(PhysOrg.com) -- It was one of the most infamous murders in British history: Hawley Crippen, a doctor from Michigan, was convicted and hanged in 1910 for murdering his showgirl wife and burying some of her remains in their London cellar.

But now, a hundred years later, a team of forensic scientists led by Michigan State Universitys David Foran has provided evidence that those remains were not Cora Crippens.

In fact, they were not even from a woman.

In a study published in the January issue of the Journal of Forensic Sciences, Foran and colleagues compared the DNA from tissue used in the century-old trial that helped convict Hawley Crippen to that of Cora Crippens maternal relatives.

If the remains were Cora Crippens, they would share specific DNA characteristics with her current day relatives. But there was no match, said Foran, a forensic biologist and director of MSUs Forensic Science Program.

Based on the genealogical and mitochondrial DNA research, the tissue on the pathology slide used to convict Dr. Crippen was not that of Cora Crippen, Foran said. Further DNA testing showed that the tissue was male in origin.

The research team also includes Brianne Kiley and Carrie Jackson from MSU and John Trestrail, whos now retired from the Center for the Study of Criminal Poisoning in Grand Rapids.

To learn more, read the study and a previous special report on the Crippen case.

Explore further Former astronaut Robert Crippen is honored