Showing posts with label usacrime. Show all posts
Showing posts with label usacrime. Show all posts

The Creepy Neighbour From Hell Who Turned Out To Be Every Women & Girl's Worst Nightmare!!!

(Richard Hooten. Picture credit: Wave News)

*Please be aware that the details shared in this post will be disturbing. I have aimed to, as always, share the details as sensitive as I can without taking the facts away from the case. If you would like to discuss this post with me or any of the cases that I have covered in this blog, please email me at jocaledoniankitty@gmail.com*

At the beginning of 2013, 17 year old Tara Rose Willenborg from Clarksville, Indiana (USA) was busy thinking about life, exploring dreams, being a typical teenager and enjoying her close relationship with her boyfriend of six months, Josh. Josh was 21 but adored her and did his best to support her as they decided to move in together. The young couple were having fun, taking on adult responsibilities and thinking about their future. There was so many experiences to share, so many moments to be had and so many places they wanted to see together. Everyone who knew them personally would always describe them as a young loved-up couple, they would refer to themselves as 'Fiance/Fiancee' and had plans to get married. Josh was saving up some of the money he earned from his job to buy Tara a ring. They were just a young, sweet, good looking couple who were working hard to make ends meet and thinking about what they wanted to do with their lives together. 

Because money was tight and they had only just moved in together at the Cambridge Square Apartments, their living situation was quite modest. Some of the neighbours looked a bit on the dodgy side and some of the apartments had seen better days. For Tara and Josh they made the best with what they had and for them it was really just a stepping stone to save money and eventually move on to somewhere better. Tara came from a loving family, along with her brothers Todd, Derek and sister Colleen, the four of them could have been models if they had chosen that path, they also had their own talents. The family shared a great sense of humour and would always be teasing each other, they also had a dedication to their Christian faith. 

As well as her fun and bubbly personality, Tara was well known for her cupcakes, she just loved to bake and delighted in the endless compliments that she would receive from friends and family about how great they were. People would tell her that she would make a fortune if she turned her baking skills into a business, she was interested in making this a reality and was looking at ways to go about it. So Tara had the world at her feet and there was lots of things that she had planned and wanted to carry on planning, but it wasn't to be because someone she thought was a harmless neighbour, turned out to be a hideous monster hidden in sheep's clothing.

Young Tara and Josh had no idea who their neighbours really were, they were just people they would exchange pleasantries with. Unbeknown to the pair, the often dishevelled looking guy who was their neighbour, the guy called 'Richard' was actually a convicted sex offender who had spend the majority of his life behind bars for a series of horrific sexual assaults on women. Richard Hooten was 49 years old and his path of crime began in his early 20's, this is when he later said that his first sexual assault occurred. So this lovely young couple had a ticking time-bomb living near them and nobody knew. Richard looked creepy but he had a girlfriend so that could've possibly softened his image up a bit but that was all a facade, he was just waiting for the next victim. 

Richard had noticed Tara and Josh but didn't have long, full-on conversations with them. There was a quick exchange of words when Richard had bought some alcohol from Josh but that was about it. Josh could sense that Richard found Tara attractive but he was used to that, Tara was a beautiful girl and people were going to take a shine to her so he didn't think that deeply about it. 

On the 2nd of March (2013), Josh had gone to do his night shift as usual, leaving Tara at home just to relax. It was just days before her 18th birthday and that was going to be a huge milestone for her. Richard Hooten and his girlfriend, who Tara was used to seeing come and go, were out for the evening. Richard had a few drinks but was ready to go back home, his girlfriend and her family decided they were going to stay out for a little bit longer. When Richard approached his apartment he spotted Tara sitting alone on a stoop just outside her apartment. He watched her for a little while and could see that nobody else was around, he knew Josh worked night shifts. He would later reveal the disturbing and chilling fact that he knew he was going to sexually assault Tara when he saw her sitting there that night. 

He walked over to Tara and they exchanged polite conversation, he probably seemed harmless, a bit pathetic, probably mentioned that he was waiting for his girlfriend to come home. One wonders if Tara being young and looking at this guy as a bit creepy but possibly more like a Dad type of figure. She maybe thought about the fact that he had a girlfriend, maybe gave off the impression that he couldn't be that bad or dangerous if a woman had chosen to live with him? Tara also knew his girlfriend would be returning home at any time so maybe thought that no harm could come to her. It's reminded me of the false sense of security that some victims in the past have felt when they've met someone (who unknown to them at the time was a dangerous and psychotic killer) who has shown them family pictures or wears a wedding ring in an attempt to appear harmless and to gain trust. 

I've made the mistake myself in the past and I cringe at the memory, but an old man had fallen outside of my apartment block (this happened years ago). He'd just gotten out of a cab and was holding a translucent bag with all of his belongings in, money, clothes etc and he had fallen, there was blood on his face and he looked like he was in shock. Myself being young at the time and my boyfriend being at a university class, I decided to invite this guy into the kitchen for a cup of tea and to call him another cab. It sounds ridiculous now but my first instinct was to help this man. He had so much cash falling out of his pockets and I had to help him put everything into his bag. I remember thinking at the time that this guy was so lucky that he fell outside of my apartment and not some other place because someone could've possibly robbed him. Anyway, I made him some sweet tea for the shock and I kept the kitchen door open whilst we talked and I called him a cab to take him to his correct address. The guy got into the cab safely and that was it. When I told my boyfriend, friends and relatives about what happened, everyone looked at me horrified and told me I was nuts. My boyfriend at the time was frantic that something bad could've happened to me. I look back now and it is a cringeworthy moment but we all make mistakes. 

So Tara and Richard were talking and either she invited him into her apartment or he asked to join her. Either way, he was pretending to be nice and once inside the apartment, Tara put on the TV whilst they continued to chat. When the pair were on the sofa Richard suddenly turned from Mr nice guy to disgusting predator. Tara made it clear that she wasn't interested and asked him to leave, from that moment on, things turned very ugly. Richard grabbed Tara and dragged her to the bedroom where he ripped off her clothing and assaulted her in the worst ways that you do not want to imagine. Obviously I know the horrific details but out of respect for Tara and her family I have to be careful how I describe what happened. It was brutal, it was sick and it was pure evil! The absolute hell he put that poor child through, 17 is no age and it wouldn't be acceptable at any age. He was a disgusting, evil monster and during the horrific torture and assault, he strangled Tara. The details of her death haunt me, as I'm sure they have done with anyone who has worked on this case or researched it. It just fills you will anger and disgust. To add further depravity this creature took a candle and assaulted Tara with it after he strangled her. 

(Tara Willenborg. Picture credit: Todd Willenborg)

Richard Hooten claims that he tried to revive Tara when he'd realised that she was deceased. He then tried to cover his tracks by grabbing one of her Subway aprons and tying it around her neck to make it look like she had taken her own life. He then fled the scene and went back to his apartment, where his girlfriend now was. This monster knew that Josh would return from work to find Tara and he was already putting an act on like everything was normal. Josh was horrified and devastated when he found Tara, he tried everything he could for her and contacted authorities. He told them that he had a feeling that Richard had something to do with her death. Other neighbours had mentioned their concerns about Richard who had mysteriously vanished from his apartment. The police went looking for him and they finally found him a mile away from the apartments and arrested him on the spot. They knew he had a long list of previous crimes and outstanding warrants. He had also failed to register as a sex offender. 

With the evidence stacked up against him and his previous convictions Richard admitted what he had done because he claimed that he wanted to give Tara's family closure. In front of reporters he gave a sort of press conference where he unemotionally stated what he had done, answered their questions and admitted that he had been involved in numerous sexual assaults in the past for which he spent time in prison. He'd spent most of his life in prison and claimed that he had been committing sexual deviancy for as far back as he could remember. There were no tears shed and no remorse, he stated that he wished that he hadn't have murdered Tara but there was no actual feeling to it, it was like the guy had no soul. He was asked numerous times if he had committed murder before and he said that he hadn't. He admitted to sexual assaults and violence but that Tara was the first time he had actually murdered a victim. 

When asked about his thoughts on the death penalty he accepted it and agreed to any form of punishment that was going to be handed out. As he admitted his guilt in Tara's horrific assault and murder, he spared her family the ordeal of a trial and as part of a deal he was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. 70 years was also added on to his sentence. He is currently 62 years old (as of 2026) and is incarcerated at Wabash Valley Correctional Facility in Carlisle, Indiana. 

Tara's funeral took place on the 6th of March 2013 just a few days shy of what would have been her 18th birthday. It's so difficult to imagine what Josh and her family must have been going through. It was just so unfair for such a horrific thing to have happened to a beautiful young girl who had her whole life and dreams in front of her. 

Tara's family have done such an incredible job over the years to raise money for charities and have been dedicated to keeping Tara's memory alive. Sadly Tara's brother Todd Jr passed away in May of 2022 at the age of 29. Colleen and Derek have done a wonderful job over the years keeping the spirit of both their beloved sister and brother alive, it must be so difficult to have both your sister and brother gone. They are so strong and very much an inspiration. 

Please check out Tara's Garden which is a charity which was set up by Tara's loved ones to honour her legacy: Tara's Garden

RIP Tara and Todd, you will never be forgotten x

Further Reading & Sources

- Richard Hooten: Article | Wave News

- Tara Rose Willenborg | Obituary

- Richard Hooten: Article | The Courier

- Tara Rose Willenborg | Find A Grave

- Richard Hooten: Article | USA Today

- Richard Hooten: Article | NY Daily News

- Richard Hooten: Confession Press Conference | News And Tribune (Video)

- Richard Hooten: News Report (Video) | WLKY News Louisville

I know this was another difficult case to get through but I appreciate you, as always, for being here and for all your support over the years with my content. Don't forget you can request any cases you would like me to cover (jocaledoniankitty@gmail.com) and come and say hello on my Socials

Take care....until next time x 

He Poisoned His Wife of 23 Years By Putting Eye Drops & Cyanide In Her Protein Drinks....To Steal Her Money & Begin A New Life With Another Woman!

 (James Toliver Craig. Picture credit: CNN)

*Please be aware that I will be sharing some disturbing details in this post. I have aimed as always to be as sensitive as I can be with the details, without taking away from the details of the case. If you would like to discuss this post or any of the previous cases I have covered on this blog, please email me at jocaledoniankitty@gmail.com*

You know, I've always said that it doesn't matter how well you think you know someone, even if you've lived in the same house with them for years, decades.....you never really know someone completely. Now, imagine being married to someone for 23 years, you met in your early 20s, you had six beautiful children together, travelled together, gone through life's highs and lows, supported each other through thick and thin. After 23 years you would consider that person a soulmate wouldn't you? A huge part of you? An important piece of your family, A huge part of your life, so many memories, so many experiences together! No doubt you would trust that person, you've basically grown with that person. Well, what if this wife or husband out of the blue decided that, after decades of your constant love and support, that it was time for you to exit the stage?

We've seen this happen to both men and women. I've written about such cases before (Betty Broderick, Mitchell Quy, Blanche Taylor Moore, John List amongst many others) where so called picture perfect marriages have turned out to be anything but the sort. The face of evil pictured above is that of so-called devoted Mormon, Dentist and pillar of the community....James Toliver Craig. This manipulative, cold-hearted philanderer (based in Aurora, Colorado) was a talented Dentist but horrific businessman who liked to live beyond his means. He built up a successful practice in the beginning with a partner but it all soon fell to the wayside with his mishandling of finances. James had been married to the beautiful Angela since 1999. They first met when he was 21 and she was just 20. It was a romance that blossomed pretty quickly and before anyone knew what was happening, they were married. In their faith (Angela was also Mormon) this was not unusual, people often married young and started families quickly. Angela was the youngest of 10 children and was always the life and soul of the party. She was always family orientated and amazing with children. 

It was clear that despite James being quite an intelligent guy, for some reason he just couldn't get the hang of managing money. He had issues with his finances early on in the marriage but Angela was determined to stand by her husband, even when she suspected he was having multiple affairs, which he was. The fact that this beautiful, intelligent and devoted woman would put up with this may baffle a lot of people but to Angela, the thought of divorce was the last thing she would ever want. Her faith and belief in the family unit and forgiveness was so strong that she couldn't bring herself to walk away from him. To leave James would mean that the family would be broken up and to her it would have been embarrassing to be seen as a divorced woman. So the red flags were there for years and Angela knew about them but she chose to just confide in her sisters and her friends. She was convinced that she could change James and that the marriage was worth fighting for.

Angela was known for wearing her heart on her sleeve. The church was an important part of her life and she wasn't just a devoted mother and wife, she was a choir director, a teacher and youth leader who was well known for supporting others, being a fantastic friend and helping raise money for good causes. Angela was not a fake person, she actually was someone who had a pure heart so much so that she took every single one of her marriage vows seriously, even if it was tremendously difficult. It wasn't just herself that she was thinking about, she was thinking about her children and wanted them to continue to have a solid relationship with their father. 

(Angela Craig. Picture credit: findagrave)

It's unclear how many affairs that James had but he was like an addict who would gamble whatever money they had left causing Angela the task of trying to keep the family afloat. They ended up using the family home as a safety net just so that the practice could stay open. The financial situation was in crisis but Angela was determined not to give up and James continued to work hard. At the Dentist practice, James came across as Mr Friendly, everybody's pal! He was popular with his patients and staff and was known to hand out cookies to everyone. Angela and the children would often visit him at work and staff would later say that the family were always smiling and seemed very close. 

James and Angela both liked to appear in public as a contented family but behind the scenes all was not well. This went on for years, going through the motions and hanging on financially by a thread until 2023 rolled around and things just went from bad to worse. Something had to be done because James was facing financial ruin and at this point Angela was fed up with the lack of love and support from her husband. They agreed to separate but live in the same house because money was so tight. James slept in a spare bedroom as they tried to figure out what their next step was going to be. He attended a conference in Las Vegas and it was there that he met an orthodontist named Karin. The pair hit it off and seemed to have a lot of things in common. He told her he was separated and she said she had been going through a divorce. They exchanged phone numbers. 

You'd think that the circumstances in which James found himself in (or should I say, put himself in), marriage crumbling, financial nightmare going on etc that the idea of getting into a new relationship with someone else, would be the last thing on his mind. In my opinion he saw Karin, who was older at the age of 49, as a potential meal ticket. Karin who was another innocent party in this, had no idea that this buffoon in front of her was a lying, manipulative scumbag and future murderer. I think he saw Karin as a fresh start for him, he could work in her practice, use her to help straighten out his finances, probably marry her so that he could guarantee that his feet would be right under the table. This guy didn't do anything out of the goodness of his heart....if he even has a heart!

It's unclear how long he was actually thinking about and planning to murder Angela but just after this conference in Las Vegas things sprung straight into action. He'd become fixated on Karin and what started off as general 'how are you doing' texts soon began to heat up. Apparently they exchanged 4,000 texts in the space of 18 days. He was determined that he was going to start a new life with Karin but there were problems, finances and Angela! He hadn't a dime to his name and there was no way that Angela was going to give him a divorce. The monster decided that instead of coming to his senses, cutting the crap and pulling his socks up and focusing on becoming a decent husband for once in his life, he came up with a despicable plan. Spending hours upon hours hovering over his laptop googling poisons and life insurance details, he decided that he was going to kill his wife, inherit her life insurance and run off into the sunset with Karin in Las Vegas. 

Angela and this demon were living under the same roof whilst James was secretly planning his wife's demise. It's utterly terrifying to think that the very man who is the father of your children, who you thought you knew for so many years, could be stood there thinking about how he's going to end your life and spend your life insurance money with his new found victim. Who know's what would have become of Karin either? this guy was capable of anything. 

Like a lot of women, Angela was trying to maintain a healthy lifestyle and enjoyed a regular workout routine. Part of this routine was her protein shakes, however she began to notice that her favourite workout drinks were starting to make her feel a bit queasy, she put this down to overdoing things at first. At the age of 43 she attributed some of her dizzy feelings to possible peri-menopause and tried not to worry too much about it. It did cross her mind briefly that James had been messing about with her drinks again, apparently years before, he had tried to put something in her drink. She caught on to it straight away at the time and questioned him about it. He came up with this pathetic excuse that he was feeling suicidal and determined to take his own life so he wanted to drug her so that she wouldn't be able to stop him. Shockingly, Angela fell for this excuse and was either in denial or he'd managed to manipulate and gaslight her in such a way that he could've said that moon was made of green cheese and she would've believed him. This is no disrespect to Angela, these types of psychopaths are clever at getting inside people's heads, especially if they have known you for decades on a personal level, which is even more terrifying. He knew Angela's strengths and weaknesses so he could play with them to control her. 

After having a protein shake, Angela would become very ill with migraines, she couldn't understand as she'd had these drinks so many times before with no issues. The symptoms got worse with Angela vomiting, rushing to the bathroom and doubled up in pain. She tried to manage it herself but it was clear that this wasn't just some stomach bug or per-menopause symptoms. James, pretending to care would stand there watching his devoted wife in agony and suffering and would just let it continue. He would drive her to the hospital and callously watch as the medical staff would rush around trying different tests on Angela to find out what was wrong. He would hold her hand whilst she was terrified but too weak to cry from all the pain and suffering, he just stood there and let it all happen without a thought for anyone but himself. 

A whole saga of Angela being in and out of the hospital would play on. You may remember the Blanche Taylor Moore case which I wrote about back in September of last year (2025). Blanche's victims would be poisoned by her dinners and baked goods, end up in hospital at death's door and then make positive improvements when she was away from them. Then, the minute they were released from hospital and back home with Blanche, they would mysteriously fall dangerously ill again and back to the hospital. You may remember that Blanche started going into the hospital to 'visit' her victims and would bring in her 'homemade' cooking and cakes cause she was determined to finish these poor people off. James ended up poisoning Angela in hospital because she was such a fighter, her body was trying to fight back but in the end he just gave her more and more poison. 

As Angela lay in her hospital bed fighting for her life as Doctors were frantic that her organs were shutting down and they were running every test they could think of, whilst trying to keep her alive...James was in bed with Karin. He arranged for Karin to come to Colorado for a few days, they went out for romantic dinners, did some shopping and sightseeing, curled up on the sofa and watched movies together. I'm sure Karin looks back to these times and is thoroughly traumatized, to know that she was unknowingly part of a horrific set of circumstances that she had no idea about. James Craig's level of evil is just beyond the beyonds! How could you do that to a stranger let alone your own wife of 23 years? the mother of your children? How could he be in bed with someone else, enjoying himself, drinking glasses of wine whilst his wife was in a hospital bed losing her life? Putting his children...Angela's family and friends through hell? All of this for money? Did he ever really love her? Even if the marriage had turned sour, what about friendship? What about the fact that Angela gave him 6 beautiful children? What about all those years? What about all the good times? the memories? the endless times she stood by him? How could nothing mean a thing to him? He was an utter cold hearted psychopath and rotten to the core and I can think of even worse things to call him than that. 

(Karin Cain. Picture credit: ABC News)

Back at the Dentist practice, James's colleagues noticed a change in him, they knew that Angela was in and out of the hospital and he was under stress but something else was just not right. One of his colleague's Caitlin noticed he was acting odd, packages were being sent to him and he'd guard these with his life. He'd show up at odd hours and looked like he was up to something. He told the staff that a package was going to be arriving for him but to put it to the side and under no circumstances are they to open it. A few days later, either Caitlin forgot that she wasn't supposed to open this particular package that had arrived (or she knew fine well and purposefully opened it anyway) but she opened it and there it was, Potassium Cyanide! 

He was having the poisons delivered to the practice along with the usual supplies that were regularly ordered. Caitlin knew about Angela's health troubles and rumours has been going around about his financial problems. She began to do some digging into what Angela's symptoms were and could they in anyway be related to those of cyanide poisoning? Turned out, all of Angela's symptoms were an exact match for someone who had been poisoned with Cyanide. Caitlin informed her colleagues and the police straight away. 

Sadly Angela, who had put up such an incredible fight, had sadly passed away in hospital at the age of 43 on the 18th of March 2023. The medical staff and the police had been informed the day before that colleagues of James had found bottles of Cyanide at the practice and were suspicious that he had been poisoning his wife. An investigation was in full swing so they had James in their sights just before Angela had died but it was too late. The poison had caused so much damage to her internal organs and she had been poisoned by James numerous times, he was trying to kill her over and over and over again! An autopsy confirmed everything, she had a combination of Potassium Cyanide and Tetrahydrozoline. Tetrahydrozoline is commonly found in eye-drops but if swallowed can cause blood pressure to drop dangerously low as well as causing respiratory failure. 

When the investigation switched from suspected attempted murder to full blown first-degree murder, investigators arrested James and searched both the Dentist practice and the Craig family home. They found poison, tons of empty bottles of eye drops, evidence of receipts for poisons and evidence on and in Angela's favourite protein shaker bottle. 

Karin was investigated and completely cleared of any knowledge or wrongdoing. Nobody else was involved in this, it was all the evil doing of James Toliver Craig. James did try to contact Karin after Angela's death telling her not to believe anything she heard about him, he told her he was innocent. 

He had the nerve to plead not guilty and even behind bars the lies never stopped! He tried to paint a picture of Angela being depressed and claimed that she told him to poison her. When nobody fell for that, he tried to manipulate one of his daughters into lying for him by asking her to make an AI video of her own mother saying that she wanted to poison herself. And to add to the madness, he tried to persuade a fellow inmate to murder the lead investigator in his case to what ends that he thought this would help him, nobody knows. The man (look who I'm calling a man), the monster, didn't know when to shut up and to be honest, he was just telling on himself with all of that. He'd completely lost the plot but did he ever have it to begin with?

He stood trial in July of 2025 and was sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. Angela's children and family later filed a lawsuit against James, his practice and Midland Scientific (the company which sold James the poison), they won their case. 

James Craig is currently serving his sentence at Bent Correctional Facility in Las Animas, Colorado. Understandably, his children have severed all ties with him.

James Craig may have had money problems but at the end of the day he had a beautiful wife and children, more than anyone could have asked for. He had a loving, family home and instead of appreciating that, he threw it all away and caused so much pain, heartbreak and misery. Where did it all get him? In a prison cell for the rest of his miserable life. He didn't deserve a lovely wife and children, he deserves nothing. He should've got the death penalty in my opinion (I know there are some readers who will disagree with me), he stood there and tortured his devoted, innocent wife of 23 years so that he could get rid of her and steal her money, that's not a human being, that's a monster, a demon. So many people have been horrendously hurt by him. Even Karin, who only knew him for a short period of time but the guy was so toxic that any contact with him, no matter how much, left a horrible scar. He was and is, no good to anybody. I'm so grateful that Angela's children have each other and a strong community of support. 

Angela left an incredible legacy behind and along with the numerous kind-hearted things she had done and the joy she brought to others, I think about how incredibly brave and strong she was fighting for her life in hospital. In all honestly it's actually incredible how much of a fight her body put up because she kept fighting back. 

So many beautiful pictures, stories, memories left behind and her 6 children are carrying on their mother's legacy. She did an incredible job raising them, her light will never fade. RIP Angela, you will never be forgotten x

Further Reading & Sources: 

- James Craig: Article | BBC News

- James Craig: Article | Sky News

- James Craig: Article | NPR

- James Craig: Article | Court TV

- James Craig: Article | NBC News

- Angela Craig: Article | CNN

- Karin Cain: Article | ABC News 

- Aurora, Colorado | Wikipedia

- Colorado Department of Corrections

- Angela Craig | Memorial 

Thank you as always if you are a regular reader of my posts, I always appreciate it. Thank you also if you are new to my work, I appreciate you being here too. I write about a lot of dark things on this blog but I want to remind you, that there is a lot of good in this world, amazing people, amazing things. We live in a beautiful world where so many wonderful things happen. For the horrific husbands like James Craig, there are millions of others husbands out there that are like the Milk Tray man (Tongue in cheek commercial superhero from back in the day who delivered a box of chocolates 'Milk Tray' to his beloved. Retro TV commerical). I thought I would try to end on a positive note! Anyway, there is good and bad and I hope after reading this that you do something relaxing that'll make you smile . 

Come and say hi on my Socials! Stay safe and I hope you will join me in my next post x 

Julie Mott's Body Was Stolen From A Funeral Home!! | Missing Remains, Mass Graves, Wrong Bodies Placed In Coffins....What On Earth Is Happening In Some of These Funeral Parlours?

(Julie Mott. Collage created by Caledonian Kitty. Picture credit: ibtimes)

*Please be aware that the details shared in this post are quite disturbing. I will be discussing death, human remains and stalking. I have aimed as always, to be as sensitive as I can be when sharing details of the cases, without taking away from the facts. If you have any questions about this post or any of the articles I have written on this blog, please feel free to email me at jocaledoniankitty@gmail.com*

One of the absolute certainties in life, is that one day we are all going to meet our maker (ie: kick the bucket....say goodnight Vienna or just plainly.....pass over to the other side!). For a lot of people this is a depressing subject to talk about and for others they don't mind it. There's our individual thoughts on death, our own death and then there is the thoughts of our loved ones who are often left behind when our time comes. It can be very difficult for them, as it is for us when we lose someone we love. 

Grief can be one of the most difficult things in life that one can go through and there's no set pattern to it, you can feel fine one day and then spend the next day in a constant flood of tears. Everyone has their own way of coping and grieving. So the loss of a loved one on it's own can be a heartbreaking experience but when someone we love has passed away as the result of being murdered or taking their own life, it can be utterly devastating. On this blog I have written about many devastating, horrific deaths over the years and I find that more trauma for the families of victims is added, even more so, with how their deceased loved ones are treated after death. Some victims are buried somewhere remote, only to be identified many years later and their families have agonised over whether they are indeed alive or deceased. Some victims are identified straight away, sometimes within days of being reported missing but the state in which the bodies are found is horrific. Some people's remains are never identified. I've written about people who had to be identified by their tattoos because, sadly, only a torso or a leg was found. 

In this bizarre but disturbing post, I will be talking about a different kind of crime, a crime that was committed after someone had died of natural causes and to this very day, the case is unsolved. As I am a writer you will find it no surprise that I try to pay attention to what goes on around me and what is happening in the world and I often come across shocking cases that I have never heard of. Recently we had a scandal in the UK which involved a popular family funeral parlour. This family business, known as 'Legacy Independent Funeral Directors' had been in operation for decades in Hull, England. Generations of people from the local community trusted this company with their deceased loved ones. It was Legacy's role to help give some comfort and support to grieving families, help ease some of the stress, and provide their loved ones with a respectable, moving funeral service. 

Legacy's services were not cheap and some of the time the service they provided did ensure a decent funeral service but there were times that the conditions were so appalling that it ended up with a professional employee (who had worked in that area and role for decades) throwing in the towel but making sure that she contacted authorities to report everything that had been going on. It turned out that Legacy (owned by a man named Robert Bush) had been up to all kinds of disrespect. Relatives of the deceased were unaware that their loved ones were being mistreated. Others later found out that their relative was being cremated or buried elsewhere, forms were forged and personal items were stolen. Numerous bodies were cremated and ended up being thrown into a mass pit (we don't know the exact number of people who were placed there but 136 families so far, are believed to be connected to suspected victims who were dumped in that mass grave). Payments from families would be taken and then their relatives would be placed in the cheapest of coffins with the cheapest of flowers. A lot of the time, the reason that company was able to get around this was because customers were too upset and wrapped up in a very sad period. At a time of grief, you don't expect families to be thinking straight, it's understandable. 

The person to expose everything about Legacy, was an assistant that worked there and her identity to this very day has to be protected. I remember a few years ago (because this was all exposed fairly recently at the time of writing this, April 2026) when the story first broke on the news, there was the funeral parlour itself and another building connected to Robert Bush that was sealed off to the public and a helpline was put in place. Thousands of concerned relatives who had either dealt with Legacy in the past or were at that time dealing with them, were all frantic. People were worried sick about what was happening or what had happened to the bodies of their deceased loved ones and they couldn't get any answers. The whole case shocked the UK and it's been a very long investigation which finally came to a head this month. Robert Bush pleaded guilty to over 60 charges of misdealing with human remains, fraud, forgery, theft, storing corpses for months on end whilst forcing ridiculous charges to grieving families, blackmailing grieving families, and placing the wrong bodies in coffins for cremation or burial. The whole story with Robert Bush was horrific, what a horrible man who is now waiting to be sentenced. I will of course update when I find out any more news about this. 

I would love to say that the case with Legacy and Robert Bush was an isolated incident but dodgy funeral parlours and shady undertakers is sadly, no uncommon thing. It's really upsetting to think that on top of losing your loved one, you have to be extra careful with which funeral services you select to ensure that your loved one has the send-off that they truly deserve. You want your loved one to be treated with the utmost respect. 

You're probably wondering if the Legacy/Robert Bush story is what the focus of this post is about but it actually isn't, although it is connected. The story I want to share in this post is every bit as heartbreaking and disturbing and to this very day, is unsolved. 

This case comes from San Antonio in Texas, a beautiful young woman by the name of Julie Nicole Mott came into the world on the 15th of August 1989. Her parents Sharlotte and Tim, along with her brother Jon, simply adored her. The family were very close and even more so when Julie was sadly diagnosed with Cystic Fibrosis. It was touch and go whether Julie would make it through her childhood but like a trooper, she powered through and surprised everybody. Despite the difficulties she had to endure with CF (she spent a lot of time bedridden) she was determined to live her life to the full and one of her greatest passions was horses. Julie adored horses and again demonstrated how remarkable she was because she continued to power through and would take part in show jumping and loved horse riding. Her family couldn't have been more proud of her although they did try to get her to take things easy, Julie was determined to lead as much of a normal life as possible. Julie loved sports and enjoyed swimming too. She was very sociable and had a very tight group of friends who she adored and they adored her. 

I had a childhood friend who had Cystic Fibrosis and I remember him having a lot of time away from school. He seemed to always pick up very bad colds easily and I never really understood what it was all about back then. CF is a genetic condition that causes thick mucus to build up in the body and can make breathing difficult. There is no current cure for CF and it's often diagnosed in infancy where a lot of children sadly pass away due to complications with it, but there can be a more positive outcome as everyone is different. With careful lifestyle management, a lot of people diagnosed with CF can live up to their 30's. 

When my friend was well, he appeared to live a normal life, I remember him running past me one day on the walk home from school. He spent a lot of time at my Dad's house because his brother was best friends with my brother so I was used to seeing him. I moved to England and didn't see him for many years, I was shocked to find out that he had passed away. He was young when he died, he married young and had a child at a young age. Apparently he had known since his childhood that there was always that possibility that he wouldn't make it into adulthood. I find that heartbreaking and my heart goes out to anyone who lives with this disease, to know from a very young age that there's a possibility that you might not make your 30's, it's just too upsetting for words. Julie and her family were always aware of this and it astounds me that Julie, her family and my childhood friend, despite having this daunting situation in the background, they were determined to live life as normal as they could. 

Julie was popular and academically gifted as well as incredible at horse riding, she seemed to have the world at her feet as well as being a stunning looking girl. It's no surprise that a lot of the boys at school had a crush on her. She continued to have as much of a normal life as possible despite the CF becoming troublesome at times, she was always determined to press on. As the years went on she ended up in a six year relationship with a guy named Bill Wilburn. She moved in with him for some time and for a lot of the time in the relationship they were like love's young dream but it soon became clear that things with Bill were beginning to turn a bit sour as he was quite possessive and controlling, he also had his sights set on somebody else. He was very much a have his cake and eat it, type of guy. The pair ended up breaking up because Bill decided to chase after this other person but soon realised he'd made a huge mistake and was determined not to let Julie go. For over two years he practically harassed her, begging and pleading for Julie to take him back but she was not interested. 

Julie was determined to go on about her life and continued to enjoy horse riding, nights out with friends and spending quality time with her family. Sadly, now into her 20's, CF was becoming more and more difficult to deal with. Julie, her family and friends had hoped that this was just another episode and that she would power through like she had always done but things just continued to get worse. It was now clear, at the age of just 25 that Julie needed 24 hours a day professional care in a hospital setting, Nobody gave up hope and she fought and fought with all of her might. With such a traumatic and serious time in the Mott family's lives the last thing anybody needed was the constant harassment from Bill Wilburn. Bill continued to try everything he could to contact Julie in the hospital, he even harassed Julie's family. His constant phone calls would go on all through the night, sometimes up until 4 am. 

On the 8th of August 2015 just shy of her 26th birthday, Julie sadly passed away from complications due to the CF. As you can imagine, everyone was devastated. Her father Tim had arranged for a beautiful service to be held at his former employer's chapel, Mission Parks Funeral Chapel North. The funeral was held on the day that would have been Julie's 26th birthday. The service was beautiful, so many people came to pay their respects to a beautiful talented and incredible young woman who really lived each moment to the best of her ability and achieved so much in her short life. The family being fair and kind, allowed Bill to attend the service to pay his respects and say his final goodbyes to Julie. Bill was beside himself and had noticed that Julie was wearing a ring whilst he was paying his respects to her at the private viewing, He was tearfully happy, telling Julie's mother and brother Jon, ''She's wearing the ring I gave her''. Sharlotte didn't have the heart to tell him that the ring that was on Julie's finger was actually a gift that she had given her. 

As the service rolled on and finally was coming to an end, visitors were starting to leave but for some reason Bill was still hanging around. Some people may say that he was devastated and struggling to come to terms with saying goodbye, so he may have wanted to stay a bit longer. It ended up where he was the last person aside from some members of staff, that was still around when they were beginning to lock everything up. According to one member of staff, they locked the door behind them with Bill. Julie's body remained in the coffin and the lid was placed carefully down and sealed, ready for the next stage, which was the cremation. 

So as heartbreaking as this whole event was, you would expect everything else to go to plan so that Julie's ashes would be returned to her family. Her father Tim had paid a lot of money to make sure that his beloved daughter had the most beautiful service and that the wishes that she had asked for had been fulfilled. Things, however, were to take a deeply disturbing turn. When the staff were preparing to take Julie's body for cremation, they noticed that the coffin looked like it had been tampered with. On closer inspection, it was clear that someone had broken the seals to the coffin and when they opened it fully.....Julie's body was missing. 

Panic set in and the staff searched everywhere thinking she had been placed elsewhere, maybe there was some sort of mix-up and she had already been collected? All hell had broken loose and Julie's family as well as the owner of the funeral chapel, who called himself (and this is serious, not a joke from me) 'Dick Tips'. Apparently this guy's real name was Richard Tips but for some reason he thought it was perfectly ok to be called 'Dick Tips'. He insisted on being called 'Dick Tips'. Anyway, everything about Mr Dick Tips and his funeral chapel began to unravel and it got worse and worse the more information that was revealed. So, there was quite a number of incidences before what happened with Julie. Mix up of bodies at funeral services, people would go to view their loved one and find a completely different person in the coffin. There was an incident where the wrong person was in a coffin at a family service but the deceased unknown person was wearing the same clothes and jewelry that belonged to the actual person that the service was for. So basically they had taken the clothes and personal items off of one deceased person and by accident or sheer laziness, put them on the wrong person. There was reports of thefts, bodies being left in hallways, lack of security. The codes to all of the alarms and private entryways to the building had not been changed in years, which meant that previous employees (of which there were countless over the years) could easily just walk right into the building and help themselves to personal items belonging to deceased people in their coffins. Some people are buried with their wedding rings, expensive watches, sentimental items and sometimes, in designer clothing. The whole thing was a recipe for disaster and utterly terrifying to say the least. 

So Julie's body was now missing, somebody stole this beautiful young woman's body (feels so creepy saying it like that but that's the truth of the situation). All fingers automatically pointed to....you guessed it, the creepy obsessed ex-boyfriend, Bill Wilbur. He claimed to be innocent but his behaviour on the day of the funeral and the constant years of harassment didn't exactly paint him in a good light. To add even more fuel to the fire, Bill wouldn't stay away from the chapel and tried to trespass a few times, harassing and threatening employees. This behaviour was confusing everybody, what was he looking for if he did indeed, remove Julie's body from the chapel? Was he completely innocent and blamed the staff, convinced that they must still have her in there? Or was he looking for items that would help him preserve her remains? (that sounds very disturbing but we have had situations where this has actually happened before). 

Bill's behaviour has continued to throw up red flashing lights, he's so obsessed with talking about himself, talking about Julie, harassing people close to Julie including her brother Jon, who he had the nerve to try and pin the blame on previously. He was arrested at one point and charged with trespassing at the chapel but that's about it. Everybody think's he's responsible and know's where Julie's remains are but nobody can prove it. Julie's body was able to be removed from that chapel in broad daylight with nobody seeing or hearing a thing, no CCTV footage, nothing. No evidence to go on except for the previous and current behaviour of Bill Wilbur.

To this very day, Julie's body has never been found. All of the staff who were working at the time that Julie was taken, have all had lie detector tests and their alibis checked out. The Police still consider Bill Wilbur a person of interest but they can't do much without any proof. Bill has said he was open to having a lie detector test but for some reason this has yet to take place. 

Another detail that came to light was that cremations would often take place at outside contractors and these people, who also knew the codes, could just walk in whenever they felt like it. The whole set-up was an absolute shambles. Julie's family continued to hope that one day the truth would come to light but they still believe that Bill Wilbur is responsible. The family filed a lawsuit against Mr Dick Tips and his shady funeral home and they were awarded $8 million. 

It's an unbelievable and heartbreaking story, all of these years later and Julie has still to be found. Will the truth ever be known? We can only hope but I'm sure you will agree that our hearts and prayers are with the Mott family and Julie herself, who deserves to be laid to rest in a respectful manner, 

RIP Julie, may the truth come to light soon. RIP to all of the deceased who have been mistreated by both of these two horrendous 'establishments'. My heart goes out to Julie's family, to all the families affected and to anyone who is going through the loss of a loved one at this moment. And of course RIP to my childhood friend, Alexander x

Further Reading & Sources:

- Legacy Funeral Home | Court Documents | CPS

- Legacy Funeral Home: Article | Red Lion Chambers

- Robert Bush: Article | The Guardian 

- Robert Bush: Article | BBC News

- Hull, England | Wikipedia

- Julie Mott: Article | KSat News

- Julie Mott | Find A Grave

- Cystic Fibrosis | NHS

- Julie Mott | Reddit Discussion

- Julie Mott: Article | Express News

- Julie Mott: Article | IBT Times

- Julie Mott: Article | ABC13

I know this post was quite disturbing to read but as always, I appreciate that you've made it this far. Your support for my work is much appreciated. Hopefully you will join me in my next post, in the meantime, you can find me on my socials listed here

Take care, until next time....x 

He Put Her Through Unbelievable Hell For Hours In His Torture Room | Michael Lee King: His Evil Crimes, His Execution After 18 Years On Death Row & His Final Words!

(Michael Lee King. Picture credit: Leg.State)

*Please be aware that the details shared in this post will be very disturbing. I have tried to, as always, to share the details of the case in a sensitive manner without taking away from the facts. If you would like to discuss this post or any of the cases I have shared on this blog. Please email me in confidence at jocaledoniankitty@gmail.com*

By the time you read this post, the demon pictured above, Michael Lee King, will no longer be of this world. After 18 long years, this monster will have faced the lethal injection....finally. After years of appeals and trying to get his own way in the system, it's time for this monster to go straight to hell where he belongs. Michael Lee King (current age, 54) was sentenced to die by lethal injection at Florida State Prison near Starke on the 17th of March 2026  (St Patrick's Day) for the horrific abduction, brutal r*pe and murder of a young mother back in January of 2008 in North Port, Florida.

Denise Amber Lee was just 21 years old when this monster forced himself into her family home whilst her devoted husband was at work. It was the 17th of January 2008, Denise was at home looking after her two young boys, Noah (2) and Adam (6 months old) whilst her husband Nathan was out working one of his three jobs. Nathan worked the three jobs so that the family could be properly provided for and so that Denise could concentrate on looking after the boys full time. She had put her own career and aspirations on hold but motherhood was something she always dreamed about so everyone was happy with that arrangement. 

The young couple, who met in high school, lived in a quiet and decent neighbourhood. They married young and both of their families were close. Denise and Nathan were completely devoted to each other and were like soulmates, they always said they were going to be together forever. It was a beautiful marriage and although they did have their usual stresses just like everyone else (money could be tight at times) it never dulled their love for each other and together they created this beautiful little family and home. It really was the stuff of dreams and the future looked bright for the Lee family. 

On Thursday the 17th of January 2008, the day started out the same as usual. Nathan kissed his beautiful wife and children before he walked out of the door to go to work. Denise planned to run some usual errands that day, taking care of the boys and the house, making plans to cut the children's hair too, the everyday mommy duties that she always loved to do. There was never any doubt that Denise absolutely loved being with the boys and Nathan, despite the boys being so young the family had made so many memories and had so many experiences together than when the cruel circumstances that was to come later, had happened, people close to the Lee family held in their minds that Denise, Nathan and the boys really did it all together with what little time they had. They really did make the most of their time together and that gave some sort of comfort to all who knew Denise and her family. 

(Denise with the loves of her life. Her Incredible husband Nathan and their two boys, Noah and Adam. Picture credit: ABC News) 

That morning around 11 am, Nathan called Denise just to check in with her and the boys as he would usually do. They talked about going to Denise's Dad's house for dinner that night (Denise's father was a Sheriff) and Nathan reminded Denise to open the windows to let some of the air in. The pair said their goodbyes expecting to see each other in a matter of hours, not knowing that it was to be their last phone call together. 

When Denise had gotten off the phone with Nathan, she went about her business, sorting out the boys, doing their hair and organising lunch. Unknown to her, there was a suspicious car driving around the neighbourhood. The green 1994 Chevy Camaro was driving very slowly outside and Denise's neighbour noticed what looked like a guy either lost or looking for an address. The neighbour didn't know what to make of it at first but noticed that the next time she looked out of her window a few minutes later, the exact same car was now in the Lee family driveway. A white male was just sat in the vehicle staring at the house and was there for about 15 minutes. The neighbour thought this was odd but her attention was drawn elsewhere, when she approached the window again, she noticed that the car had gone. 

At 3 pm, Nathan had finished his shift for the day and called Denise to let her know that he was on his way home. She didn't answer and that was not unusual for her not to answer straight away, he assumed that she was just busy with the boys so he kept trying. Throughout the journey home, Nathan tried to call his wife around 8 times and there was no response, this was concerning, Denise would always answer the phone or at least call back. When he pulled up to the driveway, he noticed that all of the windows were shut which further puzzled him. As he ventured into the house he noticed that Denise's phone, keys, bag etc were all there, the house was in order, no sign of disturbance but frighteningly still, the boys were in the house alone, confused and wondering where Mommy was. Nathan knew his wife inside out and automatically knew something was wrong, there was no way she would leave the boys alone. Without missing a beat he got straight on to the police as well as informing family members. Nobody wasted any time, everyone knew Denise and this was completely out of character for her. 

As Nathan and the rest of the family were frantic, wondering where Denise was, the truth of where she actually was, was far worse than anyone could have imagined. 36 year old Michael Lee King was outside of the Lee family home earlier that day as seen by the neighbour. When the neighbour moved away from the window to do other things she didn't see the terrifying moment when Michael walked straight into the Lee family home and dragged the terrified and shocked 21 year old mother out of her own home in broad daylight in front of her two babies. 

Michael had kidnapped Denise and drove her to his home where he subjected her to hours of horrendous hell. She was bound and her mouth and face was covered in duct tape. Denise and Michael had no prior history together, neither of them knew each other before this horrific day. The bedroom where he had taken Denise was later described as r*pe and torture room. Denise was beaten, sodomiz*d and vaginally r*ped. After this horrific ordeal, this piece of filth ripped off some of the duct tape that was around Denise's face (this duct tape with Denise's hair and blood was later found by investigators) and ordered her to put her clothes back on, he then bound her again and dragged her out to his car where he placed her in the back seat. 

To even begin to try and think of what Denise was going through in those moments, those hours, the never-ending hell. It's something that you just can't imagine or even want to imagine. It's just so heartbreaking and disturbing. I think of Denise waking up that very morning next to the love of her life, drinking her morning coffee, planning her day with her sons....never in a million years I'm sure did it ever cross her mind that her life was going to come to an abrupt and evil halt that very day. It is so very unfair and it makes me angry as I'm sure it does to you reading this. 

That monster (and I'm being kind just calling him a monster) drove Denise to his cousin's house to pick up a shovel, torch (gaslight) and petrol can (gas). So basically this monster was going to kill Denise and dispose of her body and these were the tools he was going to use. He told his cousin that he had a problem with his lawnmower and that's why he needed the items. During the conversation, Michael's cousin noticed some noise coming from the car and saw what looked like a woman in the backseat shouting for him to call the police. Michael got into the car and pushed the woman's head down and told his cousin that it was nothing to worry about. Michael's cousin then contacted his daughter and told her what he had seen, she decided to contact the police. 

Whilst Michael was out of the car, despite being bound, Denise had managed to get hold of his pay-as-you-go mobile phone and called 911. This was also the start of a nightmare where the police were concerned because they were utterly lazy, incompetent and useless. Denise, who was incredibly brave even attempting to do this and being able to still try to physically function, especially after being brutally beaten and sexually assaulted by this monster. She was just incredible and she did all that she could to save herself, the operator was heartless and uneducated. It was like they just hired someone off of the street who had no training. I understand that these calls have to be handled in a very matter-of-fact way but there's a difference between that and being absolutely heartless when you have a young woman who's been kidnapped and terrified out of her wits begging for your help. Not only that but the minute Michael got back into the car, Denise still had the phone and the operator on the line, she did her best to be as discreet as possible. The operator just carried on being cold and was actually risking putting Denise in more danger by asking her straight-out questions about whether she knew this guy and where exactly she was. Denise was trying to answer questions in a way as not to alert him but he soon noticed that his phone was missing. 

The call was several minutes long and when Michael discovered that Denise had his phone, he ordered her to give it to him, shouting abuse at her and remaining cold when she begged him to let her go. She told him that she wanted to see her husband and children again, she begged for her life 17 times and he didn't care one bit, an absolute monster. The call cut off and it wasn't the only call made that day. As I mentioned earlier, his cousin's daughter called the police, giving a description of the car and Michael. Michael had a history of very unsettling behaviour towards women and other incidences as a teenager where he had become obsessed with the movie 'The Texas Chainsaw Massacre'. Apparently he watched the film over and over again and liked to chase his family around pretending to be Leatherface. They noted that he had a very cold, almost trance-like look on his face when he was doing this. On another occasion, he watched a cartoon that featured a bow and arrow, after seeing this he tried to shoot his own brother with one of them. His family made excuses for him and put this disturbing behaviour down to an accident that he had when he was a young child. He had reportedly been on a sled when he suffered a horrific head injury which wasn't properly treated. People made excuses that this somehow impaired his ability to think right from wrong, I personally, think that is just a cop-out. He had many health issues as a child and wasn't academically gifted. His job was mostly working as a plumber but he was unemployed for several months at the time of kidnapping Denise. 

Michael had also moved from Michigan to Florida after a bad break-up with his partner. He also had a 12 year old son who didn't live with him. Depending on who you speak to, some people said his behaviour was always weird and this carried on right up until what happened with Denise, other people said that he was his usual quiet self and there was nothing untoward. Not to sound too judgemental but it sounded to me that Michael wasn't the only one in his family with unsavory behaviour, for example who witnesses a man pushing a woman's head down in the backseat of a car (who has been screaming and begging for them to call the police) and just walks away without calling the police? It's a good job his daughter had the heart to say something and contact the police. 

In the car, when Michael had his phone back from Denise and the tools he had borrowed from his cousin, he had plans to take her to a specific location. He knew from the very beginning that he was going to murder her. He had planned everything before he had even walked into the Lee family home. He set out that day to find a female victim, he had duct tape, a gun, his horrific bedroom all set up for what he wanted to do and he carried it out to the letter. Whilst on this disturbing drive to the location where he would murder Denise, Denise was not about to give up fighting for her life. She screamed and banged on the windows and this caught the attention of an amazing woman by the name of Jane Kowalski. Jane was incredible and very much the good Samaritan. Straight away she could tell that all was not right with the strange guy in the car beside her who was dripping with sweat, looking sheepish and when she saw the hand go up at the window, she became even more alarmed. Jane contacted the police straight away and gave them a complete description of everything she could, she gave details about the car, what she saw, what she heard, what was going on in that exact moment, the description of Michael Lee King. She even gave the exact location, names of road signs, everything......and what did the cops do? Not a damn thing! STILL nobody was sent out despite the fact that there was patrol cars near that area. 

It beggars belief that so much information was given to the police and nothing was done, there was every opportunity to rescue Denise, she would still be with us today if these people had actually done their jobs properly. Another missed opportunity to catch this monster and save this beautiful young mother's life. 

Jane was so kind in what she tried to do to help Denise, it must be hard for her to this day to know that this lovely young woman with everything to live for, was in the back of that car and that she was right, something was very wrong. The fact that she must have felt frustrated because she wanted the cops to hurry up and get there, she really did all that she could. It must also be disturbing to the people who witnessed Michael Lee King that day and looked at his evil face, to find out later what that monster had done, it must be very difficult and so unbelievable. 

After the phone call from Denise, the police finally decided to take things seriously but it was way too late. They managed to track Michael's mobile phone. They say the reason they had difficulties with this to begin with was because the phone was a pay-as-you-go mobile. They sent cops over to his house where he was nowhere to be seen unsurprisingly. They did however, find his disgusting room of horrors and it was there that they found the duct tape with Denise's hair, her blood, DNA all over the place. Whilst all of this was going on Denise had been driven to a remote location described as a misused construction site. It is not known for sure if she knew that this was to be the end but at some point, Denise had taken off the heart ring that Nathan had given to her and placed it on the backseat as if to leave evidence that she had been there. When they finally arrived at this chosen location, she had been subjected to another sexual assault, stripped naked and no doubt she begged him again to let her live but the monster with no heart was never going to let this young woman go. He pointed a gun just above her right eyebrow and pulled the trigger at close-range. A horrific detail of this story (and I'm telling you this because you need to know how evil this monster is and why the death penalty is deserved for proven demons like him) was that her eyeball exploded and some of the matter landed on the front of his car. Her autopsy also stated that she had still been alive for some time after this and had suffered greatly. He then threw Denise's body into a shallow grave, threw some dirt over her and discarded her clothing/underwear (which was covered in his semen) a few feet away. 

He then drove off covered in mud and soaking wet with Denise's DNA still all over the backseat of the car and the matter was still on the front of the vehicle.When they arrested him, the muddy shovel was still in the car, he refused to cooperate with the police. The evidence against him was overwhelming and he was found guilty and sentenced to die by lethal injection. As I mentioned at the beginning of this post, it's been 18 years (at the time of writing this post: March 2026) and by the time you read this, he'll be gone. 

He didn't help the police find Denise, they ended up finding her themselves, two days later along with the discarded clothing which contained Denise's blood and his semen. There was semen everywhere, it was horrendous, on Denise's clothing, in her person, the backseat of the car and in that horrible room in his house. It is too sickening for words and there's no doubt about it in my mind, this monster deserved the death penalty and it should have been done long ago, preferably with a more painful method. I know others would disagree with me but after what he did to this beautiful young mother, how could anyone think of that thing as an actual human being? 

Denise will never be able to return to her family physically but spiritually I believe she is still around and she would be incredibly proud of her husband, her boys and her family for everything they have done. These incredible people have spent all of these years keeping Denise's memory and legacy alive, they have established the incredible Denise Amber Lee Foundation and have spent tireless hours helping educate and train 911 operators on how to deal with calls. What they have done is remarkable and such a beautiful tribute to Denise. Another lovely fact is that the very heart ring that Nathan had given to Denise so many years ago, the ring that helped bring her killer to justice and the ring that she treasured every day and refused to take off....is in a special case that sits in Nathan's office. 

RIP beautiful Denise, you will never be forgotten and your legacy lives on. My heart goes out to the Lee family and all those connected to Denise, I admire your strength, determination and all that you have built and achieved in the loving memory of Denise. 

UPDATE: Michael Lee King (54) was pronounced deceased at exactly 6:13 pm on Tuesday the 17th of March 2026. His final words were: ''Since finding Jesus in prison. I have tried to live as his disciple obeying the two great commandments: To love God with all my heart, my mind and my being, and to love my neighbour to include everyone - my family, Denise Lee's family, everyone in the gallery. As well as Catholic volunteers who visit the prison and those on the team to end my life.''

There was no apologies given to Denise's husband, her boys or family. There was no expression of remorse for what he had done. To me, it sounded like another selfish display of everything being all about him. 

Michael Lee King's execution was the fourth to take place in Florida this year. More executions are scheduled to take place in the coming months. 

Further Reading & Sources: 


This case was another really difficult one to research and write about. I had sadly never heard of this case until I received an email from an activist group who are against the death penalty (I know it sounds crazy), they wanted me to sign a petition in support of getting a stay of execution for Michael Lee King. The email was basically a glowing review of him and not much about what he actually did. I had to do my own research to find out the truth and when I did, I was horrified and it made me feel like I should write about this case and help share Denise's story. I hope that more people elsewhere in the world will check out the foundation and think of Denise how she was, as the beautiful, bright and amazing mother and wife that she was. There's more to Denise than what happened to her, as evil and horrible as it was and it should never, ever have happened. Through this horrific case we saw the incredible bravery of a young woman who never gave up and how loved and valued she was and always will be. Because of Denise, her incredible husband Nathan and family, other people will get the help they deserve and improvements in how the police deal with such circumstances will continue to be improved. 

Thank you again for joining me in another difficult post and I welcome your thoughts and comments below or by email. 

Please stay safe as always, until next time, take care and I hope to see you on my Socials as well as here every Sunday evening for my latest posts x 

Who's Going To Be Next?: Evil Killers Who've Been Murdered In Prison

(Top from left: Jeffrey Dahmer, Kyle Bevan & Donald Harvey. Bottom from left: Whitey Bulger, Robert Pickton & Ian Huntley. Picture credits: Wikipedia / IMDB / NY Times)

*Please be aware that the details shared in this post are quite disturbing. I have tried, as always, to share the details of each case in a sensitive manner without taking away from the facts. If you have any questions or comments about this post that you would like to share with me in confidence, please do so by emailing me at jocaledoniankitty@gmail.com*

Child killers, Predators, Sexual Sadists, Abusers, Necrophiliacs, Liars, Con Artists, Psychologically and Physically violent men...the list goes on, the six monsters pictured above, are the focus of my latest post. In the news recently we have learned that disgraced former rockstar, Ian Watkins was brutally murdered whilst serving 12 years into his 29 year sentence, he was 48 years old. The monster was stabbed to death on the morning of 11th of October 2025 by a fellow inmate at the notorious Wakefield Prison in West Yorkshire. Due to the number of highly dangerous individuals who call this daunting place 'home', it has earned the nickname over the years 'The Monsters Mansion'.

 I have written about Ian Watkins previously on this blog. Some posts you might be interested in are: The Sick & Twisted Story of Former Rockstar, Ian Watkins and From Red Carpet To Prison Cell. You may also be interested in my post about Wakefield prison which you can find here.

As well as the death of Ian Watkins, who pretty much had a target on his back from day one (there had been attempts on his life before), we have also seen the announcement of the death of horrific child killer Ian Huntley, otherwise known as The Soham murderer who was responsible for the deaths of two 10 year old girls, Holly and Jessica. The fiend had tricked the two girls into his home, both Holly and Jessica admired his partner Maxine Carr who had worked as a teaching assistant at their school. Ian murdered the two young girls and disposed of their bodies (I go into more details about the whole case in my previous post: The Evil Crimes & Lies of Ian Huntley), he then tried to portray himself as a concerned member of the community, lied to the police and Maxine Carr covered for him. Eventually the truth was brought to light, the girls remains were found and it was heartbreaking, nobody could believe what had happened. Ian Huntley was put behind bars being given two whole life sentences. Maxine Carr got it easy, having served 21 months of a three year sentence. She is now out and about living her life under a different name. 

Ian Huntley didn't have it easy behind bars, so many people knew what he had done, it was a high profile case, had been splashed across the news and newspapers for weeks and months. Documentaries were on TV about it, books and articles published, there was no escaping what he had done and quite rightly so, he deserved to be punished. His fellow inmates were well educated on Ian Huntley's crimes and they were just waiting for their moment. 

Like Ian Watkins, he had suffered quite a few vicious attacks whilst behind bars, hospital visits were common and there was moments when it looked like he was on the brink of death but somehow managed to survive....not this time though. Just the other day (I'm writing this post in March of 2026) it was announced that Ian had been brutally attacked, he was rushed to hospital and was reported to be in a coma. After a few days his life support machine was switched off on the Friday and his death was announced officially to the public on the 7th of March 2026. On social media, when both the deaths of Ian Watkins and Ian Huntley were announced, there was jubilation, not a shred of sympathy and to be honest, nor should there have been, the sympathy should be saved for the victims of these evil individuals. 

With the sudden deaths of Watkins and Huntley together with hearing about how another monster, Wayne Couzens is currently shaking in his boots (Wayne was a disgraced former police officer who abducted Marketing Executive, Sarah Everard on the 3rd of March 2021. He sexually assaulted and murdered Sarah before disposing of her remains. I sadly wrote about the case from the moment that Sarah was first reported missing, you can follow the timeline as well as more about the case in my post: The Kidnap And Murder of Sarah Everard), he is reportedly terrified because there are a number of prisoners who are hoping to get their hands on him. 

For Wayne Couzens, not only is he hated for being a sick, cold-hearted murderer, but he was also a policeman so the hatred for him is off the scale, he's a marked man and he knows it. He is currently serving a whole life term meaning he will never leave prison alive, so he has a long time to find out if he's going to die from natural causes or at the hands of others. For such an evil individual I think of nothing better than to know that he feels like he has to constantly look over his shoulder. He took a beautiful young woman away from her family and subjected her to a horrendous ordeal before he cruelly took her life, I have no sympathy for him. 

(Kyle Bevan. Picture credit: BBC News)

Kyle Bevan not only looks like a creepy monster, he actually is one, or should I say was! He might not be a name or face that you are familiar with but this monster came to my attention when I was doing my research into killers who'd been murdered behind bars. I learned that there had been an incident at......wait until you hear the location.....yes.....Wakefield Prison! Right now this is currently under investigation but since it's the murder of an evil monster, I don't think anyone cares about justice where he's concerned, I'm more focused on what this monster did to his innocent victim who happened to a little two year old girl. I wish I could say that this guy (and all the monsters I have mentioned in this post) was murdered because people wanted some sort of justice for the victims but 9 times out of 10 it was over money, a drug debt gone wrong, something to do out of boredom or simply for someone's attempt to try and make a name for themselves. 

I have been told that a lot of these murders that are happening with high profile offenders are due to others being paid (for example: money for the prison canteen, phone calls etc for prisoners who are on a long term sentence). When a prisoner faces a long stretch or there's no sign that they will be leaving prison, they feel like they have nothing to lose so they are more likely to commit more offences behind bars. They are also in need of money especially if they don't have regular support from outside. In prison you still have to work and pay for things like snacks, calls etc. Some prisoners will offer protection in exchange for money, others will trade food and the rumours are rife that some will make attempts on someone's life for the right price. 

So Kyle Bevan was another monster with a target on his back and it was only a matter of time before he found himself at the mercy of three prisoners (allegedly). The three accused were due to stand trial in June of last year but there's been no word since so I assume the trial must have been delayed because there's no further information about it, but like I said before, I don't think anyone really cares. Kyle Bevan was serving a sentence at Wakefield Prison after being convicted of the murder of his partner's two year old daughter, Lola James. The little girl's mother was no better, she was also a waste of space who neglected and abused this little angel faced child. Lola had 101 external injuries all over her body, endless cuts and bruises from head to toe. She had catastrophic internal injuries and severe brain damage consistent with someone being thrown from a 10 storey balcony or being in the impact of a horrific high-speed car crash. He was sentenced to life with a minimum of 28 years. 

The poor and evil excuse for a mother, Sinead James, was given just 6 years. Kyle Bevan was found dead on the 5th of November 2025, the investigation into the full circumstances of his death is ongoing but knowing that three people were involved, I can't imagine that he got off lightly on the way to hell. A small bit of justice for what he had done to little Lola. 

(Jeffrey Dahmer. Picture credit: Wikipedia)

A name you will be familiar with and who is often described as 'The Poster Boy For Serial Killers', I don't know who came up with that name but it certainly wasn't me, I am of course talking about the infamous Jeffrey Dahmer. Jeffrey has been mentioned a few times on this blog, for a long time I didn't write about him because I felt that there was nothing knew that I could add that hadn't already been said. It was my amazing supporters/readers who convinced me to write more about high profile serial killers because they wanted to hear it from me, knowing how I like to leave no stone unturned and how I tell the horrific stories in my unique way. I wrote all about the background and disturbing details of Jeffrey's case here in my two-part series: The Life & Gruesome Crimes of Jeffrey Dahmer. 

Jeffrey's case was another one of those 'stuff of nightmares' stories that was so horrible and unbelievable that you'd be forgiven if you thought it all never happened at all, it was all just too horrific, 17 (possibly more) young men and boys murdered and dismembered. Remains found in his apartment, some of the victims eaten...the whole gruesome nine yards of it was insane, I go into all the horrible details in my previous post about him but as you know, he was convicted obviously and sentenced to 16 consecutive life terms so he was never going to leave prison alive but somebody wanted to end things sooner for Jeffrey and that was Christopher Scarver. 

Christopher was an African-American man who beat Jeffrey and another inmate, with a metal bar in the gymnasium. Jeffrey died an hour after he was found and the other man had managed to hang on for two days before he passed away. With Christopher being African-American and most of Jeffrey's victims being African-American, some believed that it was some sort of karma and justice for what Jeffrey had done to those young men and boys. Jeffrey was murdered on the 28th of November 1994. He was 34 years old. 

(Whitey Bulger. Picture credit: Wikipedia)

Having just looked briefly at the horrible cases of the disturbing individuals I've just talked about, (again, I recommend that you check out my previous articles on these cases if you would like a full background of their crimes and other information) this next deceased criminal is someone who just came to my mind due to a movie I had watched months ago, based on his life and crimes. I watched the brilliant movie Black Mass starring Johnny Depp as American Mobster, Whitey Bulger. At first I thought this was just another gangster movie but then was informed that it was based on an actual real case. So of course me being me, I ended up down a rabbit hole wanting to find out everything I possibly could about this Whitey Bulger chap and what a crazy life indeed and an even crazier, unreal ending to an unbelievable life. Whitey, who's real name was James Joseph Bulger Jr was born on the 3rd of September 1929 in Everette, Massachusetts. He was a mobster who lead the infamous Winter Hill Gang, he'd been involved in everything from murders where he pulled the trigger himself, to drug trafficking, guns, extortion, robbery, money laundering, the list goes on. He became a police informant and actually went on the run from the FBI for 16 years. 

Bulger led a very dangerous life and was finally captured in 2011 at the age of 81. He was sentenced to two consecutive life terms plus five years to be spent in a federal prison. It wasn't an easy time for him in prison with the reputation he had as a police informant or as they called it 'rat'. When you're involved in that lifestyle and you are committed to it, one of the worst things you could ever do is break code and share information with the police. Whitey Bulger was notorious in his hay day as being one of the most feared gangsters, there was so many people he had done wrong in the past and for being exposed as someone who backstabbed others, he was a sitting duck no matter what age he was, his enemies didn't care that he was now just a frail old man. 

On the 30th of October 2018 just 12 hours after he had been transferred to USP Hazelton in West Virginia. 89 year old Whitey Bulger was brutally attacked as he sat helpless, frail and confined to his wheelchair. His attackers didn't hold back, they beat him to the point he was unrecognizable, with a padlock inside a sock. They also tried to gouge out his eyes. It was gruesome, blood was everywhere and it was a very horrific attack on an elderly man. There was no mercy and no sympathy, even at the age of 89, being an old man in very poor health to begin with, Whitey Bulger couldn't escape the demons of his past and the wrongs he had done to others. 

I have yet to cover the full story of Whitey Bulger and his crimes but if you would like me to talk about him in a future post, please let me know in the comments below or email me (jocaledoniankitty@gmail.com).

(Robert Pickton. Picture credit: imdb)

Robert Pickton was a horrendous individual, I don't even know how to describe him. He'd be perfect as a horror character but the terrifying fact is, that this real-life monster did exist and his unspeakable crimes were truly nightmarish. Robert was a Canadian pig-farmer so you can imagine the gruesome stuff that this guy was capable of just on that description alone, well it get's even worse. Robert frequented sex workers and targeted other vulnerable women, he was set on murdering 50 women but was convicted of killing 49 which he confessed to. The monster described in detail how he would dismember his victims and feed parts of their remains to his pigs. Various human remains were found on his farm of horrors and he was sentenced to life in prison with no possibility of parole for 25 years. He confessed to 49 murders but was charged with 26 and convicted of 6 counts of second-degree murder. Apparently he was given second-degree because they couldn't prove that the murders and disposal of the victim's remains had been planned even though he told an undercover cop that he was aiming to kill at least 50 women. 

With the amount of victims and the way Robert disposed of the remains, how can they say it was not premeditated? It seems the 'justice' system in Canada is also quite questionable. As you have probably gathered by the fact that I've included him here, Robert is no longer of this earth, he's in hell (hopefully). On the 19th of May 2024, Robert had been attacked by a fellow inmate. On hearing the commotion, a prison officer rushed to the scene and tried to separate Robert and his attacker, before anyone knew what was happening, the prisoner attacking Robert, managed to grab a broom stick, broke the handle and with such force, shoved it into Robert's face. More prison officers arrived and managed to restrain the man while other officers rushed Robert to the hospital. He was officially pronounced dead on the 31st of May 2024. 

(Donald Harvey. Picture credit: NY Times)

For my final subject in this particular (and quite long post) I end with the infamous Donald Harvey otherwise known as 'The Angel of Death'. This terrifying Serial Killer was reportedly responsible for up to 57 deaths during his time working as a hospital orderly but he claimed that he had as many as 87 victims. He carried out his heartless murders in hospitals in Ohio and Kentucky. He claimed that he first started killing as an act of mercy, because he thought he was putting people out of their misery but he enjoyed what he saw as power over deciding whether someone lived or died. His methods of killing ranged from turning of ventilators to smothering patients or giving them poison. 

Donald pleaded guilty to to 37 of the murders he was charged with (and evidence could be provided for) avoided the death penalty. His sickening murder spree of innocent hospital patients reportedly began in 1970 right up until 1987 when he was arrested. He confessed to everything and was sentenced to 28 consecutive life sentences. Donald Harvey was 64 years old when he was brutally beaten in his cell by fellow prisoner James Elliott on the 28th of March 2017. Donald was rushed to hospital but died two days later. He was officially pronounced dead on the 30th of March 2017. James Elliott was sentenced to 25 years to life, on top of the sentence he was already serving. 

So, this was quite a long post and I appreciate it you have made it this far. I hope that you found this post informative and as I mentioned before with some of the cases that I haven't written a stand alone article on, please let me know if you would like me to cover that particular case. 

Each Individual that I have mentioned in this post has a horrific story behind them and it just goes to show that if you go around hurting people, taking people's lives, being a heartless and sick monster, it doesn't matter if you're 34 or 89, karma will come back around. Donald Harvey was 64 when he was murdered, Ian Huntley was 52 and Whitey Bulger was 89, nobody cares about the ages or vulnerability of these monsters and that is something that people like them should bare in mind. If they are lucky enough not to face the death penalty and are handed a life sentence it should not be a walk in the park for them. In my opinion they should spend the rest of their lives uncomfortable, anxious, always looking over their shoulder and thinking about what they've done to people, what evil they have caused. These monsters are behind bars for a reason and whatever befalls them whilst they serve these sentences it's just tough, no sympathy, like I said before.....sympathy is only for the innocent people and children they murdered and harmed. 

My heart goes out to all of the victims of the monsters mentioned in this post, to which there is sadly so many but they are never forgotten and the sadness for what they went through and the fact that they are no longer with us, never fades. I also think of the families and friends of all of the victims, to lose someone close to you is always difficult but to know they died in horrific circumstances is something that I could never imagine, it must be one of the most horrendous things to ever deal with and I admire their strength.

Further Reading & Sources:  

- Bevan & James Sentencing | Judiciary Court Documents

- Kyle Bevan: Article | BBC News

- Kyle Bevan: Article | DYFED Police

- Kyle Bevan: Article | The Guardian

- Kyle Bevan: Article | Sky News

- The Life & Gruesome Crimes of Jeffrey Dahmer: Part One | True Crime With Caledonian Kitty

- The Life & Gruesome Crimes of Jeffrey Dahmer: Part Two | True Crime With Caledonian Kitty

- Jeffrey Dahmer | Wikipedia

- Inside The Mind of Jeffrey Dahmer | Book by Christopher Berry-Dee 

- Serial Killer Groupies | True Crime With Caledonian Kitty

- Whitey Bulger | The Mob Museum

- Black Mass: Whitey Bulger, The FBI & A Devil's Deal | Book by Dick Lehr & Gerard O'Neil

- James 'Whitey' Bulger | FBI Most Wanted Files (Archive)

- Whitey Bulger: Article | BBC News

- Whitey Bulger | Wikipedia

- Robert Pickton | IMDB

- Serial Killers (Archives) | True Crime With Caledonian Kitty

- Robert Pickton | Court Documents

- Robert Pickton: Article | The Guardian

- On The Farm: Robert William Pickton | Book by Erin Moon & Stevie Cameron

- Donald Harvey: Article | NY Times

- Donald Harvey | Wikipedia

- Donald Harvey | Murderpedia

- Wayne Couzens: Article | BBC News

- The Sarah Everard Case | True Crime With Caledonian Kitty

- Sarah Everard | Wikipedia

- Wayne Couzens | Met Police

- The Legacy of Sarah Everard | Centre For Women's Justice

- Wakefield Prison | Wikipedia 

- Beyond Evil: Inside The Twisted Mind of Ian Huntley | Book by Nathan Yates

- The Evil Crimes & Lies of Ian Huntley | True Crime With Caledonian Kitty

- The Sick & Twisted Story of Former Rockstar Ian Watkins | True Crime With Caledonian Kitty

Thank you again for checking out my latest post and I hope you will join me in the next one. As you may know, I always aim to have a post up on Sunday evenings or just a little bit before. Follow me on my socials to ensure you never miss a post and don't forget to come and say hi. All of my social media links can be found here

If you would like to make a small donation and help support my weekly content, please do so here. Thank you so much!

As always, please stay safe...until next time x