New DNA Analysis Confirms Ted Bundy Killed Utah Teen Laura Aime in 1974

DNA testing has conclusively linked the 1974 murder of 17-year-old Laura Ann Aime in Utah to the notorious serial killer Ted Bundy, officials from the Utah County Sheriff's Office announced on Wednesday.

Aime disappeared on Halloween in 1974 after leaving a party alone to visit a convenience store. Her body was discovered nearly a month later by hikers along a highway in American Fork Canyon, bound and beaten. Authorities indicated that evidence suggested she may have been kept alive for several days following her disappearance before her death.

Although Bundy verbally acknowledged responsibility for Aime's killing prior to his execution in 1989, the investigation remained open until forensic evidence could provide certainty. In 2011, authorities obtained a full DNA profile from a vial of Bundy’s blood, originally drawn in 1978. This DNA was entered into the FBI's national database, enabling detectives to revisit unsolved cases with new scientific tools.

Ted Bundy, who studied law at the University of Utah during the period of Aime's murder, is confirmed to have killed at least 30 women and girls across several states in the 1970s. His violent crimes, which often targeted young women, unsettled communities across the country and contributed to heightened national concern about serial violence during that era.

Aime's family remembered her as a spirited young woman with a love for the outdoors. Utah County Sheriff's Sgt. Mike Reynolds publicly acknowledged the long-standing pain endured by Aime's family at a news conference, stating that while closure may be elusive, authorities hoped the identification brings some measure of healing.

With the definitive DNA link to Bundy now established, authorities have formally closed the investigation into Laura Aime's death.