The Unsolved Murder of Melanie Hall

Melanie Hall was a 25-year-old British woman living in Somerset, UK. Her parents described her as ‘vibrant,’ and noted she had achieved her 'cherished’ dream of graduating with a degree in nursing.

On 8th June 1996, Melanie arranged to spend the night with her boyfriend, Philip Karlbaum, her mother dropped her off at his house. The couple, along with two friends, went to Cadillacs nightclub, Melanie was seen arguing with Karlbaum and he had left the club following this. Melanie was last seen sitting on a stool in the club at 1.10am, she was reported missing when she failed to turn up for work later that week. There was an unconfirmed sighting of a woman arguing with a man between 1.45 am and 2 am around the corner from the entrance of the nightclub, police have not ruled out that this was Melanie and appealed for any witnesses who may remember this to come forward, so far none have. Despite a long search, it seemed nobody knew what had happened to Melanie, televised appeals and a £10,000 reward for information did not give any clues as to what may have happened. Melanie was declared legally dead on 17 November 2004.

5 October 2009, a plastic bag containing bones was found on a slip road off the M5 motorway. The bones included a skull, thigh bone and pelvis and further human remains were found buried and spread around the nearby field. A piece of jewellery found at the site was recognised by Melanie’s parents who confirmed that it belonged to their daughter. The remains were formally identified through dental records and confirmed to be Melanie. Her skull, cheekbone and jaw had been fractured by blunt force trauma. She has also been tied up with rope. Despite the discovery of the body and fresh appeals, police still struggled to find any leads on the case.

In October 2019, new forensic techniques made it possible for police to obtain a partial DNA profile from the rope that Melanie had been tied up with they stated they were confident that Melanie’s killer would be caught. A £50,000 reward was issued for any information leading to an arrest and conviction. Despite this, and renewed media attention, no one has ever been charged and Melanie’s killer remains uncaught.

It has been suggested that there may be a link to serial killer Levi Bellfield, who is currently serving life in prison for three murders of young, blonde women committed between 2002 and 2004. A link was also made to convicted murderer Christopher Halliwell. Both men have DNA on file which does not match the evidence found in Melanie’s case.

The Unsolved Murder of Deanna Cremin

Deanna J. Cremin was a 17-year-old student living in Massachusetts, USA. She worked part-time at a local shop and did volunteer work with third-grade students at her school, Deanna dreamt of becoming a preschool teacher and loved caring for young children.

On 29 March 1995, Deanna went out with friends and visited her boyfriend, when she missed her normal curfew of 10pm her parents began to worry and contacted those she may have been with. Deanna’s boyfriend, Tommy LeBlanc, told them he had walked her halfway home, this was the last time anyone had seen her. Deanna’s family described LeBlanc’s behaviour as ‘unusual’- he usually walked Deanna all the way home.

Four days later, two young children stumbled upon Deanna’s body behind a housing complex. She had been strangled and sexually assaulted, the body was only a block away from her home.

Three main persons of interest were identified; Deanna’s boyfriend, who was the last person to see her alive, a local firefighter who was said to have been 'fixated’ with Deanna, and a third adult male who was later imprisoned for an unrelated crime. No charges were pressed and no arrests were made. Deanna’s case grew cold.

In 2019, the case was re-opened by a cold case unit who hope new DNA technology may provide a breakthrough, the unit claimed to know who killed Deanna but that they need more evidence to facilitate an arrest. Deanna’s murder remains unsolved.

The Murder of Yingying Zhang

Yingying Zhang (章莹颖) was a 26-year-old woman from Fujian Province, China. She was an intelligent and motivated woman who had graduated from Peking University with honours. In 2017, Zhang arrived in the USA to carry out research in Illinois and had ambitions to eventually become a professor. She was due to marry her boyfriend, Xiaolin Hou, in October 2017.

On 9th June 2017, Zhang was travelling on a bus to an apartment complex where she was due to sign a new apartment lease, along the journey she got off at the wrong stop and walked a few blocks to another bus stop. CCTV footage shows a black car passing her at 2pm while she waited at the bus stop, the car then circled back at 2.03pm, Zhang spoke to the driver for around a minute before entering the car.

And 2.38pm, the leasing agent sent a text message to Zhang but received no reply. Zhang’s friends also became increasingly worried when she did not return from her trip. She was reported missing and a huge search began, Zhang’s family flew from China to the USA to join the search for her.

The car Zhang was recorded getting into eventually traced to Brendt Allen Christensen a former student of the University of Illinois. He was interviewed and his car was inspected. He initially claimed he did not remember what he was doing at the time of Zhang’s disappearance before later claiming he may have been sleeping or playing video games. His car had been extensively cleaned, particularly the passenger side door in an attempt to conceal evidence. During questioning, Christensen admitted to giving Zhang a ride but claimed to have dropped her off after only a few blocks. Christensen’s girlfriend was approached by FBI agents and agreed to wear a wire, while being secretly recorded Christensen told his girlfriend he had taken Zhang to his apartment and killed her. He also bragged he was a serial killer and said Zhang had been his 13th victim, no evidence of other victims could be found and officials doubt this claim was true. It was also discovered Christensen had recently accessed a forum on a fetish website called ‘Abduction 101.’ Additionally, he had previously posed as an undercover police officer before in an attempt to abduct student Emily Hogan, Hogan had refused to get in the car and reported the incident to police.

Christensen was arrested and was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Zhang’s body has still not been recovered.

The Murder of Alexia Daval

Alexia Daval was a 29-year-old banker living in rural Gray-La-Ville, France. She was independent, loving, outgoing and enjoyed jogging. Alexia had married her high school boyfriend, Johnathann Daval.

In October 2017, Alexia’s husband, Daval, reported her missing telling police she had gone jogging and never returned home. Alexia’s body was found two days later partially burnt and covered in branches in a forest far away from her usual known jogging route. Daval appeared in tears at a press conference with Alexia’s parents following the discovery of her body and pleading for information on what had happened to Alexia calling her his ‘oxygen,’ he wore the jacket he had worn for their wedding to her funeral. Daval and Alexia had been trying for a baby and Daval admitted they had sometimes argued, he explained scratches on his hand as Alexia fought him when they had argued but reiterated he would never hurt his wife.

Suspicions began to fall on Daval, there seemed to be inconsistencies in his stories. Neighbours had heard his car leave early on the day Alexia had gone missing despite his claims he had not left the home until much later. Tyre tracks near Alexia’s body matched Daval’s vehicle and his car’s GPS showed he had been to the site his wife’s body had been found at. Police continued to question Daval on what had happened. Three months later, he confessed, he had beaten Alexia to death in a heated argument knocking her face against a wall strangling her. It was suggested Alexia may have wanted to leave her husband shortly before her death.

Daval was sentenced to 25 years for the murder of Alexia Daval.

The Death of Kaylee-Jayde Priest

Kaylee-Jayde Priest was a 3-year-old British girl, her grandmother described her as a happy girl with a beautiful face. She lived with her mother, 22-year-old Nicola Priest and her mother’s boyfriend, 22-year-old Callum Redfern.

On 8th August 2020, Kaylee was put to bed at about 7 pm, she wanted to stay up and play and began to cry. Priest and Redfern lost their tempers and one or both of them beat Kaylee until she vomited, inflicting a torn intestine, fractured rib and deflated lung on the infant. Kaylee-Jayde died later that night. An ambulance was not called until the next day by which time it was too late and Kaylee-Jayde was dead. Both Kaylee-Jayde’s mother and Redfern attempted to blame each other for the girl’s death and it is unclear who delivered the fatal blow and whether both were involved.

Disturbing details about Kaylee-Jayde’s tragic life emerged. During Redfern’s relationship with Priest, the child’s discipline became increasingly forceful and violent. Kaylee-Jayde had suffered historical injuries, these included broken ribs, lower leg fractures and a broken sternum. The post mortem examination of the body revealed around 68 separate injuries, some of which had occurred as early as two months before her death

In a text message Priest had told Redfern ‘I’m gonna kill her… because she keeps leaving the living room or going in the kitchen, so I’ve paled [hit] her one and smacked her for [soiling] her nappy,’ Redfern had replied, 'Good, give her one from me.’ Kaylee-Jayde was frequently heard crying, being called a brat by Priest and Redfern and being told to 'shut up,’ and 'go away.’ A neighbour also recalled hearing a bang on one occasion followed by Kaylee-Jayde crying and Priest saying 'I’ll just say she fell off the bed.’ When Redfern was asked after Kaylee-Jayde’s death how he felt he replied, 'It’s not my child… it’s not really affected me.’

Nicola Priest and Callum Redfern were both convicted of manslaughter. Priest was also found guilty of an additional offence of child cruelty and was sentenced to 15 years in prison. Redfern was sentenced to 14 years, both must serve at least two-thirds of their sentence.

The Unsolved Murder of Lois Roberts

Lois Martha Roberts was a 39-year-old Australian woman. Previously a hairdresser, Lois sustained a brain injury in a car accident and had to undergo major rehabilitation, after which she moved to live in Lismore. Her family remember her as a vivacious and intelligent free spirit, who loved to travel and was known to hitchhike.

Lois was last seen outside Nimbin Police Station on 31 July 1998, it seems that she was hitchhiking between Nimbin and Lismore and was abducted at some point along this journey. Lois was seen getting into a white car, that was the last known sighting of her and remains unconfirmed. Six months later in January 1999, her mutilated body was found wrapped in an electrical cord. She had been tortured and raped before death, it is believed she was held captive for up to 10 days before she was murdered.

Theories surrounding Lois’ brutal murder include that she was about to expose a paedophile ring, that she was killed by a man who was in love with her twin sister and that she was murdered by a serial killer. The truth of what happened to Lois after she went missing remains a mystery. There have been no arrests; the murder remains unsolved.

The Murder of Shona Stevens

Shona Stevens was a 31-year-old mother of one living in Ayreshire, Scotland. Shona’s daughter, Candice, was only seven at the time of her mother’s murder.

On 10th November 1994, Shona went shopping at the local supermarket. She was last seen at about 1:10 pm walking home, just 10 minutes later, her unconscious body was found approximately 200 yards away from her home on a wooded path. The area Shona was found was regularly used by the local community as a shortcut to the supermarket. It is thought that the brutal attack on Shona lasted for about eight minutes and happened just after she was last seen. She had sustained serious head injuries and died in hospital.

In a bizarre twist, police released images of a novelty semi-naked toy figure wearing a red coat, the item was found at the scene of the crime. The police stated that the item looked like it had been broken off the keyring and had not belonged to Shona so may have belonged to the killer.

The motive for Shona’s murder remains unknown. There have been no arrests made concerning the case, the killer remains uncaught.

The Murders of Summer Baldwin and Joanna Rogers

Summer Lee Baldwin was a 29-year-old American woman, she was an only child who was close to her family. At the time of her murder, Summer was living in a motel and working as a sex worker, she was also five weeks pregnant. Summer’s body was found stuffed in a suitcase in a landfill on 13th September 2005, she had died from asphyxiation and/ or blunt force trauma and had been beaten before her death.

Joanna Kathryn Rogers was 16-years-old when she went missing in May 2004, after the discovery of Summer’s body police began to wonder if the two cases were linked. A thorough search of the landfill Summer was found in confirmed this; Joanna’s body was found at the same place, also stuffed into a suitcase, she had been murdered in the same manner with the cause of death being asphyxiation and blunt force trauma.

Rosendo Rodriguez III was arrested in connection with the murders, he had no prior convictions. CCTV footage captured Rodriguez buying the suitcase Summer’s body was found in from a Walmart near the landfill. He had also been seen with Summer the night she went missing. Rodriguez was also linked to Joanna and the two were thought to have been acquaintances; analysis of both of their computers confirmed they were known to each other.

Rodriguez refused a guilty plea deal and was found guilty by a jury, he was sentenced to death by lethal injection. He was executed on 27th March 2018.

Kami Ring was a 10-year-old elementary schoolgirl from Maryland, USA. She had just finished fourth grade and enjoyed playing the violin, singing, drawing and dogs, especially her pet dog Sadie.

In June 2013, Kami was staying with her grandparents for a week, she was last seen when she went to bed at around 10 pm. The next morning, a family member went to check on Kami and could not find her. Police were called to the residence and noted that Kami’s bedroom window was open and the screen was gone. By 6.20 pm that day, Kami’s body had been found lying face down wearing only a tank top in a field across the street. She had died from blunt force trauma and asphyxiation, she had also been raped. The body had a cutting injury to her neck and male semen was found at the crime scene.

A friend of the family Richard Madden, 29, was arrested for Kami’s murder. Madden, who had met Kami before, had been staying across the road where Kami’s body was found and had previous arrests for drug charges and theft. Biological evidence linked Madden to the crime scene and Kami’s body, he also had scratch marks on his chest which he could not explain. Madden had also been observed doing laundry early that morning which was described as out of character, he had also cut his nails recently. He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to life in prison.

Jennifer Pan lived with her mother, Bich Ha Pan, and her father, Huei Hann Pan, in Canada, she had one younger brother called Felix. The parents were political refugees who when in Canada worked hard to ensure their children had opportunities and the upbringings they did not. They set high goals for their children and expected great things from them. Jennifer took classes in piano and figure skating from a young age, when she tore a ligament in her knee her dream of becoming an Olympic figure skater ended. Jennifer was not allowed to date, attend school dances or parties. At the age of 22, Jennifer had never drunk alcohol, been to a friend’s house or been away from her parents for long. Despite the high expectations, Jennifer generally got average-to-low grades and forged her report cards to make her parents believe she was an A-grade student. When Jennifer failed calculus class in 12th grade her early admission to Ryerson University was rejected.
Jennifer could not bear being seen as a failure and lied, telling her parents she was going to the University of Toronto to study pharmacology. When her parents thought she was at university, she sat in cafes and worked as a piano instructor and waitress to earn money. Jennifer purchased second-hand textbooks, watched videos about pharmacology and created notebooks full of alleged class notes to show her parents so that they would believe her.
Jennifer also got permission from her parents to stay on campus with a friend, though she was actually staying with her boyfriend who she met in high school, Daniel Chi-Kwong Wong who was a marijuana dealer.
While pretending to be studying Jennifer told her parents that she started working as a volunteer in a hospital, her parents became suspicious as she did not have an ID badge or any form of uniform and the details seemed vague. On one occasion Jennifer’s mother followed her to work and began to discover her lies. Jennifer’s parents realised she have been deceiving them and found out she had not completed high school due to failing calculus. Jennifer began to work to finish high school and was later encouraged to apply for university. She was forbidden to contact Wong or to go anywhere except for her piano teaching jobs and was ordered to move back into her parents’ home. Jennifer and Wong kept in contact in secret as Jennifer’s parents monitored her strictly and gave her little freedom.
When Jennifer was 24, Wong had grown tired of being in a relationship with Jennifer due to her restrictive parents and only being able to meet in secret. Wong broke off the relationship with Jennifer and began dating another woman. When Jennifer learned of Wong’s new relationship she told him several men had gang-raped her and that this had been set up by Wong’s new girlfriend, she also claimed the girl had sent her a bullet in the post.
In 2010, Jennifer offered an acquaintance money to kill her parents, he refused. Jennifer and Wong were back in contact and came up with a plan to hire a hitman, claim Jennifer’s $500,000 inheritance and move in together. They planned to pay $10,000 for the murder of both Jennifer’s parents. Wong gave Jennifer the contact details of Lenford Roy Crawford and a new sim card and iPhone to contact Crawford. Crawford contacted Eric Shawn “Sniper” Carty and David Mylvaganam to inform them of the job.
On the night of 8th November 2010, Jennifer unlocked the front door of the family home when she went to bed and spoke to Mylvaganam on the phone. Mylvaganam and two other unidentified individuals then entered the home carrying guns. Carty later claimed he was the getaway driver. The men demanded all the money in the house be given to them and ransacked the main bedroom. Jennifer’s parents were taken to the basement and shot multiple times, her mother died instantly but her father somehow survived. Jennifer claimed she had been tired up but managed to break free.
Police quickly became suspicious of Jennifer’s involvement at the time, she had not been assaulted, blindfolded, taken to the basement or shot and they questioned why the attackers would leave behind an eyewitness. Jennifer’s father’s record of the events also differed greatly from Jennifer’s version and she appeared nervous when questioned about details. She was arrested on 22 November 2010. During an interview, Jennifer admitted to hiring the killers but claimed she had hired them to kill her and not her parents.
Jennifer, Wong, Mylvaganam, and Crawford were all convicted and each received a life sentence with no possibility of parole for 25 years for the murder of Bich Ha Pan and attempted murder of Huei Hann Pan. Jennifer was banned from ever contacting her family or Wong again. Carty pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit murder and was sentenced to 18 years in prison.

Brianna Zunino Denison was a 19-year-old psychology student from California.
Brianna was last seen alive on 20th January 2008 at her friend’s house near the University of Nevada Campus, she was staying there after attending a party nearby. At 9 am, Brianna’s friend woke up and could not find her, a small bloodstain on the pillow Brianna had used led the friend to worry and contact the police and Brianna’s parents immediately. Brianna had left her phone, shoes and clothes inside the home and was wearing only a tank top and slacks.
A search for Brianna began, the blood was found to be Brianna’s and touch DNA belonging to an unidentified male was found on the doorknob and the couch where Brianna had been sleeping. Worryingly the DNA was linked with at least two previous sexually motivated attacks in the area within the last few months.
On 15th February that year, Brianna’s body was found lying in a ditch under tree branches. She had ligature marks on her neck and had been strangled with women’s underwear. The autopsy also confirmed she had been raped.
On 25th November, James Michael Biela, 27, was arrested and charged with murder, sexual assault and first-degree kidnapping. His DNA was taken and matched to the DNA found at the crime scene. Biela had also sold his truck and his girlfriend had found women’s underwear in his truck previously that did not belong to her.
Biela was found guilty of all charges relating to Brianna and sentenced to the death penalty. He was also found guilty of two additional counts of rape and kidnap involving two other victims. Biela had attempted to appeal his death sentence, but it was last upheld in June 2019.

The Murder of Brooke Wilberger

Brooke Carol Wilberger was a 19-year-old American student from Oregon. She had three sisters and two brothers and was described as a devout member of the church.

In May 2004, Brooke was on summer vacation and was working for one of her sisters. On 24th May 2004, Brooke was last seen cleaning lamp posts in a parking lot her sister managed.

In November 2004, a foreign exchange student attending the University of New Mexico was beaten and raped before escaping. She identified Joel Patrick Courtney as her attacker; he played guilty to the attack. Police eventually linked Courtney, an Oregon native, to Brooks disappearance. In August 2005, Courtney was charged with 19 counts of aggravated murder, kidnapping, sexual abuse, rape and sodomy. It was revealed that Courtney had been close to the area where Brooke had last been seen and had been driving a green van that was spotted by witnesses near the scene. Brooke’s DNA and hair were found inside the van.

Courtney confessed that he had abducted Brooke from the parking lot on the morning of 24th May 2004 before driving her to the woods at the side of town. He had returned to town to buy food, leaving Brooke bound in his van. The next morning, he had raped Brooke and bludgeoned her to death. Courtney pled guilty to aggravated murder and was sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. His guilty plea spared him from the death penalty as did his plea bargain that he would provide information about the location of Brooke’s body. The deal also called for Courtney to be imprisoned in his home state of New Mexico. Brooke’s body was recovered from a wooded area on the Oregon Coast Range.

John Wayne Gacy’s Clown Costumes

The Murder of Jessie Wright

Jessie Wright was a 16-year-old girl living in Islington, London. Her family remember her as a beautiful, bubbly girl with a zest for life. She planned to complete her GCSEs and begin a hair and beauty course. Jessie was recovering from a serious illness and brain surgery, her final operation was due to be five months after she was tragically killed.

March 2010, Jessie ate a late dinner with her Nan and then left her Nan’s flat to walk home, this was the last time her family saw her. Jessie’s partially naked body was found in a secluded spot the next day, she had been thrown into a well and landed sprawled on the ground below.

Suspicion quickly fell to a local man called Zakk Sackett. It emerged that Sackett was obsessed with Jessie and claimed to have been in love with her, Jessie’s friend recalled him swearing and making lude suggestions such as ‘I will have you in my bed,’ to Jessie, who attempted to ignore him and walked away. Jessie’s uncle testified that he had warned Sackett to stay away from Jessie after he had previously tried to drag her into some bushes in a park. Sackett initially lied that Jessie’s boyfriend had come round and threatened both of them, Jessie’s boyfriend had never met him and had not been in the area on the night of the murder. He then claimed to have been at home for most of the night and not to have seen Jessie. Sackett’s lies continued and in court, he told the jury that he had had sex with Jessie three times including on the night she died but denied raping her. He claimed she had died of natural causes when they had been having consensual sex and that he had been unable to resuscitate her. This was dismissed by the court who were able to prove Jessie had died from compression of the neck consistent with both manual strangulation and a ligature. Just minutes after the murder, Sackett had sold Jessie’s mobile phone for £15. Local residents had also expressed their fears of Sackett including emails to social services stating that he 'was going to end up killing someone.’

Sackett was convicted of murder and rape, he was sentenced to life in prison with a minimum term of 25 years.

The Murder of Jennie Poole

Jennie Poole was a 24-year-old mother of two living in Dublin. She worked as a healthcare worker. Jennie was described as a great mother who would do anything for her children.

On 17th April at around 2 pm, neighbours heard screaming coming from Jennie’s apartment and saw a man jump from her balcony and run. The police were called and found Jennie dead in her home, she had suffered blood loss from a stab wound to her neck. Jennie’s 4-year-old son had been in the apartment when she had died.

Jennie’s boyfriend, Gavin Murphy, 29, was arrested and charged with murder.