Former Chicago police detective linked by DNA to 8-year-old girl's cold-case murder, police say

A former Chicago homicide detective has been identified as the killer of an 8-year-old girl who disappeared while walking to church in 1960, with authorities now examining other cases that may have involved the officer.

Thomas F.

McInerney Jr. joined the Chicago Police Department in 1959, just one year before Gloria Kowalewicz was abducted and murdered.

He later became a detective investigating violent crimes and remained with the department until retiring in 1987.

More than 65 years after the killing, Chicago police confirmed to Fox News Digital that advances in DNA technology and a preserved fingerprint helped investigators identify McInerney, who died in 2006 at age 70.

COLD CASE BREAKTHROUGH SOLVES TEEN KILLING AFTER SUSPECT LIVED FREE FOR DECADES: 'BETTER BE AFRAID' Gloria disappeared Nov.

12, 1960, after leaving her home shortly before 8 a.m. to attend morning Mass at St.

Mary of Mt.

Carmel Church, just a few blocks away.

Her body was discovered roughly four hours later in a ditch at a forest preserve southwest of Chicago.

She had been shot and killed.

The murder prompted an extensive investigation, with police interviewing more than 1,300 people and knocking on hundreds of doors.

Despite those efforts, the case remained unsolved for decades .

Investigators preserved evidence from the crime scene and surrounding area, including a bullet, Gloria's coat and shoes, and a white communion purse containing her prayer book.