On April 10, 2008, Navy sailor Chris Shortt discovered his step-daughter Meghan Landowski stabbed to death in their Portsmouth, Virginia home. Meghan was 16 years old and from the looks of the crime scene, there was a struggle; Meghan fought back. Investigators learned the killer used a knife from the family’s kitchen. They found it in a gutter down the street. The police didn’t know who committed the murder but they believed it was personal and Meghan knew her attacker. Chris and Angie Shortt believed Robert Hickey killed Meghan and they called NCIS at Naval Station Norfolk to let them know what happened. NCIS questioned Hickey. Robert Hickey was a military officer who was on his way to the rank of Captain when he was accused of sexual assault by Meghan. Robert was a close friend of the family and NCIS believe he groomed Meghan for a sexual relationship. Meghan said Rob began touching her when she was 14 and by age 15, Meghan was having a sexual relationship with a 30-year-old man.
The family supported Meghan as she pressed charges against Robert but they learned from civilian investigators that Hickey’s crimes amounted to a misdemeanor in Virginia; he would spend 12 months maximum in prison. But Robert Hickey was a Navy sailor and subject to the Uniform Code of Military Justice. The Navy was investigating and planning to prosecute the case. When NCIS questioned Robert Hickey about Meghan’s murder, he invoked his right to silence. NCIS considered Hickey a person of interest because he had a lot to gain if Meghan died. Meghan feared Hickey because he had a lot to lose. But Hickey’s DNA didn’t match the DNA collected at the crime scene and NCIS had no proof that Hickey committed the crime. Nonetheless, Hickey was given an other than honorable discharge from Navy. The police also suspected Meghan’s high school friend Donald because they dated in the past but the DNA didn’t match him either. At least 80 people volunteered DNA. Investigators sent the DNA for further testing to determine the geographic ancestry identity and learned the DNA belonged to an African American.
This changed the direction of the investigation and detectives began looking for African Americans in Meghan’s life. One person who became a person of interest was a counselor at Norfolk Naval Station but this individual wouldn’t cooperate with the investigation. Five months after Meghan’s murder, every lead dried up and fear was building in the community. Then a community member planned a memorial walk to help generate new leads. It was at this point someone came forward with Robert Barnes’ name. Investigators learned Meghan and Barnes were on the same bus and both participated in an exclusive arts program at school. Robert played the violin and was on his way to becoming a success story. Robert was described as a nice guy who blended in; he was fully committed to his violin music. A friend suspected Robert liked Meghan and when she asked him, he admitted it. Detectives went to the school to speak to Robert Lee Barnes and asked for a DNA sample. Eventually he acquiesced and gave investigators a used piece of gum.
The DNA was tested and the crime scene investigators reported the DNA submitted by Robert Barnes actually belonged to a girl; the police needed to talk to Robert again. In this interview, Robert Barnes admitted he was in Meghan’s house on the day of the murder. He said he went to Meghan’s house and climbed through the window after no one answered the door. He said he walked into a crime in progress; the perpetrator was wearing a mask and holding Meghan at gun point. Robert said the masked man asked him to have sex with Meghan, asked him to stab Meghan, and cut him to leave his DNA at the scene. The police believed that Robert Barnes was making this all up and arrested him. Robert’s DNA matched the DNA at the crime scene. Given the mountain of evidence against him, Robert’s defense attorney asked for a plea deal. Robert Lee Barnes pleaded guilty to first degree murder, attempted rape, aggravated sexual battery, abduction, and statutory burglary. In return, Barnes will be eligible for early release from prison in 42 years. Meghan’s parents were relieved there would be no trial.
On April 29, 2007, Navy Ensign Cory Voss was discovered dead in his pick-up truck in a bank parking lot in Newport News, Virginia. Initially, investigators thought maybe this was a robbery gone wrong but Cory had been shot five times. Typically, in the course of a robbery, a suspect may shoot at the victim a couple of times in their attempt to flee the scene so this particular crime was suspect right away. Detectives left the scene to notify Cory’s wife Catarina Rose that he was deceased, and had been murdered. Catarina was very, very upset to learn the news although she was able to provide some details about Cory’s movements the night before. Catarina admitted that she was on the phone with Cory while he was at the ATM and warned him to be careful. This was immediately suspicious to detectives because it seemed like too much information. You typically wouldn’t be concerned if your spouse drove 3 miles away from the house.
The next day news spread quick in the Newport News and Naval community. People were in shock that someone they knew was murdered in this way in what normally is a relatively safe community. Detectives were able to get the surveillance video at the bank. It appeared someone jumped in the driver’s side of the vehicle and demanded that he drive away. They stopped in a nearby parking lot and Cory was shot. Unfortunately the quality of the video was not good enough for an identification. One interesting thing police learned was that no money had been withdrawn from the ATM and Cory was not robbed. Meanwhile, Catarina was very distraught and was being supported by Cory’s family and the Naval community. Then one day, police received a phone call from a witness that changed everything. When questioned, Ashley Doyle revealed her identity and was persuaded to meet with the investigators.
When Ashley met with the investigators, they showed her pictures of Cory and the unknown assailant from the bank surveillance video. Immediately, Ashley felt that it was Michael Draven that had killed Cory so she provided police with his name and suggested they look into him. She also told investigators about Michael and Catarina’s ongoing affair while Cory was deployed with the Navy. Investigators started looking at both Michael and Catarina’s social media pages and they were shocked by what they discovered. Michael Draven was seen pictured with Catarina and Cory’s children and he referred to them as his wife and family. Police enlisted the help of Ashley and asked her to meet with Catarina in an attempt to elicit a confession or get any other information that would be helpful to the investigation. When Ashley contacted Catarina she learned she was still very upset and was in the process of planning Cory’s funeral.
Ashley went to visit Catarina with hidden recording devices in tow. She learned that less than three days after Cory died, Catarina received $250,000 in life insurance money and she couldn’t get the full amount until an investigation was conducted. Catarina’s main concern while they visited was why she couldn’t get the second half of the life insurance pay out. Investigators were responsible for the hold on the second payment because it’s standard practice in situations like these, but Catarina was angry and impatient. As a result, she filed complaints that police weren’t doing their jobs and demanded that Cory’s case be solved (so she could get the rest of her money). Three weeks later, Catarina and Michael traveled to the Outer Banks in North Carolina for a vacation. Unbeknownst to them, their every move was being watched by police. And Cory’s family were starting to become uncomfortable with her behavior after she received the insurance money.
As a result of Catarina’s behavior, detectives subpoenaed her bank records. They learned the account Cory used on the night in question had only been opened for six days and never had more than $5 in it. Cory made three attempts to make a withdrawal. The first time was $60, then $40, then $20, all of which were insufficient funds. Police theorized that Catarina didn’t just want Cory to get the money but she wanted him to stay there and struggle. Interestingly enough, the account was co-signed by Michael Draven. A deeper dive into Catarina’s life turned up even more shocking revelations. Catarina wasn’t from the Ukraine like she told people but instead she was a local girl by the name of Cathlene Wiggins. She was also married once before to a man named Steven Larson. Steve joined the Army to support them and soon his testimony started to sound like a familiar pattern: long deployments, manic shopping, and infidelity.
Steve Larson alleged Catarina stood him up at the airport when he returned home from a deployment to Korea and when she did finally show up she told him she was three months pregnant with Cory’s baby. Catarina wanted Steve out of the picture and started fights with him every chance she got. She escalated and became aggressive to the point that Steve wanted to leave the relationship to stop her from hurting him. All this new information about Catarina was helpful circumstantial evidence but she wasn’t the one who pulled the trigger. Investigators believed Catarina and Michael Draven conspired to murder Cory for financial gain but they still needed hard evidence to put the pieces of this conspiracy together. They also believed that someone helped Michael Draven commit the murder so they dug into Draven’s past. A month before the murder, he spent some time in the city jail on a domestic abuse warrant.
Police found a number of recorded calls at the jail, the majority to Catarina, and the pair discussed their future together. In addition, they appeared to be discussing the plan to kill Cory and Catarina mentioned a 2 hour conversation she had with “David” who police suspected was the third party involved in the crime. Investigators combed through Catarina’s cell phone records and determined his name was David Runyon. He lived in West Virginia and was a marksman in the military; he met Michael Draven at a medical research facility. In December 2007, investigators initiated a search warrant for David Runyon’s property in an effort to find evidence tying him to the murder. In the search of his vehicle, they found a map of Newport News, Virginia and there were handwritten notes with the name of the credit union and address and a physical description of Cory’s vehicle. This was enough to arrest all three players.
Michael Draven was reinterviewed by detectives and ultimately he confessed this was a planned murder that he and Catarina had devised. They hired David Runyon to do it. Michael threw both Catarina and David under the bus and sold them out. Apparently, Catarina told Michael that Cory was abusing or mistreating the children and Michael believed her. Investigators believed this is how Catarina coerced and manipulated Michael into finding someone to kill Cory. Police asked Draven to call Catarina and tell her he was outside the police station and about to confess. Catarina asked him not to confess and drove to the police station where detectives were waiting to arrest her. On December 14, 2007, 8 months later, Catarina was charged with the crime. Seven months later, Catarina went to court. In an effort to avoid the death penalty, Catarina agreed to a plea of conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire.
Catarina Voss admitted to investigators that she set the murder-for-hire up by asking Cory to go to the ATM to get some money. She admitted she knew David Runyon was lying in wait. As a result, Catarina was sentenced to four life terms in prison plus twenty additional years. On July 17, 2009, a federal jury convicted Michael Draven and David Runyon of murder, conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire, and carjacking. Michael Draven received two life sentences and David Runyon received the death penalty. For the family, the pain of the loss of Cory Voss endures. Cory had turned his life around, joined the Navy, and went from enlisted to an officer. He was doing all the right things and the only thing he did wrong was love the wrong woman. Catarina Voss never showed any remorse towards Cory, but police say she was remorseful because she got caught.
“NCIS: The Cases They Can’t Forget” returns for its third season. -CBS News (May 29, 2019)
An American hero was shot to death while withdrawing lunch money for his kids. Who killed the young naval officer? It turned out to be a murder-for-hire case, plotted by Cory Voss’ wife, Catherine, who sent a hitman to kill him in what prosecutors said was supposed to look like a botched robbery. -Inside Edition (May 29, 2019)
Investigation Discovery:
Navy man Cory Voss and his wife Catherina “Cat” Voss are a young couple raising two children in Newport News, Virginia. Despite Cory’s love and devotion, Cat secretly falls for another man. But betraying her marriage vows is just one angle in Cat’s complicated web of lies, and eventually she seeks a more permanent solution to finally end her marriage. -The Liars Club, Deadly Wives (S2,E5)
They say opposites attract, that’s how Navy man Cory Voss meets his wife Cat. When money runs dry she seeks the attention of a seemingly wealthier man. But when Cat finds out he isn’t who he says the Voss family falls apart. -Blinding Fantasy, Cold Hearted (S1,E4)
Martin MacNeill, a respected physician, calls 911 after finding his wife Michele clinging to life on April 11, 2007. The beauty queen and the doctor had been married for nearly 30 years and had eight children. -True Crime Daily (October 31, 2016)
“Investigators traced Martin [MacNeill’s] first lie back to when he got into the military at age 17. He was put on disability leave two years later when a medical officer deemed him a ‘latent schizophrenic’ with ‘other mental and psychological infirmities,’ according to documents Utah County investigators obtained in their research. Rachel and Alexis never saw signs of schizophrenia in their father and they do not believe he ever had such tendencies. Witney and even U.S. District Judge Dee Benson questioned whether or not Martin’s schizophrenia was real. But Martin had been receiving Veteran’s Administration and Social Security benefits for his alleged disability — even after he became a doctor and a lawyer with a six-figure income. He had been receiving VA benefits up until January 2010, Alexis said.” -Deseret News (December 4, 2010)
Remembering Michele Somers MacNeill:
Michele married Martin MacNeill, who became a doctor, and quickly built a big family with eight children. When he turned 50, he made some big life changes, and convinced his wife to get a facelift. -ABC News (June 15, 2019)
This screenshot of this press release for Patrick Tillman is no longer on the DoD press releases website. They deleted the original site and created a new one that only goes back to 2014.
Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld today released the following statement (April 7, 2001):
“Americans are saddened by today’s tragic loss of life of both U.S. and Vietnamese service personnel in the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. Those of us in the Department of Defense, and the families of our missing, are keenly aware of the dedication of both the American and Vietnamese team members who were, on this very day, searching for servicemen who have been missing in action since the end of the war.”
7 Americans, 9 Vietnamese Die in Viet Helo Crash (April 10, 2001):
“The Americans killed in the crash were identified as Army Lt. Col. Rennie M. Cory Jr., commander, Detachment 2, Joint Task Force-Full Accounting; Army Lt. Col. George D. Martin III, incoming commander; Air Force Maj. Charles E. Lewis, deputy commander; Army Sgt. 1st Class Tommy J. Murphy, mortuary affairs team sergeant, Central Identification Laboratory-Hawaii; Navy Chief Petty Officer Pedro J. Gonzales, corpsman; and Air Force Master Sgt. Steven L. Moser and Tech. Sgt. Robert M. Flynn, linguists. U.S. Pacific Command officials in Hawaii released the names April 9 at 7 p.m. The Vietnamese dead include the three-member crew and four aircraft technicians. Also killed were two members of the Vietnamese agency that assists U.S. Pacific Command’s Joint Task Force-Full Accounting in its investigation and recovery efforts.”
“A Pacific Command investigation into an April 7 helicopter crash that killed seven U.S. servicemen in Vietnam found that deteriorating weather conditions, poor visibility and the Vietnamese pilot’s failure to “properly react” to those conditions were predominant factors in the accident.” –Honolulu Advertiser (October 17, 2001)
Murder Victim Bronx, New York City, New York April 3, 1998
Reward:
The FBI is offering a reward of up to $25,000 for information leading to the identity, arrest, and conviction of the individual(s) responsible for the murder of Solomon Robinson.
Details:
The Federal Bureau of Investigation’s New York Field Office is seeking the public’s assistance in identifying the individual(s) responsible for the murder of Solomon Robinson.
On April 3, 1998, Robinson was shot once and stabbed multiple times in St. Mary’s Park in the Bronx, New York City, New York. At the time, Robinson was an active United States Army soldier and was back in the Bronx on approved leave.
This is a joint investigation with the New York Police Department (NYPD).
New development brings hope for relatives of 1998 Bronx murder victim | A teenager from the Bronx who was committed to serving in the Army was attacked and killed in a local park 26 years ago. The murder of Solomon Robinson still hasn’t been solved. But now, detectives say they’ve learned new information that has led to a new development in the cold case. | NBC New York
Preview: Seeking freedom from his controlling wife, Dennis Hawley begins seeing drug-addicted prostitute Brandita Taliano and supporting her financially. In 1993, when Joan receives an inheritance and makes plans to divorce, Dennis, fearing financial ruin, enlists his lover to help murder his wife. -Second Best, Deadly Women (S8, E10)
Air Force retiree Dennis Dawley, 61, with the help of prostitute and mistress, Brandita Taliano, bludgeoned to death his wife Joan Dawley of 35 years for financial gain in Van Nuys, California. Joan wanted a divorce and Dennis and Brandita wanted her inheritance money. The 1991 case went cold for years until DNA technology under Joan’s fingernails yielded a match to Brandita Taliano. Both Dennis and Brandita were charged with murder, conspiracy & solicitation and faced the death penalty. On April 15, 1997, a California jury sentenced Dawley and Taliano to life in prison without the possibility of parole. The pair were spared the death penalty because they didn’t have any prior violent felony records and the jury heard the emotional pleas from Dawley’s daughters.
Investigation Discovery:
Being the other woman’ is a lonely life. Some turn rejection into rage. A call girl craved the high life, a teen mom eradicated her rival, and a lesbian love affair ripped a family apart. These Deadly Women refused to play Second Best’. -Second Best, Deadly Women (S8, E10)
In suburban California, an intruder brutally attacks and kills Joan Dawley. As the Dawley family grieves, it’s up to LAPD detectives to crack the case. Secret home movies uncover a shocking tale of deceit, and a monster lurking behind the scenes. -Stages of Grief, American Monster (S3, E1)
Editor’s note: With a cable subscription, you can download the free ID Go app and watch Investigation Discovery programming at your convenience. And for those who do not have cable, you can watch “unlocked” episodes on the ID Go app including the latest premieres. For those who prefer commercial free programming during your binge session, Prime Video has an ID channel: ‘True Crime Files by Investigation Discovery” available for $3.99 a month. It’s a compilation of older seasons but totally worth the cost if you are a true crime addict. Download the ID Go app or purchase ID True Crime Files & binge away.
On this day, the bones of AWOL Army soldier Dannie Boy Edwards, 25, were found in a cemetery near his home in Burton, Ohio on April 13, 1997. Hunters discovered the human remains in a field next to the cemetery in Troy Township. Edward W. Edwards, 77, and his wife, Kay Edwards, took Dannie Boy into their Ohio home in the mid-1990s. Ed and Dannie were so close that he legally changed his name from Dannie Law Gloeckner to Dannie Boy Edwards. Authorities confirmed the bones belonged to Dannie Boy and deemed the case a homicide. Ed appeared to be terribly distraught after learning Dannie Boy was murdered and obsessed about solving the case for years.
It wasn’t until years later, Ed Edwards’ daughter came forward after connecting the dots between the cold case homicides dubbed the ‘Sweetheart Murders’ in Wisconsin and her father. Ed Edwards was eventually confronted by authorities and confessed to five murders in an attempt to get the death penalty: William ‘Billy’ Lovaco (1977), Judith Straub (1977), Timothy Hack (1980), Kelly Drew (1980), and Dannie Boy Edwards (1996). Ed Edwards admitted to luring Dannie Boy to a secluded cemetery near their home in June 1996 and shooting him twice in the chest with a 20-gauge shotgun. He buried the body in a shallow grave in a field nearby. His motive was the $250,000 life insurance pay-out.
Ed Edwards persuaded Dannie Boy to join the Army because it would be good for his character. Dannie Boy joined and after training was supposed to get stationed in Korea. But at some point during training, Dannie Boy was injured so the Army was going to medically discharge him instead. Ed Edwards convinced Dannie Boy to sign up for the maximum amount of coverage offered by the Servicemen’s Group Life Insurance (SGLI) benefit. Dannie Boy signed up for $250,000 dollars worth of life insurance coverage and Ed was the sole beneficiary. Ed Edwards knew if Dannie Boy was let out on a medical discharge, he would no longer be eligible for the benefit.
Ed Edwards talked Dannie Boy into going Absent Without Leave (AWOL) two days before his discharge. Ed told investigators that he killed Dannie Boy because he wore out his welcome by stealing credit cards and other belongings from his children. But the truth is he stood to make $250,000 dollars in life insurance benefits if Dannie Boy died and he wanted to collect on it. Ed Edwards set up the insurance fraud scheme and took advantage of an opportunity before it expired. In August 2010, Ed Edwards was sentenced to death. Ed Edwards was already in poor health when arrested and as a result died of natural causes in 2011, one month before his execution date.
If you have information pertaining to additional crimes related to Edward Wayne Edwards, please call 800-FBI-TIPS.
Horror strikes a small Wisconsin town in 1980 after a young couple disappears and is later discovered in a field. Dubbed the Sweetheart Murders, it’s almost 40 years before a woman comes forward saying her family holds the key to unlocking the case. -People Magazine Investigates
Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma (Photo: FBI.gov)
“On the morning of April 19, 1995, an ex-Army soldier and security guard named Timothy McVeigh parked a rented Ryder truck in front of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in downtown Oklahoma City. He was about to commit mass murder.
Inside the vehicle was a powerful bomb made out of a deadly cocktail of agricultural fertilizer, diesel fuel, and other chemicals. McVeigh got out, locked the door, and headed towards his getaway car. He ignited one timed fuse, then another.
“The events of April 19, 1995, dramatically changed Oklahoma City and all of us who remember that spring morning. But the stories of the 168 people killed live in our hearts as well as in the Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum. Learn more about the victims here.” -Oklahoma City National Memorial
Learn what motivated domestic terrorists Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols to commit the Oklahoma City Bombing, which killed 168 people on April 19, 1995. Discover the federal and local clean up efforts and the fate of McVeigh and Nichols. -History
USA: Oklahoma City Bombing Rescue – 1995 | Today in History | 19 Apr 16 -AP Archive
In the News:
The FBI has released long-secret security tapes showing the chaos immediately after the 1995 bombing of the Oklahoma City federal building. The soundless recordings show people rushing from nearby buildings after the fertilizer bomb went off. (Sept. 27) -Associated Press
Don Lemon talks with the child survivors of the Oklahoma City bombing 15 years after the attack. -CNN
20 years after the terror attack, survivors and families of victims look back on the devastating terror attack. -CBS News
20 years ago tomorrow, domestic terrorist Timothy McVeigh and his co-conspirators set off an enormous truck bomb in downtown Oklahoma City. The blast killed 168 people, including 19 children. Anna Werner reports on that awful day after visiting the site. -CBS This Morning
Americans remember the bombing that killed 168 people and injured hundreds more. -ABC News
Remembering the April 19, 1995 tragedy in Oklahoma when a truck bomb exploded outside of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building injuring hundreds and leaving 168 people dead. -NBC News
Today marks the 23rd anniversary of the Oklahoma City bombing, a time to remember the 168 lives lost in an act of domestic terrorism that rocked the nation. -CBS News
On the morning of Wednesday, April 19, 1995, a former Army soldier parked a rented Ryder truck in front of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.He got out, locked it and ignited two fuses. At 9:02 a.m., the explosion ripped through the building where 500 people worked and children attended America’s Kids day care. The blast killed 168 people including 19 children under the age of 6. -PennLive.com
USA: Oklahoma City: Remains of Bombed Building to be Demolished. -AP Archive
Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum:
At the 20th anniversary remembrance for the Oklahoma City bombing, the former president says it’s important for all Americans to remember how much they owe Oklahomans. -CBS News
Video of The Oklahoma City National Memorial and Museum. -CNN
American Experience PBS:
Premiering at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival. Coming to American Experience PBS on February 7, 2017 at 9/8c. -American Experience, PBS
After the Oklahoma City Bombing, Clinton’s ability to reach Americans on a personal level did much to help the nation’s grief. “It’s kind of a throwaway line now, I feel your pain, but he literally could,” says Robert McNeely. “I mean he could take people and just hug them and connect to them in a way and really listen to them.” -American Experience, PBS
Oklahoma City explores how a series of deadly encounters between American citizens and federal law enforcement—including the standoffs at Ruby Ridge and Waco—led to the bombing of the Murrah Building in Oklahoma City in April 1995, the worst act of domestic terrorism in American history. -American Experience, PBS
At the time of the Oklahoma City bombing in 1995, the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building was home to several government agencies — and a daycare. -American Experience, PBS
During the stand-off between federal agents and the Branch Davidians in Waco, Texas in 1993, people gathered on a hill roughly three miles away to see what was happening at the compound. One of those drawn to Waco was a 24-year-old Army veteran named Timothy McVeigh. -American Experience, PBS
Filmmaker Barak Goodman and editor Don Kleszy discuss their newest documentary, “Oklahoma City” and how it led to the creation of another one-hour film about Ruby Ridge. -American Experience, PBS
The 1995 Oklahoma City Bombing was the largest act of domestic terrorism in U.S. history. A new documentary on the PBS series American Experience takes a fresh look at the events and motivations that led to the attack by Timothy McVeigh, and finds resonance for today. -PBS NewsHour
At the 20th anniversary, we look back at the Oklahoma City bombing. Public television station OETA shares reflections from survivors and victims’ families, and Judy Woodruff talks to former Deputy Attorney General Jamie Gorelick, former Director of Homeland Security of Oklahoma Kerry Pettingill and Barry Grissom, U.S. attorney for the district of Kansas, for lessons learned from the attack. -PBS NewsHour
On April 19, 1995, Timothy McVeigh, a former soldier deeply influenced by the literature and ideas of the radical right, parked a Ryder truck with a five-ton fertilizer bomb in front of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal building in Oklahoma City. Moments later, 168 people were killed and 675 were injured in the blast. OKLAHOMA CITY traces the events — including the deadly encounters between American citizens and law enforcement at Ruby Ridge and Waco — that led McVeigh to commit the worst act of domestic terrorism in American history. With a virulent strain of anti-government anger still with us, the film is both a cautionary tale and an extremely timely warning. -YouTube Movies
Virginia Reardon, 55, and Billie Joe McGinnis, 52, pushed Navy spouse and roommate Deanna Hubbard Wild, 20, off a 400 foot cliff at Big Sur in California on April 2, 1987. Deanna was living with her husband’s parents while he was at sea with the U.S. Navy. The motive was life insurance and Virginia had a string of insurance claims she cashed in on including Deanna’s death. The couple lured Deanna to the location under the guise of sight seeing, drugged her at lunch, and then it appears Billi Joe pushed her off the cliff. In the meantime, Virginia Reardon is taking pictures the entire time; investigators theorized she wanted a trophy of the homicide. After Deanna’s mother, Bobbie Roberts, found out her daughter was dead, she questioned the accidental ruling. She hired her own private investigator and attorney and they learned that Virginia Reardon had purchased a $35,000 life insurance policy the day before Deanna’s death. Reardon and McGinnis were arrested in 1989 for the murder of Deanna Wild. In 1991, Billi Joe McGinnis was charged with first degree murder but died from complications from pneumonia before his trial started. Virginia was charged and convicted on March 2, 1992 of first degree murder for financial gain. She was sentenced to life in prison, no parole. Virginia Reardon died while serving out her sentence on June 25, 2011.
One of the infamous photos taken before the murder. Investigators believe in this photo Deanna Wild was feeling the effects of the drugs she was given to make her vulnerable.
Forensic Files:
A beautiful, vibrant young woman fell to her death from a cliff overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Initially, investigators thought it was just a terrible accident. But after a closer forensic examination of photographs taken at the scene, police had a very different story of what had happened. -The Financial Downfall, Forensic Files (S9,E12)
Investigation Discovery:
ID Go: Cross these deadly vixens at your own risk. An English beauty spars with her boyfriend, a middle-aged woman sacrifices lives for money, and a couple of game players lure an innocent man into a deadly trap: these women will certainly fight to the death. -Vicious Vixens, Deadly Women (S7, E5)
Editor’s note: With a cable subscription, you can download the free ID Go app and watch Investigation Discovery programming at your convenience. And for those who do not have cable, you can watch “unlocked” episodes on the ID Go app including the latest premieres. For those who prefer commercial free programming during your binge session, Prime Video has an ID channel: ‘True Crime Files by Investigation Discovery” available for $3.99 a month. It’s a compilation of older seasons but totally worth the cost if you are a true crime addict. Download the ID Go app or purchase ID True Crime Files & binge away.
MILITARY JUSTICE FOR ALL 