20 Times People Left Clues About Their Murderers

20 Times People Left Clues About Their Murderers

Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the 20 Times People Left Clues About Their Murderers.

For this list, we’ll be looking at murder victims who managed to leave behind a clue about the identity of their killer, whether intentional or not. We'll be including cases that have yet to be solved, but excluding cases where there's debate over the authenticity of the "clue".

Which of these cases do you find the most fascinating? Let us know in the comments.

Julie Jensen

40-year-old Julie Jensen was a mother of two and a Port Authority worker when she was found dead in her Wisconsin home in 1998. Her husband, Mark, quickly became the prime suspect after one of their neighbors produced a letter written by Jensen before her death. In the letter, Jensen claimed that she was afraid for her life due to her husband’s suspicious behavior, and that if she died, he was likely the perpetrator. Mark was arrested and tried for his wife’s murder, with the letter being part of the prosecution’s primary evidence. He was convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment without parole, a decision that was overturned twice on appeal.

L. Rajeshwar Singh

In January of 2006, 43-year-old businessman L. Rajeshwar Singh was shot and killed in his home in Guwahati, a metropolitan city in India. According to his housemaid, Singh and his killer had gotten into a heated argument before he was shot four times and left for dead. Unbeknownst to the assailant, Singh was able to grab a pen and paper, on which he scribbled a name before meeting his unfortunate end. This name was considered a vital clue to the killer’s identity, especially because it was also found in Singh’s phone. Police later arrested a 28-year old man named Baleshwar Singh, in connection with the crime.

Cheri Jo Bates

In 1966, Cheri Jo Bates was an 18-year-old freshman at Riverside Community College in California. On the night of October 30th, she decided to visit the school library to study and never returned home. Bates’ body was found early the next morning by a groundskeeper at the school. She had suffered multiple stab and slash wounds, with some inflicted on her face and neck. According to crime scene investigators, Bates seemed to have aggressively fought off her killer, scratching him in the process and breaking off his wristwatch. Hair strands and skin cells of the assailant were found on her hands and under her fingernails respectively. Despite an abundance of evidence found at the scene, the case still remains unsolved.

Edward Baldock

The town of Brisbane in Australia was shaken in 1989 by the bizarre murder of Edward Baldock. Baldock, a father of four, was returning home after a drunken night out when he was picked up by 24-year-old Tracey Wigginton and three other women. The group drove Baldock to a park, where Wigginton stabbed him multiple times, drank his blood and left him for dead. Before his gruesome killing, Baldock had undressed and folded his clothes into a neat pile beside him. When his body was found, police made a discovery that quickly closed the case. Tucked far into one of Baldock’s shoes was a bank card with Wigginton’s name on it. She was swiftly arrested and pleaded guilty to the crime.

Floyd Moore Jr.

In 1986, Floyd Moore Jr. was a Sheriff’s Deputy in Florida and a security guard at the Turtle Lake Apartment Complex, where he resided. Moore Jr. was working on January 28th, when he noticed a man he suspected had broken into the complex. He questioned the suspicious man and collected his ID, which he kept in his breast pocket. Just after midnight, Moore Jr. radioed in for backup, and when the responding officer arrived minutes later, he found the deputy in a pool of his own blood. The only clue police had was the ID in Moore Jr.’s breast pocket. They were able to trace it to the culprit, Walter Grant Kyser, who was arrested later that same day.

Grace Brown

It’s especially tragic when a whirlwind romance turns deadly. That was the unfortunate case of Grace Brown, a factory worker who fell in love with her employer’s nephew, Chester Gillette. When Brown found out she was pregnant in 1906, she pleaded with Gillette to marry her, even sending him multiple letters to that effect, but he kept stalling. Eventually, he took her on a trip to the Adirondack mountains in New York where he killed her. Her body was found at the bottom of the Big Moose Lake and Gillette quickly became a suspect. Brown’s love letters, which showed the amount of pressure she had put on him to accept the pregnancy, helped in securing a murder conviction against Gillette.

Michele MacNeill

On April 11th, 2007, Michele MacNeill was found dead in her bathtub, several days after undergoing plastic surgery. Police initially ruled it an accident but it soon became clear that her physician husband, Martin, had a hand in her death. Martin had pumped Michele full of multiple unnecessary drugs which allegedly caused the cardiac arrest that killed her. Before her unfortunate death, Michele reportedly told her oldest daughter Alexis, “if anything happens to me, make sure it was not your dad.” After Alexis and her siblings demanded a review of the case, the manner of death was changed and Martin was charged with first-degree murder. He was convicted of the crime but took his own life less than three years into his sentence.

Odin Lloyd

Odin Lloyd was a 27-year-old linebacker for the Boston Bandits, a semi-professional football team, when he was killed in 2013. His murder, and the subsequent trial, became sensationalized when NFL superstar Aaron Hernandez was charged with the crime. On the day he died, Lloyd was picked up from his house by Hernandez, and his younger sister, Shaquilla Thibou saw him get into the car. While on the move, Lloyd texted Thibou saying, “U saw who I’m with?”, following up later with “Nfl” and “just so u know.” It’s not exactly clear whether Lloyd sent this to alert his sister or to brag to her, hence it was ruled inadmissible during the trial. However, it likely played a part in Hernandez’s indictment.

Russ Stager

Russ Stager was a divorced high school baseball coach when he married Barbara Ford, a recent widow. On the morning of February 1st 1988, Barbara called police, saying that Russ’ gun had accidentally discharged and killed him in his sleep. Police initially believed her, but Russ’ first wife, Jo Lynn Snow, later recounted a disturbing tale that changed their minds. Before his death, Russ had complained bitterly to Snow about Barbara and seemed to be afraid for his life. He also left behind a tape recording in which he questioned his wife’s actions and raised doubts over the accidental shooting of her first husband. Snow’s testimony and the tape, which was played in court, were instrumental in convicting Barbara of Russ’ murder.

Susan Powell

The last time Susan Powell was seen by anyone outside her immediate family was on December 6th 2009. Before then, Powell lived with her husband Joshua and their two boys in Utah. According to journals Powell kept and testimonies from her friends, there was a lot of tension between the couple over Joshua’s reckless behavior. Prior to her disappearance, Powell created a secret will in which she detailed her marital discord and expressed fear for her life. In 2012, before a case could be built against him, Joshua took his life and those of his two sons. While no longer an active investigation, the case of Susan Powell is still officially listed as a “disappearance” as her body has never been found.

Abigail Williams & Liberty German

On February 13, 2017, teenagers Abigail Williams and Liberty German went missing while hiking through Deer Creek Township, Indiana. Their deceased bodies were found the next day, and while details have never been released, the police declared the case a murder investigation. One very creepy clue was found on German’s phone. While hiking, German had taken a photo of an unknown man walking towards the girls. Unfortunately, the picture is not clear, but police were quick to suspect this man as the murderer. An audio recording was also found on the phone, with a muffled male voice saying, “Down the hill”. Various persons of interest have been put forth, but the case remains frustratingly unsolved.

Cebisile Happiness Khoza

When South African teacher Cebisile Happiness Khoza was discovered dead on a remote dirt road in 2015, the numbers 071 were found inscribed in the dirt near her burnt body. Police suspected this to be the beginning of a cell phone number, but Khoza had died before finishing. Khoza’s boyfriend, Siyamamkela Odwa Nompumza, became the leading suspect after his fingerprint was discovered on a petrol bottle found at the crime scene. It’s suspected that Nompumza murdered Khoza after growing jealous of her new boyfriend. However, Nompumza claims that he had nothing to do with Khoza’s murder.

Simon Ng

This teenager from Hong Kong was living in New York City when he began writing a blog. The blog was meant to detail his personal struggles of living in a new country. Instead, it led to the apprehension of his murderer. On May 12, 2005, Ng wrote that his sister’s ex-boyfriend Jin Lin had entered his apartment, despite being asked to wait downstairs, supposedly to retrieve some fishing equipment, and that he was acting agitated. Simon and his sister were murdered soon after. Police searched Simon’s computer and found the blog, pointing them towards Jin. He was subsequently arrested and sentenced to life in prison.

Kathleen Weinstein

In 1996, special education teacher Kathleen Weinstein was murdered by a teenage carjacker. Unknown to the teen, Weinstein was capturing the entire ordeal on a hidden tape recorder that she retrieved from a bag and hid in her coat pocket. Following the discovery of her body, authorities listened to the recording, which contained key details, like the carjacker’s first name and age. The man, 17-year-old Michael LaSane, was later captured driving Weinstein’s car, arrested, and sentenced to life in prison. Following a successful appeal in 2007, LaSane was once again found guilty and re-sentenced to life.

Sandra Duyst

On March 29, 2000, Michigan man David Duyst called 911 and reported the suicide of his wife, Sandra. The story was widely accepted until Sandra’s autopsy was conducted, which revealed that she’d been shot twice. Sandra’s sister Mary also came forward with an incriminating note. Sandra had told Mary that if anything happened to her, a note hidden in her china cabinet would explain everything. The note stated that David had tried to kill Sandra with an ax hammer back in 1998. Further analysis of David’s shirt revealed microscopic blood splatter, indicating that it was David who had shot Sandra. Forensic professionals did the rest, and David was sentenced to life in prison for Sandra’s murder, and died there in 2018.

Matthew Pyke

British student Matthew Pyke lived with his girlfriend, Joanna Witton, in Suffolk, England. Witton drew the attention of a man named David Heiss on a gaming website, and Heiss grew dangerously infatuated with Witton. Heiss proceeded to stalk both Witton and Pyke, and in September 2008, he broke into Pyke’s apartment and stabbed him to death in a fit of jealousy. Pyke was able to write the letters DAV in his own blood before dying of his injuries. Witton returned home to find her boyfriend dead, and Heiss was quickly arrested. He was subsequently sentenced to life in prison.

Alexander Litvinenko

This Russian defector once worked for the Russian Federal Security Service before publicly accusing his superiors of ordering an assassination. He subsequently relocated to London and sought protection. While living in England, Litvinenko wrote two books and dropped numerous bombshells about the Russian government. In November 2006, he was poisoned and murdered by what’s assumed to be members of the Federal Security Service. Litvinenko grew very sick after meeting prior colleagues, but was able to remember a particular pot of tea that only he drank from. The police later found this teapot, which contained high amounts of polonium-210. Unfortunately, the primary suspect in the case - Russian politician Andrey Lugovoy - cannot be extradited from Russia.

Denise Amber Lee

On January 17, 2008, a man named Michael King abducted Denise Amber Lee from her own home. King took Lee to his house and assaulted her before taking her to his cousin’s house. Lee managed to grab King’s cell phone and called 911. The call lasted approximately six minutes and saw a panicked Denise providing various pieces of information to the authorities. Unfortunately, they were unable to save Lee, and she was murdered by King shortly after the call. The whole ordeal lasted seven hours, with Lee being kidnapped around 2pm and King being arrested at 9:15 that night. Lee’s 911 call aided in the prosecution, and King was sentenced to death.

Nadine Haag

The death of 33-year-old mother Nadine Haag in 2009 was made to look like a suicide. The police bought it, but her family insisted that there had been foul play. Investigating themselves, they found the words “he did it” on a note underneath her supposed suicide note; these same words were later spotted etched into a bathroom tile. The family believes that the “he” in question is Nestore Guizzon, the father of Haag’s young daughter. The family collected enough convincing evidence to overturn the suicide ruling. However, Guizzon denied involvement and there’s no direct evidence linking him to Haag’s death, which remains an open case.

Amarjit Chohan

In 2003, drug dealer William Horncy kidnapped London businessman Amarjit Chohan, along with his wife, mother-in-law, and two sons. Wanting to use Chohan’s business as a front, Horncy forced Chohan to sign it over, then killed the captives and dumped their bodies in the ocean. However, Chohan’s body later washed up in Bournemouth, as did his wife’s and mother-in-law’s. Inside Chohan’s sock was a note addressed to Horncy’s father, naming his murderer. Horncy and his associates were quickly apprehended, and each received severe prison sentences for their roles in the Chohan family massacre.