A suspect in a cold case in East Greenbush has been identified, according to Rensselaer County officials.

Wilomena “Violet” Filkins, 81, was found dead in her East Greenbush apartment in August 1994. The investigation into her death lasted for decades, involving the East Greenbush police and New York State Police.

Police on Thursday identified a suspect, Jeremiah Guyette, who they said they interviewed in Rosendale in 2019 following “a tip from a close acquaintance” – a day before Guyette died by suicide.

“After an autopsy, the deceased Guyette’s post-mortem fingerprints and DNA were obtained and submitted to the NYSP for further comparison to the original evidence,” read a release from the Rensselaer County district attorney’s office.

Guyette, identified through a fingerprint collected from Filkins’ apartment, was 17 years old at the time of Filkins’ death.

“Each and every lead counts when investigating crime,” Rensselaer County DA Mary Pat Donnelly said in a press release. “No matter how small the detail, it could be useful in an investigation. In this, all of those leads brought us to Jeremiah Guyette.”