Affidavit: DNA from clothing linked Warren man to long-unsolved murder

Daniel Andrew MacGinnis Daniel Andrew MacGinnis Photo: Photo: Texas Sex Offender Registry Photo: Photo: Texas Sex Offender Registry Image 1 of / 3 Caption Close Affidavit: DNA from clothing linked Warren man to long-unsolved murder 1 / 3 Back to Gallery

Clothing worn by a Silsbee woman killed in 1988 contained DNA that linked a local sex offender to her murder and resulted in an arrest 30 years later, newly released court documents say.

Daniel Andrew MacGinnis, 60, on Wednesday was indicted by a Jefferson County grand jury. The Warren man was jailed a day earlier in lieu of $1 million bond in connection with the murder of Patricia Ann Jacobs.

> > PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Warren man arrested in 30-year-old murder case

Jacobs, 36, was reported missing on Oct. 6, 1988, after she failed to return home from work the night before. Her truck was found in the parking lot of the Silver Spur tavern in Hardin County.

Her body was found about 11 a.m. in the Neches River near Port Arthur’s Old Ferry Landing Road. Preliminary autopsy results indicated that she had drowned but suffered blows to the head, and she had been in the water approximately 12 hours.

Her death was investigated as a homicide.

MacGinnis, who had been convicted of sexual assault of a 19-year-old four years before, was interviewed at the time of the crime and denied involvement, District Attorney Bob Wortham said Tuesday. A connection between MacGinnis and Jacobs was never established.

Two years later, MacGinnis was convicted in California of forcibly raping a 35-year-old woman. In 2007, he was found guilty in Texas of the attempted aggravated kidnapping of a 39-year-old woman.

A recent request from Jacobs’ daughter prompted the Texas Rangers and Port Arthur Police Department to reopen the case. DNA testing not available in 1988 found a match to MacGinnis in both Texas and California databases, the affidavit says.

Wortham on Tuesday said other law enforcement agencies have contacted Jefferson County and made arrangements to transport MacGinnis to their jurisdiction and try him against other unsolved crimes.

Hardin County Sheriff Mark Davis said they are “are combing through all of their cases to see if there is a match.”

Tyler County public records show a Sept. 9 trial date is set for MacGinnis on charges of unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon and possession of a controlled substance stemming from 2017.

Andrea Whitney contributed to this article.

Monique Batson is the City Editor for the Beaumont Enterprise. Contact her at MBatson@BeaumontEnterprise.com or on Twitter by clicking here.

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