Garry Artman was finally revealed to be Sharon Hammack’s murderer thanks to recent developments in forensic technology and data which allowed investigators working on the cold case to delve into DNA traces Artman had left on his victim’s body. The DNA which was assumed to belong to Hammack’s killer was given to a private firm specializing in forensic genealogy. The DNA sample was able to narrow the suspect down to a member of Artman’s family — he was one of four brothers who were all initially suspected as a result of the new forensic information. However, investigators were then able to use biographical information to pin the suspect down and make an arrest, with Artman having lived in Grand Rapids for many years and there at the time of Hammack’s murder. He was arrested in August 2022.
But the DNA evidence also linked Artman to another killing, that of 24-year-old Dusty Shuck, who was found dead having been beaten and stabbed near New Market, Maryland in 2006, a decade after the Hammack killing. Artman was charged with Shuck’s murder and was due to stand trial again within months of his conviction for the rape and murder of Hammack, but his failing health meant that the trial would never come to fruition. As crime experts noted, 10 years had passed between the two slayings which suggested that the crimes were not isolated. Investigators also found several pairs of women’s undergarments in Artman’s storage unit in Florida which were being tested as possible evidence. It was feared that Artman may have been operating as a serial killer for decades without being detected.
