Human remains found in the Nevada desert 50 years ago have been identified as those of a Canadian woman with possible mob ties. The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department announced on Friday that the remains belong to Anna Sylvia Just, a former stenographer from Calgary, Alberta, who vanished in 1968.
Just, who was living in Henderson, Nevada, at the time of her disappearance, had items including a suitcase and a purse with her ID discovered in the desert outside Henderson. Police later learned she was already the subject of a missing person report filed in Calgary.
During the initial investigation, police discovered that Just was acquainted with Thomas Hanley, a former union leader with ties to the Chicago mob. Hanley had previously been accused of murder, though charges were dropped. In 1970, children playing in the desert found human remains in a shallow grave; the Clark County coroner ruled the death a homicide due to a depressed skull fracture, but the remains remained unidentified for decades.
In 2024, Calgary police collected DNA from Just's sister, enabling Las Vegas cold case investigators to identify the remains. Hanley, who died in prison, had been convicted of murder in another case. The identification closes a 50-year mystery, though no charges are expected in Just's death.
