A seacoast nonprofit is offering a $10,000 reward for information that leads to an indictment or arrest in the cold case slaying of a 73-year-old grandmother nearly 30 years ago.

Seacoast Crime Stoppers announced Tuesday it is offering a $10,000 reward for information that leads police to the person or persons who murdered Maxine Bitomski in her Kittery home on Jan. 16, 1993.

The reward was announced Tuesday in a statement by Shannon Moss, spokesperson for the Maine Department of Public Safety. Moss said the cold case has greater urgency since the Kittery police and Maine State Police Major Crimes Unit announced last month that they have identified a person of interest.

State police disclosed that new DNA technology has allowed them to process forensic evidence that helped identify and interview the person of interest, who has not been arrested or charged. Bitomski’s grandchildren, who are now adults, attended the news conference.

State police said someone entered Bitomski’s Colonial Road home 29 years ago and killed her. Bitomski’s granddaughter had visited her the day before and spoke to her by phone the night before. Another relative discovered Bitomski’s body the next day. Her grandchildren hope someone has information that allows investigators to close the case.

“That person should be held accountable. It will not bring our grandmother back, it will not take the pain away, but it will give us a sense at least there has been justice for our grandmother,” Bitomski’s grandson, George White, told News Center Maine.

“Seacoast Crime Stoppers is committed to making our community a better and safer place,” Scott Forte, the group’s president, said in a statement. “We offer our sincere condolences to the family and friends of Maxine Bitomski and are hoping that the $10,000 reward we are offering can help bring a resolution to the unsolved homicide investigation.”

Seacoast Crime Stoppers was formed in 1983 and is funded through donations. The organization says it has received thousands of tips that have helped solve hundreds of crimes. It works closely with police departments in 16 communities in Maine and New Hampshire including Eliot, Kittery and York.

Maine State Police can be contacted at 1-800-228-0857 with tips or information about the case. Seacoast Crime Stoppers can be reached at 207-439-1199.

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