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Investigators will take a fresh look at 1986 cold case in Gettysburg

Ivan Darling, 79, was found dead in his Gettysburg home on Christmas Day in 1986, and his murder has never been solved.

GETTYSBURG, Pa. — Detectives from the Gettysburg Borough Police Department and members of the Adams County District Attorney's Office are taking another look at a cold-case homicide from 1986, District Attorney Brian R. Sinnett announced Tuesday.

The case involves the December 1986 death of 79-year-old Ivan Darling, who was found dead in his York Street home on Christmas Day by a relative visiting from Maryland.

Investigators determined Darling had died two or three days earlier, and an autopsy found he had been killed by "massive hemorrhaging from numerous puncture wounds," according to coverage from the Gettysburg Times that year.

Investigators also determined the primary motive in the case was robbery, since some items were found to be missing from the home. 

Though police never identified a murder weapon, investigators at the time believed Darling's wounds could have been made by a knife, according to coverage from the Gettysburg Times.

Sinnett said that though Gettysburg Police, State Police, and the FBI have been involved at various times over the years, a suspect in the case has never been identified.

Investigators received and followed up on numerous tips from concerned citizens, but the leads never resulted in anyone being charged.

Sinnett said detectives will review the numerous case files, interview former investigators and others involved in the case, and go over evidence based on current technology.

"Investigators are optimistic that new processes may provide leads that were not technologically possible previously," Sinnett said in a press release.

Anyone with information relating to the case is asked to contact Gettysburg Police Det. Chris Evans at (717) 337-9840 ext. 1153, or call Adams County Crime Stoppers at (717) 334-8057.

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