Investigators have connected serial killer Ted Bundy to another victim decades after his execution, using DNA evidence to resolve a Utah cold case involving a 17-year-old girl.

Authorities in Summit County, Utah, announced Tuesday that DNA evidence links Bundy to the 1974 murder of Melissa Ann Smith, whose body was discovered by a hunter. Investigators said they are satisfied that Bundy was responsible for her death after comparing evidence from Smith’s autopsy with DNA recovered during the investigation of another victim.

The case gained renewed attention after Sgt. Mike Reynolds of the Utah County Sheriff’s Office identified similarities between Smith’s murder and the killing of Laura Aime. A Y-chromosome DNA profile, which is passed through the male line, provided investigators with a key link. Officials said a highly similar profile was found in evidence collected during Smith’s autopsy.

Utah County officials presented the DNA findings to the Summit County Sheriff’s Office on Oct. 7. Investigators have also contacted Smith’s next of kin, although none of her relatives still live in the area.

Salt Lake County Sheriff Rosie Rivera said the case underscores the importance of preserving evidence, allowing investigators to revisit unsolved crimes as forensic technology improves.

“With every case closure, may we stomp the memory of Ted Bundy out,” Reynolds said.

Bundy was one of America’s most notorious serial killers. He confessed to killing numerous women and girls across multiple states during the 1970s, and authorities have confirmed at least 30 victims. Some women survived attacks, while other cases linked to Bundy remain unresolved or unconfirmed.

Bundy was executed in Florida’s electric chair in 1989 for the 1978 murders of two women at the Chi Omega sorority house at Florida State University. In the final days before his execution, he gave investigators a series of confessions, including details about crimes that had not previously been known to police.

Authorities have continued reviewing evidence from older cases as DNA testing advances, helping investigators establish links that could not be conclusively demonstrated when the crimes occurred. The identification of Smith’s killer closes a case that had remained unsolved for more than five decades.