The unsolved JonBenet Ramsey murder case has intrigued the public for almost twenty years – as of this coming Boxing Day.
The six-year-old beauty queen was killed in her home on Christmas day in Boulder, Colorado in 1996, and found in the basement hours after her death. While the case had previously cleared her family as suspects through DNA tests on her clothes in 2008, the investigation was reopened in 2009.
There is still intrigue and investigation into the case with crime documentary The Case Of: JonBenet Ramsey captivating audiences this year. The investigators concluded that JonBenet Ramsey’s brother Burke was most likely to be the killer, however there was not enough evidence to support this. Burke Ramsey is now suing CBS for defamation over the program.
Here are 20 things you may not know about one of the most famous murder cases in history…
1. The original prosecutor District Attorney Stan Garnett has now revealed that he knows who the killer is, and will reopen the case if DNA evidence that he is retesting comes together to prove it. “If we can ever file a case in open court, I’ll tell the world,” he told News.com.au.
2. Nearly 10 years after JonBenet’s death, John Mark Karr, a teacher living in Thailand, falsey claimed that he was the murderer, giving gruesome details. Officers later found photographic evidence that he was in Georgia at the time of her murder – so couldn’t possible have committed the crime.
3. A strange conspiracy theory has suggested that JonBenet is actually Katy Perry, given their stark resemblance.
4. Jim Clemente, one of the key investigators in The Case Of: JonBenet Ramsey is actually the Technical Adviser and a Freelance Writer for TV drama Criminal Minds.
5. The Ramsey family’s neighbourhood was home to 38 registered sex offenders.
6. At one point in time, a local Santa Claus was one of the main suspects. He had supposedly given JonBenet a card that said “You will receive a special gift after Christmas”.
7. A handwriting expert recently said that it was almost certain that JonBenet Ramsey’s mum, Patsy, wrote the ransom note found on the stairs.
8. The father, John Ramsey, had a daughter who died four years before JonBenet, in a car crash.
9. Burke had a tendency of smearing faeces on his sister’s belongings.
10. One of the key pieces of forensic evidence in the case was a bowl of pineapple and condensed milk, which was the last thing JonBenet ate. Burke’s fingerprints were found on the bowl.
11. Patsy died of ovarian cancer in 2006, two years before she and John were cleared of suspicion by DNA evidence.
12. Burke’s interview with Dr Phil was the first time he’d spoken out about the case since it all happened.
13. There have been seven books published about JonBenet’s murder – one of which was by her father John.
14. Boulder detective Steve Thomas quit over the case in 1998, as the DA refused to investigate the parents.
15. The ransom note had demanded $118,000, the same amount of money that John Ramsey had received in a bonus that year.
16. A suitcase was found an the crime scene containing a semen encrusted towel matching the DNA of John’s eldest son, John Andrew Ramsey.
17. JonBenet may have been sexually assaulted when she was three years old. She had been to the doctor at age three for vaginal irritation, however the doctor insisted that it was from her bubble bath.
18. Burke smiled when he was initially interviewed by the psychologist about JonBenet’s death.
19. JonBenet Ramsey’s father discovered her body in the basement before turning on the lights in the room. The crime scene had also been compromised before police arrived.
20. The ‘intruder theory’ was one of the most contentious theories about the case, as an unidentified footprint was found at the scene and a basement window had been broken into. However this was largely disproven because some evidence (such as the cobweb on the window) shows that it was probably a set up.
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