Post by HeadMarshal on Jan 13, 2015 12:53:49 GMT -5
(Above photo credit: historicmysteries.com)
Authorities are trying to identify a serial killer believed to have killed at least eight people in the late 1980s. The FBI requested that AMW air the case in 2010 but it never even made the show's website.
On October 12, 1986, a jogger found the bodies of 21-year old Rebecca Dowski and 27-year old Cathleen Thomas in the back seat of their vehicle. They were strangled, had their throats slit and had rope burns on their neck and wrists. There was no indication of robbery or sexual assault. In September 1987, the murdered bodies of 20-year old David Knobling and 14-year old Robin Edwards were found near a river. Both victims were partially clothed and Robin had her bra around her neck. On Apr 9, 1988, Cassandra Hailey and Richard Call disappeared while on their first date. Richard's car was found three miles from where David and Robin were murdered the previous year. In October 1989, the skeletal remains of 18-year old Annamaria Phelps and 21-year old Daniel Lauer were found off an interstate rest area. Their vehicle was found in the rest area with the keys and Annamaria's purse inside.
All the confirmed victims were found in the vicinity of Virginia's Colonial Parkway and no witnesses to these crimes were ever located. Some of the victim's vehicles had their windows rolled down which made investigators suspect that the killer may be a law enforcement officer or someone posing as one.
The case went nowhere for years until former Virginia deputy Fred Atwell tried to get involved in the case. In 2009, he found that a number of crime scene photographs were being inappropriately used and had been stolen from the FBI office. He even started a fund for the victims in these crimes. In 2011, Fred was arrested in Georgia after robbing a woman for less than $100 dollars. One of the victim's brothers said that after robbing the woman, Fred called a suicide hotline and said that he was a suspect in a serial murder investigation.
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Thoughts? The fact that this serial killer has gotten away with so many murders with no clues being left behind, makes me believe that he could have law enforcement experience. As far as Fred Atwell goes, I haven't seen anyone suggest that he may in fact be the killer, although I have no clue what his issues revolve around. When he robbed the woman, he said he was hungry and was living in the woods so perhaps because he was no longer a Deputy he started to lose it. That doesn't make him the killer however.
Admin Note #1: Based on online articles/online research, our advice for anyone with information on this case would be to contact the FBI's Norfolk Field Office. www.fbi.gov/norfolk/contact-us/contact
Admin Note #2: If you have any news-related updates on this case, please contact us here: amwfans.com/thread/1662/website-contact-form
www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/09/06/fred-atwell-colonial-parkway-murders-arrest_n_947121.html
www.historicmysteries.com/colonial-parkway-killer/
