TX TX - Multiple Decapitated Victims, Houston, 1979

[Kat]

http://www.chron.com/news/houston-t...ings-in-1979-left-bodies-headless-3467505.php

Horrific killings in 1979 left bodies headless

By James Pinkerton

Updated 05:53 p.m., Monday, April 9, 2012

snipped:

Today, more than three decades later, the status of five murder cases that took place within two months of one another remains virtually the same as in 1979. There are no suspects, no fingerprint or forensic evidence to help develop a suspect, and the most rudimentary of theories.

The questions remain: Was there a cold-blooded serial killer with a compulsion to collect human heads at work in Houston? And is the killer still out there?

2 page article at link above.

Victims named in artcle:
1. Alys Elaine Rankin
2. Mary Michael Calcutta
3.Doris Lynn Threadgill
4. Joann Huffman (16 yrs old)
5. Robert Spangenberger (18 yrs old)

The prevailing theory is the Orchard Apartment murders of Rankin and Calcutta were committed by the same killer. But most homicide investigators believe the deaths of Huffman and Spangenberger were the work of a separate killer. Investigators are unsure about Threadgill's connection to the other murders.

"I'm not ruling anything out; anything's possible," Motard said.

I had never heard of these murders until reading this article.

 

[Kat]

http://www.chron.com/CDA/archives/a...atives-still-seek-clues-to-brutal-slayin.html

S.K. BARDWELL Staff
MON 08/09/1999 Houston Chronicle, Section A, Page 13MetFront, 3 STAR Edition

http://dmnewsi.com/2012/04/09/repor...killings-hint-at-possiblity-of-serial-killer/

I don't know what the above link is? Blog I think. Please disregard if not interested.

 

[Justice4Sharon]

wow....


"She was a blooming flower in an asphalt parking lot," Houston homicide Sgt. Jim Binford said of Calcutta. "You know the flower that grows right up through the sidewalk?"

 

[SoBeCzar]

This reminds me of Danny Rollins. He did behead at least one victim. He murdered male and female. And came back to the same area to kill again. I know he confessed to a triple murder in 1989 in Shreveport LA. that he was not caught for before he died. Curious if he ever did boat work. Many deckhands work MS, LA and TX, traveling from one job to another.

 

[SoBeCzar]

Couldn't find anything on Danny Rollins being in the area but he did take off from home after shooting his dad and would have been in his 20s at the time of these murders.
Also I found he did not confess to the triple murders in Shreveport instead he wrote about them including facts only the killer would know.

 

[Winward1]

Weird. My cousin was killed there in Oct. '79 in a cold case, though it appears to have been a road rage incident, was unlucky to have been in the back seat of a car on the freeway which was fired upon after an apparent road altercation.

 

[jaleach123]

Weird. My cousin was killed there in Oct. '79 in a cold case, though it appears to have been a road rage incident, was unlucky to have been in the back seat of a car on the freeway which was fired upon after an apparent road altercation.

I'm sorry to hear about this. Is this case listed here somewhere? I would like to know more about your cousin.

 

[Winward1]

Thanks, Jaleach, and his murder was also in Houston. What little there is to know is here:

http://www.websleuths.com/forums/showthread.php?t=104444&highlight=kenneth+mahnken

 

[jaleach123]

Thanks for the link. That sounds like a difficult nut to crack. If those hispanic shooters were illegals, they're likely long gone by now or living in a different area of the country. They're also likely citizens now under the 1986 Reagan amnesty.

Still, it's good that you looked into it with the police department. It would be nice to get a reporter involved to write one of those retrospective cold case articles. Maybe that might turn something up.

 

[Winward1]

Yes, and I'm not sure how accurate any of the info is regarding what was seen. I spoke with my other cousin, who was in the car, and she recalls so little about it. Pickup trucks in Houston are everywhere it seems. I should have pointed out the shooting was in '79 as well. I'll keep in mind your idea about a story. Publicity for these things never hurts.

 

[HMSHood]

Whoever did the killing is most likely very smart and possibly has some experience in forensic works as there little forensic evidence. He could be a former detective or crime lab worker. It is probable he has killed people outside of Houston area as well.

The killer is probably a male and that person could be out in public in plain sight, be in prison for unrelated crime, or has died. He could be anywhere in the US.

 

[HMSHood]

Investigators find more bones at Houston construction site
http://www.kens5.com/news/Investigators-find-more-bones-at-Houston-construction-site-164788046.html

Investigators believe the remains may be from the late 70s or early 80s. They suspect foul play may be involved, because the bones were found between a concrete slab and a retaining wall.

I wonder if the body found recently at what used to be a condo could be connected to this case.

 

[HTXfuerte]

I've been trying to find more info on this all day. BUT one thing I just realized, tropical storm Claudette hit Alvin (se of Houston by 20/30 mins) with 43 inches of rain on July 25, two days before Alys was found. A record until Harvey. I don't know if it's at all relevant, but I'm throwing it out there.

 

[TD75]

There seems to be very little out there on any of this. I've been looking into the Doris Armstrong (aka Doris Threadgill) case, mentioned by the OP above. Her maiden name is Armstrong, and although she got married in 1975 and became Doris Threadgill, she appeared to be going by her maiden name again when she was murdered in 1979. I can find no record of the divorce. I'm sure the police would have spoken to her (presumably ex)-husband at the time, but you never know. Any further info anyone has on this would be appreciated.

 

[RookieInvestigator]

There seems to be very little out there on any of this. I've been looking into the Doris Armstrong (aka Doris Threadgill) case, mentioned by the OP above. Her maiden name is Armstrong, and although she got married in 1975 and became Doris Threadgill, she appeared to be going by her maiden name again when she was murdered in 1979. I can find no record of the divorce. I'm sure the police would have spoken to her (presumably ex)-husband at the time, but you never know. Any further info anyone has on this would be appreciated.

I just came across the article on Rankin, Calcutta & Threadgill today. I'm wondering are several of the decapitated victims cases in the US connected. I think some were committed by husbands or significant others.

If the person wasn't caught, are they still committing similar murders? There was a headless woman found floating in Brooklyn (Red Hook Channel) June 2017 and a women found headless in Baltimore Dec 2020.

I'm also wondering are the cases connected to St. Louis (MO) Jane Doe and other Jane Does.

 

[Nanaof5!]

There seems to be very little out there on any of this. I've been looking into the Doris Armstrong (aka Doris Threadgill) case, mentioned by the OP above. Her maiden name is Armstrong, and although she got married in 1975 and became Doris Threadgill, she appeared to be going by her maiden name again when she was murdered in 1979. I can find no record of the divorce. I'm sure the police would have spoken to her (presumably ex)-husband at the time, but you never know. Any further info anyone has on this would be appreciated.

 

[Nanaof5!]

Her husband was questioned. He was a musician and was out of town at the time of the incident.

 

[Snail-Overlord]

I really feel that the murders of Alys Elaine Rankin and Mary Calcutta are the work of a serial killer who is smart and good at covering up his tracks. He apparently kept Alys’s head as a memento, and the fact that it has never been found is disturbing. I suppose it’s also possible that he did it to hide potential DNA evidence, but it seems more likely he kept it as a trophy.

The fact that no DNA was found at the crime scenes is peculiar. It’s hard not to leave DNA behind during a sexual assault. And Mary fought fiercely until her death; wouldn’t a violent struggle like this normally leave DNA under the victim’s fingernails from attempting to fight off the attack? Makes me think that he was aware of this and had dressed appropriately so as to cover his skin.

The apartments he broke into were both occupied by young women who were alone at the time. I think this is too lucky to be a coincidence, and that he was staking out the area for a while for potential victims and tracking their movements.

I think he acted out some sick twisted fantasy when he murdered Alys, and that he left the crime scene the way it was (door open, trail of blood out into the parking lot) because he wanted her to be found like that. A pillow being placed over where her head would have been seems like it was intentionally done to shock whoever removed the pillow.

IMO he probably had the same plans for Mary, but was foiled by the fact that she was awake and alert. (It seems Alys may have been sleeping or otherwise off guard when she was attacked? Don’t know for certain though) I think he was frustrated that Mary ruined his vision of how he thought the murder would go, and that maybe he didn’t make off with her head because he no longer felt he had control of the situation. Or maybe he panicked and thought someone may have heard the struggle. Maybe it was because his knife was damaged.

All MOO. I hate that there is so little information available on these cases, and I’m glad to see that there’s a thread on them here.

 

[imstilla.grandma]

Some of Houston's grizzliest murders may be crimes you've never heard of. In 1979, a series of horrific killings terrified the city and left detectives baffled. Five young people were violently attacked - and in some cases, their bodies were left headless.

For more than 45 years, the families of those five victims have lived with the heartache of not knowing who killed their loved ones in such a gruesome way.

Texas True Crime: Decapitation Murders

TEXAS TRUE CRIME: In 1979, a series of horrific murders left Houston terrified. Five young people were violently attacked - and in some cases, the victims were left headless.

abc13.com

 

[imstilla.grandma]