CANADA Canada- Amanda Antoni, 31, found dead in her basement, considered suspicious but ruled an accidental fall down stairs, Calgary, 26/10/15, *Netflix*

[dotr]

Aug 01, 2024

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/calgary-police-hope-netflix-show-brings-more-answers-to-amanda-antoni-s-unsolved-death-1.7281846

Calgary police ultimately ruled Antoni's death accidental, but say there was never a full consensus on that determination. (Courtesy of Netflix)
''Police spent 14 months investigating the incident, which was immediately thought to be suspicious, before ultimately concluding that Antoni's death was accidental — caused, they deduced, by a fall down the stairs.

But on Wednesday, Staff Sgt. Sean Gregson of the Calgary police homicide unit said many questions linger around Antoni's case and continue to plague investigators, family and friends.

"As homicide investigators, it is our duty to seek closure and provide answers to a victim's family … answers without a shadow of a doubt," said Gregson.''

That said, Sweet added there was never a full consensus on the official ruling of Antoni's death, given that so much was left unexplained.
For example, there was evidence that Antoni had been struck by a piggy bank which was found at the top of the stairs to the basement; ceramic shards from the object were found around Antoni's body. A chair was also left upturned in the main floor.''

Netflix’s number one TV show features a horrifying murder

Unsolved Mysteries season 4 has landed on Netflix and, almost instantly, became its most-watched show in the US and UK. Not checked this one out on Netflix...

www.shortlist.com

The fourth Netflix season features five episodes, each examining a disturbing cold case. It’s currently the most popular show on the streamer on the US, UK and Canada, according to Flixpatrol.
The most unnerving of the lot is episode two, Body in the Basement. This digs into the case of Amanda Antoni.
In 2015 this young woman’s body was found in her basement. One of the investigating officers described it as “the bloodiest scene I’d ever walked in on.”

https://www.netflix.com/tudum/articles/unsolved-mysteries-volume-4-episode-2-body-in-the-basement

 

[thebedbug]

Came here thinking there might be more and better details on the case. I feel like these crime shows often leave out or downplay certain elements to enhance the "mysterious" narrative. Alas... I don't see anything else available.

Based on the evidence the show provided, I'm going to have to agree her death is most likely the result of a horrible accident.

My take:

Husband away and finally has a night to herself. Headache. Puts on the fancy panties. Gets really high. Talking on phone. Trips (maybe over the dog). Crashes into piggy bank with head and rolls down stairs. Badly injured. Disoriented. At times unconscious. Never able to gather herself enough to make it out of basement and dies of blood loss.

Phone was simply tossed at she lost balance. Tipped over chair in kitchen is unrelated to her death.

 

[dotr]

'Jul 10, 2024 #CrimeBeat #GlobalNews #unsolvedmysteries
People from around the world will get a deep dive into a Calgary woman’s puzzling 2015 death when it’s featured on Unsolved Mysteries later this month.Amanda Antoni’s body was discovered by her husband in her Castleridge home nearly nine years ago.Investigators initially deemed the 31-year-old’s death suspicious and said there were signs of violence in the home, but a year later police switched course and said she died after falling down the stairs.“My gut is still telling me there’s more to it,” Antoni’s brother, Darrell Hogg, said. “There’s still a lot of stuff they can’t answer.”Hogg said he and his family are now hoping the episode will generate new tips in his sister’s death.“I guess we’ll do our best not to get our hopes up, but at the same time we’re excited to see what comes out of this,” he said. “There’s still some hope that we’ll get to the bottom of what did happen.”The Calgary Police Service (CPS) is remaining tight lipped about the episode but said in a statement: “While we are unable to comment on specific details until the Unsolved Mysteries episode has been released, we remain committed to seeking answers and the pursuit of justice for all Calgarians.”

 

[AutumnFalls]

Came here thinking there might be more and better details on the case. I feel like these crime shows often leave out or downplay certain elements to enhance the "mysterious" narrative. Alas... I don't see anything else available.

Based on the evidence the show provided, I'm going to have to agree her death is most likely the result of a horrible accident.

My take:

Husband away and finally has a night to herself. Headache. Puts on the fancy panties. Gets really high. Talking on phone. Trips (maybe over the dog). Crashes into piggy bank with head and rolls down stairs. Badly injured. Disoriented. At times unconscious. Never able to gather herself enough to make it out of basement and dies of blood loss.

Phone was simply tossed at she lost balance. Tipped over chair in kitchen is unrelated to her death.

Unfortunately, that's the way I'm leaning too. I do wonder why the dog didn't go check on her after she fell.

 

[truenoblesavage]

Unfortunately, that's the way I'm leaning too. I do wonder why the dog didn't go check on her after she fell.

Maybe the dog got super startled and scared by all the commotion? Not sure if that “fear” would last a day plus though.

 

[bombardier]

Maybe the dog got super startled and scared by all the commotion? Not sure if that “fear” would last a day plus though.

someone online suggested that the strong smell of all the blood may have deterred the dog. i would think most dogs might be 'enticed' by blood b/c theyre omnivores but its possible this dog found it overwhelming.

 

[Lalalacasbah]

Sorry long post...

To be fair I haven't watched the Netflix show yet BUT I did discuss this crime on another forum however I am foggy but it's coming back to me... I will watch the Netflix as it sounds like there is information maybe not known before?

I cannot wrap my head around an accident for this for these reasons:

1. Weren't the stairs carpet? Sorry I can't recall where I read this, I will look for MSM as I am foggy

2. Her pants pulled down: I do not see this happening from a fall, no way. And the different underwear, what are the odds? I almost feel like she was set up maybe expecting "company" but someone else came and tricked her online perhaps. Someone who was close to her husband? She wanted a divorce. Pants pulled down could be to humiliate her or send a message, especially if no SA - this to me is to embarrass her or something

3. The piggy bank/head wound: I don't see how this is possible at all. I look around my house at things like that. You would need a forceful strong impact to break an object. I don't think a fall would be enough force.

Theory: Maybe someone posed as someone else online and was invited over. Dog actually recognized person so barked but settled once person got inside. No other DNA - do we know if no foreign DNA has been specified? If someone had been to the house in the past, the DNA would be there already so not a stranger.

The person could have grabbed her by the hair and smashed her head with force into the piggy bank, pushed her down the stairs. Waited upstairs for her to pass maybe (reason she didn't come up knowing the person was still up there and reason the animals didn't go down because they were prevented.

So little DNA from anyone else really to contaminate scene since the killer really didn't touch anything or was there before. Thinking out loud, JMO MOO

 

[Fika]

I watched the episode about Amanda yesterday. I was shocked by the amount of blood in the basement. First I thought no way this is accidental but eventually after hearing all the facts Im leaning towards accident.

I think the chair in the kitchen is unrelated to her death and was on the floor for a while. While I agree that the dog not going to check on her is a bit odd but then maybe the dog went to check on her but stood on the stairs and didn’t come close to her for some reason. Its hard to predict how a dog would behave in certain situations.

I forgot or not sure if it was mentioned in the episode, were the doors to the basement open?

 

[bombardier]

2. Her pants pulled down: I do not see this happening from a fall, no way. And the different underwear, what are the odds? I almost feel like she was set up maybe expecting "company" but someone else came and tricked her online perhaps. Someone who was close to her husband? She wanted a divorce. Pants pulled down could be to humiliate her or send a message, especially if no SA - this to me is to embarrass her or something

3. The piggy bank/head wound: I don't see how this is possible at all. I look around my house at things like that. You would need a forceful strong impact to break an object. I don't think a fall would be enough fforce

(snipped by me)
I've seen speculation that the pants being down werent due to the fall, but rather her struggle and wiggling while bleeding out. LE mentioned she struggled for quite a while and even got up and walked briefly. The type of pants is most important imo. skinny jeans?? yea thats suspicious. pajamas or lounge pants? I could definitely see those slipping.
As for the undies, I wonder if she was just running out of undies since it was laundry day and grabbed a random fancier one? Wonder if they checked her bedroom to see what other pairs were left over.

As for the piggybank, I can definitely believe falling forward and cracking it with your head could break it. Piggybanks are designed to be broken, usually with a hammer, but all it needed when i had a pg was a light tap. ceramic or porcelain are very easily broken (still peeved because i dropped a plate in the sink today and it shattered )

 

[thebedbug]

From Netflix show - I don't think there was a door on the stairway down to the basement. There were a couple of stairs that made a 90 degree turn and the rest went straight down. Don't recall if there was carpet - but I think the fatal wound was the piggy bank/head and the rest of the injuries were bruises that biomechanical experts determined could have been caused by a fall down the stairs vs. a beating.

The piggy bank was found on a ledge that was horizontal on the wall leading down the stairs. If one was walking down the stairs, I think it would've been on the 2nd/3rd stair and about knee high. It appeared the piggy bank had been pushed back into the wall (there was a dent) with some force. I think the working theory is AA fell into it, her head impacting, breaking it and pushing it back into the wall - while she tumbled down the stairs.

The pants thing wasn't terribly well-described other than I think they said they were down to about her knees - but even that description you can imagine in a variety of ways. Are we talking about loose pajamas? Maybe the result of simply struggling on the floor or the fall. I think the biggest problem with it being something done by an attacker is the lack of any evidence of another person in the basement.

They didn't elaborate on the amount of marijuana in her system. If an accident, this could certainly be a contributing factor in both causing the accident and her efforts to recover after the fall.

The dog not going downstairs seems odd, but I don't think there is evidence of anything other than it just didn't go there. The husband didn't report the dog being contained in any way when he returned home.

 

[Lalalacasbah]

Finally watched the Netflix show. Now I'm more convinced, not an accident JMO

The odds that the first times and nights the couple were apart she happens to die in bloody, awful way? Only those who knew the couple intimately or were close to them knew the husband was out of town.

Revised theory but pretty much the same: I think someone came in, grabbed/smashed the phone first and confronted/chased Amanda around the kitchen to get in her face kinda thing. Husband said phone went to VM 3 times - so either turned off or died suddenly.

I don't think Amanda thought to fight back at that point, as didn't think her life was in danger and maybe was trying to talk the person down or calm them down. I think Amanda scurried towards the stairs and the person grabbed her by the hair and smashed Amanda's orbital/temple area (IIRC the major wound was bewteen the eye and hairline so the tender part of the head with less bone protection which would bleed a lot), then kicked her down the stairs... and waited...

Perhaps the person panicked themselves that things got out of control and didn't plan on the escalation. I think the person waited not knowing maybe what to do... help or run or call anyone but waited to see what Amanda did or didn't do. That explains Amanda at bottom of the stairs scared to go up and the animals. JMO MOO.

I truly hope the person(s) who did this comes clean and family gets some closure. Seemed so very senseless. It's mindblowing the husband mentioned his sister would be capable of doing this. It does almost sound possible of a confrontation got out of control and hesitation possibly if the killer was upstairs, definitely has female traits if it was murder and murderer was a woman with an accomplice.

 

[Lalalacasbah]

From Netflix show - I don't think there was a door on the stairway down to the basement. There were a couple of stairs that made a 90 degree turn and the rest went straight down. Don't recall if there was carpet - but I think the fatal wound was the piggy bank/head and the rest of the injuries were bruises that biomechanical experts determined could have been caused by a fall down the stairs vs. a beating.

The piggy bank was found on a ledge that was horizontal on the wall leading down the stairs. If one was walking down the stairs, I think it would've been on the 2nd/3rd stair and about knee high. It appeared the piggy bank had been pushed back into the wall (there was a dent) with some force. I think the working theory is AA fell into it, her head impacting, breaking it and pushing it back into the wall - while she tumbled down the stairs.

The pants thing wasn't terribly well-described other than I think they said they were down to about her knees - but even that description you can imagine in a variety of ways. Are we talking about loose pajamas? Maybe the result of simply struggling on the floor or the fall. I think the biggest problem with it being something done by an attacker is the lack of any evidence of another person in the basement.

They didn't elaborate on the amount of marijuana in her system. If an accident, this could certainly be a contributing factor in both causing the accident and her efforts to recover after the fall.

The dog not going downstairs seems odd, but I don't think there is evidence of anything other than it just didn't go there. The husband didn't report the dog being contained in any way when he returned home.

I don't think the attacker went to the basement at all and didn't need to. Something happened in the kitchen area (where phone and chair were) that led to the stairs (Amanda scurrying away from the person maybe) where the violence happened and was kicked/pushed down the stairs. The attacker didn't need to go down the stairs and maybe got spooked that things went that far, so waited it out.

The stairs really weren't that steep looking to me and looked carpeted in the show. The report mentioned how rare fatalities are from stair falls.

It sounded like the main wound was her face (I think LE said "face" and ME described it as orbital wound or something like that - between eye and hairline area). Face is an interesting choice of words. That could be seen as personal if her face was smashed JMO... The odds of hitting that temporal area from a fall seem so unlikely to me. But again, JMO MOO

 

[Fabled Automatic]

I don't think the attacker went to the basement at all and didn't need to. Something happened in the kitchen area (where phone and chair were) that led to the stairs (Amanda scurrying away from the person maybe) where the violence happened and was kicked/pushed down the stairs. The attacker didn't need to go down the stairs and maybe got spooked that things went that far, so waited it out.

The stairs really weren't that steep looking to me and looked carpeted in the show. The report mentioned how rare fatalities are from stair falls.

It sounded like the main wound was her face (I think LE said "face" and ME described it as orbital wound or something like that - between eye and hairline area). Face is an interesting choice of words. That could be seen as personal if her face was smashed JMO... The odds of hitting that temporal area from a fall seem so unlikely to me. But again, JMO MOO

That could explain why the pets didn't go to the basement. The fact that they didn't, and the footprints at the bottom of the stairs facing up, are the two strangest aspects of this case to me.

 

[stonedgnome]

Watching this now.

8 minutes in and there's no doubt to me that this was NOT an accident.

moo

 

[stonedgnome]

Wow, this one stumped me.

 

[Lalalacasbah]

Wow, this one stumped me.

Are you thinking accident now or still NOT accident?

What veers me towards not accident the most is wild circumstances and "the odds":

1. Timing #1: The one time the couple are apart she happens to get killed
2. Timing #2: It seems the only people who maybe knew her hubby was away would have been close to them? I'm assuming this by what it sounded like in the doc
3. Angle of the fall: JMO but I feel like it would have to be the craziest odds to fall down a few stairs, on the exact and right angle with such force to create a wound in that delicate soft tissue (temple-ish) area and embed in her head and tragically lead to her death. To me, that just seems ludicrous. But, MOO and only my little thought

JMO, IMO

 

[GoodGuysWearWhiteHats]

I have some concerns and interests that I welcome help with:
1) Does anybody know the address of the house she died in, or can you please mark it's location on a map and post an image of that? I have some suspicions about the history of the house that I'd like to try and research through government records, based on the following...
There is no denying the fact that none of the pets in the house ever ventured down to see her where she yelled out in fear and or in pain (as neighbors heard), and bled to death and laid there for days, is something that cannot be explained by normal means. Pets don't just ignore their owner bleeding to death, or their dead body. Certainly not a friendly sociable dog. There was nothing in the house preventing the animals from going down there for days. Witnesses saw someone running off after they heard the dog bark differently than it usually barked, yelped, and the woman scream. Not days later. So there was nothing that should have prevented the animals from checking on the body over the next few minutes, hours, or days.
The show mentioned that she avoided the basement because it made her uneasy. This is not a coincidence either, when you add in the fact that the pets didn't go down there when she was dying or dead.
So I wonder if anyone ever died/was found dead in that house, specifically in the basement, or in the basement of another house that used to stand there. Or maybe their injured body was found there but they died at the hospital or in transport. I wonder if that played some role in this. So I need to find out the address to search for any records at that property for such a thing.
2) Has anybody tried looking for people who claim they can talk with pets in the psychic sense, and see about trying to have them meet with any surviving pets from the home? That dog may not be alive anymore, but the cat still should be. Has anybody asked the local alternative healing metaphysical supply shops in the city for help with finding people who can connect them with people who claim to have those abilities? This might produce a lead that, when looked into, could produce a promising lead that the cops had no idea about.

 

[GoodGuysWearWhiteHats]

1) If this was an accident (it obviously wasn't), could someone really accidentally drop an iphone, even one from 2015, without a protective case, onto a hardwood floor (which is rather soft compared to concrete or stone) and break its screen and it instantly stopped working? iphones can work even if their screen was broken, so this would take tremendous energy to break the screen AND instantly stop the phone from working. I found videos of people who did drop tests of this exact thing 8 years ago, and not once did the iphone sustain any damage being REPEATEDLY dropped onto a hardwood floor, let alone sustain a broken screen and it stopped working. So this proves the iphone was violently thrown down, which is not what happens in an accidental trip.

2) If you've ever tripped and fallen, or ever seen someone trip and fall, or watched videos of that, people always fall in a fairly straight line. They don't go one direction, then turn 90 degrees, then go 8 feet and fall down stairs. That's not how people trip and fall. If this was an accidental trip, the iphone and the chair indicate that she would have had to trip, turn 90 degrees, knock over the chair, and keep falling for 8 feet before reaching the stairs and keep falling. That's just the most ludicrous thing ever. Try and replicate that. Just try.

 

[dotr]

1) If this was an accident (it obviously wasn't), could someone really accidentally drop an iphone, even one from 2015, without a protective case, onto a hardwood floor (which is rather soft compared to concrete or stone) and break its screen and it instantly stopped working? iphones can work even if their screen was broken, so this would take tremendous energy to break the screen AND instantly stop the phone from working. I found videos of people who did drop tests of this exact thing 8 years ago, and not once did the iphone sustain any damage being REPEATEDLY dropped onto a hardwood floor, let alone sustain a broken screen and it stopped working. So this proves the iphone was violently thrown down, which is not what happens in an accidental trip.

2) If you've ever tripped and fallen, or ever seen someone trip and fall, or watched videos of that, people always fall in a fairly straight line. They don't go one direction, then turn 90 degrees, then go 8 feet and fall down stairs. That's not how people trip and fall. If this was an accidental trip, the iphone and the chair indicate that she would have had to trip, turn 90 degrees, knock over the chair, and keep falling for 8 feet before reaching the stairs and keep falling. That's just the most ludicrous thing ever. Try and replicate that. Just try.

Welcome to Ws @GoodGuysWearWhiteHats, very intriguing posts!

 

[Pseudonymph]

My theory, she’s sitting at the kitchen table looking at her phone. She hears an intruder and leaps up, knocking over the chair and dropping her phone, which skitters away.

She runs to the steps to hide in the basement and falls down the stairs, hitting her head at the bottom. In the process she snags her pants on something (maybe the banister) and they get pulled down. She isn’t too badly injured but is bleeding heavily and stands up after a while. She’s confused and the pulled down pants are preventing her from running.

The intruder looks down the stairs and sees her. Either scared or angry, the intruder picks up the piggy bank and throws it at her. It hits her in the head and this time she is knocked out. The bank’s face is broken and the pieces shoot up the stairs upon impact.

Out of panic or in some lame attempt to cover his/her tracks, the intruder sees she is out cold and retrieves the piggy bank, putting it in its normal spot.

The intruder leaves immediately. She slips in and out of consciousness for a while, crawling around aimlessly but mostly out of it, until she dies. Bleeding out doesn’t take too long but maybe for her the bleeding is slow.

Does that cover all the known facts? I think it was a surprised burglar combined with an accident. Edited to add: and the dog was outside the whole time! I used to sit near the doors knowing the dog was going to want to come in soon.