Suspect In 1997 Murders Of LI Army Vet, Toddler Daughter Arrested In Florida: Report

By Michael Mashburn From Daily Voice

Nearly 30 years after an Army veteran single mother and her toddler daughter were found murdered on Long Island, a suspect is in custody, ABC News reports.

Andrew Dykes, 66, was arraigned in a Florida courtroom Wednesday, Dec. 3, on two counts of murder in the deaths of Tanya Denise Jackson and her daughter, Tatiana Marie Dykes, according to the outlet. Dykes is the child’s father.

The charges stem from a warrant issued out of Nassau County, law enforcement sources told ABC News.

Cold Case Background

Jackson, 26, was found dismembered in June 1997 at Hempstead Lake State Park in Lakeview. For years, her identity remained unknown, and she was referred to only as “Peaches” due to a heart-shaped peach tattoo on her left breast.

Her daughter’s skeletal remains were discovered 14 years later, in April 2011, near Gilgo Beach. Both cases became part of a broader mystery involving remains found along the southern shore of Long Island, though police have never confirmed a link between the killings and the Gilgo Beach serial homicides.

In April, Nassau County Police and federal officials publicly identified Jackson and her daughter using investigative genetic genealogy, which combined DNA evidence with genealogical research and interviews with relatives.

Jackson, a US Army veteran originally from Alabama, had been estranged from her family and moved frequently before her death. At the time of her disappearance, she worked at a doctor’s office and drove a black 1991 Geo Storm, detectives said.

A peaches tattoo on the victim.

Nassau County Police Department

Investigators revealed at the April press conference that they had interviewed Tatiana’s biological father and said he was cooperating. Police noted he did not report the pair missing, possibly due to Jackson’s distant relationship with her family.

Jackson and her daughter were laid to rest earlier this year in Alabama with full military honors.

Although the case was often discussed alongside the Gilgo Beach investigation, suspect Rex Heuermann—who has been charged in several of those murders—was never connected to Jackson or Tatiana’s deaths.

Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly said in April that investigators remained committed to solving the killings and pursuing justice for the victims.

“We will never give up, not on an unsolved homicide, not on Tanya and Tatiana,” Donnelly said at the time. “We will follow every lead. We will pull at every thread until we can get justice for this mother and this child.”

Daily Voice reached out to the Nassau County District Attorney’s Office, but a spokesperson declined to comment on the reported arrest.

This continues to be a developing story. Check back to Daily Voice for updates.