DUNDALK, Md. — Nearly 30 years after a Dundalk mother was strangled in her apartment, her killer has never been caught, and Baltimore County Police are asking the public for help.
On the morning of May 27, 1997, a neighbor went to Barbara Stenzel's apartment at 2605 Yorkway in Dundalk to ask for a cigarette. The door was unlocked.
"Her door was unlocked, and she found her body laying on the couch, she thought she was sleeping," a neighbor said at the time.
The neighbor called 911 immediately. Police determined Stenzel, 37, had been strangled. Neighbors described her as a loving mother to two young daughters.
Ron Smith, a longtime friend of Stenzel's, spoke about her death two days after learning she had been murdered.
"She wanted a better life for herself and for her children. And one animal snuffed it out. And I hope to God they get him and they put him so far in he'll never see daylight," Smith said.
Baltimore County Police recently posted about the killing and released a composite sketch from 1997. Witnesses reported seeing a man matching the sketch near the scene. Police say it is possible the man was clean-shaven at the time and that he was operating both a white van and an older rust or maroon colored van.
Anyone with information is asked to call Baltimore County Police at 410-887-3943.
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