National Park Double Murder Cold Case Solved, Authorities Link It to Killer with Near-Total Confidence
The long-unsolved mystery of the 1996 double murder of Laura Winans and Julianne Williams at Virginia’s Shenahdoah National Park has finally been resolved. Thanks to a new round of tests, the FBI identified Walter “Leo” Jackson Sr. as the perpetrator, nearly 30 years after the murders. The new team from the FBI’s Richmond field office reassessed the case, submitted old evidence for DNA testing, and matched it to Jackson, who passed away in 2018. Jackson, a convicted felon with a history of serious crimes, was often a visitor to the park, establishing a deeper connection to the case. Despite his death, the discovery provides closure to a haunting case that eluded law enforcement for decades.
National Park Double Murder Mystery Solved, Suspect Was Right Under Authorities’ Nose
By Jared Harris June 21, 2024 at 10:23am
For decades, investigators and sleuths were unable to crack the case of two women murdered while camping at a national park in 1996.
Now, things have taken a radical turn as the FBI says a new round of tests has identified the perpetrator and solved this grim cold case.
The bureau made the announcement on Thursday, nearly 30 years after the murders at Virginia’s Shenandoah National Park.
In May 1996, Laura Winans and Julianne Williams were killed at a campsite near the Skyland Resort. Their throats were slashed, according to The Associated Press.
Their bodies were not found until a week later, and then only after park rangers conducted a wide search.
Archival news footage from 1996 covers initial efforts to contact potential witnesses and alert hikers in the park.
Attempts to find the women’s killer were unsuccessful over the following decades.
In 2021, a new team out of the bureau’s Richmond field office took over the case.
Are you a supporter of the FBI?
“FBI special agents, intelligence analysts, and other FBI Richmond employees reassessed hundreds of leads and interviews,” the bureau said in its news release. “They spent countless hours to identify and prioritize evidence from the crime scene to retest and submitted the items to an accredited private lab.”
Successful DNA extraction on old evidence led investigators to a shocking find, the FBI said.
When put into a national index system, the DNA hit as a match for Walter “Leo” Jackson Sr., a convicted criminal, according to the release.
Stanley Meador, FBI special agent in charge of the Richmond Office, said the match came with a “one in 2.6 trillion” certainty, WTVR-TV in Richmond, Virginia, reported.
Jackson, a longtime criminal, served multiple years-long prison sentences since the 1980s and spent much of the time after the Shenandoah murders incarcerated and right under authorities’ noses.
The FBI detailed his criminal history which included kidnapping, rapes and assaults.
#FBI Richmond & our law enforcement partners have been working towards this important announcement for 28 years. We have identified the person who murdered Lollie Winans and Julie Williams in the Shenandoah National Park in 1996. https://t.co/XTPqsUve1l pic.twitter.com/MUN5h0PoGh
— FBI Richmond (@FBIRichmond) June 20, 2024
#Breaking: A suspect has been identified in the 1996 murders of Lollie Winans and Julie Williams in the Shenandoah National Park. Evidence from the crime scene matched Walter Leo Jackson, Sr., of Cleveland, Ohio. pic.twitter.com/7NM7sH5kp3
— FBI Richmond (@FBIRichmond) June 20, 2024
He was a hiker who was known to visit the park where the women were murdered, lending even more credibility to the FBI’s findings.
Unfortunately, Jackson died while incarcerated in March 2018 and will not be made to answer for these murders.
A Note from Our Deputy Managing Editor:
I heard a chilling comment the other day: “We don’t even know if an election will be held in 2024.”
That wasn’t said by a conspiracy theorist or a doomsday prophet. No, former U.S. national security advisor Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn said that to the founder of The Western Journal, Floyd Brown.
Gen. Flynn’s warning means that the 2024 election is the most important election for every single living American. If we lose this one to the wealthy elites who hate us, hate God, and hate what America stands for, we can only assume that 248 years of American history and the values we hold dear to our hearts may soon vanish.
The end game is here, and as Benjamin Franklin said, “We must all hang together, or assuredly we shall all hang separately.”
All of this means that without you, it’s over. We have the platform, the journalists, and the experience to fight back hard, but Big Tech is strangling us through advertising blacklists, shadow bans, and algorithms. Did you know that we’ve been blacklisted by 90% of advertisers? Without direct support from you, our readers, we can’t continue the fight.
Can we count on your support? It may not seem like much, but a Western Journal Membership can make all the difference in the world because when you support us directly, you cut Big Tech out of the picture. They lose control.
A monthly Western Journal Membership costs less than one coffee and breakfast sandwich each month, and it gets you access to ALL of our content — news, commentary, and premium articles. You’ll experience a radically reduced number of ads, and most importantly you will be vitally supporting the fight for America’s soul in 2024.
We are literally counting on you because without our members, The Western Journal would cease to exist. Will you join us in the fight?
Sincerely,
Josh Manning
Deputy Managing Editor
The Western Journal
" Conservative News Daily does not always share or support the views and opinions expressed here; they are just those of the writer."
*As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases
Physician's Choice Probiotics 60 Billion CFU - 10 Strains + Organic Prebiotics - Immune, Digestive & Gut Health - Supports Occasional Constipation, Diarrhea, Gas & Bloating - for Women & Men - 30ct
Vital Proteins Collagen Peptides Powder, Promotes Hair, Nail, Skin, Bone and Joint Health, Zero Sugar, Unflavored 19.3 OZ