The Murder of Alexis Crawford

Alexis Crawford (pictured left) was tragically murdered at the age of 21 on October 30th, 2019. 

Prior to her death, Alexis was a student at Clark Atlanta University located in Atlanta, Georgia. She lived with a roommate named Jordyn Jones (pictured bottom right), and the two girls were frequently visited by Jordyn's boyfriend, Barron Brantley (pictured top right). In fact, just days before Alexis' murder, she was drinking with Jordyn and Barron at the home. At some point that night, Barron reportedly sexually assaulted Alexis.

Alexis reported the assault to authorities the following day, on October 27th, 2019. The report states that Barron touched and kissed Alexis without her consent. Barron claimed that he had mistaken Alexis for Jordyn. 

Reports state that later that night, Alexis walked into the bathroom and Barron followed her. She was reportedly later found partially naked on the bathroom floor. The report further states that Alexis said she did not remember Barron being in the bathroom with her, but she believed that she blacked out around that time. Barron has denied sexually assaulting Alexis.

Alexis' family members last heard from her on the evening of October 30th. When her family members were unable to get ahold of Alexis the following day, they reported her missing. Police inevitably questioned both Barron and Jordyn regarding Alexis' disappearance. Jordyn reportedly told investigators that she and Alexis were "not on speaking terms" due to an incident that she claimed was unrelated to the sexual assault. 

Despite this, though, Jordyn also told police that she drove Alexis to a local liquor store on the night of October 30th, allegedly per Alexis' request. Jordyn then stated that she saw Alexis at their apartment one last time around 12:30 AM, but when she woke up the next morning, Alexis was gone. 

Over the following week, police continued to investigate Alexis' disappearance. Their investigation kept leading them back to Barron and Jordyn. As police continued to question the two, Jordyn eventually told police where they could find Alexis. In fact, Jordyn led investigators to Alexis' body shortly thereafter at Exchange Park in Decatur. 

An autopsy later revealed that Alexis died of asphyxiation. On November 8th, 2019, Barron was arrested and charged with her murder. The next day, Jordyn was arrested and charged with murder as well. 

After their arrests, it was revealed that Barron Brantley reportedly confessed to authorities about killing Alexis. This occurred after Alexis and Jordyn got into a physical altercation at their home on the night of the murder. At some point, Barron intervened and choked Alexis to death. Afterwards, Barron and Jordyn put Alexis’ body in a plastic bin and then disposed of it in the woods at Exchange Park in Decatur. 

It was also noted that Alexis and Jordyn were best friends prior to the murder. In fact, Alexis’ family members stated that Jordyn often spent holidays with their family and was welcomed into their home. 

A spokesperson for the Crawford family explained to reporters, “It was a regular occurrence for Jordyn to spend time with Alexis’ family and to engage with Alexis’ siblings. To know that someone that they welcomed into home played a role in Alexis’ death is all the more hurtful.”

Both Barron and Jordyn remain behind bars as their cases are pending.

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Sources:
Atlanta News First
CNN
Time

The Murder of Amanda Clairmont

Amanda Clairmont (21) posted the above image to her brand new Instagram account on November 10th, 2017. At the time, Amanda was a senior at the University of North Texas and an aspiring makeup artist. She created this Instagram account in hopes of showcasing some of her work in both makeup and photography. Amanda captioned the above photograph with, “Hello Beautiful people!! I️ am a makeup artist in the DFW area just wanting to share my work with the world. Follow my account to see my art and contact me if you need a top notch makeup artist.” By all accounts, she appeared enthusiastic about her future and was taking all the right steps in order to get her work out there. Unfortunately, Amanda never got the chance to fully advance her career. Nine days after she posted this image, on November 19th, 2017, Amanda was brutally murdered in a vacant parking lot in Corinth, Texas.

Amanda’s murder is the first murder in the town of Corinth in 17 years. The rural community was shocked by her death and very few details have been released about the investigation. Amanda’s half-brother Mike Gawlik stated that on the night of her death, Amanda was drinking at a place not far from where her body was later found. However, Mike said that Amanda was not a big drinker or a drug user, and he has no idea how she ended up dead in that parking lot. This was unusual for the two siblings, who were very close and told each other everything. Mike told reporters, “Everything she did, she’s always, always talked to me about it.”

Still, Mike cannot explain what happened to Amanda after midnight on November 19th. Around 1am, a witness near the parking lot called the police to report hearing multiple gunshots in the area. Police who responded went to the parking lot and found Amanda’s car parked up against a fence with the lights on and the passenger door opened. Inside the car, police found Amanda’s body. She had been shot multiple times.

Another unnamed witness apparently told investigators that another person was present at the scene when Amanda was shot, but that person fled before the police arrived. Investigators have not revealed whether or not this has been confirmed, nor have they made any comments on the motive behind the killing. At this time, it is unclear if they have a suspect in the case, which remains open. Anyone with information is asked to call Corinth police at 940-498-2017.

The Disappearance and Death of Devin Bond

17 year-old Devin Bond went missing on March 31st, 2017. He was last seen by his family the night before his disappearance, at their home in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. Devin was on spring break at the time, so he did not have to be at school the following morning and his parents did not think he had anything else planned. Some time during that night, while his mother was sleeping and his father was working a night shift, Devin stuffed pillows in his bed to make it look like he was asleep and snuck out of the house. He never returned home after that. Prior to this, Devin had reportedly told friends that he wanted to live “like a homeless person,” but none of said friends knew of any solidified plans that Devin had to run away.

According to his parents, Devin was leading a fairly “normal” home life and was getting good grades in school. While pondering reasons why Devin may have left his home that night, investigators learned that he had recently broken up with a girlfriend because the girl’s father did not approve of their relationship. It was theorized that Devin might’ve snuck out that night to meet up with said girlfriend and got into some sort of danger while en route, but the girlfriend was out of town at the time and that theory was quickly ruled out.

There was a possible sighting of Devin walking towards Veteran’s Parkway around 4:30am on the morning of his disappearance. This sighting is likely to be credible, because his phone pinged off a tower near that location around the same time. Devin’s phone has not pinged again after that. Volunteers searched for several days around this area, but ultimately no trace of him was found. Searches aided by drones and helicopters also did not provide any clues about Devin’s whereabouts.

In the weeks following his disappearance, Devin’s Google account was accessed numerous times. It is unknown if Devin himself was accessing it. His phone did not ping off of any towers, but it is possible that the account was accessed by computer or with the phone on airplane mode. However, all account activity stopped on April 15th, 2017. Investigators believed that it was possible that Devin was  still be in the local area, but concerns about his well-being grew significantly as two years passed without any sign of him.

On November 13th, 2019, it was reported that there was a new search for Devin at Barfield-Crescent Park. Hours after the search was reported, it was announced that human remains had been found. Devin's family has reportedly confirmed the remains are, in fact, that of Devin Bond. The investigation is still unfolding and updates will be provided as they come.

Rest in peace, Devin.

The Disappearance of Peggy McGuire

28 year-old Peggy McGuire disappeared on November 16th, 2015. That morning, she dropped her young son off at school in Eufaula, Oklahoma and then was never seen or heard from again. The next morning, in the midst of a violent storm, surveillance footage captured Peggy’s car being driven into the parking lot of T&J’s Ice House, a rural bar located 10 miles away from her home. An unidentified man was captured getting out of the driver’s seat of her car and walking away.

The car was later found abandoned. Peggy’s family members were certain that Peggy hadn’t driven there herself, even before the surveillance footage was discovered. According to Peggy’s mother, Peggy did not drink and had no reason to go to the bar. Additionally, when police searched the home that Peggy shared with her son’s father Thomas Ryan McIntosh, they found blood on the couch on their back porch. They also found bloodstains on a leather glove found in McIntosh’s truck. Despite this, McIntosh was not arrested nor was he named as a suspect in Peggy’s disappearance. Investigators apparently submitted the blood samples for forensic testing, but the results of those tests have yet to be revealed.

Two months after Peggy vanished, her mother sued for visitation rights for her grandson. McIntosh filed for paternity rights and said that he did not want Peggy’s mother to see the child. The documents filed by Peggy’s mother state that she had not seen her grandson since Peggy’s disappearance, and she feared for his safety. Additionally, the documents state that Peggy’s mother believes that her daughter is deceased. Peggy’s son was eventually removed from McIntosh’s custody and put into foster care.

Peggy remains missing today. There is currently a $150,000 reward in place for any information about her whereabouts. If you have any information that could help the investigation, please call the OSBI hotline at 1-800-522-8017.

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[List Series: Unsolved Mysteries with Surveillance Footage Vol. II]

The Disappearance of Elizabeth Hernandez

Elizabeth Hernandez (29) was four months pregnant when she vanished on November 15th, 2017. She was last seen in her hometown of Albuquerque, New Mexico, where she lived with her boyfriend Miguel Martinez. On the day she was last seen, Miguel reportedly dropped Elizabeth off at the Department of Human Services Office in Albuquerque. However, Elizabeth never signed in at the office and she never returned home afterwards. She has never been seen or heard from again.

Elizabeth left behind two children, which is uncharacteristic of her. Her family members do not believe she is missing on her own accord. In fact, Elizabeth’s sister specifically stated that she believes Miguel has more information about Elizabeth’s disappearance than he has disclosed. Miguel was the father of Elizabeth’s unborn child, and according to Elizabeth’s sister, Miguel did not want the baby. Miguel was also the last person to see Elizabeth before she vanished. Despite all of this, Miguel has not been named as a suspect in the case.

Foul play is suspected to be involved in Elizabeth’s disappearance. The Albuquerque Police Department is investigating. If you have any information that could help the investigation, please contact 505-924-6095.

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Sources:
Charley Project
Disappeared Blog

The Fort Wayne Triple Shooting

Picture left to right: Danielle Carter (29), Nicole Saylor (36) and Kayla Harris (24)

Danielle, Nicole, and Kayla all worked as bartenders at the same bar in Fort Wayne, Indiana. However, they were far more than just co-workers: Danielle and Kayla were cousins, and Nicole was one of their best friends. In the early morning hours of November 9th, 2017, the three women returned to Kayla’s house after a night’s work. As they approached the front of Kayla’s house, the three women were ambushed by an unidentified man in a black hoodie and shot multiple times. Multiple neighbors witnessed the event, including a witness who saw the man fleeing from the scene before police arrived.

When paramedics arrived, Nicole was pronounced dead at the scene. Danielle and Kayla were taken to the hospital, where Kayla later died. Danielle, the lone survivor, was shot ten times: twice in the right ankle, once in the left knee, twice in the left arm, four times in the chest, which miraculously didn’t touch any of her organs, and once in the back.

The shooter remains unknown at this time, but many believe that the women were targeted. In a statement released to the public, the police announced that they had determined that the shootings were not random. Danielle, who did not see the shooter’s face, does not know who would have targeted them or why. However, she fears that whomever it was may come back to “finish” her as well. Police have not released any information about a potential suspect in the case.

Danielle is still recovering from this tragic event, physically and mentally. Since the incident, she has suffered from PTSD and panic attacks. She does not have health insurance, but still requires costly medical care for her injuries. On top of all of this, Danielle is raising five children, but is unable to work as often while she recovers physically from the shooting. Danielle’s grandmother has set up a GoFundMe account to help Danielle with her medical and living expenses. If you would like to donate, go here.

Meanwhile, the search for the shooter continues. The case is still open and being investigated and police are searching for leads. If you have any information about the identify of the gunman, please call the Fort Wayne Police Department at (260) 427-1230.

The Murder of Breana Rouhselang

17-year-old Breana Rouhselang was murdered by 16-year-old Aaron Trejo on December 9th, 2018. The two teens lived in Mishawaka, Indiana–where Aaron played football at the local high school, and Breana competed as a cheerleader. Breana and Aaron first met when they were in elementary school, but they reportedly only began to have a romantic relationship during 2018. 

At some point during their relationship, Breana learned that she was pregnant. She reportedly waited until she was about 20 weeks along to tell Aaron that he had fathered her child. By then, it was too late to get an abortion. This infuriated Aaron, and he spent a week formulating a plan to solve what he perceived as a problem. 

On the evening of December 8th, Aaron asked Breana to meet up and discuss the pregnancy. Around 11:00 PM, they met up in an alley behind Breana's family’s home. Unbeknownst to Breana, Aaron had a knife and a garbage bag in his possession when they met. 

Aaron then allegedly confronted Breana over the fact that she told him about her pregnancy after it was too late to get an abortion. According to Aaron, an argument ensued, and he ended up strangling Breana with her scarf before stabbing her to death. He then placed the garbage bag over her head and then placed her body in a restaurant dumpster located a block away.

After Breana’s body was found, her family members told police that she had left their home around 11:00 PM to talk to Aaron. When police located and questioned Aaron, he initially denied meeting up with Breana that night. However, after being confronted with physical evidence, he admitted that Breana was pregnant with his child, and he was upset about it being too late for an abortion. When the detectives asked what he did about it, Aaron replied “I took action… I took her life.”

Aaron was arrested and charged as an adult with murder and feticide in connection with the death of both Breana and her unborn fetus. Despite admitting to the crime, he entered a preliminary plea of not guilty. However, in October 2019, Aaron ultimately decided to plead guilty to both the murder and feticide charges. In exchange for this guilty plea, the State has agreed to not file any additional charges against him. 

In January 2020, Aaron was sentenced to 65 years in prison. The judge sentenced him to 55 years for the murder of Breana, plus an additional ten years for the murder of their unborn child. 

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Sources:
ABC News
IndyStar
WNDU