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The harsh truth is that some crimes will forever evade resolution. Despite the relentless efforts of law enforcement, justice isn’t always achieved, and many victims' families never find closure. In some cases, a crime may go unnoticed until it's too late to take any action.
History is packed with cases that would leave even Sherlock Holmes stumped. This isn't always due to the cunning of criminal masterminds, but because there were virtually no clues to investigate. Currently, these ten murders remain unsolved, and as time goes by, their resolution becomes increasingly unlikely.
10. The Skeleton Found In The Cellar
The Lost Towns Project is an ongoing archaeological endeavor aimed at uncovering and exploring forgotten settlements from colonial Maryland. In 2003, researchers investigating a site named Leavy Neck in Anne Arundel County stumbled upon a skull inside a 17th-century cellar that had been used as a trash pit.
As the excavation continued, the team discovered the rest of the skeleton buried in a shallow pit, with enough force to displace a kneecap and cause the toes to curl. It became increasingly apparent that the body was likely the victim of foul play.
Eventually, archaeologists were certain they had come across a colonial cold case, and they called in forensic anthropologist Dr. Doug Owsley for assistance. He determined the remains belonged to a 16-year-old male of European descent. Various signs indicated that he had been in poor health, including compressed vertebrae caused by years of strenuous labor.
Forensic experts concluded that the teenager was most likely an indentured servant. His right wrist bore perimortem fractures, indicating that he might have tried to protect himself from a heavy blow. This, along with the rapid burial, pointed to murder.
Based on the items found near the body, archaeologists believe the boy was likely killed between 1665 and 1675, a time when laws were introduced to protect indentured servants from abuse. They speculate that the teenager was murdered by his master, who then disposed of the body in the trash pit to cover up the crime. The identities of both the killer and the victim remain unknown at this time.
9. The Misidentified Archaeologist
In 1911, Michigan scholar Herbert Fletcher DeCou joined a team of US archaeologists to excavate the ancient Greek city of Cyrene, located in modern-day Libya. On the morning of March 11, the camp was shaken by the sounds of gunshots and screams. Expedition leader Richard Norton was informed that DeCou had been shot while on his way to the dig site on the Acropolis. Witnesses reported that three Arabs hid behind a wall, waited for DeCou to pass by, and then shot him twice before escaping on horseback.
It was widely believed that the assassins had not specifically targeted DeCou but were aiming to kill a prominent American, mistakenly identifying DeCou as the expedition's director. This occurred just before the start of the Italo-Turkish War, a time when Libya was on the verge of becoming an Italian colony, and resentment against Western powers was rampant in certain circles.
Richard Norton’s account supported this theory. He also unofficially endorsed rumors circulating in the region at the time. One such rumor suggested that the Arab assassins had been acting under Italian influence. The Italians, however, vehemently denied this claim, instead spreading a story that the Michigan archaeologist had been targeted by a Bedouin man over an affair with his wife.
For a while, the assassination threatened to become a major international incident. However, no official diplomatic documents have ever been released, and no one was ever held accountable for DeCou’s death.
8. The Murder of the Unmarried Woman
The case of Oscar Slater is one of the most notorious examples of a miscarriage of justice. A Jewish immigrant from Germany with a criminal history, Slater was convicted for the 1908 murder of wealthy 83-year-old spinster Marion Gilchrist in Glasgow. His death sentence was commuted to life imprisonment, and Slater spent 19 years behind bars before being released.
The trial and subsequent imprisonment attracted considerable attention, most notably from Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. In 1912, he published “The Case of Oscar Slater,” a paper presenting evidence of Slater’s innocence and calling for a full pardon.
Amid the controversy and the additional scrutiny surrounding Slater’s arrest and later acquittal, many forget that Marion Gilchrist’s murder remains unsolved. The only significant leads were provided by Detective John Thompson Trench, who worked on the case. In 1914, he revealed in a secret inquiry that key evidence had been withheld during the trial, likely due to the influence of Marion’s powerful family members. Trench was dismissed, discredited, and died in 1919 without seeing justice for Gilchrist.
Some theorists believe the most likely culprit was a family member of Marion Gilchrist, such as her nephew. The rest of the family might have covered up the crime to protect themselves from public shame.
7. The Mystery of Sandyford
One of the most shocking crimes in Glasgow’s history occurred in 1862 at 17 Sandyford Place. When the owners were away on vacation, one of their servants, Jessie McPherson, was discovered half-naked and lying in a pool of her own blood. Suspicion quickly fell on former servant Jessie McLachlan, who was ultimately charged with the murder. After just 15 minutes of deliberation, a jury found her guilty, and the judge sentenced her to death by hanging.
Following public outcry, a court commission reviewed the evidence presented during the trial. While they were unable to prove McLachlan’s innocence, they decided to commute her death sentence to life imprisonment. After serving 15 years, she was released on a ticket-of-leave and emigrated to the United States, where she lived out the rest of her days.
Despite the court’s swift conviction of Jessie McLachlan, public opinion largely sided with her. Many books and articles on the case depicted her as a scapegoat. Some simply couldn’t believe that a woman with no prior criminal record could commit such a brutal act against her supposed friend.
McLachlan, for her part, consistently accused James Fleming, the elderly father of McPherson’s employer. A working-class drunk with “rude and unpolished manners,” McLachlan claimed Fleming sexually assaulted the servant and then murdered her to cover his tracks. She also confessed to accepting a bribe from Fleming to remain silent. Despite public outrage, no one besides McLachlan was ever charged with the murder of Jessie McPherson.
6. The Pitchfork Murder
Valentine’s Day 1945 in Quinton, Warwickshire, England, was the scene of a particularly brutal murder: 74-year-old Charles Walton was found by his niece, Edie, and a neighbor after he failed to return home from work. His body was severely bruised, with several broken ribs. His throat had been slit with his own slash hook, and a pitchfork was thrust into the side of his neck, pinning him to the ground.
The case was handled by Chief Inspector and future crime author Robert Fabian. In his book, Fabian of the Yard, he confessed to always suspecting a man named Alfred Potter as the murderer. Potter, the manager of the farm where Walton worked, gave contradictory statements to the police about his whereabouts and interactions with the victim. However, Fabian was never able to find sufficient evidence to charge Potter or even establish a clear motive.
The reason the murder became notorious, besides the extreme brutality of the crime, was its supposed link to witchcraft. Rumors spread that Walton had a cross carved into his chest. This fueled speculation that he was killed as a blood sacrifice by a group of witches, or that Walton himself was a witch, murdered by someone he had cursed.
5. The Day Brisbane Lost Its Innocence
In 1952, the brutal murder of 22-year-old Betty Shanks stunned Australia. Her severely beaten body was discovered in a garden in a Brisbane suburb on the morning of September 20. This crime initiated the largest criminal investigation in Queensland’s history, but despite numerous efforts, the case went unsolved. To this day, it stands as Brisbane’s oldest unsolved murder.
The investigation had only one promising lead: a taxi driver reported seeing a man jump a fence towards the crime scene at 10:30 PM and return three hours later. Police questioned dozens of suspects and even received a few confessions, but all turned out to be false.
In 2014, the case reignited controversy when two authors released books suggesting different suspects. One of them was Ted Duhs, an academic from Brisbane, and the other was Ken Blanch, a former journalist who had reported on the case in 1952.
Duhs argued that the murderer was a locksmith named Eric Steery, who attacked Betty Shanks after she rejected his advances. These details came from Steery’s own daughter, Delcia, who claimed she tried to contact the police multiple times before eventually reaching out to Duhs, but her efforts were ignored.
Blanch, on the other hand, refrained from naming his suspect directly. The individual in question was a former army driver, allegedly involved in an attempted abduction of another girl before Betty. Blanch has since urged the police to conduct a DNA test, although he lost track of the suspect in 2007.
4. The Death Of A War Hero
The 150-year-old mystery surrounding the murder of US Civil War hero George “Colvos” Colvocoresses continues to baffle both historians and amateur detectives. Colvocoresses, a Greek-American, gained fame as captain of the USS Saratoga during the war. After retiring in 1867, he was tragically shot and killed on Clinton Street in Bridgeport, Connecticut, just five years later.
Colvocoresses was on his way to New York, carrying $8,000 in cash inside a leather satchel and a bamboo sword cane. He was shot once in the left side of the chest, with the proximity of the shot causing his shirt to catch fire from the gunpowder. A pistol, powder horn, percussion caps, and bullets were found a short distance from his body, and the empty satchel was discovered the following day, a few hundred yards away.
The captain’s sword cane appeared to have been damaged in a struggle. With the missing money, the most likely explanation was a robbery gone wrong. However, some witnesses mentioned that Colvocoresses had been acting oddly before his death, leading to the theory that he may have been specifically targeted. Unfortunately, a solid case was never formed due to the police mishandling of evidence, with some believing it was due to incompetence and others suspecting an intentional cover-up.
Over the years, several people confessed to Colvocoresses’ murder, including a Danish soldier who, on his deathbed, admitted to killing the captain during a robbery gone wrong. However, one of the most enduring theories is that the war hero took his own life. This idea was strongly supported by insurance companies, who were keen to avoid paying out the multiple policies Colvocoresses had taken out, totaling nearly $200,000.
3. The Death Of A Nobleman
For nearly 700 years, the death of Italian nobleman Cangrande della Scalla was thought to be accidental. However, a modern autopsy conducted in 2004 confirmed the long-suspected truth that he had been poisoned. Naturally, this raised the pressing question: Who was responsible for his death?
Cangrande, a member of the ruling family of Verona, initially gained military experience during the Guelph-Ghibelline Wars. By 1311, he became the sole ruler of Verona, conquering several neighboring city-states. In 1329, after a series of successful campaigns, he finally took control of Treviso. Shortly after his grand entrance into the city, Cangrande became ill, went to bed, and died just a few days later.
Contemporary reports suggest that Cangrande fell ill after drinking from a contaminated spring. However, modern historians have pointed out that his symptoms may also have been indicative of poisoning. In 2004, when his body was exhumed, it was found to have naturally mummified, preserving several of his organs for examination. A complete autopsy was performed, but it was palynology that provided the breakthrough clue. By analyzing samples taken from his colon and feces, scientists discovered spores from the toxic plant Digitalis purpurea, commonly known as the foxglove.
These findings were further substantiated by toxicological analysis of feces, liver, and hair samples, which revealed harmful levels of digitoxin and digoxin. While it’s almost certain that Cangrande was murdered, the identity of the killer remains elusive. The most likely suspect in the eyes of historians is Cangrande’s nephew, Mastino II, who succeeded him after his death.
2. The Shooting At Portencross
On October 13, 1913, Mary Speir Gunn was sitting by the fire with her sister Jessie and her husband Alexander McLaren in their cottage near Portencross, Scotland. Suddenly, gunshots rang out, and bullets shattered through the window. All three were struck, but Alexander and Jessie survived their injuries. Tragically, Mary was killed instantly by a shot to the heart.
At first, authorities speculated that Alexander McLaren had been the intended target. The first shots passed through his chair, narrowly missing him. Recently retired from farming and having sold his livestock at auction, Alexander was thought to have a substantial sum of money. While robbery seemed a plausible motive, the shooter made no attempt to enter the cottage, suggesting he may have realized his failure to kill Alexander and, having exhausted his bullets, chose not to engage further.
Investigators later considered the possibility that the shooter was a spurned lover seeking revenge on Mary. Known for her beauty, she was affectionately dubbed 'the Beauty of Beith.' The police even extended their search to Canada, where Mary had once lived with another sister, but no promising leads emerged.
What was clear, however, was that the killer was likely an outsider. Several locals reported that an unknown man had approached them that day, asking for directions to Portencross. Over a century later, the identity of the mysterious assailant remains unidentified.
1. The Ruislip Murder Mile
On the night of September 14, 1954, 21-year-old Jean Mary Townsend was making her way back to her home in the London suburb of Ruislip after attending a party in the West End. She was last seen leaving South Ruislip Station around midnight, and her lifeless body was discovered the following day, strangled with her own scarf. While there were no indications of sexual assault, her shoes and stockings were missing, later found nearby alongside her handbag.
The investigation initially gathered some promising leads. A man employed at the US embassy came forward, reporting that he had chased off a 'Peeping Tom' a few days before the murder. A nearby resident claimed to have heard a woman’s scream that night, followed by two men arguing, one of whom had an American accent. This led police to suspect that the killer might have been an American serviceman, likely stationed at the nearby South Ruislip Air Station. They also considered the possibility that this could have been the perpetrator’s first killing. Earlier in the month, a prostitute named Ellen Carlin had been strangled in Pimlico shortly after being seen with a US Air Force sergeant, but this murder was later attributed to the Scottish serial killer Peter Manuel.
Despite the promising start, the investigation into Jean Townsend's murder went cold, and a viable suspect was never identified. 16 years later, another woman named Gloria Booth was found murdered in the same manner in the same area, now known as the 'Ruislip Murder Mile.' Though police considered the possibility that both crimes were committed by the same person, no evidence surfaced to confirm this theory. Gloria’s sister later became convinced that Gloria had been a victim of the Yorkshire Ripper.
