Inset: Edwin Newlander appears in court (KOMO). Background: The wooded area where the victim was found (KOMO).
A Washington state man has been arrested in connection with the death of a woman found in the woods several years ago after DNA evidence pulled from a cigarette apparently linked him to the victim.
Edwin Newlander, 59, was charged with second-degree murder on Monday, almost five years after a woman's body was found in a wooded area in Tacoma, Washington. According to a probable cause statement reviewed by Law&Crime, police responded to calls about a dead body on Oct. 12, 2021. While the body was being examined, male DNA was found under her fingernails on both hands. Authorities determined that the woman, identified only by the initials K.S., had been strangled to death.
Several years later, in March, investigators matched the DNA sample found on K.S. with a sample from a man accused of attacking another woman in 2025.
According to the probable cause statement, police spoke with a woman identified as J.H., who told a nurse who performed her rape exam that she had been sexually assaulted in 2025 by a man named "Ed." She described "Ed" as being in his 50s, short, stocky, and balding with long hair on the sides. Police said the physical description matched Newlander.
Police said DNA samples taken from J.H. matched samples taken from a second rape victim in connection with a case from 2019. That woman, identified in court documents as T.D.H., told police in October 2019 that she was abducted and assaulted by a white male in his 50s.
Based on J.H.'s description, police identified Newlander as a possible suspect. In June, they pulled Newlander over for a traffic stop for allegedly driving with a suspended license. During the traffic stop, Newlander discarded a cigarette butt, which police collected in hopes of finding a DNA sample.
In August, investigators received a report from the Washington State Police Crime Lab that the DNA sample taken from the cigarette discarded by Newlander matched the DNA samples from the two rape cases. It was also determined to be a "possible contributor" to the DNA found on K.S.
Police questioned Newlander about K.S. on Sept. 2, and he said that he recognized her and picked her up in his truck in an attempt to "make a new friend." Newlander claimed that K.S. attacked him during their encounter and told police, "That girl is nuts." He told police that he eventually asked her to leave his truck, but denied that he was forceful about it. Newlander then changed his story and said K.S. stayed with him in a different car and they "messed around a few times."
According to the probable cause statement, Newlander said he last saw K.S. after she got out of his vehicle and walked toward McKinley Park, which is located near where her body was found. He denied harming her.
Newlander was charged with second-degree murder in connection with K.S.'s death. He has not been charged in connection with the two sexual assault cases. He is scheduled to appear in court again on Sept. 28.
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