List of unsolved murders and deaths

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This list of unsolved murders and deaths covers notable cases where people have been murdered or have died under unsolved circumstances, including murders committed by unknown serial killers. People are listed alphabetically by surname (or by first name if they did not use a surname).

Contents 1 Unsolved murders 2 Unsolved serial killer murders 2.1 Suspected serial killers 3 Unsolved deaths 4 Date of death disputed

[edit] Unsolved murders

• Betsy Aardsma, University Park, Pennsylvania, United States, 1969.
• Jomo Yarofulani Brooklyn New York, United States, 1987
• Emily Armstrong, London, England, 1949.
• Georgette Bauerdorf, West Hollywood, California, United States, 1944.
• Folke Bernadotte, Jerusalem, Israel, 1948.
• Notorious B.I.G., Los Angeles, California, United States, 1997.
• Lizzie Borden, alleged murderer of her father and stepmother, Fall River, Massachusetts, United States, 1892.
• Boy in the Box, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States, 1957.
• Rashawn Brazell, Brooklyn, New York, United States, 2005.
• John M. Clayton, Plumerville, Arkansas, United States, 1889.
• Barbara Colby, Venice, California, United States, 1975.
• Bob Crane, Scottsdale, Arizona, United States, 1978.
• Deanna Cremin, Somerville, Massachusetts, United States, 1995.
• The Black Dahlia (Elizabeth Short), Los Angeles, United States, 1947.
• Amanda Dowler, Walton-on-Thames, England, 2002
• Dian Fossey, Rwanda, 1985.
• Grimes sisters, murder victims in Chicago, Illinois, United States, 1956 or 1957.
• Amber Hagerman, Arlington, Texas, United States, 1996
• Lynne Harper, Clinton, Ontario, Canada, 1959
• Rose Harsent, Suffolk, England, 1902
• Ita Martadinata Haryono, Jakarta, Indonesia, 1998.
• Evelyn Hernandez, San Francisco, California, United States, 2002
• Thomas C. Hindman, Helena, Arkansas, United States, 1868.
• Jessica Keen, Columbus, Ohio, United States, 1991.
• Lake Bodom murders, Lake Bodom, Finland, 1960.
• Mary Meyer, Washington, D.C., United States, 1964.
• Harry Oakes, Nassau, Bahamas, 1943.
• Olof Palme, Stockolm, Sweden, 1986.
• JonBenét Ramsey, Boulder, Colorado, United States, 1996.
• Tupac Shakur, Las Vegas, Nevada, United States, 1996.
• Sam Sheppard murder case, Bay Village, Ohio, United States, 1954.
• O. J. Simpson murder case, Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman, Brentwood, California, United States, 1994.
• William Desmond Taylor, Los Angeles, United States, 1922.
• Óscar Romero, San Salvador, El Salvador, 1980.
• Vampire Murder Case, Stockholm, Sweden, 1932.
• Julie Ward, Masai Mara, Kenya, 1988.
• Raymond Washington, Los Angeles, United States, 1979.

[edit] Unsolved serial killer murders

• Alphabet Killer murders, Rochester, New York, early 1970s.
• Axeman of New Orleans murders, 1918-1919.
• Bible John murders, Glasgow, Scotland, 1968-1969.
• Claremont serial killer, Claremont, Western Australia, 1996-1997.
• Cleveland Torso Murderer (aka The Mad Butcher of Kingsbury Run), Cleveland, Ohio, 1935-1938.
• Jack the Ripper murders, London, England,
  • Mary Ann Nichols, August 31, 1888; first alleged victim.
  • Annie Chapman, September 8, 1888; second alleged victim.
  • Elizabeth Stride, September 30, 1888; third alleged victim.
  • Catherine Eddowes, September 30, 1888; fourth alleged victim.
  • Mary Jane Kelly, November 9, 1888; fifth alleged victim.
• Jack the Stripper murders, London, 1963-1964.
• Lisbon Ripper murders, Lisbon, Portugal, 1992-1993.
• Oakland County Child Killer, Oakland County, Michigan, 1976-1977.
• Original Night Stalker murders, Southern California, 1979-1986.
• Phantom Killer, Texarkana (Texas and Arkansas), 1946.
• Servant Girl Annihilator (aka Austin Axe Murderer), Austin, Texas, 1884-1885.
• Stoneman murders, Calcutta, India, 1989.
• Zodiac Killer murders, Northern California,
  • Betty Lou Jensen and David Faraday, Benicia, December 20, 1968; first and second victims of the Zodiac.
  • Darlene Ferrin , Vallejo, July 4-5, 1969.
  • Cecelia Shepard, Lake Berryessa, September 27, 1969.
  • Paul Stine, San Francisco, October 11, 1969; seventh victim.

[edit] Suspected serial killers

• John Bodkin Adams murder case, physician suspected of being a serial killer, England. One alleged victim, Gertrude Hullett, was found to have committed suicide at the inquest in 1956, but Dr. Adams was indicted for her murder the following year. The case was then dropped by the prosecution via a nolle prosequi, an action described by the judge as an "abuse of process."

[edit] Unsolved deaths

• Harold II of England, (Harold Godwinson). either killed by an arrow to the eye, by four Norman milites, or by some other manner (possibly a combination of both). Nothing is completely certain.
• King William II of England, 1100, killed by an arrow while hunting.
• Agnès Sorel, 1450, mistress of King Charles VII of France,While the cause of death was originally thought to be dysentery, scientists have now concluded that Agnès died from being poisoned by mercury. The culprit remains unknown
• Regiomontanus (aka Johannes Müller), 1476, German mathematician and astronomer died in Rome in mysteriously: some say of plague, others by (more likely) assassination.
• Moctezuma II, 1520, Aztec emperor. According to Spanish accounts he was killed by his own people; according to Aztec accounts he was murdered by the Spanish.
• King Charles XII of Sweden, 1718, killed in action.
• Emperor Kōmei of Japan, 1840, Emperor of Japan. He died of smallpox at the age of 35. There is a theory that he was actually poisoned by the anti-Bakufu clique.
• Émile Zola, 1902, French author, died in Paris in, 1902 of carbon monoxide poisoning caused by a stopped chimney. His enemies were blamed, but nothing was proved.
• Death of Rudolf Diesel, 1913, the place is unknown and many theories are given about Diesel's death. He disappeared in the English Channel and was found dead in the Schelde river in Rupelmonde, Belgium.
• S. L. MacGregor-Mathers, 1918, well-known magician and occultist, died of an unknown cause; it is known that he had many enemies. The manner of death is unknown; his death certificate lists no cause of death. Violet Firth (Dion Fortune) claimed his death was the result of the Spanish influenza of 1918. As few facts are known about Mather's private life, verification of such claims are very difficult.
• B. H. DeLay, 1923, Aviator Actor who died while performing on 4th of July in Venice Beach (Los Angeles) California area, plane sabotage of wings caused killing him instantly on crash impact.
• Ottavio Bottecchia, 1927, Italian Cyclist, was found by the side of a road, covered with bruises and with a serious skull fracture. His bicycle was undamaged, propped against a nearby tree. He was brought to a hospital but died soon afterwards. An official inquiry concluded accidental death but many suspected that he had run afoul of the powerful and growing fascist movement in Italy at the time.
• Death of Ivar Kreuger, 1932, in a Paris hotel room. Probably a suicide.
• Ghazi of Iraq, 1939, King of Iraq, He died in a mysterious accident involving a sports car he was driving. Some believe he was killed on the orders of Nuri as-Said.
• King Ananda Mahidol of Thailand, 1946. Died of gunshot wounds; suicide, accident or assassination.
• Jan Masaryk, 1948, son of Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk; Czech diplomat, politician and Foreign Minister of Czechoslovakia, was found dead in the courtyard of the Foreign Ministry below his bathroom window. The initial investigation concluded that he committed suicide by jumping out of the window, although many are convinced that he was pushed.
• The Taman Shud Case, 1948, Adelaide, Australia, a man was found dead on the beach. His dental records did not match any known person. He carried no identification. The labels on his business suit and clothing were all missing. In one trouser pocket there was a piece of paper with the words 'Taman Shud' on it. This is a phrase on the last page of collection of poems called the The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam and it means 'the end.'
• Barthélemy Boganda, 1959, Prime Minister of the Central African Republic, in a plane crash.
• Death of Dag Hammarskjöld, 1961, in Ndola, Northern Rhodesia, aeroplane crash.
• Dorothy Kilgallen, 1965, New York City, death certificate reads "acute ethanol and barbiturate intoxication / circumstances undetermined." People who have said publicly that she could have been murdered (perhaps by needle injection after drinking an unknown amount of alcohol) include Larry King, Dominick Dunne, Bob Bach (who booked the mystery guests on Kilgallen's TV show What's My Line?), writer Mary Brannum Bringle (a colleague of Patricia Bosworth) and Kilgallen's son Kerry Kollmar.
• Death of George Washington Vanderbilt III, (1961), in San Francisco, California.
• Edward Mutesa, 1969, died, possibly from alcohol poisoning, in his London flat.
• Hale Boggs and Nick Begich, 1972, Democratic U.S. House members whose plane disappeared in the Alaska wilderness. Remnants of plane and bodies never recovered.
• Aman Mikael Andom, 1974, Ethiopian military figure, sources say that he committed suicide, while others say that he was killed by political rivals among the coup leadership, possibly including Mengistu Haile Mariam.
• Jimmy Hoffa, 1975, International Brotherhood of Teamsters leader who disappeared from the parking lot of a Michigan restaurant. Body never recovered; declared legally dead by the state of Michigan in 1982.
• Haile Selassie, 1975, Emperor of Ethiopia until his deposition in 1974. His death was officially said to be from natural causes, but a persistent allegation is that he was smothered with a pillow.
• Pope John Paul I, 1978, has been contended by authors David Yallop and Malachi Martin, among others, to have been assassinated.
• Omar Torrijos, 1981, brigadier general and president of Panama, died in a plane crash.
• Roberto Calvi, 1982, CEO of Banco Ambrosiano, found hanged under Blackfriars Bridge in London.
• Eduardo Frei Montalva, 1982, president of Chile from 1964 to 1970. As of 2005, his death is being investigated because of allegations that he was poisoned. [2]
• Samora Machel, 1986, President of Mozambique, killed in air crash on the border of South Africa, hillside in the Lebombo Mountains. He was leading anti-Apartheid spokesman.
• Uwe Barschel, 1987, minister-president of Schleswig-Holstein.
• Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq, 1988, military ruler of Pakistan, died in a plane crash in 1988.
• Pablo Escobar, 1993, head of the Medellín Cartel, war against Escobar ended in 1993, as he tried to elude the Search Bloc one more time. Using radio triangulation technology provided as part of the U.S. efforts, a Colombian electronic surveillance team found him hiding in a middle-class barrio in Medellín. A shootout between Escobar and the Search Bloc personnel ensued. Some believe U.S. special ops snipers may have taken part in the final shootout with Escobar. Accordingly, how Escobar was killed during the confrontation has been debated, but it is known that he was cornered on the rooftops of Medellín and suffered gunshots to the leg, back, and the fatal one behind his ear.
• Zviad Gamsakhurdia, 1993, former president of Georgia - In 1993, died in circumstances that were (and still are) very unclear. It is known that he died in the village of Khibula in the Samegrelo region of western Georgia.
• Kurt Cobain, 1994, lead singer and guitarist for the band Nirvana; apparent suicide (self-inflicted gunshot wound) in his home in Seattle, but various theories conclude he was a victim of murder.
• Juvénal Habyarimana, 1994, President of Rwanda killed in mysterious plane crash in Kigali airport. The resulting political instability led to the genocide in Rwanda and the outbreak of full-scale war in Burundi.
• Cyprien Ntaryamira, 1994, President of Burundi, killed in mysterious plane crash in Kigali airport. The resulting political instability led to the genocide in Rwanda and the outbreak of full-scale war in Burundi.
• Jack Nance, 1996, cult actor, died of mysterious circumstances in his South Pasadena home.
• Giorgi Sanaia, 2001, Georgian journalist known for opposition to government, shot in apartment in Tbilisi.
• Paul Wellstone, 2002, liberal Democratic Party United States Senator from Minnesota, killed in mysterious plane crash during his reelection campaign in Eveleth, Minnesota.
• Maj. Gen. Abed Hamed Mowhoush, 2003, Iraqi general, died in American custody 200 miles (321 kilometers) northwest of Baghdad, ending a 16 day detention that included intense beatings and the use of violent and illegal interrogation tactics.
• Enrique Salinas, 2004, brother of former Mexican president Carlos Salinas. Found with a plastic bag over his head in a parked car. The vehicle was abandoned in the upmarket municipality of Huixquilucan, Estado de México outskirts of Mexico City.
• Nicola Calipari, 2005, Italian intelligence agent (circumstances of the death are well-established; the motives are unclear), Calipari was killed while escorting a recently released Italian hostage, journalist Giuliana Sgrena, to Baghdad International Airport.
• John Garang, 2005, Sudanese politician and former rebel leader (suspicious helicopter crash), Southern Sudan. One theory was poor visibility. Second one was arranged by Sudanese Government.

[edit] Date of death disputed

• Raoul Wallenberg, death is dated by Soviet authorities as July 16, 1947, but this is disputed; remains an unsolved case.