A man has been sentenced in a 1986 cold case in which a 4-year-old was abducted and murdered.

Thomas Eric McDowell, 63, was found guilty and sentenced to life 38 years later for the abduction and killing of the young Lexington County girl, according to a release. McDowell is charged with first-degree burglary, kidnapping and murder.

“After far too long, we finally have justice for Jessica Gutierrez and her family. While we can’t bring Jessica back, the person responsible for her murder will be held accountable and spend the rest of his life behind bars,” state Attorney General Alan Wilson is quoted. “Today’s verdict would not have happened without the hard work of the dedicated men and women in the Attorney General’s Office, the Lexington County Sheriff’s Department and the FBI. We hope Jessica’s loved ones can rest a little easier tonight.”

The release states that the case began when Jessica Guiterrez “vanished” from her house on South Lake Drive in June 1986. Jessica’s mother was unable to find her child the morning of June 6, with Koon saying that a large area was searched with all-terrain vehicles, in the air and on foot after the days of the child’s disappearance.

The case went cold, though, until the sheriff's department, FBI personnel and the state Law Enforcement Division took a fresh look at the case in 2021.

“The FBI personnel provided on-the-ground investigative, technical, behavioral analysis and analytical support,” Koon is quoted. “Prosecutors from the state Attorney General’s Office were also on-hand for the two-week operation and their presence was valuable as we intently focused on the case.”

The release states that in 1986, McDowell dated Jessica’s mother for a short period of time. McDowell was arrested in connection to the case near his home in Wake Forest, N.C. in January 2022.