the head.
Evidence Collected at the Scene:
- An olive green handmade curtain and a white blanket were found near the body, believed to have been used during transport
- Hair samples collected from those items were later submitted for DNA testing
- Yellow and gold fibers were discovered on Amy’s clothing
Items Never Recovered:
- Turquoise horse head earrings
- Black ankle boots
- A denim backpack
- A black leather binder labeled “Buick, Best in Class.”
Investigators have long believed those missing items were kept as trophies.
Retaining a victim’s belongings is a documented behavior pattern among certain violent offenders, and it has shaped how the case has been worked for 35 years.
Suspects and Persons of Interest in The Case
No one has ever been officially charged. The following individuals have been discussed in court records, investigative journalism, or official statements.
1. Dean Runkle
According to investigative journalist James Renner, author of Amy: My Search for Her Killer (2006), Runkle was a teacher in Ohio whose physical description matched witness accounts of the man seen with Amy at the shopping center.
The FBI has never officially named Runkle as a suspect. He has consistently denied any involvement.
When Bay Village police began collecting DNA samples in 2006, Runkle reportedly retained legal counsel. No hard evidence has been publicly tied to him.
2. Richard Holbert
Holbert confessed to killing Amy during a church service.
His confession was definitively disproved: medical records confirmed he was institutionalized on October 27, 1989, the day of the abduction.
He is cleared, and his is the most thoroughly documented false confession in the case, though he was not the only person to falsely confess over the years.
3. Robert Ivan Nichols
In 2018, investigators explored a possible link to a man who had been living in Ohio under a stolen identity. Known locally as Joseph Newton Chandler III, he was actually Robert Ivan Nichols.
He had assumed the identity of a child killed in a vehicle crash decades earlier. Nichols died by suicide in 2002.
Whether any forensic connection between Nichols and Amy’s murder was ever established has not been publicly confirmed by authorities.
4. William McClellan
The most significant development came in January 2019 when a woman identified her former boyfriend, later named in court records as William McClellan, as a possible suspect.
The publicly available circumstantial evidence against him is stronger than against any other person connected to the investigation.
McClellan worked in Bay Village in 1989, lived less than 1.5 miles from the shopping center, had a niece in Amy’s grade, and behaved unusually the night of the abduction.
Investigators said McClellan made suspicious statements during interviews, voluntarily provided DNA, failed a polygraph test, and had a storage unit searched under warrant.
In May 2020, two eyewitnesses independently identified him from photo lineups as the man seen with Amy before she disappeared.
Felony charges in a case like this require prosecutors to demonstrate probable cause supported by admissible evidence. No charges have been filed.
Major Developments in Amy Mihaljevic’s Investigation
The Amy Mihaljevic case has remained active for decades, with investigators continuing to pursue new leads, witness statements, and advanced DNA testing.
More than 20,000 interviews have been conducted since Amy disappeared in 1989, making it one of Ohio’s longest-running unsolved murder investigations.
| Year / Date | Key Development |
|---|---|
| Oct. 27, 1989 | Amy Mihaljevic was abducted from Bay Square Shopping Center, Bay Village, Ohio |
| Feb. 8, 1990 | Amy’s body was discovered in Ruggles Township, Ashland County |
| 2006 | Bay Village police begin collecting DNA samples from persons of interest; book Amy: My Search for Her Killer published |
| 2018 | Investigators explored a link to Robert Ivan Nichols, a man living under a stolen identity in Ohio |
| Jan. 2019 | William McClellan was publicly named as the primary person of interest following a police affidavit |
| Late 2024 | Nuclear DNA from an unknown male confirmed on Amy’s sweatpants; sample preserved for future analysis |
Amy Mihaljevic Update: Where Things Stand in 2026
The investigation remains active. Bay Village police have collected DNA samples from roughly 250 individuals connected to Amy or her family for future comparison testing. Investigators still receive nearly 300 tips each year.
- Nuclear DNA (Late 2024): An unknown male’s nuclear DNA was confirmed on Amy’s sweatpants. The sample is preserved frozen while authorities wait for forensic technology to advance enough to generate a complete profile.
- Hair samples (January 2026): Samples from the olive green curtain were sent to Astrea Forensics in San Jose, California, in September 2025. In January 2026, Bay Village police confirmed those samples were too degraded or too small to yield a usable DNA profile.
- Funding: Over $100,000 has been spent on DNA testing in this case to date, partly funded by community efforts, including the annual Walk for Amy fundraiser.
Detective Sergeant Jay Elish, the lead investigator, has said the team is holding certain evidence items in the hope that DNA technology will catch up.
Some items have already been depleted through repeated testing. The approach now is to preserve what remains until the science can extract more.
What Happens Legally if a Suspect is Identified?
Ohio has no statute of limitations for murder, meaning charges can still be filed decades later if investigators identify a suspect through DNA or other evidence.
Prosecutors would evaluate whether the combined evidence supports probable cause and a criminal prosecution.
Evidence that could support a case includes:
- Nuclear DNA or forensic genealogy matches
- Eyewitness identifications from 2020 photo lineups
- Fiber evidence linked to a suspect vehicle
- Behavioral statements made during police interviews
- Search warrant findings and investigative records
DNA alone is rarely enough for conviction. Prosecutors typically combine forensic evidence with witness testimony, timelines, and circumstantial evidence to build a stronger case in court.
Cases involving wrongful death and premeditation require particularly thorough evidentiary foundations before charges move forward.
Conclusion
The Amy Mihaljevic case has never faded from public attention because investigators never stopped working on it.
Every new forensic advancement has reopened possibilities that did not exist in 1989, and the recent focus on nuclear DNA may ultimately become the breakthrough that changes the direction of the investigation permanently.
While no arrest has been made, the amount of evidence gathered over decades continues to build around the case, keeping pressure on anyone connected to it.
For Amy’s family, the goal has always remained the same: answers, accountability, and closure. If future DNA testing produces a confirmed match, this could become one of the most significant cold case resolutions in Ohio history.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Who was the Last Person Seen with Amy Mihaljevic?
Witnesses reported seeing Amy speaking with an unidentified white male at Bay Square Shopping Center shortly before she vanished.
Did Amy Mihaljevic’s Killer Ever Contact Her Family After Her Murder?
There is no verified public record of the killer contacting the Mihaljevic family directly. Investigators have not confirmed any post-murder communication from a suspect to the family.
Has Anyone Been Charged in the Amy Mihaljevic Case?
No. As of early 2026, no one has been formally charged. William McClellan remains the primary person of interest based on public records, but charges require admissible evidence meeting the probable cause standard.
