"[24], On February 9, 2021, Access Hollywood presented a television series about the Colonial Parkway murders. He believes itcame down to chance, he said. Maps of crime scene. [23] and "Was the Colonial Parkway Killer Pretending to be Law Enforcement? Still, he cant help but wonder what might have been. [25], On July 23, 2021, The Daily Beast published an article about the Colonial Parkway murders, primarily focusing on the murder of Cathleen Thomas and Rebecca Dowski, the first known victims of the Colonial Parkway killer. This section is going to be macabre, scatological, and disturbing. She had everything going for her. According to Thomas, three out of the four cases have DNA evidence. However, on their way back to Virginia Beach to start a new chapter in their lives, they vanished. And it pains me to think that 34 years have gone by now. All of the victims were young, White, and were either a romantic couple or could resemble one to. Fox News Flash top entertainment and celebrity headlines are here. Lauer and Phelps might have been a settlement of scores and was carried out by a professional, while Knobling and Edward were murdered following a robbery. Spingola believes the ThomasDowski crimes are directly linked to the deaths of Lollie Winans and Julie Williams who were found with their throats slashed in the Shenandoah National Park, 180 miles west of the Colonial Parkway, in 1996. In 2018, 12 years after the Shenandoah murders, DNA studies including hair and biological samples potentially linked the two cases. And remember, this was the 1980s. For two decades, the crime-scene pictures have been secret, critical evidence in the hunt for a serial murderer. Her brother, better known to his friends and family as Keith, had aspirations of becoming a computer programmer and spent his free time toying with his new at-home computer. They had been strangled with their throats cut. He was shy at first, but once you got to know him he opened up, he said. The James River as seen from College Creek Beach on the Colonial Parkway. He told Lovers Lane Murders that it suggests the driver was responding to authority. Joyce Call-Canada is the older sister of Keith Call. The four episodes were to feature former FBI profiler Jim Clemente, as well as investigators including former FBI Agent Maureen O'Connell and former prosecutor Loni Coombs, together with crime scene reconstruction expert Dr. Laura Pettler. "She had martial arts training from the Naval Academy and she was incredibly athletic. | by Quinn Zane | Unburied | Medium Write Sign up Sign In 500 Apologies, but something went wrong on our end. Cathy has been gone longer than she was with us. From about October 1986 to September 1989, 8 people are presumed to have been murdered near Colonial Parkway in Eastern Virginia. Now, a team of former FBI special agents led by former FBI Profiler Jim Clemente intends . Keith Call, top row and third to the left, and Cassandra Hailey disappeared April 10, 1988. As this field continues to advance, Moore said agencies could be waiting to test for better results. This, in turn, ratcheted up the media when they got a hold of the fact that Camp Peary is a training facility for the Central Intelligence Agency. [7], In 2010, the Daily Virginian-Pilot ran a photo essay on the case entitled "A Cold Case Heats Up: The Colonial Parkway Murders"[8], In 2011, author Michelle McNamara, author of I'll Be Gone in the Dark, on the Golden State Killer, later an HBO series, published a two-part exploration of the Colonial Parkway murders in her True Crime Diary. It is a pageantry of American history embroiled in dozens of tunnels and bridges that are incredibly charming and visually impacting. From 1986 to 1989, four double homicides occurred either on or near the scenic, seemingly safe road. The FBI, working in unison with the regions law enforcement, had a victim criteria in their arsenal. While Phelps was stabbed, Lauers body was too decomposed to determinea manner of death. (Oxygen). Stephanie Nolasco covers entertainment at Foxnews.com. Cathy Thomas, 27, and Rebecca Dowski, 21, were strangled and had their throats cut in 1986; David Knobling, 20, and Robin Edwards, 14, were shot in 1987; Keith Call, 20, and Cassandra Hailey, 19, disappeared after a college party in 1988 and are still missing; and the remains of Annamaria Phelps, 18, and Daniel Lauer, 21, were found by hunters in 1989. Crime News is your destination for true crime stories from around the world, breaking crime news, and information about Oxygen's original true crime shows and documentaries. A more micro look reveals that victims werent all killed in the same way. You cant exactly finger a suspect and develop a viable culprit on car displacement and fascination with couples. Several million travelers a year use this route . In October 1986, the bodies of Cathy Thomas and Rebecca Dowski were discovered inside the 1980 Honda Civic that belonged to Thomass sibling. Sign up forOxygen Insiderfor all the best true crime content. They were both in top physical condition. [2] Thomas was working as a stockbroker at the time of the murder. However, Cathy moved on and pursued a thriving career as a stockbroker. Then, the little ideas turned into big ideas and that was the start of our connection.. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. Oct. 26, 2018. Thomas had also entered a relationship with Dowski, and the two were known to regularly visit the area where they were murdered. They were couples in cars. It's difficult to imagine that a community could be infiltrated in that way, he emphasized. Get an all-access pass to never-before-seen content, free digital evidence kits, and much more! Within the past three and a half years, genetic genealogy has been responsible for solving approximately 350 cases. The second Annamaria and Daniel were reported missing, the red-flags went up, and the district devolved into a panic. Steve Spingola, former Milwaukee homicide detective, investigated the murders on behalf of the families. And a lot of fantastic work has gone into the Colonial Parkway murders. Both their purses and their money were found inside the car, ruling out robbery as a motive. In 2018, when the news broke that the 45-year-old Golden State Killer cold case had been solved with the arrest of Joseph DeAngelo, many, including Thomas and other families of the Colonial Parkway Murder victims, found a renewed sense of hope with investigative genetic genealogy. Its difficult to imagine something as gruesome and shocking as a string of murders occurring on this seemingly safe road but thats exactly what happened decades ago. The car had been pushed down an embankment off the Colonial Parkway. Theory: A Savage Hate Crime Set Off The Series Of Killings, In the 1980s, the Colonial Parkway was known as a gay lovers lane, according to, It was known, not only by the homosexual community, but by the haters of the homosexual community, he said. The eeriest part,. There is this allure of serial killers, said, Steve Spingola, former homicide detective and author of. Fred Atwell: Fred Atwell is the former deputy sheriff that was active during the investigation in 1986. They were never found. Cathleen Thomas was just starting a new chapter after leaving the U.S. Navy, when her life was cut short. The theory the first murder was a targeted hate crime adds heft to the notion the murders wereunconnected events. In 2010, a note was discovered in a box taken years earlier from Annamaria Phelps's apartment. In total, 4 pairs of people were targeted, resulting in eight murders and six bodies found. The Colonial Parkway Murders A Tale of Two Killers? The FBI is investigating the slayings of Thomas, Dowski, Call, and Hailey, as they were found dead or went missing on federal property. [27] In 2010, Spingola published Predators on the Parkway, a 29-page magazine article that detailed his findings.[28]. Cathy was eager to introduce her new girlfriend to the family during Thanksgiving that year. Sept. 20, 1987: David Knoblings truck was found abandoned in a parking lot with the door open, the radio on and his wallet on the dashboard. Check out never-before-seen content, free digital evidence kits, and much more! Cassandra Hailey, left, with her sisters Paula Hailey, center, and Teri Hailey, right in December 1986. And its still certainly a possibility. He said extremely graphic crime scene photos were leaked to the public, fueling the familys anguish. Cathys throat was slit so deepthat she was nearly decapitated. The evidence of the crime was kept intact by a fluke of fate when the diesel failed to ignite. Many who believe the homicides are connected think the killer presented himself as a police officer or park ranger, or someone with authority. [10], In October 2016, there was extensive coverage of the 30th anniversary of the Colonial Parkway murders, including an eight-part multimedia presentation by the Daily Press newspaper. Their bodies were uncovered after an exhaustive three-day search party. However, these victims were known to frequent the area on Thursday nights. Now, more than 10 years later, the families are pushing for another meeting. No one has been standing in this line longer than the family members.. ", JONBENET RAMSEYS HALF BROTHER STILL WANTS TO FIND HER KILLER: THIS CASE CAN BE SOLVED, Part 1 and 2 of Oxygen's 'Lovers Lane Murders' airs Thursday night. Call-Canada was at work in 2009 when she got a call from her brother. Oxygen's two-night true-crime special Lovers' Lane Murders focuses on the slaying of eight men and women at the Colonial Parkway in Virginia. The keys were still in the ignition, the door was open, and the windshield wipers were going. During that time, three couples were murdered and one couple is missing and presumed to be dead. However, the string of murders that followed their deaths made them wonder whether a serial killer was involved. The car had been pushed down an embankment off the Colonial Parkway In Virginia. After a deep dive into the four Colonial Parkway murders, Coombs and OConnell reviewed commonalities and dissimilarities in terms of location, treatment of bodies, method of murder, time and date, victims, motive, and crime scene. She had a soft side but there was a toughness, too, her brother, Bill Thomas, told the producers of Lovers Lane Murders.. Beckys wound isnt as deep as Cathys wound, Pettler added. Sept. 5, 1989: Annamaria Phelps, 18 and Daniel Lauer, 21, disappeared from an Interstate 64 rest stop in New Kent County. Although it is compelling and plausible, there is no evidence that it was law enforcement, said, former prosecutor and series co-host Loni, Theory: Murders Are Linked By Location, Not One Killer. Theory: A Serial Killer Stalked The Parkway, From a macro view of the murders, the fact that they all took place in close proximity bolsters the popular belief that a serial killer stalked the Colonial Parkway. So it wasnt like Cathy and Becky could live their lives in any kind of open fashion. [16], On October 26, 2018, Dateline NBC released "Dateline Crime Capsule: The Colonial Parkway Murders" which offered a look into the history of the case. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. Authorities discovered Cathleen and Rebecca on Columbus Day weekend, 1986, inside a white 1980 Honda Civic. The FBI declined to comment on the status of DNA testing because the investigation is ongoing. For over three years beginning in the fall of 1986, a 23-mile stretch of road in Virginia that connects Jamestown to Yorktown became the eerie epicenter of a string of grisly double homicides. It was considered a double murder. ", "Who Committed The Lovers' Lane Murders? It also fuels a theory about a possible copycat killer who used the 1986 Colonial Parkway slaying as a way to misdirect investigations into the 1988 double homicide. All of the victims were young, White, and were either a romantic couple or could resemble one to an outsider. "Colonial Parkway Murders" is a bit of a misnomer in that only 2 sets of the murders happened along the Colonial Parkway in Virginia, with . The 22-mile-long stretch running between Jamestown, Williamsburg, and Yorktown, Virginia, known as Colonial Parkway, is one such road. 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