Family submits relative's DNA to find out if man was victim of serial killer John Wayne Gacy
Topics: Crime
Callum Jones
Featured Image Credit: Bureau of Prisons/Getty Images
Topics: Crime
A family whose loved one disappeared some 51 years ago have submitted DNA evidence to find out if he was a victim of serial killer John Wayne Gacy.
Roger Aguirre, then 23, was last seen in Chicago on November 20, 1975, as he was seen standing outside his apartment building, speaking with a man in a red car.
The family became concerned after Roger hadn't been heard from for several days, and they became even more worried after searching his apartment.
They found the lights and television still on, but there was no sign of Roger. He's not been heard or seen from since.
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Becky Wakefield, 66, a relative of Roger, said: "It was like he walked out of the apartment intending to come home, but he never returned."
Roger's disappearance occurred during the height of John Wayne Gacy's crimes.
The serial killer raped, tortured, and murdered at least 33 young men and boys between the years of 1972 and 1978.
Some of Gacy's victims have never been identified, leading to Roger's family questioning whether he could have been one of the victims.
But thanks to advances in genetic genealogy and DNA testing, Roger's relatives hope they may finally have answers.
Becky added: "All we want to know is whether or not one of Gacy's victims is Roger.
"It has been seven years since Roger's sister submitted DNA to the police. We just want to know if Roger is a victim.
"Nobody wants their relative to die the way those boys did. It would be upsetting to find out he is a victim, but at last we would know where he is, and we could bury him.
"If it is not him, we can go on and continue looking for him."
She continued: "Around that time, Roger was upset because his boyfriend had broken up with him.
"He went round to see his sister, Carol, 82, on November 18 to talk through what had happened - that was the last time she saw him.
"Two days later, he was seen talking to a middle-aged man in a red car, which is the last time anyone saw him.
"They thought he could have been a friend, but they didn't recognise the man. This led us to wonder whether he was Gacy."
Becky said that Roger's sisters, Carol and Debbie, have both submitted DNA, but unfortunately the results proved inconclusive.
But with new developments in genetic testing, the family hope a breakthrough and much-needed answers may be on the horizon.
"All we are looking for are answers. We're hoping that genomics testing will give us the answers we are looking for," Becky added.
"None of us is getting any younger; we want to be able to mourn Roger."