'Peaceful end:' 1999 Jane Doe ID'd as Peggy Lynn Johnson reburied in Illinois next to family

BELVIDERE, Ill. (CBS 58) -- Peggy Lynn Johnson Schroeder was laid to rest in Belvidere Illinois on Wednesday, Mar. 4. 

"The closure, you could just feel it in the air," Racine County Sheriff Christopher Schmaling, said.

Peggy was moved from a cemetery in Racine County so she could be near family.

"This case means a lot to the Racine Sheriff's Office and it also means a lot to our community," Sheriff Schmaling said.

In 1999, Peggy was murdered at just 23-years old. Investigators say she was badly beaten, burned, and tortured. Her remains were found in the Town of Raymond in Racine County.

For 20 years, investigators could not identify her and she was known as just “Jane Doe.”

"Many of the criminal investigators worked on this case tirelessly to find closure," Sheriff Schmaling said.

That closure came in November 2019 when investigators cracked the case. They were able to identify Peggy and arrested 64-year-old Linda La Roche in connection to her murder.

"We need to make certain that the person responsible for this.. justice is served," Sheriff Schmaling said.

Wednesday, Peggy’s family, Racine County deputies, and community members touched by Peggy’s story came out to say their final goodbyes.

"It does feel like a peaceful end," Schmaling said. "I think the family has found some closure now that she's been identified and is in her final resting place never to be disturbed again."

Sheriff Schmaling also thanked the community for their donations that made it possible to move Peggy to Illinois. Donations also paid for her to get a proper headstone with her name on it.