DC DC - Eileen Kelly, 18, Washington DC, 14 Dec 1974

[Richard]

Eileen Marie Kelly
BIRTH 7 Jul 1956
DEATH 22 Dec 1974 (aged 18)

She disappeared after leaving her office on December 13, 1974, and her body was found in the District of Columbia on December 22, 1974. She had been strangled, and the coroner estimated she had been dead only 24-36 hours. Her murder is a cold case, under investigation by the DC Metropolitan Police Dept. [still as of 2021]

She was survived by her parents; four brothers; one sister; and aunts, uncles, and many friends.

------------------------------------------
Eileen Kelly's father...


Patrick Francis Kelly
August 27, 1929 - February 2, 2021

LINK:

Patrick Francis Kelly (1929-2021) - Find a Grave...

Patrick Francis Kelly August 27, 1929 - February 2, 2021 Mr. Kelly was born Patrick Francis Kane on August 27, 1929 in Kansas City, Missouri. He was placed for adoption at birth in St Ann's infant home. He was fostered and adopted by his mother, Mary L. Kelly, as an infant. His early years were...

www.findagrave.com

 

[Richard]

Bumping this thread up. Could Eileen's
Murder be related to other unsolved cases?

 

[Richard]

This December will mark the 50 year anniversary of the murder of Eileen Kelly.

 

[Richard]

Eileen Marie Kelly, 18
Murdered December 1974

Hopefully new advances in DNA analysis will lead to identification of Eileen's killer.

 

[Richard]

This unsolved murder may have been committed by Lloyd Lee Welch, Jr. Or he may have been involved in it.

Eileen's abduction and murder occurred in December 1974 in either Maryland or the District of Colombia. Her body was found in DC, and therefore, the Washington, DC Police Department has jurisdiction.

Investigation concluded that she had been held captive for a week before being killed.

Welch was found guilty of the abduction and murder of the Lyon sisters; Sheila and Katherine, which took place only two months later and a few miles north of where Eileen's body was found.

Eileen had left her place of work in DC intending to take a bus to her home in Hyattsville, MD where her father was waiting to take her to a car dealership to look at a car. She never showed up at the bus stop.

Coincidentally, Lloyd Welch was living at his mother's Hyattsville house, only a few blocks from the Kelly home. It was at that house that he is alleged to have taken the Lyon sisters. BIG Coincidence.

 

[Richard]

Bumping this thread up. Eileen Kelly went missing on 13 Decenber 1974. Her body was found in Washington DC 22 December. It was apparent that she had been abducted in DC or in Maryland, kept alive as a prisoner, and then killed.

This unsolved cold case will soon be 50 years old.

 

[zensiert]

Thank you, Richard for your continued pursuit of the truth in this case. I do suspect Eileen Kelly very likely crossed paths in Hyattsville with the miscreants of the W clan. There are too many similarities between Eileen's and the Lyon sisters' cases to dismiss them as only coincidences. It may not be commonly known, but LLW Sr. had a record for assaulting women dating back to the 1950s.

You mentioned advances in DNA in your previous post. I do hope they still have some viable DNA left from the original crime investigation. That could solve this 50 year old cold case.

 

[DJB555]

Today is 50 years since her body was found. Her sister is a good friend of mine and mentioned it on her Facebook page today. I guess no DNA matches have come up (assuming the police have tried that and have it available.

 

[ErinC]

Bumping this thread up. Eileen Kelly went missing on 13 Decenber 1974. Her body was found in Washington DC 22 December. It was apparent that she had been abducted in DC or in Maryland, kept alive as a prisoner, and then killed.

This unsolved cold case will soon be 50 years old.

Now that you mention it, she does bear at least some resemblance to the Lyon sisters. I would love to know where Floyd Lee Welch was on the date this all went down.

 

[Richard]

Now that you mention it, she does bear at least some resemblance to the Lyon sisters. I would love to know where Floyd Lee Welch was on the date this all went down.

The abduction and murder of Eileen Kelly occurred only three months before the Lyon Sisters went missing.

It is known that in March 1975, Lloyd Welch Jr. was residing with his mother at her house in Hyattsville, Maryland - only a few blocks from the Kelly home.

 

[Richard]

This unsolved case is now over 50 years old. It is in the jurisdiction of Washington DC Police investigators.

Lloyd Lee Welch, Jr. , convicted murderer of Sheila and Katherine Lyon has just been transferred from a Delaware prison to one in Virginia to begin serving his sentences for the Lyon murders. He should be considered as a possible suspect in the abduction and murder of Eileen Kelly as well.

 

[Richard]

Eileen Marie Kelly, 18
Murdered December 1974

LINK:

Eileen Marie Kelly (1956-1974) - Find a Grave...

She disappeared after leaving her office on December 13, 1974, and her body was found in the District of Columbia on December 22, 1974. She had been strangled, and the coroner estimated she had been dead only 24-36 hours. Her murder is a cold case, under investigation by the DC Metropolitan...

www.findagrave.com

 

[Zach Ford]

Anyone have an idea why the MPD cold case website says Eileen disappeared on December 14? Everything else on the case states she was last seen around 5 p.m on the 13th. I'm assuming it's just a typo, unless there's a sighting the next day that's never been made public. Not very encouraging if such a basic mistake was made, however...

 

[Richard]

Anyone have an idea why the MPD cold case website says Eileen disappeared on December 14? Everything else on the case states she was last seen around 5 p.m on the 13th. I'm assuming it's just a typo, unless there's a sighting the next day that's never been made public. Not very encouraging if such a basic mistake was made, however...

Eileen Kelly was last seen alive leaving her place of work in Washington DC for her parents home in Hyattsville, MD on Friday, 13 December 1974.

Waiting for her at the bus stop in Hyattsville was her father. They had planned to look for a car for her, but she never arrived.

I have also seen the discrepancy in her "missing" date. It may have been that it wasn't until the 14th of December (Saturday) that she was reported or declared a missing person .

 

[Zach Ford]

I saw that one of the 1974 articles says her father reported her missing at 8 p.m. on the 13th. But as you say, maybe the police didn't make it official on their end until the next day. Seems like a good explanation. By chance, do you know the source for the statement that her father was waiting at the bus stop? Everything I recall reading says he was waiting at home. There seems to be a lot of frustrating gaps and conflicting information in this case, so I wouldn't be surprised that both were reported!

 

[Richard]

I saw that one of the 1974 articles says her father reported her missing at 8 p.m. on the 13th. But as you say, maybe the police didn't make it official on their end until the next day. Seems like a good explanation. By chance, do you know the source for the statement that her father was waiting at the bus stop? Everything I recall reading says he was waiting at home. There seems to be a lot of frustrating gaps and conflicting information in this case, so I wouldn't be surprised that both were reported!

In a January 2015 post, I stated that her father was waiting at the bus station for her. That came from a news story that I read. It was probably in a linked source which is no longer accessible. I recall that the story said she was going to go with her dad to a car dealer to look at an AMC Gremlin - a small car of the hatchback style.

Here are a few recent links:

https://mpdc.dc.gov/sites/default/files/dc/sites/mpdc/publication/attachments/kelly_eileen_0.pdf

Eileen Kelly murdered or death by force in Washington, District-of-columbia.

On December 14, 1974, Eileen Kelly, an 18-year-old resident of Washington, D. C.

crimesolverscentral.com

 

[Zach Ford]

In a January 2015 post, I stated that her father was waiting at the bus station for her. That came from a news story that I read. It was probably in a linked source which is no longer accessible. I recall that the story said she was going to go with her dad to a car dealer to look at an AMC Gremlin - a small car of the hatchback style.

Here are a few recent links:

https://mpdc.dc.gov/sites/default/files/dc/sites/mpdc/publication/attachments/kelly_eileen_0.pdf

Eileen Kelly murdered or death by force in Washington, District-of-columbia.

On December 14, 1974, Eileen Kelly, an 18-year-old resident of Washington, D. C.

crimesolverscentral.com

Like so much of this case, even the original run of press coverage gives varying accounts about the car. Most articles say she was going home to sign loan paperwork with her father, but one or two indeed seem to refer to her picking up the car that night. The public facts of this case have been muddled since 1974, I'm afraid...