More than 50 years after a man was stabbed to death at a Wisconsin petrol station, officials believe they have finally solved his crime. According to the Winnebago County Sheriff’s Office, police identified a suspect in the killing after conducting many rounds of advanced forensic testing on DNA samples collected from the murder scene.
Wayne Pratt was discovered dead on June 12, 1963, at a former Enco gas station on U.S. Highway 41 near Winnebago, some 60 miles southwest of Green Bay. According to the sheriff, Pratt’s wife, Marie Pratt, informed authorities after her husband’s death that she discovered him dead in the station’s rear room, covered in a blanket. He had received 53 stab wounds.
Pratt was 24 years old at the time of his murder and worked as a gas station operator at Enco, according to CBS affiliate WFRV. In 2020, the Winnebago sheriff announced an earlier breakthrough in the case, which had been cold for decades.
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Marie Pratt stated that her husband was at home watching television on the night of the stabbing and walked outside when a car approached the gas station at 8:40 p.m. local time. The sheriff claimed the Pratts lived roughly 50 feet from the Enco. Marie Pratt remembered him coming toward the station to assist the client, assuming the individual had pulled up for petrol.
She told authorities immediately after the murder that she went to the gas station to check on her husband when she noticed the lights at the Enco were turned off.
Evidence revealed that Pratt was not the only one hurt on the night of the murder. The sheriff stated that there was also evidence of the attacker’s blood at the location, but no more information regarding the incident or how it occurred was discovered.
Platt’s murder became a cold case after the initial years of investigation yielded no leads and no arrests were made. The sheriff stated that there was little information available regarding the case after 1968.
It was officially reopened in 2011, when police looked for any DNA that may be used in meaningful forensic analyses to help identify Platt’s killer. In 2015, Sorenson Forensics discovered DNA “mixtures” on the blanket where Platt’s body was discovered, but because of the mixed composition, investigators were unable to enter the information into their systems when looking for a prospective suspect.
Three years later, a warrant was issued to apprehend the suspect, William Doxtator of Bowler, Wisconsin, who was 82 at the time. Winnebago County authorities stated that Doxtator was initially identified as a suspect in Platt’s case in the days following his murder in 1963, and they received tips regarding him in 1968 and 2022.
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Then, last year, the company Cybergenetics put together a DNA profile from the mixture, which officials used to refer a charge of first-degree intentional homicide to the Winnebago County District Attorney. The sheriff reported that Doxtator died in 2022.
Winnebago County District Attorney Eric Sparr supported the sheriff’s referral.
“The Winnebago County District Attorney’s Office has examined the reports resulting from this investigation. If William Doxtator were alive today, I believe there would be enough evidence to support a factual basis and probable cause to bring a homicide case,” Sparr said in a statement regarding the murder suspect.
“The District Attorney’s Office commends the Winnebago County Sheriff’s Office for its ongoing investment in this case over a long period, showing dedication to securing some sense of finality and resolution for the families impacted.”