PORTLAND, Ore. — A man living in the suburbs of Portland, Oregon, has been found guilty in the 1980 cold case murder of a 19-year-old college student.
Multnomah County Circuit Judge Amy Baggio on Friday found Robert Plympton, 60, guilty of first-degree murder in thePlympton was not convicted of rape or sexual abuse because prosecutors failed to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that it happened while she was still alive, the judge said. A medical examiner determined Tucker had been sexually assaulted and beaten to death.Tucker was expected at a night class at Mt. Hood Community College on Jan. 15, 1980.
Physical evidence from the scene was maintained and a DNA profile match eventually led investigators to Plympton. Multnomah County Chief Deputy District Attorney Kirsten Snowden said there was no evidence that Tucker and Plympton knew each other, The Oregonian/OregonLivePlympton said he was innocent and that he didn’t match the description of a man seen pulling her into the bushes.