OMAHA, Neb. (KMTV) - In 1983, Firozeh Dehghanpour's body was found under a bridge north of Council Bluffs. The case went cold but someone special to the victim never gave up on trying to find answers.
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Nearly four decades after the death of the UNO college student, her friend Steven Martin remembers her fondly.
"She was a great student, she was brilliant in mathematics," Martin said. "All of the engineering students there, they held her in high esteem into her knowledge of mathematics and things like this."
Martin was shocked when he found out about his friend's brutal death.
READ MORE: Pottawattamie Co. authorities provide update on arrest in 1983 death of UNO student from Iran
"It was just so terrible, I can't describe to you what a terrible experience it was, there's nothing to describe it," Martin said.
After graduating from UNO, Martin traveled around the world for his career, but he never stopped thinking about her.
"I was always disturbed by it, I wanted to know what happened," Martin said.
He called the Pottawattamie County Sheriff's office, which led him to Sgt. Jim Doty.
"I said, Detective Doty, there must be DNA evidence, there must be DNA evidence there," Martin said. "You have to take it upon yourself to look into this, and well, he did. He looked into it, he looked into it and he solved the case."
Martin is grateful his persistence paid off.
"I sincerely felt, we all see what DNA does, it's around us every day," Martin said. "To me, it was a no-brainer that there would be substantial DNA evidence."
Ultimately - Martin hopes Firozeh's family can find some relief now that an arrest has been made.
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