Read more true crime, cold cases and unsolved mysteries from meHERE<<. Between 9 p.m. January 15, 1984 and 10 a.m. January 16, 1984, twenty-seven year old Bruce Bennett, his twenty-six year old wife, Debra and their seven year old daughter Melissa, were brutally murdered inside their home located in the 16300 Block of East Center Drive. CENTENNIAL, Colo. (CBS4) - A judge sentenced Alex Ewing to three life sentences on Tuesday after he was found guilty in the 1984 murders of three people in Aurora. The world turned a painful red and Donna began to lose consciousness. Police later linked the murder of the Bennett family with another rape and murder that happened just less than a week before. One lab felt that the letters were RICHAR. Another lab felt that it said PETAW C, with a space or fold between the W and the C and perhaps another fold in there as well. There was no way, given the samples that we have, to determine whether the voices match or not. The police found footprints in the snow that led up to and away from other homes in the same area and on the same street, leading them to believe that the offender was simply looking for an easy opportunity to lash out. The rapes were opportunities and only that. Killing on this level requires some level of planning on the part of the perpetrator. Your email address will not be published. She had no idea how she got there and she didnt feel any pain. Order your tickets today to see Small Town Murder in Atlanta, GA. His attacker slit his throat before eventually delivering a final fatal blow with a hammer. She suffered severe injuries to her head, jaw, and neck. Nevada inmate accused of Colorado murders says he'll fight extradition. This was the last time the Bennetts were seen alive. These crimes, which took place in January 1984, were part of a series of assaults that tore through the Denver area and have remained unsolved for thirty-four years. About six weeks later, hunters came upon their bodies in a remote location in the woods near a logging road. Camper explained that the CBI does a nightly check of all of their profiles against the CODIS system, and at that point, in early July, there was a match. Bennett Family Then, just as the community was reeling from this attack, 50-year-old Patricia Smith became a murder victim at her Lakewood, Colorado, home on January 10, 1984. Jason Bennett, who is understood to be the father of two of the. He knew he was going to kill the family, Father, Mother and Children, so he clearly wasnt afraid to go after a man and thought he would be able to easily kill a man. It, and the floor around it, was soaked in blood. In Aug 2018, Alexander Christopher Ewing was accused and charged in both cases. As one of the investigations were doing for the book,we hired an audio expert to do some work on the three recordings attributed to EAR: The dumb fuckers call, the Is Ray there? call, and the Gonna Kill You call. Victim #7received a phone call, and she recognized the voice on the other end as the voice of the rapist. Patricia had come home from work for lunch, stopping at Wendys on the way. We wanted to know if there was any way that we could determine whether the voices matched or not. "This case impacted not just the victims, but it also terrorized an entire community," Kellner said in a statement. The hammer stuck her in the jaw, shattering the bone which splintered in an explosion of small fragments that punctured her windpipe. Dont profile by. James, who posts online from time to time, discusses how vividly the case still haunts him even to this day. Bruce and Debra Bennett lived with their daughter Melissa and younger daughter, Vanessa. Their disappearance was widely reported by the national news media. All rights reserved. ~Then on Jan. 10, 1984, someone used a hammer to strike 50-year-old Patricia Louise Smith several times in the head in her Lakewood home thus killing her sometime between 3pm and 5pm. According to property records, the couple stayed in the same house after the attack. Her clothes were tossed everywhere. Debra Marie Bennett, twenty-six years old, had married Bruce before his Navy deployment in 1976. He then found the couples oldest daughter, 7 year old Melissa, who tragically suffered the same terrible fate as her mother. A man accused of murdering a mother and three children has also been charged with raping one of the victims, who was 11. She screamed because he would have had to go through an open gate into their yard. Begins: Fri, 03/03/23 10:00 AM EST. All rights reserved. ARAPAHOE COUNTY, Colo. (CBS4) - It was 1984 when Connie Bennett found her family murdered in their Aurora home. A hammer. Before he was sentenced, Ewing declined the chance to speak to the victim's family members, who were present in the courtroom including Vanessa Bennett, who is now 41. They are asking tipsters who know anything about the Aurora case to call 303-739-6400 and the Lakewood case to call 303-763-6800. James Haubenschild suffered a fractured skull, and his wife had a concussion. There was no sign of forced entry. He finds his release from the level of pain he inflicts on the victim, the level of violence he is able to achieve. George Brauchler, District Attorney for the 18th Judicial District (which includes Aurora), emphasized that this individual is presumed innocent until proven otherwise in a court of law. At the conclusion of his comments, he introduced his former boss, Peter Weir. This call occurred over a month after her attack. He was currently working at a family-owned furniture store, but was taking classes at the local college and would soon be working as an air traffic controller. They pledged to continue to support the families via their victim services organizations. "I didn't just lose my parents and my sister," Vanessa opened up. He was brought to Colorado to face trial for the deaths of the Bennett family. Taking a good long hard look at the evidence again and compare it to someone who was in and/or around that artery in Denver at the time would help to narrow the suspect list or in this case open it up. The Bennett family murders is a case that goes back more than three decades. Youve done this with other cases to. By far, easier prey lay in wait just north which would be Colfax Ave and at the time might not have hit the news like the murder of the Bennett family did had the crime occurred in a neighborhood more near Colfax. There were very few leads to go on only a hazy physical description from Kim. The killer was never brought to justice. Bruce worked at the family-owned furniture store and was also taking classes to become an air traffic controller. Her head was constantly swimming with thoughts of her parents. I also believe this is the killers first stint at killing humans he most likely as with most serial killers did in fact kill animals earlier in life. The four of them lived together in a townhome off of West Bayaud Avenue. The police swarmed through the residence, quickly assessing the condition of each family member as they cordoned off certain areas of the home to gather evidence. Blood was all over the garage floor. The case lacked any apparent motive. He went on to continually beat the mans wife as she attempted to shield her husband from the blows of an ax handle while simultaneously on the phone to 911. Flatbed Trucking Company Bennett Motor Express is the premier open deck general freight carrier in the US. These crimes in Colorado are this killers first stages at killing a human. Later autopsies revealed that the Bennetts had died due to blunt force trauma and that their attacker had likely used a hammer. Damien Bendall, 31, is now alleged to have raped and murdered Lacey Bennett . Thought to be the work of a serial killer, the crimes have remained unsolved for thirty years. One of the most terrifying aspects of the case is the sketch of his mask, made with the assistance of survivors who caught a glimpse of him. Evidence of wounds caused by a blade revealed that Bruce attempted to defend himself as the intruder swiped and slashed at him with a knife. This article in the Denver post describes how after he murdered the Bennetts he went on to enter the house of a man in Kingman, Arizona and attempted to bludgeon the man to death with a 20lb rock. Bruce finally succumbed to his injuries and the family was left vulnerable. Both men were fiercely dedicated to seeing this case solved, and Conner started an effort to use every technology available to him to identify the offender. JonBenet was 6 years old when she was reported missing on Dec. 26, 1996, after her family reported finding a ransom note inside their home in the 700 block of 15th Street. The cause of death was blunt force trauma to the head- and the murder weapon? October 21st, 1982 Victims: Richard Keith Call (20) and Cassandra Lee Hailey (18) Bruce Bennett tried to climb the staircase several times in an attempt to ward off the perpetrator and save his young family. Fourth Crime Scene Before exiting the vehicle, she turned to grab her flight attendant uniform, which was hanging in the back. Ewing, 57, has also been charged with murder for the slaying of a Lakewood grandmother a few weeks prior to the Bennett killings, a crime police linked to the Bennett murders in 2010 through DNA. He reminded the public that John Doe warrants had been filed based on the DNA profile of the killer back in 2002, and mentioned that the John Doe charges have been updated to Alex Christopher Ewings name. A hammer was used to kill Patricia Louise Smith, 50, in Lakewood Jan. 10, 1984. He then found the couples oldest daughter, 7 year old Melissa, who tragically suffered the same terrible fate as her mother. Dont profile by LOOKING AT the behavior in an attempt to findclues to his or her psychology in an effort toaid in capturing a criminal. The jury found Ewing guilty on. The rapes are secondary crimes. In that homicide, DNA evidence was found matching Ewing. Bruce had mentioned wanting to run to the store before bed. The cases are commonly known as the 1984 Colorado Hammer Murders. They didnt feel that he forced his way into the home as she entered it herself due to the television, wig, and Wendys receipt being located upstairs. Nothing else appeared to be missing. For the first time, Stetson Bennett is publicly addressing his January arrest for public intoxication in Texas. He also inquired about searching various genealogical databases for a hit, but was advised at the time not to pursue that angle due to privacy issues. It seems that Debra was the next victim, and she may have even been approached and incapacitated in the middle of Bruces struggle with the killer. Other attacks had occurred off of this main road, and its believed that the killer couldve entered the area from that point. Long Prairie, Minn. Long Prairie is a town of about 3,000 people in central Minnesota's Todd County. Detective Steve Conner has investigated this case for many years, taking over from an investigator named Marv Brandt. She was also left with a shattered pelvis and fell into a coma. Juliana Kenney, 75, her husband Clayton Kenney, 83, and Mrs. Kenney's 44- year-old daughter, Adrienne Arnot, were beaten and stabbed to . "The Crown prosecutor who is prosecuting my case in September seems like a dog with a . . Your email address will not be published. The Murder of Jaye Potter Mintz Feb 23, 1987 Leland N.C. A Catastrophic Cyber Event in the Next 2-Years. Miraculously, both of them survived the assault, though James suffered from a fractured skull and his wife suffered a concussion. They both survived. Special recognition was given to Detective Steve Conner from the Major Crimes Unit who, incidentally was at the scene of the Bennett crime as a young deputy, and who has worked the case for many, many years. This mans only motive was to inflict as much pain as possible and kill his victims. There wasnt anything notable stolen from the scene, and the attack had all the hallmarks of a random crime. It begins with a woman killed with a hammer in Lakewood and, a week later, a family killed the same way in Aurora. Prosecutors alleged Ewing raped Melissa Bennett before killing her. One of the interesting parts of the East Area Rapists MO was that he seemingly made many, many hang-up phone calls to victims, usually in the weeks before an attack, but sometimes afterward as well. The fact that the murders took place between Highline Canal and the Alameda Corridor is curious, in fact, I am drawn to this fact about the case more so than any other fact. Both district attorneys addressed the possibility of capital punishment being on the table, discussing that 1984 laws do seem to allow the possibility, and that its the hardest decision that a DA has to make and it wont be one thats made lightly.