Unsolved: A new person of interest behind the abduction and murder of 10-year-old Holly Piirainen has been uncovered . A man dead nearly a decade could be the key to the mysterious abduction and murder of a little Massachusetts girl that has stumped investigators for more than 18 years. Investigators named David Pouliot, a Vietnam veteran who worked for a juvenile detention center, as a 'person of interest' in the disappearance of 10-year-old Holly Piirainen, but stopped short of naming him as a suspect. Holly was abducted during a family vacation in Sturbridge, Massachusetts, on August 5, 1993, and her remains were discovered three months later eight miles away in Brimfield. Investigators found evidence near Holly's remains that 'indisputably' puts Pouliot at the wooded site where her body was dumped, Hampden County District Attorney Mark Mastroianni. Mr Mastroianni would not say what, specifically, was found or how it links Pouliot to the killing. However, . it was only when the evidence was subjected to 21st century forensic . science that the connection to Pouliot became apparent, he said at a . press conference this morning. No one has ever been charged with her murder, but analysis of forensic evidence found at the scene has revealed new leads. 'This is the lead we’ve all been waiting for,’ Holly's father Rick Piirainen told the Boston Globe. 'We feel it’s the beginning of the end of this case.' Pouliot died in 2003 at the age of 49 at his mother's home in Springfield. He . was a Vietnam War veteran, a member of the US Coast Guard and worked . for the Massachusetts Department of Youth Services at the juvenile . detention center in Westfield, according to his obituary at the time. Connected: David E. Pouliot, pictured both right and left, died in 2003. However, investigators linked him to the site where Holly's body was found through evidence they discovered nearby . Vanished: Holly Kristen Piirainen went missing August 5, 1993 while she was on vacation with her family in Sturbridge, Massachusetts . Authorities say he frequently hunted and fished in the woods where Holly was found. He . has a criminal record, Mr Mastroianni said, but no arrests that would . have indicated he might be capable of killing a little girl. This . is the first break in the case in 10 years, but Mr Mastroianni said . several times during his news conference that Pouloit is not a suspect, . merely a person of interest. David Procopio, a spokesman for the . Massachusetts State Police, told the Globe: 'We hope the new evidence . may spark someone's memory, or someone's conscience. 'Holly's family has waited for justice for almost two decades.' Holly disappeared after she and her 5-year-old brother Zachary walked down the road to a neighbor's house to look at a litter of newborn puppies. Holly, Zachary and her other little brother Andrew, 8, were visiting their grandmother's cottage with their father Rick. Loved dogs: Holly when to pet a new littler of puppies at a neighbor's house and never returned. Her remains were found months later by hunters . No answers: Holly's family has waited more than . 18 years to find out what happened to her. The district attorney says . investigators are closer to solving the case than they have ever been . Zachary returned from the neighbor's house without Holly. For weeks, authorities hunted for Holly and what clues to what might have happened to her. It was two and a half months later when hunters stumbled across her remains in a thickly wooded area. Over the years, police have questioned at least two men on suspicions they had something to do with her disappearance, but have never had a break in the case. Pouliot's name only came up recently after he was linked to the evidence found under a bride near Holly's body. Holding out hope: Holly's dad Rick (left) and her grandmother Maureen Lemieux (right) were at the press conference. Ms Lemieux said she is 'cautiously optimistic' about authorities resolving the case . Family: Brothers Andrew (right) and Zachary (left) Piirainen, who were just young boys when their older sister disappeared, attended the press conference today. Zachary was with his sister right before she disappeared . Maureen Lemieux, Holly's grandmother, . told the Worchester Telegram and Gazette that the family never knew . Poilio and had never heard of him until prosecutors brought his name . forward. She said the said the development has her family 'cautiously optimistic.' With the new evidence comes a new motivation for witnesses or anyone who might know about what happened to Holly. State Sen Stephen M. Brewer and state Rep Todd M. Smola, a Democrat and a Republican, are offering a $15,000 reward for any information that leads to solving the case. The two politicians pooled the money together using personal and campaign funds. Making his case: Hampden County District Attorney Mark Mastroianni said the new evidence was one of the biggest breakthroughs of the case . 'I took that abduction personally' Sen Brewer said. 'That and Molly Bish.' Investigators have speculated Holly's abduction and murder could be linked with that of Molly Bish, who disappeared on June 27, 2000, after she was dropped off at Comins Pond in Warren where she was a lifeguard. The 16-year-old's remains were found in 2003 in a wooded area near Comins Pond. However, the Telegram and Gazette reported that authorities have had their eye on a different suspect in that murder.
21st century techniques 'indisputably' link David Pouliot to the wooded area where Holly's remains were found .
Pouliot died in 2003 and knew the area in Brimfield, Massachusetts, well .
Holly, 10, was on vacation with her family when she disappeared after visiting a neighbor's house .
Unsolved: A new person of interest behind the abduction and murder of 10-year-old Holly Piirainen has been uncovered . A man dead nearly a decade could be the key to the mysterious abduction and murder of a little Massachusetts girl that has stumped investigators for more than 18 years. Investigators named David Pouliot, a Vietnam veteran who worked for a juvenile detention center, as a 'person of interest' in the disappearance of 10-year-old Holly Piirainen, but stopped short of naming him as a suspect. Holly was abducted during a family vacation in Sturbridge, Massachusetts, on August 5, 1993, and her remains were discovered three months later eight miles away in Brimfield. Investigators found evidence near Holly's remains that 'indisputably' puts Pouliot at the wooded site where her body was dumped, Hampden County District Attorney Mark Mastroianni. Mr Mastroianni would not say what, specifically, was found or how it links Pouliot to the killing. However, . it was only when the evidence was subjected to 21st century forensic . science that the connection to Pouliot became apparent, he said at a . press conference this morning. No one has ever been charged with her murder, but analysis of forensic evidence found at the scene has revealed new leads. 'This is the lead we’ve all been waiting for,’ Holly's father Rick Piirainen told the Boston Globe. 'We feel it’s the beginning of the end of this case.' Pouliot died in 2003 at the age of 49 at his mother's home in Springfield. He . was a Vietnam War veteran, a member of the US Coast Guard and worked . for the Massachusetts Department of Youth Services at the juvenile . detention center in Westfield, according to his obituary at the time. Connected: David E. Pouliot, pictured both right and left, died in 2003. However, investigators linked him to the site where Holly's body was found through evidence they discovered nearby . Vanished: Holly Kristen Piirainen went missing August 5, 1993 while she was on vacation with her family in Sturbridge, Massachusetts . Authorities say he frequently hunted and fished in the woods where Holly was found. He . has a criminal record, Mr Mastroianni said, but no arrests that would . have indicated he might be capable of killing a little girl. This . is the first break in the case in 10 years, but Mr Mastroianni said . several times during his news conference that Pouloit is not a suspect, . merely a person of interest. David Procopio, a spokesman for the . Massachusetts State Police, told the Globe: 'We hope the new evidence . may spark someone's memory, or someone's conscience. 'Holly's family has waited for justice for almost two decades.' Holly disappeared after she and her 5-year-old brother Zachary walked down the road to a neighbor's house to look at a litter of newborn puppies. Holly, Zachary and her other little brother Andrew, 8, were visiting their grandmother's cottage with their father Rick. Loved dogs: Holly when to pet a new littler of puppies at a neighbor's house and never returned. Her remains were found months later by hunters . No answers: Holly's family has waited more than . 18 years to find out what happened to her. The district attorney says . investigators are closer to solving the case than they have ever been . Zachary returned from the neighbor's house without Holly. For weeks, authorities hunted for Holly and what clues to what might have happened to her. It was two and a half months later when hunters stumbled across her remains in a thickly wooded area. Over the years, police have questioned at least two men on suspicions they had something to do with her disappearance, but have never had a break in the case. Pouliot's name only came up recently after he was linked to the evidence found under a bride near Holly's body. Holding out hope: Holly's dad Rick (left) and her grandmother Maureen Lemieux (right) were at the press conference. Ms Lemieux said she is 'cautiously optimistic' about authorities resolving the case . Family: Brothers Andrew (right) and Zachary (left) Piirainen, who were just young boys when their older sister disappeared, attended the press conference today. Zachary was with his sister right before she disappeared . Maureen Lemieux, Holly's grandmother, . told the Worchester Telegram and Gazette that the family never knew . Poilio and had never heard of him until prosecutors brought his name . forward. She said the said the development has her family 'cautiously optimistic.' With the new evidence comes a new motivation for witnesses or anyone who might know about what happened to Holly. State Sen Stephen M. Brewer and state Rep Todd M. Smola, a Democrat and a Republican, are offering a $15,000 reward for any information that leads to solving the case. The two politicians pooled the money together using personal and campaign funds. Making his case: Hampden County District Attorney Mark Mastroianni said the new evidence was one of the biggest breakthroughs of the case . 'I took that abduction personally' Sen Brewer said. 'That and Molly Bish.' Investigators have speculated Holly's abduction and murder could be linked with that of Molly Bish, who disappeared on June 27, 2000, after she was dropped off at Comins Pond in Warren where she was a lifeguard. The 16-year-old's remains were found in 2003 in a wooded area near Comins Pond. However, the Telegram and Gazette reported that authorities have had their eye on a different suspect in that murder.
found evidence near Holly's remains that 'indisputably' puts Pouliot at the wooded site subjected to 21st century forensic . science that was on vacation with her family in Sturbridge, disappeared after she and her 5-year-old brother Zachary returned from the neighbor's house 16-year-old's remains were found in 2003 in a