The skull, identified as JoAnn Dudek, was found nearly 2 years after she disappeared

A woman went missing from her north Phoenix home two years ago this week, but authorities said Tuesday that her skull was found just last week and not far from where she lived.

JoAnn Dudek, who was 65 at the time of her disappearance, stopped communicating with her sisters on Nov. 13, 2022, family told The Arizona Republic about a year ago. The Anthem resident’s three surviving sisters feared she was murdered, and the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office has been investigating her case as a homicide investigation since early 2023..

The Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office confirmed to The Republic Tuesday afternoon that the skull discovered Nov. 6 in New River — about 5 miles north of Anthem — is that of Dudek. Dudek’s niece, Erin Murtha, told The Arizona Republic that the sheriff’s office notified them Tuesday morning of their findings.

Murtha told The Republic that the family learned from someone that Dudek had passed out in her home the night she disappeared.

“Our family has been waiting for something like this for the better part of two years,” Murtha said. “We had a lot of hope at the beginning of this missing person case, but as time went on, we were pretty confident as a family that (it) was going to end.”

Murtha said the grim news did give the family some sense of closure, but was quick to add, “We don’t believe JoAnn just walked out and died. So we believe that somebody is responsible for doing this to her… We don’t believe I don’t feel like we’re going to close until the people or the person responsible is in custody.”

Dudek’s sisters spoke to The Republic the night before honoring her and was held on November 12, 2023 in Hymn.

“I’m devastated and I feel cheated out of my best years of enjoying my sister for no reason,” sister Colleen Shanahan Adair said at the time.

The sisters told The Republic last year that Dudek’s car, cellphone and wallet were at her home when she disappeared, raising suspicions of foul play.

“She has seen a lot of love in her life”

JoAnn Shanahan grew up in Great Neck, Long Island, New York, with her three younger sisters and brother. In her youth, Dudek was an accomplished dancer who performed at resorts in the Catskills Mountains of southeastern New York and eventually danced at Carnegie Hall.

“It wasn’t unusual for JoAnn to just burst into song and spin,” sister Karen Olson told The Republic last year. “She saw a lot of love in life and a lot of happiness in life, and she was happy when other people were happy.”

Dudek had a master’s degree in social work. She and her husband, Walter, left Boston for Arizona about 20 years ago when they discovered the Anthem planned community after a storm rerouted them on a trip to California.

“They just loved it there,” Olson said.

Erin Murta’s mother, Terri Murta, told The Republic last year that Walter Dudek feared the stress he had experienced over his wife’s disappearance may have accelerated the spread of previously undetected brain damage. According to Terry Murt, the 67-year-old’s doctor suggested it after he had a seizure on New Year’s Eve 2022. He will die from the next attack in April 2023.

Anyone with information about Dudek’s disappearance can call the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office at 602-876-TIPS (8477). The Dudek family can be reached by email [email protected] or by calling 631-560-8340.