After the discovery of Cooper, the murders were publicized by Crime Stoppers in an attempt to recover information leading to the arrest of those responsible. According to the autopsy, Cooper had died of "homicidal violence," though a spokesman later stated she had died of a gunshot wound to the abdomen. A tube sock had been tied around Cooper's neck. Dental records confirmed the skull belonged to Cooper, and two days later on October 28, her body and her purse were also recovered from the area, 50 ft (15 m) from where her skull had been found. On October 26, a skull was found at the dead end of Eighth Avenue South, near Harts Lake, about 1.5 mi (2.4 km) from where Harkins' body was found. At the time, law enforcement suspected that the case may have been connected to the murders of Edward Smith and Kimberly Diane La Vine, a couple from Kent, Washington who were abducted, murdered, and disposed of in a gravel pit near the Columbia River in March 1985. Nearby, searchers also found Harkins' and Cooper's pet dog, who had been shot to death as well. He had been shot in the head, and his body, still in a sleeping bag, suggested he had been murdered while sleeping. Four days later, on August 14, hikers passing through Pierce County found Harkins' body near a remote campsite. When the two did not return to their jobs at a Tacoma vocational school the following Monday, their families reported them missing. On August 10, 1985, Steven Harkins, 27, and his girlfriend, Ruth Cooper, 42, left their Tacoma, Washington home for a weekend camping trip at Tule Lake in Pierce County.
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