(WBBM NEWSRADIO) — A Minnesota man, who was awaiting trial for the 1972 rape and murder of a 15-year-old Naperville girl, has died in the Will County Jail.
Julie Ann Hanson disappeared in 1972 while riding a bike to her brother's baseball game. She would later be found dead in a field.
She had been stabbed 36 times.
Barry Lee Whelpley, 79, was charged in 2021. He was linked to the crime by DNA and genealogy. Whelpley graduated from Naperville High School in 1964 and lived about one mile from the girl's home when she was killed.
This is what Naperville Police Chief Robert Marshall said at the time of the arrest.
"People often call these types of cases 'cold cases,'" he said. "This was never a cold case."
Whelpley was found unresponsive in his cell early Friday.
He was taken to a hospital where he was pronounced dead. Foul play is not suspected.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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