30 Major Crimes Solved By Normal People
30 Major Crimes Solved by Normal People
Welcome to WatchMojo, and today were looking at thirty major true crimes that were cracked by everyday citizens and amateur sleuths.
Bonnie Haim Is Found by Her Son
In 1993, Bonnie Haim disappeared from her Jacksonville home after a fight with her abusive husband, Michael. She had been planning to leave him and had secretly arranged a new life for herself and their 3-year-old son, Aaron. Various belongings were found, but Bonnie herself was never seen again. Fast forward twenty years to 2014, when Aaron, now an adult, was renovating his childhood home. After demolishing the backyard pool, he discovered a plastic bag containing a human skull. Authorities dug up further remains and confirmed they were those of his late mother. Now with a body and new forensic technology, investigators conclusively linked the crime to Michael Haim. He was arrested, tried, and ultimately sentenced to life in prison for his wifes murder.
Todd Matthews Identifies The Tent Girl
On May 17, 1968, Wilbur Riddle was looking for scrap along a Kentucky highway when he stumbled across the body of a young woman wrapped in canvas. No one came forward to claim her body, and she quickly faded into history as Tent Girl. In the 1980s, Riddles daughter married Todd Matthews, and he became deeply intrigued by the mystery. When the internet appeared, Matthews scoured forums and found a missing persons post for one Barbara Ann Hackmann Taylor, who disappeared in Lexington in 1967. He found and reached out to Barbaras sister, and she agreed to a DNA test. The DNA was a familial match to Tent Girl, finally identifying her as the long-missing Barbara Taylor.
Reddit Helps Solve the Hit and Run of Susan Rainwater
66-year-old Susan Rainwater was struck and killed while cycling in Eatonville, Washington. With no eyewitnesses and minimal evidence, the Washington State Patrol had little to go on. The only physical clue was a small piece of black plastic found at the scene, a photo of which was shared on Reddit. One user quickly identified it as a headlight bezel from a late 80s Chevrolet Silverado. State troopers then received a tip describing a black pickup with front-end damage consistent with a collision. The truck? A 1986 Chevrolet K10. The Reddit post helped verify the tip, and police quickly found the truck and arrested its owner, Jeremy Simon. He was given a 53-month sentence as part of a Drug Offender Sentencing Alternative.
A Biochemist Solves a Medical Mystery
Ryan Stallings was pronounced dead after suffering from a bizarre but serious illness. Toxicology tests revealed high levels of ethylene glycol, a chemical found in antifreeze. Naturally, medical personnel suspected poisoning, and his mother Patricia was arrested and sentenced to life. While awaiting trial, Stallings gave birth to another son. He also grew sick and showed symptoms similar to Ryan, but he was diagnosed with methylmalonic acidemia, or MMA - a rare disorder that mimics the biological symptoms of antifreeze poisoning. Their story was shown on Unsolved Mysteries and was seen by biochemist William Sly. He agreed to test Ryans blood, and with the help of James Shoemaker, found that Ryan also had MMA. With this shocking new revelation, Patricia was released from prison.
The Internet Finds the Kitten Kicker
Back in August of 2013, a video was uploaded to Vine showing a person violently kicking a kitten off their porch. The video gained significant attention when it was shared on Reddit and 4chan, and users vowed to hunt down the unknown kitten kicker. So thats exactly what they did. They quickly uncovered and disseminated the uploaders personal information, including his home address and phone number. They were identified as a teenager from South Carolina named Walter Easley, and he was arrested and charged with misdemeanor animal cruelty. He was sentenced to a pre-trial intervention program, the details of which remain sealed.
Twitter Solves a Hate Crime
Social media can be a curse for investigators, but it can also be a blessing. Even back in 2014, police were turning to social media for help, like when they uploaded surveillance footage of a large group attacking two gay men in Philadelphia. User Greg Bennett quickly found photos of the group and deduced that they had been eating at a nearby restaurant. Thats when a local sports commentator named FanSince09 took over. He and his followers banded together and used public photos on Facebook to track the assailants to a restaurant near Rittenhouse Square. FanSince09 then sent this info to the detective working the case, and they were successful in tracking down the suspects.
An Events Manager Finds a Kidnapping Victim
In June 1991, 11-year-old Jaycee Dugard was abducted in California and later had two children with her kidnapper, Phillip Garrido. Fast forward to August 24, 2009 when Garrido brought the girls to UC Berkeley for a religious event. He and the girls went to the office of events manager Lisa Campbell, who found their behavior troubling - Garrido was erratic, and the girls sullen and submissive. She asked Garrido to return the next day and took down his name. Campbell then alerted campus police, who ran a background check and discovered Garrido was a registered sex offender on parole. Authorities investigated further, and Dugard - now 29 - was discovered living in Garridos captivity. She was finally reunited with her family, and Garrido and his wife were arrested.
A Passing Neighbor Helps Solves a Major Kidnapping
Imagine walking down the street when a woman starts screaming at you from a house, claiming that she has been abducted. Thats what happened to Charles Ramsey Between 2002 and 2004, three teenagers were kidnapped by Ariel Castro and held captive in his Cleveland home. On the morning of May 6, 2013, Castro left the home without properly securing the girls. Amanda Berry made her way to the bolted front door, where she screamed for help. Ramsey heard the screams and came running, and both he and Berry were able to kick out the doors bottom panel. Ramsey called 911 after securing Berry, and responding officers found the other two survivors inside the house. Castro was arrested and later took his own life in prison.
An Amateur Sketch Artist Identifies the Cali Doe
For 35 years, Tammy Alexander was known as Cali Doe after her murdered body was found in Caledonia in 1979. In 2013, her former classmate, Laurel Nowell, tried to reconnect. She contacted Tammys half-sister, Pamela Dyson, who hadnt heard from Tammy since the late 70s. As their upbringing was tumultuous, she believed that Tammy had run away to start anew. Realizing that Tammy had never been reported missing, the two filed a report. As it so happened, amateur sketch artist Carl Koppelman had recently created a facial reconstruction of Cali Doe. When he saw Tammys missing persons report, he noticed a striking resemblance to Cali Doe and alerted authorities. Investigators contacted Dyson, collected her DNA, and confirmed that Cali Doe was her half sister Tammy.
Liz Carmichael Is Found Thanks to a TV Viewer
Throughout the 1970s, America was going through a major oil crisis. So Liz Carmichael promoted The Dale, a fuel-efficient and affordable vehicle that would help people get through the turbulent times. But the car was a giant scam, and Carmichael was charged with fraud. She skipped bail and disappeared before she could be prosecuted and later appeared on an episode of Unsolved Mysteries. A viewer in Dale, Texas immediately recognized her as a local flower vendor named Kathryn Johnson. He contacted the shows tipline and investigators were sent out. They deduced that Kathryn was actually the missing Liz, and she was taken back to California. She was ultimately found guilty of her crimes and served two-and-a-half years in prison.
Victims Friend Cracks a Cold Case
In 1984, Angela Samota, a student at Southern Methodist University, was assaulted and stabbed multiple times, leading to her death. With few suspects, the case quickly went cold until 2004, when Samotas best friend Sheila Wysocki, claimed to have seen her ghost and was compelled to solve it. She hounded the police with calls, but with no detective assigned to the case, barely any progress was made. Wysocki began studying and earned a certification as a private investigator. As a result, she was able to look at the case more closely and eventually helped police find related DNA evidence. This was linked to Donald Bess, a career criminal who was ultimately convicted and handed the death sentence.
The Identification of the Grateful Doe
It was a mystery that left police puzzled for two decades. In June 1995, two men lost their lives in a car crash in Greensville County, Virginia. While the driver of the vehicle was quickly identified, the passengers identity remained an enigma. Due to the Grateful Dead concert tickets found on him, he was nicknamed Grateful Doe. Authorities later released composite sketches of the passengers face, which were widely circulated by internet sleuth groups. As a result of this heavy campaign, the images were recognized by two people who claimed to be the passengers former roommate and mother. After DNA tests were carried out, he was positively identified as 19-year-old Jason Callahan, who left home in 1995 and never returned.
The Death of Paulette Jaster
Paulette Jaster was a young woman who disappeared from her town in Michigan in 1979. Apparently, Jaster had traveled miles away from home to Texas, where she was sadly killed the following year in a hit-and-run. With no form of identification found on her, police were unable to figure out who she was. At the same time, her family, hundreds of miles away, were left puzzled over her whereabouts. Her identity remained unsolved until 2014, when an internet user pointed forensic anthropologist Sharon Derrick in the direction of Jasters family. Using her old pictures, Derrick was able to confirm Jasters identity with three distinctive freckles on her cheek, closing a case that had been cold for over three decades.
Margaret Davis Solves Her Sons Murder
A mothers love can certainly be the greatest love of all. English software engineer Steven Davis was murdered by gunmen in his Makati, Philippines apartment in July 2002. His mother, Margaret, had a hunch that her sons wife, Evelyn, was somehow involved in his death. While the police investigation stalled and eventually turned cold, Margaret spent thousands of dollars hiring a private investigator. With all the evidence gathered from Margarets investigation, the police gave the case a second look. It was ultimately discovered that Evelyn was having an affair with one of the gunmen and had masterminded the plot to have Steven killed. This resulted in the conviction of Evelyn and all three gunmen in 2004.
Jessica Maple & the Burglars
After her late great-grandmothers house was burgled and robbed of nearly all its furniture, 12-year-old Jessica Maple cracked the case by finding key clues the police completely missed. Although officers had concluded that the burglar must have had a key to enter the house, Jessica discovered broken garage windows covered in multiple fingerprints when she returned to the crime scene with her mom. Her investigation also turned up all of the missing furniture at a nearby pawn shop, whose owner identified the men whod brought them in. Miss Maple didnt just stop there. She tracked down one of the burglars and got him to confess to the robbery! Talk about giving the cops a run for their money.
Susan Galbreath Takes On a Brutal Murder
To solve the vicious murder of Jessica Currin, Kentucky resident Susan Galbreath first sent letters to several celebrities and journalists. She was, however, only able to grab the attention of BBC reporter Tom Mangold. Mangold traveled down to Kentucky and paired up with Galbreath. Their investigation soon led them to Quincy Cross, who Galbreath actually questioned, but was unable to get a confession from. While Mangold eventually returned home, Galbreath created a MySpace page, hoping to get information from the public. Soon after, a woman named Victoria Caldwell reached out to her and confessed to being an accomplice to Currins murder. Caldwell reached a plea deal with the authorities, in which she named Cross as the killer and only spent six months in prison.
The Hit and Run of Carolee Ashby
On Halloween night 1968, young Carolee Ashby was crossing the road in Fulton, New York when she was run over by a car. The driver refused to stop and disappeared into the night, never to be identified for decades. Fast forward to 2013, a retired Fulton detective put up a Facebook post about the cold case. This eventually reached a woman who recalled being asked to provide a false alibi for one Douglas Parkhurst back in 1968. After being provided with this information, police questioned Parkhurst and he confessed to the crime, but was spared of any charges as the statute of limitations had passed. In a sick twist of fate, Parkhurst was killed five years later by another hit-and-run driver.
Car Enthusiasts Solve a Hit-and-Run
The community of readers on the automobile blogging site Jalopnik put their expansive car knowledge to the ultimate test in April 2012, when 57-year-old Betty Wheeler lost her life in a hit-and-run. Hoping to get some help from the online community, police uploaded a picture of a small piece of metal they believed had broken off the vehicle in the collision. And Jalopnik readers got right on it. They linked the metal to an early-2000s Ford F-150 pickup in a matter of hours. They gave the police a piece of information that was critical in identifying the driver and passenger of the catastrophic vehicle. Both men were later arrested and convicted of felony hit-and-run.
Yaakov German Tracks Down a Kidnapper & Killer
The disappearance of the young Leiby Kletzky sent shockwaves through his Orthodox Jewish New York neighborhood. Those waves were certainly felt by Yaakov German, a property manager who took it upon himself to find the missing boy. Yaakov traced Leibys movements using surveillance footage from stores and houses on his school route. This ended with footage from a car-leasing company showing Leiby getting picked up by Levi Aron, a man from the same neighborhood. Yaakovs efforts led the police to the perpetrator. Sadly, police found only remains upon Arons arrest.
A Klansman Gets His Comeuppance
In 1964, two 19-year-old African American students in Mississippi, Charles Eddie Moore and Henry Hezekiah Dee, were abducted and drowned by members of the KKK. The police investigation was allegedly clouded by their prejudice and the case was closed after a few months. Some forty years later, Moores brother, Thomas teamed up with a documentary filmmaker. They tracked down the man responsible for the killings, James Ford Seale, who was initially reported dead. Thomas and producer David Ridgens discovery allowed the case to be reopened, resulting in Seales arrest and conviction by a federal jury. He was sentenced to three consecutive life terms and died in prison in 2011.
The Murder of Maribel Ramos
36-year-old Maribel Ramos was an Iraq War veteran living in Santa Ana, California with her roommate K.C. Joy. Ramos disappeared on May 2nd 2013 and was reported missing by her loved ones the next day. While police investigated her disappearance, a friend posted details of the case on Yelp, asking users for any information. A few days later, Ramos roommate, Joy, supposedly left a comment in the thread, in which he referred to the Army vet in the past tense. As if to suggest his possible involvement in the disappearance, one user in particular voiced out suspicions about Joy. Those suspicions came true in the following days, as Ramos body was found, and Joy was later arrested and convicted of her murder.
Ellen Leach Helps Identify Greg Mays Remains
Greg May was a Civil War antique collector who shared an apartment with Doug DeBruin. May disappeared in 2001 and his antiques popped up afterwards at an auction house. This led police to arrest DeBruin who, it was revealed, had been selling off Mays collection. But with no sign of a body, prosecutors knew they didnt have a solid case against him. Then, in 2005, a skull was found all the way in Missouri that puzzled authorities. They put together a facial sculpture from the skull, which was later matched with Mays missing persons poster by Ellen Leach, a Home Depot cashier and online sleuth. With this, prosecutors were able to build an airtight case against DeBruin and eventually convicted him of the murder.
Celia Blay Catches an Internet Predator
William Melchert-Dinkel, a 47-year-old nurse from Minnesota, frequently posed as a twenty-something year old woman in online chatrooms. He encouraged young, depressed adults to take their own lives, sometimes for his viewing pleasure. Williams scheme was discovered by Celia Blay, a pensioner from England. Blay struck up a conversation with a teenager online and learned that she was being goaded by William. Celia devised a plan with the teenager and was able to collect evidence against William, with which she convinced US authorities to lay charges. He was stripped of his nursing license and sentenced to jail time for assisting and attempting to assist in the deaths of two people.
Bradley Willman & the Predatory Judge
In the late 1990s, Canadian private investigator Bradley Willman developed a Trojan horse disguised as a picture-file, which he posted on several websites frequented by predators. Once downloaded, the file gave him unfettered access to the individuals computer. This allowed him to pore over their emails and other documents, then turn over important information to watchdog groups. His work culminated in the arrest of Ronald Kline, a California Superior Court Judge who had an abundance of damning evidence on his computer. Kline was disbarred and sentenced to 27 months in prison.
The Exoneration of Valentino Dixon
In 1991, Valentino Dixon was arrested and charged with the fatal shooting of a man in Buffalo, New York. Although the actual shooter was said to have confessed and eight eyewitnesses reportedly absolved Dixon of the crime, he was eventually convicted and given a lengthy sentence. While in prison, Dixon began drawing golf courses and soon got noticed by a golf magazine journalist named Max Adler. Adler published an article on Dixons ordeal that in turn caught the attention of Marty Tankleff, a Georgetown University law professor who decided to take up his case alongside his students. The class was able to poke holes in Dixons original trial and helped secure him a new trial that ended in his exoneration.
The Murder of Abraham Shakespeare
For Abraham Shakespeare, winning a $30 million lottery was unfortunately the beginning of his troubles. He started a private business with Dorice Dee Dee More, who took control of his finances. A few months later, Moore killed Shakespeare and buried him under a concrete slab behind her house. As the case garnered attention, users of the internet crime forum, Websleuths started digging. They found that Moore had opened a fake account on the website to divert suspicion away from herself. The amateur sleuths were able to trace the IP address of the fake account back to Moores personal computer, aiding investigators. Moore was found guilty of killing Shakespeare and received a life sentence.
A True Crime Writer Solves a 50-Year-Old Case
In 2016, Monica Weller released Injured Parties: Solving The Murder Of Dr Helen Davidson. The book details her seven-year journey of apparently closing a 50-year-old case. Back in 1966, Davidson was found dead close to her home in Buckinghamshire after going birdwatching. Despite an extensive investigation, police were unable to come up with anything concrete and eventually ruled the crime a random, motiveless killing. Weller, however, carried out painstaking research and soon concluded that the perpetrator was George Garbett, a gardener who worked in the area. Although Garbett took his own life five years after the incident, Weller theorized that he had killed Davidson after she spotted him with a male lover. This was at a time when homosexuality was still illegal in England.
The Murder of Jacob Wetterling
In October 1989, Jacob Wetterling was abducted in St. Joseph, Minnesota and never returned. The case bore similarities to the earlier abduction and assault of one Jared Scheierl, who was ultimately freed. Wetterlings case grew cold over the years, until 2013 when Scheierl teamed up with Joy Baker, a blogger, to solve it. Baker unearthed a string of similar assaults that occurred in nearby Paynesville, and was convinced that they were all likely committed by the same person. Although police reportedly discredited their theory at first, they eventually looked at the case keenly and zeroed in on Danny Heinrich. Heinrich, who was actually an early suspect in all aforementioned cases, led police to Wetterlings remains and was sentenced to 20 years in prison.
Michelle McNamaras Hunt for the Golden State Killer
Joseph James DeAngelo, infamously known as the Golden State Killer, was responsible for the deaths of at least 13 people. However, the hunt for his identity would go on to claim one more life - that of Michelle McNamara. McNamara, a true crime writer, grew up fascinated with unsolved mysteries and later zeroed in on a string of cold cases that took place in California in the 70s and 80s. Her unyielding investigation turned up a librarys worth of evidence. To deal with the stress, she started taking a cocktail of prescription drugs, which led to her accidental death. However, her work revived interest in the case and ultimately led law enforcement to DeAngelo.
The Murder of Jun Lin
Before this case became about the murder of Jun Lin, it revolved around a couple of Facebook videos that portrayed acts of animal cruelty carried out by an unidentified man. A group of online sleuths began investigating and were able to identify the man in the videos as Luka Magnotta. Magnotta later lured Lin, a university student in Canada, over to his apartment where he murdered him and uploaded a video online. The sleuth group was able to link that video to the ones involving animals and share their information with the authorities. A few weeks later, Magnotta was arrested.
What do you think of their deductive skills? Let us know in the comments below!
