On July 7, 1972, 26-year-old Phyllis Bailer was traveling from Indianapolis to Bluffton with her 3-year-old daughter. They were traveling in a borrowed car to visit Bailer’s parents. Bailer and her daughter left Indianapolis around 8 p.m. but never arrived at her mother’s home in Bluffton. Her family called police to report Bailer missing, according to a news release from the Indiana State Police.
The next morning, around 10:30 a.m., her car was found on northbound I-69 in Grant County. Her car was abandoned with the hood up and no one around. Indiana State Troopers from the Redkey Post responded.
Approximately one hour later, at 11:37 a.m., a woman driving on West Road, just north of Schoaff Road in Allen County, found Bailer and her daughter along the side of the road in a ditch. Bailer was deceased; her 3-year-old daughter was with her, unharmed. The Allen County Police Department and the Indiana State Police investigated the case. An autopsy confirmed the cause of death as a gunshot wound and determined that Bailer had been sexually assaulted.
DNA testing was not available in 1972 and did not gain widespread use in law enforcement until the early 1990s, according to the ISP. Years after the murder, a partial DNA profile was developed from her clothing. It eliminated the main suspect in the case. The Indiana State Police Cold Case Team continued to work on the case as DNA testing continued to improve.
In 2024, the Indiana State Police Laboratory developed a much stronger DNA profile from Bailer’s clothing. The Indiana State Police Cold Case Team and the Allen County Police Department began working with Identifinders International, a forensic genealogy company in California, founded by Colleen Fitzpatrick. Forensic genealogy was utilized in conjunction with the DNA profile and the killer was identified in early 2025.
Fitzpatrick stated, “Identifinders is proud to have supported the Indiana State Police with bringing long overdue answers to Phyllis and her family. This case is an example of still another homicide that would never have been solved without Forensic Genetic Genealogy.”
Fred Allen Lienemann, age 25 in 1972, from Gross Point, Mich., was found to be the contributor of the DNA obtained from Bailer’s clothing. Lienemann was born in the Anderson area. Lienemann had no known connections to Bailer but had a significant criminal history.
During their investigation, detectives learned that Lienemann was murdered in Detroit in 1985. If Lienemann were alive today, the Allen County Prosecutor’s Office would have charged him with the murder of Bailer.
This case demonstrates the commitment the Indiana State Police Cold Case Unit, the Allen County Police Department and the Indiana State Police Laboratory have for victims and victims’ families, the release states. Not only does this work convict criminals, but it also answers questions that grieving families have had for decades regarding the deaths of their loved ones.