Nebraska Wesleyan University forensic science professor Melissa Connor was part of a recent archaeological dig to unearth the remains of Omaha murder victim Jessica O'Grady.
O'Grady disappeared in May 2006 after visiting her boyfriend, Christopher Edwards, aunt's house where Edwards had been living. A jury found Edwards guilty of second-degree murder in O'Grady's death and he was sentenced to 100 years to life in prison.
O'Grady's body was never found but the investigation continues. In early October, authorities were led to the home of Bob Edwards, Christopher Edwards' father. Investigators received several tips concerning yard work done at the home about the time of O'Grady's disappearance.
Ground-penetrating radar alerted investigators to a mass buried under a concrete patio at the home. That mass turned out to be concrete and rocks about 16 inches beneath the ground.
The 2006 murder was the focus of a 2007 NET documentary "Murder House." The documentary also featured Nebraska Wesleyan University's forensic science program and its work in training future crime scene investigators.
Connor's work with archaeological digs is nothing new. In addition to providing local assistance on cases when needed, she has traveled the world conducting archaeological digs in the former Yugoslavia, Rwanda, Nigeria and Iraq. She was also deployed to Haiti in early 2010 following a tragic earthquake. While there she worked in a mobile morgue.
Watch the NET documentary Murder House.