In a long-standing case, DNA traces taken from the victim, Helena Jubany, a young librarian murdered on December 2, 2001, have kept the identity of the primary suspect in question. The National Institute of Toxicology and Forensic Sciences and the ties to the local police have kept the investigation active. After an initial negative result, referee Juan Diaz Villar directed state investigators to test Jubany’s sweater against the genetic profile of the man suspected by the authorities.
DNA samples from Jubany’s body and her sweater pointed to an unidentified man. This individual is not the same person named as a suspect earlier, Xavi Jiménez, who is believed to have sent two anonymous letters to the victim before her death.
biological signs
The clothes Jubany wore on the night of the killing were stored in a courthouse for two decades. A highly degraded biological sample from a man not yet identified was recovered from Jubany’s brown sweater. When the case was reopened, the authorities compared this genetic material to Jiménez, but the result did not match Josemario Jiménez’s profile.
In parallel, the National Institute of Toxicology and Forensic Sciences, responding to directions from the Sabadell court, retrieved samples taken during the autopsy hours after the crime. These included cloth fibers and samples from the victim’s fingernail. Analysis with the then-available technology revealed genetic material from a third, unknown man. This third profile did not match Jiménez when tested.
I check with the church
Following a denial of cooperation, the judge ordered samples to be taken from both the undershirt and the victim’s body to compare with Laiglesia’s DNA profile. The court sought a saliva sample as part of the comparison, reasoning that both sets of specimens came from an unknown male who could have a link to Laiglesia, based on the circumstances of the case. Jubany’s residence and the block where her body was found became focal points. Montse Careta, Laiglesia’s associate, faced temporary detention related to the case and later died by suicide. A stash of a drug known as Noctamide, with benzodiazepine residues, was found, and matches were detected with materials from the roof at the same address. Evening phone calls from Montse’s landline were traced to Jubany before the crime, raising possible links to Laiglesia’s movements.
If the jersey sample returns a negative result against Laiglesia, investigators would have to consider the remaining option that keeps both Laiglesia and Jiménez in the frame under the existing protocols. The pursuit continues with the same exception of those two individuals, as outlined by the legal process in place.