Man Who Raped, Killed Montana Girl in 1996 Is ID'd After 28 Years — and He Died by Suicide After Being Questioned (2024)

Nearly 30 years after a Montana teenager was raped and murdered in 1996, officials have identified her suspected killer, who died by suicide one day after being questioned by authorities about the case.

The Gallatin County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement shared on Thursday, Aug. 8 that DNA evidence collected at the time of 15-year-old Danielle “Danni” Houchins’ death and genetic genealogy testing identified Paul Hutchinson, 55, of Dillion, Mont., as a suspect.

On Sept. 21, 1996, Houchins left her Belgrade, Mont., home around 11 a.m. and never returned home, leading her family to file a missing person’s report with the local sheriff's office, authorities said.

Her mother discovered Houchins’ truck at the Cameron Bridge Fishing Access site on the Gallatin River, and later that night, Houchins’ body was found face down in shallow water, according to the sheriff’s office.

Authorities said DNA evidence was collected at the scene and several potential suspects were interviewed, but the case soon went cold.

In 2021, when Dan Springer became sheriff, he hired private investigator Tom Elfmont and Newport Beach Police Sergeant Court Depweg to help solve the case.

Four hairs were collected from Houchins’ body during the initial investigation, and one of those hairs was used to create a partial DNA profile that was then run through the FBI’s Combined DNA Index System. However, there were no matches found.

When the DNA profile was subsequently sent to Parabon NanoLabs in Virginia, genealogists used additional DNA databases to identify Hutchinson as a suspect.

On July 23, Elfmont and Depweg interviewed Hutchinson, who authorities said lived in Bozeman, Mont., at the time of Houchins’ death. They claimed he “displayed extreme nervousness, sweated profusely, scratched his face, and chewed on his hand” during the nearly-two hour interview, according to the sheriff’s office.

“When shown a photo of Houchins, Hutchinson slumped in his chair and exhibited signs of being uncomfortable,” the sheriff’s office said. “Upon release, his behavior was observed to be erratic.”

The next morning, just after 4:15 a.m., Hutchinson called the Beaverhead County Sheriff’s Office, informing them he needed help before hanging up, per the statement. Deputies who responded to the scene found Hutchinson on the side of the road, dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound, authorities said.

Investigators now believe Hutchinson and Houchins randomly encountered each other at the river, where Hutchinson raped then suffocated her in shallow water, per the statement. The sheriff’s office described it as a “crime of opportunity” and determined that Hutchinson and Houchins had no prior connection.

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Authorities said Hutchinson was a Montana State University student in September 1996 and eventually graduated with a degree in fisheries wildlife biology. He then worked for the Montana Bureau of Land Management in Dillon for 22 years. He had no criminal or traffic history and was married with two adult children, they said.

“This case exemplifies our relentless pursuit of justice," Sheriff Springer said. "We never gave up on finding the truth for Danni and her family, exhausting all means necessary to bring closure to this heartbreaking chapter."

“Our commitment to justice for victims and their loved ones is unwavering, and we will continue to use every resource at our disposal to solve these cases, no matter how much time has passed," he added.

At a press conference on Thursday, Houchins' younger sister, Stephanie Mollet, embraced Sheriff Springer and expressed gratitude to authorities for their efforts in “achieving justice.”

“After nearly 28 years without justice, we celebrate today,” Mollet said. “Even though this man will not face a jury of his peers, I have no doubt that he was the one who forcefully and violently sexually assaulted my sister, then held her head down in a marsh until she choked to death on mud.”

She added, “When the time came to face up and account for his violence, he instead chose to end his life. He knew of his guilt and couldn't face my family or his family and the pain he had caused.”

The sheriff’s office said the information they’ve received will be shared with federal and local law enforcement agencies in an attempt to locate possible victims of similar crimes.