Sketches of Bitter Creek Betty's face and her rose tattoo were released by the Sweetwater County Sheriff's Office shortly after her body was discovered in 1992. An arrest was made Wednesday related to the unidentified woman's death.
On March 1, 1992, a truck driver stopped off of Interstate-80 to change his fuel tanks discovered a woman's body 40 miles east of Rock Springs. Decades after her discovery, an arrest was made in the cold case involving a woman only known as "Bitter Creek Betty."
The Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation announced an arrest related to two Wyoming cold cases, the Bitter Creek Betty investigation and a similarly unidentified woman found in Sheridan County who was dubbed the "I-90 Jane Doe."
Clark Perry Baldwin, 59, of Waterloo, Iowa, was arrested Wednesday at his home by agents from the FBI and Wyoming DCI and investigators from the 22nd Judicial District Attorney's Office in Tennessee. Baldwin is charged with first degree murder in Sweetwater and Sheridan counties, as well as two counts of first degree murder in Tennessee related to the 1991 deaths of Pamela McCall and her unborn child.
When she was originally discovered, Bitter Creek Betty's body was found nude and was believed to have been deposited near the westbound lane of Interstate 80 either a few weeks or a few months prior to her discovery.
According to a March 26, 1992 Green River Star article, she had Hispanic or Native American characteristics, appeared to be between 24 and 32 years old and was between 5'7" and 5'9" in height. She weighted approximately 130 pounds and had brown hair. She was found wearing a gold-colored wedding band on her left ring finger and a gold-colored necklace. She also had a rose tattooed on her right breast and a long, vertical scar believed to have resulted from a cesarean section.
After her discovery, the Sweetwater County Sheriff's Office released sketches of her face and the tattoo that resulted in several tips about the woman's possible identity, but her name was never discovered.
In Sheridan County, I-90 Jane Doe's body was found by WYDOT workers a month after Bitter Creek Betty's discovery. Like the Sweetwater County incident, the woman's identity was never discovered.
The release from Wyoming DCI credited advances in technology linking Baldwin to the deaths, leading to his arrest. Sweetwater County Attorney Dan Erramouspe credited the arrest with an undying desire by investigators to find Bitter Creek Betty's killer.
"Although we do not know the identity of the Sweetwater County victim, neither the Sweetwater County Sheriff's Office, Wyoming DCI, or any of the other agencies stopped trying to find the person responsible for her death," Erramouspe said. "Their tenacity, coupled with scientific advances, are the reasons why we can now seek justice for this 28-year-old homicide."
While an arrest has been made, the investigation continues and anyone with information related to either the Bitter Creek Betty or I-90 Jane Joe incidents are encouraged to call Wyoming DCI at 307-777-7181.
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