Cops finally crack mystery of Montana 15-year-old’s 1996 murder. But hours after he’s grilled, her killer turns up dead

The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Last month, in a significant breakthrough, after creating a DNA profile with four hairs collected from Houchins’ body at the crime scene, genealogists were able to identify 55-year-old Paul Hutchinson of Dillon, Montana, as a possible suspect, according to a Gallatin County Sheriff’s Office news release. Danielle ‘Danni’ Houchins was 15 years old when she left home in Belgrade on the morning of September 21, 1996, and never returned The father of two, who at the time of the murder was a student at Montana State University where he graduated with a degree in fisheries wildlife biology and then worked for the Montana Bureau of Land Management for 22 years, was interviewed by investigators on July 23, 2024. “During the nearly two-hour interview, Hutchinson, who had lived in Bozeman at the time of Houchins’ death, displayed extreme nervousness,” the sheriff’s office said. He knew of his guilt and couldn’t face my family or his family and the pain he caused.” Investigators described the killing as a crime of opportunity and say they believe Houchins and Hutchinson randomly encountered each other at the river, where Hutchinson raped then suffocated her in shallow water.