#Severed head found in 2018 ID’d as missing Texas woman

A severed head found on the side of a Louisiana highway in 2018 has been identified as that of a missing Texas woman, according to a report.

The Cameron Parish Sheriff’s Department said a recent tip had led investigators to confirm that the remains belonged to Sally Ann Hines, 58, using dental records, The San Antonio Express-News reported.

The San Antonio woman was last seen leaving her home on Dec. 14, 2017, according to the article.

Hines had a medical condition and had reportedly left her home barefoot without her purse, phone, car or medication on the day of her disappearance, the paper said.

Her head was found in a plastic bag on March 1, 2018, in marshlands off a highway in southwest Louisiana.

In the hopes of finding an ID for the remains, the LSU FACES lab in Baton Rouge produced an image of what the woman might look like using facial reconstruction, according to local outlet KPLC.

On May 20, a detective received a tip from a private citizen about a missing person who looked like the computer-produced image, leading police to make the identification after years of dead ends.

Cameron Parish Sheriff’ Ron Johnson said investigators believe Hines

Police believe she was murdered somewhere else and dumped in the marsh. Her body has not been found, according to the report.

“We are very happy that we have the head ID’d but I am sure for the family, they are very sad about the negative news,” Johnson told the paper. “Perhaps this helps them have some closure.”

Johnson said it is not uncommon for bodies to be dumped in the Louisiana marshland near the Texas border.

“People who know Cameron Parish — or have driven through here — know there are lots of alligators out and about and they believe that if they dump a body here, the alligators will eat it and they will disappear,” Johnson said. “Tragically this isn’t unusual for us.”