A 29-year-old man and his 23-year-old wife have been charged with jointly depriving the man's mother of her life and then taking measures with the body after death. The couple has been in custody since late June, and prosecutors allege they dismembered her body. According to senior prosecutor Johanna Stigson, the couple planned the killing, which is why they invited the woman to their apartment. The forensic autopsy could not determine exactly how the woman died.
The missing woman's mobile phone stopped emitting signals on June 13, and a picture depicting a bundle lying in a lake was found in the phone. Upon investigation, the body was found and identified as the missing woman, leading the charge to be changed to murder. The woman was deprived of her life on the night of June 13 in the couple's residence. Senior prosecutor Johanna Stigson described how the body was subjected to extensive violence with injuries that could have caused death, and also to violence after death, including burns and decapitation. The man and woman moved the body from the residence to the location where it was later found, and the man made purchases of large storage bags and plastic gloves at times when he claimed to be sleeping.
The man and woman are also charged with incitement to murder another of the man's relatives. The couple denies the crimes, with the wife claiming she acted under duress from the husband. The trial begins on Monday, March 16 and is expected to last about eight days.
In Florida, two county employees, Stacie Mason and Danny Ooley, were shot and killed in Vero Beach early Tuesday. The suspect is Jesse Ellis, Mason's estranged husband. The victims were shot multiple times with an AR-15-style rifle. According to police chief David Currey, the victims were having a workplace affair and were about to meet in a car outside a public library when killed. CCTV footage shows the suspect approaching the vehicle and firing multiple shots.
The suspect fled the scene in a 2022 gray F150 pick-up and later entered the ocean, where he was encountered by fire rescue crews. According to Currey, the suspect is still at large and considered a person of interest.
In Indiana, Jenna Strouble confessed to killing her ex-boyfriend Jacob Lambert and his parents, Stacy and Patrick Forde. Strouble allegedly lured Lambert into her car, massaged him with an electric massage gun, then shot him in the head. Strouble then drove to Lambert's parents' home and shot them when Patrick opened the door. Strouble was arrested in St John, Indiana, and charged with murder. Strouble and Lambert had an 'on/off relationship' and shared children together.
In Washington DC, Rico Barnes and Alphonso Walker have been charged with first-degree murder in the death of Syed Hammad Hussain. Hussain was found bound with neckties and beaten, with his skull fractured in three places, dying from blunt force trauma and ligature strangulation. His condo was ransacked, with laptops and his cellphone missing.
James Dolphs Elmore Jr. has been indicted for his alleged role in the deaths of Laura Miller and Audrey Cook, linked to the 'Texas Killing Fields'. Clyde Hedrick, alleged to be responsible for the deaths of four women in the Texas Killing Fields, died by suicide before indictment.
Arielle Konig was attacked by her husband Gerhardt Konig on a Hawaiian trail, with prosecutors alleging he tried to push her off a ledge and stab her with a syringe. Gerhardt admits to bashing Arielle with a rock but claims she attacked him first, and his defense argues her injuries were not severe. Gerhardt was arrested after an eight-hour manhunt and a struggle with police.
Antonella Di Ielsi and Sara Di Vita died after eating a Christmas lunch contaminated with ricin, leading to a murder investigation. Gianni Di Vita, the husband and father, also fell ill but survived.
Chee Kit 'Max' Chong and Angie Liaw are charged with keeping a woman as a slave in Melbourne, Australia, with allegations of control, beatings, and deprivation. The victim died in 2024, but her evidence will be presented in court. Both defendants have pleaded not guilty.
Eve Rogers, 12, was found dead in her bedroom with pills nearby, and her stepfather Anthony Federline has been charged with sexual assault in connection. Eve showed signs of sexual assault, and DNA tests pointed to Federline as a contributor. The cause of Eve's death is pending autopsy and toxicology reports.
An Alabama woman faces dozens of charges for stealing handmade Decoration Day flowers from a gravesite. The theft occurred last week when a family member noticed decorations stolen and set up cameras. 69-year-old Martha Jane Bowes was caught on camera stealing 2 new sets of handmade floral arrangements from a headstone. Investigators searched Bowes' home and found dozens more stolen fake flowers. Authorities are hoping victims can recognize their stolen flowers and contact the sheriff's office. Warrants were issued for Bowes' arrest on theft of property and grave desecration charges. Deputies executed a search warrant at Bowes' home in Hammondville, a neighborhood on the north side of Fort Payne. The victim's floral arrangements were recovered and returned during the search, and a large amount of other decoration-style floral arrangements was seized from the residence.
On the evening of December 12, a 21-year-old man was shot to death in a car in the Oxie district of Malmö. A week later, two women residing in Karlskrona were arrested, suspected of aiding the fatal shooting. During the arrest, police conducted house searches at the women's homes and other addresses linked to them. In a villa, police found a rifle, and now one woman's father is charged with a weapons offense. A man in his 35s is being tried in Ångermanland District Court, suspected of murder, arson, and desecration of a grave. According to the indictment, the man killed a 65-year-old man and set fire to the victim's house. According to the application for summons, the murder was particularly brutal, with the suspect hitting, kicking, stamping, or exerting other forceful violence against the victim's head and body.
On January 2 this year, a cohabiting couple, a man in his 40s and a woman in her 30s, were found dead. It was suspected early on that the man killed the woman and then ended his own life. The prosecutor's office states that the investigation strongly suggests the woman died from her injuries and was killed by another person.
Lizzie Borden was accused of the double homicide of her father Andrew Borden and stepmother Abby Borden on August 4, 1892. The murders occurred at 92 Second Street in Fall River, Massachusetts. Abby Borden died first at approximately 9AM from 19 blows with a heavy bladed object in an upstairs bedroom. Andrew Borden was killed two hours later by 11 blows with a similar weapon. No murder weapon was officially confirmed, but a handleless hatchet tainted with cow's blood spurred the conception of Lizzie as an ax murderess. Lizzie Borden was the only person arrested and tried for the murders. Lizzie and her sister Emma lived with their stepmother, father, and maid Bridget Sullivan. Andrew Borden was wealthy but kept his home in a less fashionable part of town to be near his business. On August 6, 1892, Mayor John Coughlin announced Lizzie Borden as a suspect. Lizzie was arrested after a two-day inquest from August 9-11, 1892, pleaded not guilty, and was held at Taunton Jail. Her trial took place in the Bristol County Courthouse in New Bedford, Massachusetts.
Ritual murder includes sacred and secular acts attributed to occult practitioners, serial killers, or sexual sadists. There have been no serious empirical studies of ritualistic crimes or classifications distinguishing sacred vs. secular motivations. Law enforcement investigates ritual murder from a behavioral science perspective using psychology, criminology, and forensic science. Law enforcement professionals cannot agree on the extent, types, or motives of ritualistic crimes due to lack of standardized categories. Ritual violence is not often recognized, reported, or investigated accurately. Academic research on occult religions is situated within new religious movements, which is fraught with controversy.
Key unknowns persist in ongoing investigations, including the exact cause of death for the woman in the Danderyd murder case, as the forensic autopsy could not determine it. The location of Florida double murder suspect Jesse Ellis remains unknown as he is still at large. The cause of death for 12-year-old Eve Rogers is pending autopsy and toxicology reports.