It is possible to convict someone of
murder
Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification (jurisprudence), justification or valid excuse (legal), excuse committed with the necessary Intention (criminal law), intention as defined by the law in a specific jurisd ...
without the purported victim's body in evidence. However, cases of this type have historically been hard to prove, often forcing the prosecution to rely on
circumstantial evidence
Circumstantial evidence is evidence that relies on an inference to connect it to a conclusion of fact, such as a fingerprint at the scene of a crime. By contrast, direct evidence supports the truth of an assertion directly, i.e., without need ...
, and in England there was for centuries a mistaken view that in the absence of a body a killer could not be tried for murder. Developments in
forensic science
Forensic science combines principles of law and science to investigate criminal activity. Through crime scene investigations and laboratory analysis, forensic scientists are able to link suspects to evidence. An example is determining the time and ...
in recent decades have made it more likely that a murder conviction can be obtained even if a body has not been found.
In some such cases, the resurfacing of the victim in a live state has ensured the re-trial and acquittal, or pardon, of the alleged culprit, including posthumously, such as the case of the
Campden Wonder or the case of
William Jackson Marion
William Jackson "Jack" Marion (May 13, 1849 – March 25, 1887) was an American man who was convicted of the 1872 murder of John Cameron, a Kansas native and a friend. Marion and Cameron were railroad workers who embarked on a trip to Kansas to wo ...
.
History
For centuries in
England
England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
there was a mistaken view that without a body there could be no trial for murder, a misconception that arose following the
Campden Wonder case of 1660.
A local man had vanished, and after an investigation three individuals were
hanged
Hanging is killing a person by suspending them from the neck with a noose or ligature strangulation, ligature. Hanging has been a standard method of capital punishment since the Middle Ages, and has been the primary execution method in numerou ...
for his murder. Two years later, the supposed victim appeared alive and well, telling a story of having been abducted and enslaved in
Turkey
Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...
.
The mistaken view of "no body, no murder" persisted into the 20th century;
in the case of
Mamie Stuart, who disappeared in late 1919, her husband George Shotton was not charged despite significant circumstantial evidence because her body had not been found. Before the advent of
DNA
Deoxyribonucleic acid (; DNA) is a polymer composed of two polynucleotide chains that coil around each other to form a double helix. The polymer carries genetic instructions for the development, functioning, growth and reproduction of al ...
testing, however, the discovery of ''a'' body, in a decomposing or incomplete state, would make this assumption questionable. In the case of
Hawley Harvey Crippen
Hawley Harvey Crippen (11 September 1862 – 23 November 1910), colloquially known as Dr. Crippen, was an American Homeopathy, homeopath, Otolaryngology, ear and Ophthalmology, eye specialist and medicine dispenser who was hanged in HM Prison P ...
, hanged in 1910 for the murder of his wife Cora, only fragments of the body were found in the Crippens' yard, and identified from a scar. Due to the body evidently having been buried after their moving in and Cora's unexplained disappearance, the remains were assumed to be from her murder but in 2007, DNA testing claimed the body fragments were from a dead male, raising doubts of the prosecutor's account.
The English murderer
John George Haigh
John George Haigh ( ; 24 July 1909 – 10 August 1949), commonly known as the Acid Bath Murderer, was an English serial killer convicted for the murder of six people, although he claimed to have killed nine. Haigh battered to death or shot his ...
believed that dissolving a body in acid would make a murder conviction impossible. He had misinterpreted the
Latin
Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...
legal phrase ''
corpus delicti
(Latin for "body of the crime"; plural: ), in Western law, is the principle that a crime must be proven to have occurred before a person could be convicted of having committed that crime.
For example, a person cannot be tried for larceny unle ...
'' (referring to the body of evidence which establishes a crime) to mean an actual human body. But evidence of a body was presented at his 1949 trial: part of the
dentures
Dentures (also known as false teeth) are prosthetic devices constructed to replace missing teeth, supported by the surrounding soft and hard tissues of the oral cavity. Conventional dentures are removable ( removable partial denture or comp ...
from his last victim. Her dentist was able to identify them; Haigh was found guilty and hanged.
In 1951,
New Zealand
New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...
criminal
George Cecil Horry
George Cecil Horry (6 May 1907 – 29 April 1981) was a British-born New Zealand criminal.
In 1951, he became the first person in more than 300 years to be convicted under English common law for the murder
Murder is the unlawful killing ...
was convicted of the murder of his wife, although her body was never found.
The Horry case helped to overturn in other common law jurisdictions the long-standing expectation that such cases would fail.
In the UK, the misapprehension that a killer could not be convicted solely on circumstantial evidence was directly addressed in the 1954 case of Michail Onufrejczyk. He and a fellow
Pole, Stanislaw Sykut, had stayed in the United Kingdom after the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
and ran a farm together in Wales. Sykut disappeared and Onufrejczyk claimed that he had returned to Poland. Bone fragments and blood spatters were found in the farm kitchen, although
forensic technology was then insufficiently advanced to identify them. Charged with Sykut's murder, Onufrejczyk claimed that the remains were those of rabbits he had killed, but the jury disbelieved him and he was sentenced to death, but reprieved. He appealed, but this was dismissed by the
Lord Chief Justice
The Lord or Lady Chief Justice of England and Wales is the head of the judiciary of England and Wales and the president of the courts of England and Wales.
Until 2005 the lord chief justice was the second-most senior judge of the English a ...
,
Lord Goddard, saying that "things had moved on since the days of the
Campden Wonder",
and
The 1960
California
California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
case of ''
People v. Scott'' held that "circumstantial evidence, when sufficient to exclude every other reasonable hypothesis, may prove the death of a missing person, the existence of a homicide and the guilt of the accused".
In
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
, circumstantial evidence was originally deemed sufficient to obtain a murder conviction in the
murder of Louis Carron, and in others such as the
Azaria Chamberlain case and
Bradley John Murdoch
Bradley John Murdoch (born 19 February 1958) is an Australian criminal serving life imprisonment for the July 2001 murder of English backpacker Peter Falconio in Australia. He will be 74 when eligible for parole in 2032. Murdoch is being held ...
.
In
Singapore
Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...
, law student
Sunny Ang was hanged in
Changi Prison
Changi Prison Complex, often known simply as Changi Prison, is a prison complex in the namesake district of Changi in the eastern part of Singapore. It is the oldest and largest prison in the country, covering an area of about . Opened in 193 ...
on 6 February 1967 for the alleged murder of his girlfriend during a scuba diving trip near
Sisters' Islands
Sisters' Islands are two of the Southern Islands in Singapore and are located to the south of the Pulau Ujong, main island of Singapore, off the Straits of Singapore. It can be reached via a boat ride from Marina South Pier or West Coast Pier.
B ...
. He was convicted purely based on circumstantial evidence and without a body, as his girlfriend's corpse was lost at sea and never found.
Francis Seow
Francis Seow Tiang Siew ( zh, s=萧添寿, p=Xiāo Tiānshòu; 11 October 1928 – 21 January 2016), was a Singaporean lawyer who was Solicitor-General of Singapore and later the President of the Law Society of Singapore.
Seow started his l ...
, prosecuting, said in his opening statement, "This is an unusual case insofar as Singapore, or for that matter
Malaysia
Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...
, is concerned. This is the first case of its kind to be tried in our courts that there is no body." But he said that it would not mean that crafty killers would get away with murder and escape the brunt of the law. It would only mean that the burden of proof of the prosecution was higher, a burden which was eventually met and led to Ang's conviction.
Other modern cases
1980s
In 1984,
Mark Tildesley, a seven-year-old schoolboy, disappeared after leaving his home to go to the fairground in
Wokingham
Wokingham ( ) is a market town and civil parish in Berkshire, England. It is the main administrative centre of the wider Borough of Wokingham. At the 2021 census the parish had a population of 38,284 and the wider built-up area had a populati ...
,
England
England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
. In 1990, it emerged that on the night he disappeared, Tildesley had been abducted, drugged, tortured, raped and murdered by a
London
London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
-based paedophile gang led by
Sidney Cooke. Leslie Bailey was charged with murder in 1991 and the following year was given two
life sentence
Life imprisonment is any sentence of imprisonment under which the convicted individual is to remain incarcerated for the rest of their natural life (or until pardoned or commuted to a fixed term). Crimes that result in life imprisonment are c ...
s. Bailey was murdered in prison by other inmates shortly afterwards.
[Operation Orchid (Aug '89 – Oct '92)]
/ref>
The murder of Catrine da Costa centered on the limits of the necessity of a physical body to determine whether murder has been committed. As the remains of Da Costa's body lacked certain vital organs, making a determination of the case as one of murder, absent a confession, as seemingly impossible, although evidence suggested she had been dismembered
Dismemberment is the act of completely disconnecting and/or removing the limbs, skin, and/or organs from a living or dead being. It has been practiced upon human beings as a form of capital punishment, especially in connection with regicid ...
by two alleged culprits. Following conviction and retrial for murder, both suspects were acquitted as, due to the cause of death being impossible to determine, a "natural" or non-homicidal cause could not be ruled out.
In June 1985, Bournemouth
Bournemouth ( ) is a coastal resort town in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole unitary authority area, in the ceremonial county of Dorset, England. At the 2021 census, the built-up area had a population of 196,455, making it the largest ...
woman Carole Packman vanished from her family home. Her husband, Russell Causley, claimed that she had left and did not want to be contacted. He later attempted to fake his own death in a £1 million life insurance fraud, after which the police investigated his role in Packman's disappearance. Causley was eventually convicted of the murder in 1996 That conviction was quashed on appeal in 2003, but after a retrial in 2004, he was again convicted of the murder..
In 1988, Helen McCourt, a 22-year-old insurance clerk from Lancashire disappeared. Ian Simms, a local pub landlord, was subsequently charged with and convicted of her murder. This case was also one of the first in the UK to use DNA fingerprinting.
In July 1989, Kansas serial killer Richard Grissom was arrested after being connected to the disappearances of three young women the month prior. Blood and hair samples found in Grissom's car and garage led to prosecutors indicting him with three counts of murder. He was found guilty in 1990 and sentenced to life imprisonment
Life imprisonment is any sentence (law), sentence of imprisonment under which the convicted individual is to remain incarcerated for the rest of their natural life (or until pardoned or commuted to a fixed term). Crimes that result in life impr ...
.
American courts have also been allowed to press murder charges even if a body has not been recovered. In 1990, a Connecticut
Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...
jury convicted Newtown airline pilot Richard Crafts of killing his Danish wife, Helle, in the 1986 " woodchipper murder", so called for the machine he had rented to dispose of her body in nearby lakes and streams. He was sentenced to 50 years in prison. The state police
State police, provincial police or regional police are a type of sub-national territorial police force found in nations organized as federations, typically in North America, South Asia, and Oceania. These forces typically have jurisdiction o ...
's forensic unit, led by Henry Lee, was able to match the DNA of some of the fragments that were discovered to Helle Crafts and the wood chipper her husband had used. It was the first bodyless murder trial in the state's history.
1990s
In April 1994, Heidi Allen, 18, of New Haven, New York, was abducted from the convenience store where she worked. Her body has never been found. Brothers Gary and Richard Thibodeau were charged with kidnapping and murder. They were tried separately. Gary was found guilty and sentenced to 25 years to life, while Richard was acquitted.
In 1996, Thomas Capano was convicted of the murder of Anne Marie Fahey, his former lover. Investigators did not have a murder weapon or body, nor any evidence that Capano had purchased a gun. He was convicted of first-degree murder in part due to the evidence given by his brother, Gerry, who had admitted to helping Capano dump Fahey's body in the Atlantic Ocean.
Sante Kimes
Sante Kimes (née Singhrs; July 24, 1934 – May 19, 2014), also known as the Dragon Lady, was an American murderer, con artist, robber, fraudster, serial arsonist and suspected serial killer. Her decades-long crime spreeincluding throughout h ...
and her son Kenneth were convicted of the murder of Irene Silverman, whose body was never found. They were also both suspects in another murder in the Bahamas where the body was never located. Kenneth eventually confessed to both murders but Sante Kimes maintained her innocence until she died in prison in 2014.
In May 1999, the New Zealand High Court convicted Scott Watson
Ben Smart and Olivia Hope, two young New Zealanders, disappeared in the early hours of the morning on New Year's Day, 1January 1998. The two friends had been celebrating New Year's Eve at Furneaux Lodge in the Marlborough Sounds with other part ...
of the murder of Ben Smart and Olivia Hope. Their bodies have never been found.
2000s
In 2000, prosecutors in Orange County secured New York State
New York, also called New York State, is a state in the northeastern United States. Bordered by New England to the east, Canada to the north, and Pennsylvania and New Jersey to the south, its territory extends into both the Atlantic Ocean and ...
's first-ever bodyless murder conviction. Gregory Chrysler and Lawrence Weygant were found guilty of beating coworker Dominick Pendino to death with a baseball bat and disposing of his body. They mistakenly believed Pendino had given police the tip that had led to their arrest on drug-dealing charges. They relied on eyewitness testimony from a former girlfriend and police informant, as well as forensic evidence showing that enough of Pendino's blood stained a car seat for him to have died without immediate medical attention. Neither the body nor the bat have been recovered: Chrysler and Weygant are still in prison and refuse to say where the remains are, despite pleas from Pendino's family.
Also in 2000, Gabriel Gómez was found guilty in Los Angeles County, California
Los Angeles County, officially the County of Los Angeles and sometimes abbreviated as LA County, is the List of United States counties and county equivalents, most populous county in the United States, with 9,663,345 residents estimated in 202 ...
, United States, of murdering his half-sister Sandra Rosas, the wife of musician Cesar Rosas. Gómez was convicted without Sandra's body having been found, on the basis of her suspicious disappearance and her blood being found in his vehicle. After his conviction, Gómez led police to her remains.
In June 2001, Essex
Essex ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England, and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Kent across the Thames Estuary to the ...
teenager Danielle Jones disappeared. Despite her body never being found, circumstantial evidence was provided by forensic analysis
Forensic science combines principles of law and science to investigate criminal activity. Through crime scene investigations and laboratory analysis, forensic scientists are able to link suspects to evidence. An example is determining the time and ...
of text messages
Text messaging, or texting, is the act of composing and sending electronic messages, typically consisting of alphabetic and numeric characters, between two or more users of mobile phones, tablet computers, smartwatches, desktop computer, des ...
sent by her uncle Stuart Campbell, who was convicted of her murder 18 months later. Police determined that Campbell had sent messages from Jones's phone to his own after she disappeared, to make it appear that she was still alive, and noted that the spelling of several words changed after she was reported missing. Their suspicions were supported by records showing that Campbell's and Jones's phones were close to each other when the messages were sent.
In October 2001, in Neuburg an der Donau
Neuburg an der Donau (Central Bavarian: ''Neiburg an da Donau'') is a town which is the capital of the Neuburg-Schrobenhausen district in the state of Bavaria in Germany.
Divisions
The municipality has 16 divisions:
* Altmannstetten
* Bergen, N ...
, Germany, vanished. He drank excessively, and was not well-liked. His wife, their two daughters and the elder daughter's fiancé all gave police confessions and they were convicted of manslaughter, or being an accomplice to manslaughter. There was no physical evidence of a crime. In 2009, Rupp's car—and his body—were found in the Danube, seemingly having got there after a collision. A retrial was held in 2010. All the original convictions were quashed on the grounds of insufficient evidence.
In 2002, Girly Chew Hossencofft's husband and his mistress were convicted of her murder, which occurred in 1999. Hossencofft's remains have never been located.
In spite of advances in forensic technology, the possibility of the supposed victim turning up alive remains. In 2003, Leonard Fraser, having allegedly confessed to the murder of teenager Natasha Ryan, was on trial for this, and other murders, when she reappeared after having been missing for four years.
In 2006, prosecutors in Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...
, had Perry March arrested and extradited from Mexico after he had been secretly indicted on charges of murdering his wife Janet, who had disappeared in 1996. An attempt to have March's in-laws killed while March was awaiting trial led to the arrest of his father, who as part of a plea agreement confessed to burying his daughter-in-law in a pile of brush near Bowling Green, Kentucky
Bowling Green is a city in Warren County, Kentucky, United States, and its county seat. Its population was 72,294 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of cities in Kentucky, third-most populous city in the stat ...
, but he was unable to lead police to the body after the intervening nine years. Perry March was convicted in 2006 almost ten years to the day after his wife disappeared.
In the Australian no-body trial for the murder of Keith William Allan, evidence from forensic accountants established a motive. The chance police finding of one perpetrator driving Allan's car and the conduct of all perpetrators, in particular mobile telephone records, were also important factors in their conviction.
In 2007, in Omaha, Nebraska, Christopher Edwards was convicted of murdering his girlfriend Jessica O'Grady, whose body has never been found. His mattress was soaked with her blood.
In 2008, Hans Reiser
Hans Thomas Reiser (born December 19, 1963) is an American computer programmer, entrepreneur, and convicted murderer. In April 2008, Reiser was convicted of the first-degree murder of his wife, Nina Reiser, who disappeared in September 2006. He ...
was convicted of first-degree murder of his wife, Nina Reiser. After conviction and before sentencing, Reiser pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of second-degree murder in exchange for disclosing the location of his wife's body.
2010s
Known as the Banting murders of 2010 in Malaysia, 47-year-old cosmetics millionaire Datuk
Datuk (or its variant Dato or Datu) is a Malay language, Malay honorific title commonly used in Brunei, Indonesia, and Malaysia, as well as a traditional title by Minangkabau people in West Sumatra, Indonesia. Use of the title various between loc ...
Sosilawati Lawiya and her three companions – 38-year-old bank officer Noorhisham Mohamad, 32-year-old lawyer Ahmad Kamil Abdul Karim, and her 44-year-old driver Kamaruddin Shamsuddin – disappeared after they last went to Banting
Banting is a town and the seat of Kuala Langat District, Selangor, Malaysia. Banting has a population of 93,497. The postal code for Banting is 42700 and is administered by the Zone of 15 and 19 of the Kuala Langat Municipal Council. It is situ ...
to meet a lawyer over a land deal. N. Pathmanabhan, the lawyer who was supposed to meet the missing four, was found to have solicited the murders of the four by ordering his farm hands to kill the four missing people and burnt the victim's bodies at a farm which was registered under Pathmanabhan's name. Although none of the remains belonging to the victims were conclusively found, Pathmanabhan and three of his farmhands – T. Thilaiyalagan, R. Matan and R. Kathavarayan – were charged with murder. Matan was later acquitted of all charges and released due to insufficient evidence, but Pathmanabhan and the remaining two farm workers were found guilty of murder and sentenced to death
Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty and formerly called judicial homicide, is the state-sanctioned killing of a person as punishment for actual or supposed misconduct. The sentence ordering that an offender be punished in s ...
based on circumstantial evidence and without the bodies of the victims.
In 2011, in Spain
Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
, Miguel Carcaño Delgado was sentenced to 20 years in prison for the murder of his ex-girlfriend Marta del Castillo, 17-year-old high school student from Seville
Seville ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Spain, Spanish autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the Guadalquivir, River Guadalquivir, ...
, Andalusia
Andalusia ( , ; , ) is the southernmost autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in Peninsular Spain, located in the south of the Iberian Peninsula, in southwestern Europe. It is the most populous and the second-largest autonomou ...
. Del Castillo disappeared on January 24, 2009, despite extensive searches, her body was never found.
In 2012, in Scotland, the prosecution secured two convictions without a body, for the murder of Suzanne Pilley and the murder of Arlene Fraser. In 2019, again in Scotland, the prosecution secured a conviction without a body for the murder of Margaret Fleming
In May 2013, Mark Bridger was convicted of the murder of April Jones, a five-year-old girl from Machynlleth
Machynlleth () is a market town, community and electoral ward in Powys, Wales and within the historic boundaries of Montgomeryshire. It is in the Dyfi Valley at the intersection of the A487 and the A489 roads. At the 2001 Census it had a po ...
, Wales
Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...
, who disappeared on 1 October 2012. At his trial, Bridger claimed to have run her down in his car and killed her by accident, and to have no memory of what he did with her body after drinking heavily. The jury rejected his version of events, as bone fragments and blood discovered in Bridger's house within days of her disappearance were matched to the DNA
Deoxyribonucleic acid (; DNA) is a polymer composed of two polynucleotide chains that coil around each other to form a double helix. The polymer carries genetic instructions for the development, functioning, growth and reproduction of al ...
of Jones. Her body was not found, despite the largest missing person search in UK history. Bridger claimed in court that Jones's DNA was found in his house as he had held her body there before disposing of it, but his claims were not believed by the jury.
In May 2014, Randy Taylor, a man from Nelson County, Virginia
Nelson County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia, in the United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 14,775. Its county seat is Lovingston. Nelson County is part of the Charlottesville, VA, Metropolitan Statist ...
, was convicted for the abduction and murder of high school student Alexis Tiara Murphy, who vanished after being seen at a gas station in Lovingston. On December 3, 2020, Murphy's remains were located in Lovingston. The identification of the remains was announced publicly on February 17, 2021.
On 12 July 2016, in Singapore
Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...
, 48-year-old Leslie Khoo Kwee Hock allegedly killed his 31-year-old girlfriend Cui Yajie, a Tianjin
Tianjin is a direct-administered municipality in North China, northern China on the shore of the Bohai Sea. It is one of the National Central City, nine national central cities, with a total population of 13,866,009 inhabitants at the time of the ...
-born Chinese engineer, in his car during a heated argument nearby Gardens by the Bay
The Gardens by the Bay (GBTB) is an urban park spanning in the Central Region, Singapore, Central Region of Singapore, adjacent to the Marina Reservoir. The park consists of three waterfront gardens: Bay South Garden in Marina South, Bay East ...
. Khoo took the body to a forest in Lim Chu Kang
Lim Chu Kang is a Planning areas of Singapore, planning area located in the North Region, Singapore, North Region of Singapore, bordering the Western Water Catchment to the west and south, Sungei Kadut to the east and the Straits of Johor to the ...
where he burnt the body for three days before he was arrested. By the time Khoo took the police to where he burnt the body, there were only ashes and a few clumps of hair, along with a bra hook and pieces of burnt fabric (from Cui's dress). Khoo was found guilty of murder on 12 July 2019, and a month later, on 19 August 2019, he was sentenced to life imprisonment
Life imprisonment is any sentence (law), sentence of imprisonment under which the convicted individual is to remain incarcerated for the rest of their natural life (or until pardoned or commuted to a fixed term). Crimes that result in life impr ...
.
2020s
On 30 August 2022, Christopher Dawson was found guilty by a New South Wales court, of the murder of his former wife Lynette
Lynnette, also spelled Lynette, is a feminine given name.
People
* Lynette Boggs (born 1963), American politician
* Lynnette Brooky (born 1968), New Zealand golfer
* Lynette Chico (21st century), Puerto Rican fashion model and actress
* Lynnette C ...
40 years previously; despite the fact that her body was never found. In delivering his verdict, the judge in the case said: "None of the circumstances considered alone can establish Mr Dawson's guilt, but when regard is had to their combined force, I am left in no doubt. The only rational inference s thatLynette Dawson died on or about 8 January 1982 as a result of a conscious or voluntary act committed by Christopher Dawson."
Kristin Smart was last seen on the Cal Poly campus on May 25, 1996, walking home intoxicated after an off-campus party in the company of Paul Flores. When interviewed by investigators several days later, Flores had a black eye and scratches on his hands and knees, and later admitted to lying about how he got them. In 2019, the podcast '' Your Own Backyard'' reignited public interest in the case, and brought forward several new witnesses who spoke to police. A 2020 search of the suspect's home uncovered dozens of homemade videos of Flores sexually assaulting unconscious women. A 2021 search of his father's home located a 6-foot by 4-foot anomaly in the soil under his deck, and serological testing confirmed the presence of human blood. On October 18, 2022, a Monterey County jury found Paul Flores guilty of first-degree murder, while a separate jury acquitted his father, Ruben Flores, of accessory after the fact. Kristin Smart's body has not been recovered.
On February 22, 2023, Adam Montgomery was found guilty for the murder of his daughter Harmony Montgomery. Harmony was last seen in December 2019 and reported two years by authorities after her father Adam got sole custody of her. On January 22, 2022, the police determined that Harmony was beaten to death by her father. Harmony's body has yet to be found.
Miscarriages of justice
A 1987 study of miscarriages of justice in the 20th-century United States by Hugo Bedau and Michael L. Radelet found seven cases where individuals were convicted of murder and the supposed murder victim was subsequently discovered to be alive.
See also
* Adolph Luetgert
* Henri Désiré Landru
* List of murder convictions without a body
* Seznec affair
* Lupara bianca
*Corpus delicti
(Latin for "body of the crime"; plural: ), in Western law, is the principle that a crime must be proven to have occurred before a person could be convicted of having committed that crime.
For example, a person cannot be tried for larceny unle ...
*''The Lady from Shanghai
''The Lady from Shanghai'' is a 1947 American film noir produced and directed by Orson Welles and starring Rita Hayworth, Welles, Everett Sloane, and Glenn Anders. Welles's screenplay is based on the novel ''If I Die Before I Wake'' by Sherwo ...
''
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Murder Conviction Without A Body
Criminology
English criminal law
Murder
Scottish criminal law