Prosecutor says 2 of 4 '70s child slayings linked

PONTIAC (AP) -- Investigators have DNA evidence linking the deaths of two of four children killed during a 13-month period in the 1970s in what's known as the Oakland County child killer case and are making a fresh appeal to the public for tips, a prosecutor said Tuesday. Oakland County Prosecutor Jessica Cooper said tests on hairs found during the investigation of the deaths of 11-year-old Timothy King and 12-year-old Mark Stebbins show they share the same DNA profile and could be from the same person. "This is the very first piece of evidence that actually links any of the victims together," Cooper said during a news conference. The hairs share a DNA profile with one in a 1966 Pontiac Bonneville driven by Arch Edward Sloan, who is serving a life sentence in a 1983 first-degree criminal sexual conduct case, Cooper said. The hairs don't, however, match Sloan, now 70, and he has not been named a suspect in the case, Cooper said. The DNA profile also doesn't match a number of previously identified suspects in the child slayings, Cooper said. So authorities are seeking help from the public and setting up a hotline to get tips on people who may have associated with Sloan. He came to the attention of Southfield police as part of an investigation related to one of the killings, and the hair was collected during a 1976 search, Cooper said. Technology at the time didn't allow for extensive forensic examination, but the evidence was saved and tested more recently by the FBI. A message seeking information about whether Sloan had a lawyer was sent to spokesmen for the Michigan Department of Corrections. The prosecutor's office in Wayne County, where Sloan's criminal sexual conduct case was handled in the 1980s, said additional information about the case, including details of his legal representation at the time, is kept at an off-site storage facility that can't be immediately accessed. The two other children killed in Oakland County were 10-year-old Kristine Mihelich and 12-year-old Jill Robinson. "We want to bring closure for the families and punishment ... for the perpetrators," Oakland County Sheriff Mike Bouchard said. The children were abducted from business areas in Oakland County and suffocated between February 1976 and March 1977. Their bodies were found after each went missing for periods ranging from three to 19 days. Two had been raped, and one was shot in the face. "I am glad to see that things are proceeding forward," Mark Stebbin's brother, Mike, told WJBK-TV. "I hope we can see closure." Published: Thu, Jul 19, 2012