The billboards represent a redesign and new wording from digital billboards that MassDOT had featured over the past two months; the redesign is intended to help maintain the case’s high public profile by presenting a fresh image to the tens of thousands of motorists who pass the billboards every day.
A total of 84 MassDOT-permitted billboards in 50 locations across Massachusetts will feature the computer-generated composite image of the young girl and a photo of the leggings she was wearing, under the headline, “Remember Me? Then please tell the police!” The digital boards also feature dedicated tip lines that may be reached by phone or text. The new billboards will run at least through the end of October. Tipsters are reminded not to text while driving.
State and Winthrop Police and the district attorney’s office continue to ask anyone who may have information about the young girl’s identity to contact us. Tipsters may text the word GIRL followed by their tip to the number 67283 (the text-a-tip line is anonymous) or call 617-396-5655. All tips go directly to investigators.
The young girl’s body was found inside a trash bag by a dog walker along the western shore of Deer Island on the afternoon of June 25. The girl is believed to have been about 4 years old, had brown eyes and brown hair, weighed about 30 pounds, and stood about 3½ feet tall. She was wearing a distinctive pair of white leggings with black-and-white polka dots and was found with a zebra-print fleece blanket that investigators believe may have been special to her.
In the days and weeks that followed, investigators have acted on hundreds of leads suggesting possible matches for the young girl, coordinating well-being checks on children throughout Massachusetts, as well as in 35 other states and several countries. To date, more than 200 girls have been ruled out as being the Deer Island little girl. Investigators have conducted or are still conducting a range of forensic testing, including tests on pollen found on the girl’s hair and clothing, testing of oxygen ratios in isotopes in her hair and teeth, and creation of an advanced DNA profile. The effort to learn her name and the circumstances of her death continues on multiple fronts.
