Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Police examining the scene were able to reconstruct the basic chain of events. Police later linked the murder of the Bennett family with another rape and murder that happened just less than a week before. August 17, 2021 / 3:31 PM There was no sign of forced entry into the home, some articles you come across say that the killer entered through an unlocked garage door. Sometime between 1990 and 1992 Shed left the garage door open and most likely left the door unlocked as she went upstairs, removed her wig, and turned the television on. He went on to continually beat the mans wife as she attempted to shield her husband from the blows of an ax handle while simultaneously on the phone to 911. The sprawling Colorado home where 6-year-old beauty pageant contestant JonBenet Ramsey was murdered in 1996 is listed for sale for a cool $7 million. / CBS Colorado. At least, until they came to Vanessas bed. There was no sign of forced entry. They were Holly Chromey, 49, and her children, Katie Zapzalka, 18, and Jared Zapzalka, 16. When he arrived in Aurora almost four years ago Metz said he spoke to detectives about the citys cold cases and this one, which he said shocked the conscience of the community, stuck with him. Perhaps one of the most famous murders in La Jolla history, the story of Daniel and Linda Broderick's death in 1989 shocked the seaside community and reverberated throughout San Diego. The Bennett family murders is a case that goes back more than three decades. It was Colorado Bureau of Investigation Director John Camper who got to break the news to Aurora PD that there had been a DNA match. Seemingly, nothing they did showed investigators any reason someone would want to kill them. During sentencing Aug. 17, members of the Bennett and Large families submitted impact statements and came to the courtroom. As she turned to leave the car, she felt a tremendous blow on the left side of her head. Patricia had come home from work for lunch, stopping at Wendys on the way. It begins with a woman killed with a hammer in Lakewood and, a week later, a family killed the same way. Apparently when the killer lifted Melissa Bennett, an imprint from his shirt was made in the blood that had resulted from his assault on her. Prosecutors said they will ask Gov. They were living in Aurora and planned to make a life together there. Taking a good long hard look at the evidence again and compare it to someone who was in and/or around that artery in Denver at the time would help to narrow the suspect list or in this case open it up. Bruce had been attacked with a knife and hit in the head several times with a hammer or blunt object. Twenty-eight-year-old Donna Dixon, fresh off a shift working as a flight attendant, had been out running some errands. Even to this day, she has absolutely no recollection of the next several hours. Let us know all the details about yourself and send us a message. Sign up for PEOPLE's free True Crime newsletter for breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases. The killer had doused the vehicle with fuel in an apparent attempt to incinerate the crime scene, but apparently failed to start a fire. The killer was practicing, he was unsure of himself and he was unsure of the weapon he would eventually use. As a workaround, a well-known forensic genealogist named Colleen Fitzpatrick analyzed the case, and her research came up with the possible surname of Ewing. This finding was announced an the television show, On the Case With Paula Zahn, in February 2018. Flatbed Trucking Company Bennett Motor Express is the premier open deck general freight carrier in the US. He was arrested for the crime but went on to escape from prison transport during a gas station break. Bruce was 27 years old and Debra was 26 in 1984. The Bennett family was attacked either the night of Jan. 15 or the morning of Jan. 16. Sometimes to get a more clear picture of the criminal, one must see him or her as a human being, see him or her as they truly are, feel what they feel, know what they know, feel the wants, needs and desires of that person. Tamara Lich's trial on multiple charges related to the Freedom Convoy protests is set to start in the fall. There were reportedly no signs of robbery or sexual assault both women were clothed and their purses were still with them. I dont believe that. ~The very same day, a man using a hammer attacked flight attendant Donna Dixon in the garage of her Aurora home, leaving her in a coma. Her head was constantly swimming with thoughts of her parents. Victims were shot to death on the shore of the James River, some distance from Knoblings pickup truck. His sentence runs through 2037 but he would be eligible for parole in 2021. Date: April 9th/10th, 1988 He assured the public that theyll move with all appropriate speed.. Report of July 5, 2022 officer-involved shooting in Report of July 21, 2022 officer-involved shooting in Jury returns guilty verdict in mass shooting at Aurora man sentenced to decades in prison for Man sentenced to two consecutive life sentences for Parolee and former Scout leader with history of Lone Tree bowling alley shooter sentenced to 23 Report of March 3, 2022 officer-involved shooting in Colorado District Attorneys Council honors trial team for Jury finds man guilty in former CU football Report of July 5, 2022 officer-involved shooting in Aurora, Report of July 21, 2022 officer-involved shooting in Englewood, Man sentenced to two consecutive life sentences for murdering couple who responded to advertisement for used car. He was currently working at a family-owned furniture store, but was taking classes at the local college and would soon be working as an air traffic controller. A typical way one would see this is that he likes control, that is wrong. AURORA | Police and prosecutors say they have solved the brutal 1984 hammer slayings of the Bennett family in Aurora, one of the citys most-shocking and tough-to-crack cold cases. On the other side of the coin, while all of these calls are believed to be genuine, theres a chance that some of them might be coincidence or pranks. Bruce Alan Bennett was twenty-seven years old. Like all of the EARONS victims, they were taken from this earth far too soon. A hammer. Investigators had collected and stored the killer DNA from the crime scene back in 1984 and since they did not know the hammer killers identity at the time issued a warrant for the arrest of John Doe on three counts of murder, attempted murder, felony murder, two counts of sexual assault, and two counts of child sexual assault in the hope that technology in the future could aid in identifying the assailant. That is what drove him into such an uncontrollable frenzy so fast and that is precisely what stopped the attacks so fast. Autor do artigo Por ; Data do artigo estranged from family and happy; benson funeral home worthington, mn obituaries em bennett family murders address em bennett family murders address Investigators believed the killers attacks escalated from just beating someone with a hammer to actually murdering them. There was no sign of the couple and theyve never been found. Mendelian Genetics | Mendelian Theory, Principles & Applications, The Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973: Composition & Important Sections, Indian Penal Code, 1860: Amendments, Composition & Provisions, Difference Between Autonomous vs Automate Process With Examples, Indian Evidence Act, 1872: Amendments & Important Sections. Donna was rushed to the hospital while police worked the scene. Bruce Bennett ~ 27 ~ Found Murdered January 16, 1984 Debra Bennett ~ 26 ~ Found Murdered, Sexually Assaulted January 16, 1984 Melissa Bennett ~7 ~ Found Murdered, Sexually Assaulted January 16, 1984 According to some sources, they were able to match a shoe print from the Bennett household to a shoe print found in the garage at the Donna Dixon assault. Victim #7received a phone call, and she recognized the voice on the other end as the voice of the rapist. Amazing!!!!!!!! The family overall lead a very quiet and peaceful life. You called it in a recent case again how did you know? If you were living in La Jolla in the early 80s, you knew the Brodericks. Theyd been strangled, their throats had been slashed, and rope marks were found on their necks and wrists. The last family member left around 9:00 PM. I would not limit the list to any type of profession or lack of any type of profession until suspects can be eliminated. March 14, 2022 5:04pm Updated The Murdaugh family property where a mother and son were found dead lists for $3.9 million. They immediately connected it with the Donna Dixon case from January 9th, and recognized that a serial offender was working the area. The press conference panel continually emphasized the destruction that this case has left on the lives of those affected. James Haubenschild suffered a fractured skull, and his wife had a concussion. Her bra was wrapped around one of her wrists, and her clothing was found on the bank nearby. After multiple surgeries,Vanessa was saved, though she went on the live with permanent physiological affects from the assault. Sometimes to get a more clear picture of the criminal, one must see him or her as a human being, see him or her as they truly are, feel what they feel, know what they know, feel the wants, needs and desires of that person. Dont you think the police could have gotten the guy long ago had they given you the evidence they had? The youngest girl, Vanessa, only three years old until March, was also struck violently in the face with the hammer. CENTENNIAL, Colo. (CBS4) - A judge sentenced Alex Ewing to three life sentences on Tuesday after he was found guilty in the 1984 murders of three people in Aurora. The results (if any) of the tests run on the current evidence is currently unknown. Now She's Speaking Out, Mass. Three members of the Bennett family were brutally killed in their Aurora home. All four family members were assaulted, only one survived. The killer then ascended the staircase and entered the couples bedroom where attacked Bruces wife, 26 year old Debra, who he raped before bludgeoning to death. The jury found Ewing guilty on Aug. 6 of killing three members of the Bennett family with a hammer. "The Crown prosecutor who is prosecuting my case in September seems like a dog with a . Tarot Spread To Ask A Question; Peut On Boucher La Vue D'un Voisin; Thirty Eight Snub Meaning I didnt just lose my parents and my sister, she said. Weve published this page today to show you the details and origin of the ligatures used in the EAR/GSK attacks. The intruder, apparently thinking she was dead, began to make his escape. They saw her parents killer as a boogeyman who would attack and them and kill them if they went anywhere near little Vanessas home for parties or play dates. By far, easier prey lay in wait just north which would be Colfax Ave and at the time might not have hit the news like the murder of the Bennett family did had the crime occurred in a neighborhood more near Colfax. Victim #24received a call from a voice that she identified as the EARs. Serve as lead administrator of a K-3, 9-12 urban site . No services are scheduled at this time. They do value daylight hours and work them whenever they can during the winter months. All rights reserved. They pledged to continue to support the families via their victim services organizations. One of those techniques was an innovative imaging tool by Parabon Nanolabs which provides an approximation of what they offender mightve looked like at both the time of the crimes and in the current day. Although she had no memory of the attack, what happened that night in 1984. Victims: Richard Keith Call (20) and Cassandra Lee Hailey (18) Damien Bendall, 31, is now alleged to have raped and murdered Lacey Bennett . My heart hurts that this happened! Her head was constantly swimming with thoughts of her parents. The slain girl's younger sister, Vanessa Bennett, who was 3 at the time, survived the life-threatening injuries she sustained in the vicious beating. Police felt that the killer brought his own weapon to the scene it didnt appear that any of the tools or hammers at the home had been rifled through. Forensics determined that the hammers used in each of the attacks were different, and that there didnt appear to be anything terribly useful in the way of fingerprints or other evidence. Its quite possible that he changed his method of killing in an effort to keep police from tying him to these murders on the off chance he was caught for lets say rape. Dont profile by LOOKING AT the behavior in an attempt to findclues to his or her psychology in an effort toaid in capturing a criminal. It begins with a woman killed with a hammer in Lakewood and, a week later, a family killed the same way in Aurora. These crimes in Colorado are this killers first stages at killing a human. The following tests were performed on the EAR calls: Long story short inconclusive. The McStay family murders occurred on or near February 4, 2010, after the family disappeared from their home in Fallbrook, California, United States; their bodies were found in the desert near Victorville, California, on November 13, 2013. Law enforcement today is actually better than it was then. There was no way, given the samples that we have, to determine whether the voices match or not. He knew he was going to kill the family, Father, Mother and Children, so he clearly wasnt afraid to go after a man and thought he would be able to easily kill a man. A murder probe has opened after four people were found dead at the address yesterday, with . The first sign of trouble came in the afternoon, when Patricia failed to pick them up. One lab felt that the letters were RICHAR. Another lab felt that it said PETAW C, with a space or fold between the W and the C and perhaps another fold in there as well. Vanessa, now 38 years old, received a call from the Aurora sheriffs department informing her that her parents killer had been identified as 57 year old Alexander Christopher Ewing. The killer pummeled and sexually assaulted his 26-year-old wife, Debra, and 7-year-old daughter, Melissa. Most importantly take the need to judge them and all of your own emotions and personal beliefs out of the picture. It was a case that they were not giving up on and were continuing to move forward on, he said. She suffered severe injuries to her head, jaw, and neck. She left her hometown and moved to Arizona, at one point spending half a year homeless, living under a bridge. The Attack happened between midnight and 6 a.m. on Jan. 16, 1984. Alex Ewing on trial for the murder of three members of the Bennett family (credit: Aurora Sentinel). Its unfortunate le didnt get him back then. It helps bring the other EAR phone escapades into the fold. Many of his victims were sex workers and transients who had no connection to him. This was the end of the first day of what would become a futile week-long dig for the body of Keith Bennett, who was 12 years old in 1964 when he was killed by the Moors murderers, Ian Brady and . On November 7, 2014, police announced they had arrested Charles "Chase" Merritt, Joseph . He was known as the "Happy Face Killer" because he drew smiley faces on his many letters to the media and authorities. It was a beautiful area, with clean, crisp air and the mountains rising up to the west. The house of Safdar Ali, who is allegedly a close aide of Atiq Ahmad, was demolished by the administration. The force of the impact threw her head into the steering wheel. The prosecution compared the Bennett family murders to another murder where a woman, Patricia Smith of Lakewood, was also murdered with a hammer earlier that same month. Murderer of Aurora's Bennett family sentenced to life in prison August 17, 2021 It took 37 years, but on Tuesday, the families of Bruce and Debra Bennett saw justice served. I agree with you. The killer then ascended the staircase and entered the couples bedroom where he attacked Bruces 26 years old wife, Debra, simultaneously he raped and killed her. ARAPAHOE COUNTY, Colo. (CBS4) - It was 1984 when Connie Bennett found her family murdered in their Aurora home. In just two days, Melissa would turn 8 years old. Victim #42received a call that she identified as the EAR. Victims: Daniel Lauer (21) and Annamaria Phelps (18). The court heard how . Murdaugh, 54, is accused of shooting his wife Maggie, 52, and youngest son, Paul, 22, at the kennels of their 1,800-acre hunting estate in Moselle, South Carolina on the night of June 7, 2021. It was a match, proving that the same unknown offender had killed all four victims. Please keep them and their families in your thoughts tonight. If they were used shoelaces, youd expect to find a vast array of particles and wear-and-tear. Patricia Smith had been laid straight, her arms crossed over her chest as if on display in a funeral home. He was brought to Colorado to face trial for the deaths of the Bennett family. This was the last time the Bennetts were seen alive. Nevada court records show a jury found Ewing, under the name Alex C. Ewing, was guilty of escaping from the custody of two Arizona sheriffs deputies at a gas station in Henderson, Nevada, southeast of Las Vegas on Aug. 9, 1984, and entering an unlocked home and severely beating a woman and her husband with an ax handle in their bedroom. How do you feel knowing this case was solved? Your email address will not be published. Nothing else appeared to be missing. Sadly, technology was not as advanced in the mid-eighties as it is today, and the case went cold, remaining that way for over 30 years. A handful spoke in court, including the surviving daughter. They ended up determining that Armour had been killed, and the Fresno Bee (along with the Fresno Guarantee Savings and Loan Association) set aside $2,500 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of her killer. The Murder of Jaye Potter Mintz Feb 23, 1987 Leland N.C. A Catastrophic Cyber Event in the Next 2-Years. There are a few very notable ones, particularly because they occurred during quiet periods where the offender wasnt attacking. The childs skull was caved in on the right side of her forehead and a metal plate was inserted to reshape the skull. Although she had no memory of the attack, what happened that night in 1984 would negatively impact the rest of her life. Bruce worked at the family-owned furniture store and was also taking classes to become an air traffic controller. There were reportedly signs of a struggle in the first case, and there may be workable DNA evidence from up to three of the scenes. Sometime between 9:00 PM on the 15th and 10:00 AM on the 16th (most likely between midnight and six), an intruder entered the Bennett home. Alex Christopher Ewing Arapahoe County District Judge Darren Vahle sentenced Alex Christopher Ewing, 61, for killing the couple and their 7-year-old daughter in 1984. Bruce had mentioned wanting to run to the store before bed. In the papers, the most attention is paid to the last state witness, the DNA analyst at the Colorado Bureau of Investigation. The victims may not have ever known one another but the killer found them somehow, it was not random although it appears that way. . He faced six . The family was discovered by Constance Bennett who has since raised little Vanessa. Jason Bennett described his heartbreak following the deaths of son John and daughter Lacey in Killamarsh. The wheels were put into motion to submit dozens of pieces of evidence to the FBI lab. I write about old, unsolved cases from the pre-DNA era. Bizberg Themes, Forensic Science and Cyber Forensics Quiz (Free). Would you like to contribute as an editor or a writer on our site? He may have been in the system at some point but it is difficult to determinewhether it would have been on felony charges or misdemeanor because his crimes may have stopped altogether. Darkness had just fallen. The previous week, on the 10th of January, a woman in her fifties named Patricia Smith had also been murdered in her own home in a townhouse in Green Mountain, Lakewood, which is just a 25 minutes drive from Bennets home in Aurora. It would be nearly twenty-four hours total before she was found. George Brauchler, District Attorney for the 18th Judicial District (which includes Aurora), emphasized that this individual is presumed innocent until proven otherwise in a court of law. This killer did in fact re-offend, the issuehe was in the learning phase of actually killing humans during this time frame in Colorado. They also looked across state lines looking for similar or like crimes and to date, they have not one suspect. Investigators did not forget about the hammer murders, however, nor did the town of Aurora; for years the authorities and true crime sleuths never gave up trying to identify the sick individual responsible for the murders and assaults that happened that year.