A Three Rivers cold case that was solved a couple of years ago will be highlighted as part of an upcoming episode of the ABC newsmagazine “20/20.”

On Friday, March 7, the program will be airing a special episode on the forensic genetic genealogy center Othram, and how its methods and technology were used to help solve two cold case murders, one of them being the murder of 19-year-old Cathy Swartz of Three Rivers in 1988.

Swartz’s murder was solved in 2023, thanks in part to the use of forensic genetic genealogy, which helped police identify 53-year-old Robert Waters of Beaufort, S.C. as a suspect in the 35-year-old case. Waters was arrested on April 30, 2023 and charged with open murder in Swartz’s death, however he died by suicide days before a transfer to St. Joseph County was to take place, on May 6, 2023.

As previously reported by the Commercial-News, on Dec. 2, 1988, Swartz, who was 19 at the time, was murdered inside her apartment at Riverside Townhouses, with her then 9-month-old daughter in the next room, who was unharmed. Her fiancé at the time found Swartz’s body when he came home from work that day. Investigators at the time said Swartz fought her attacker, but she was overcome by stab wounds, a beating and strangulation.

Officers and investigators at the scene at the time were able to locate fingerprints, blood and a footprint that was believed to belong to the suspect. After interviews of thousands of people and collecting fingerprints and footprints, according to police, decades went by without a match to the evidence located at the crime scene. Even after the introduction of the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS) in the 2000s, a match still had yet to be made.

In 2022, through a partnership with Michigan State Police, forensic genetic genealogy was utilized to attempt to solve the case. The technology, Three Rivers Police Chief Scott Boling said in a release at the time, was able to narrow down the suspect pool to a single family. The family members were interviewed, fingerprinted and DNA tested, until the suspect was identified as Waters.

In a press conference following Waters’ death, Boling said they believed Waters acted alone in Swartz’s murder.

“The forensic evidence and investigation indicated that Robert Waters acted alone and was responsible for the death of Cathy Swartz,” Boling said, reading from a prepared statement at the time. The case was eventually considered closed by the TRPD.

TRPD Detective Sam Smallcombe said the forensic genealogy technology was crucial to solving the case.

“Waters managed to keep himself out of trouble for 35 years, never getting fingerprinted, never getting his DNA collected; I truly believe without [genealogy testing], we would have never solved this case,” Smallcombe said.

The special is hosted by ABC News anchor David Muir and also focuses on the 1995 Texas cold case murder of Mary Catherine Edwards. It airs Friday, March 7 at 9 p.m. (8 p.m. Central Time) and can be streamed the next day on Hulu.