The Murder of Cathy Swartz: How Forensic Genealogy Solved a 34-Year-Old Cold Case

In a quiet town like Three Rivers, Michigan, most people don’t expect to hear about a brutal, unsolved murder.

With a population of just around 8,000 people, it’s the kind of place where neighbors know each other and crime feels distant. But as history has shown time and time again, violence doesn’t discriminate based on geography.

And on December 2, 1988, that reality became heartbreakingly clear.

This is the story of 19-year-old Cathy Swartz—a young mother whose life was taken in an unimaginably violent attack… and how decades later, forensic science finally gave her a voice.

A Quiet Morning Turns into a Nightmare

The morning of December 2nd started like any other.

At around 5:30 a.m., Mike Warner left for work at a local paper plant. Before heading out, he kissed his fiancée, Cathy Swartz, and her eight-month-old daughter, Courtney, goodbye. Cathy planned to spend the morning doing laundry and caring for her baby.

Everything seemed normal.

But when Mike returned home later that afternoon, something immediately felt off.

The front door was unlocked.

And inside, he was met with a scene he would never forget.

Blood covered nearly every surface—floors, furniture, even the walls. It was clear that something horrific had taken place.

He ran upstairs… and found Cathy.

She had been brutally murdered.

A Crime Scene Tells a Story

From the beginning, investigators knew this was no ordinary crime.

Cathy had been beaten, strangled, and stabbed multiple times. Her throat had been cut in what investigators described as an especially violent attack.

And just feet away from where she was killed…

Her baby daughter stood unharmed in her crib.

Despite the brutality, the crime scene revealed critical clues.

• There were no signs of forced entry, suggesting Cathy knew her attacker

• A trail of blood indicated she fought back and tried to escape

• The attacker likely attempted a sexual assault

• Her phone line had been cut, preventing her from calling for help

But perhaps most importantly, the killer left behind forensic evidence.

The Clues Left Behind

Even in 1988—before modern DNA testing—investigators collected key evidence that would later become crucial:

• A bloody fingerprint on Cathy’s phone

• A bare footprint in the bathroom

• Biological evidence, including blood that did not belong to Cathy

There were also deeply unsettling details.

Investigators discovered messages written at the scene:

• “Harley was here” on the refrigerator

• “I was here” written on Cathy’s body

The killer had even attempted to clean up—washing in the bathroom and leaving water running behind.

Despite all of this, the case quickly went cold.

Early Suspects—and Dead Ends

Police initially focused on those closest to Cathy.

• An ex-boyfriend was arrested but later cleared through blood typing and alibi

• Her fiancé, Mike Warner, was ruled out

• Another man, Michael Howard, was confirmed as the father of her child—but also eliminated

Investigators interviewed hundreds of people and collected over 5,000 footprint samples.

Nothing matched.

Even a bizarre, possibly related incident—a neighbor dying in a car crash the same day—led nowhere.

For years, the case stalled.

Decades Without Answers

As time passed, Cathy’s case became one of Three Rivers’ only unsolved homicides.

Her daughter, Courtney, grew up without ever knowing who killed her mother.

Investigators tried everything available at the time:

• Fingerprint databases (AFIS)

• Early DNA testing through CODIS

Still, no matches.

The evidence was there.

The technology just wasn’t.

The Breakthrough: Forensic Genetic Genealogy

Everything changed in 2022.

A new police chief pushed to reopen the case—and turned to a powerful tool that has transformed modern investigations: forensic genetic genealogy.

This is the same method that helped identify the Golden State Killer.

The evidence from Cathy’s case was sent to Othram, a lab specializing in advanced DNA analysis.

After confirming the samples were viable, scientists began building a genetic profile.

And then—finally—a break.

They identified a distant relative of the killer.

Building the Family Tree

From that match, investigators constructed a family tree that led them to the Waters family.

Four brothers quickly became the focus.

One by one, they were eliminated through DNA testing.

Until only one remained:

Robert Waters.

A Killer Hiding in Plain Sight

Robert Waters had once lived in Three Rivers.

In fact, he had a direct connection to the victims:

• He was a childhood friend of Mike Warner

• He had visited Cathy’s apartment just weeks before the murder

At the time of the investigation, he had already moved out of state.

And somehow, he had never been tested.

In 2023, detectives tracked him down in South Carolina.

They obtained a warrant for his DNA and fingerprints.

And after hours of waiting for results…

They got their answer.

The Evidence That Solved the Case

The fingerprint found on Cathy’s phone in 1988?

It belonged to Robert Waters.

Further testing confirmed:

• His DNA matched the biological evidence

• His footprint matched the one left at the scene

After 34 years, the evidence finally spoke.

On April 30, 2023, Robert Waters was arrested for Cathy Swartz’s murder.

A Shocking Ending

But justice would take an unexpected turn.

Just one week after his arrest, Robert Waters was found dead in his jail cell.

He had taken his own life.

For Cathy’s family, the answers came—but closure remained complicated.

The Power of Forensic Science

This case is a powerful reminder of how far forensic science has come.

In 1988, investigators did everything right.

They preserved the evidence.

They documented the scene.

They followed every lead.

But they didn’t yet have the tools to identify the killer.

Decades later, those same pieces of evidence became the key to solving the case.

Final Thoughts

Cathy Swartz was just 19 years old.

She was a mother, a daughter, and someone who fought desperately to survive in her final moments.

Nothing can undo what happened to her.

But because of advancements in forensic science—and the determination of investigators who never gave up—her story didn’t remain unsolved forever.

Her killer now has a name.

And her voice, finally, was heard.

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