'John Doe' Dumped Down California Hillside In Tarp After 1998 Murder Finally Identified

More than 24 years after a wrapped male body was found down a northern California hillside, the murder victim has been identified.

Modern genetic technology confirmed this week that Eric P. Cupo, 22, was murdered, left inside a tarp, then tossed down a hill in rural Santa Cruz County in December 1998.

Cupo's body was so decomposed that it took decades to identify him. But three people have been convicted since 1998 of murdering a victim called only "John Doe."

The Santa Cruz County Sheriff's Office said in a statement that an autopsy determined Cupo died from blunt force trauma.

KPIX-TV reports that forensic genetic genealogy applied over the last two years determined Cupo was the victim. He was a California native, who moved around the country while growing up.

The Sheriff's Office statement and Bay Area news reports did not give details on the murderers or their convictions. But a comment left by the office on Facebook indicated all three killers are still in prison.