US: DNA From Gum Leads to Arrest in 1980 Murder Case

Barbara Tucker

A man in Oregon has been convicted in the unsolved 1980 murder of a college student after DNA discovered in chewing gum connected him to the crime.

According to a statement from the Multnomah County District Attorney, Barbara Tucker, aged 19, on January 15, 1980, was “kidnapped, sexually assaulted, and beaten to death near a campus parking lot by Robert Plympton.”

A student at Mt. Hood Community College, Tucker’s body was discovered the following morning by students arriving for class at the college.

As reported by CNN, the 60-year-old was convicted last week on one count of first-degree murder and four counts of second-degree murder.

However, he had not pleaded not guilty, his attorneys have expressed their intention to appeal his conviction.

In a statement to CNN, attorneys Stephen Houze and Jacob Houze said,“We will appeal, and we are confident that his convictions will be overturned.”

The statement by the district attorney detailed how chewing gum connected Mr. Robert to the case and said, “In 2000, vaginal swabs taken during Ms Tucker’s autopsy were sent to the Oregon State Police (OSP) Crime Lab for analysis. The Crime Lab developed a DNA profile from the swabs.”

Subsequently, when detectives conducting surveillance observed Mr. Robert discarding a piece of chewing gum, they retrieved it and submitted it to the OSP Crime Lab.

The statement said, “In 2021, a genealogist with Parabon Nanolabs identified Robert Plympton as a likely contributor to the unknown DNA profile developed in 2000. Detectives with the Gresham Police Department found Plympton living in Troutdale and began conducting surveillance. When they saw Plympton spit a piece of chewing gum onto the ground, detectives collected the gum and submitted it to the OSP Crime Lab.”