Innholdsfortegnelse for Issue 63 i Crime Monthly

Kamonnan Thiamphanit's £4million mansion in Stanhope Place, London, was a highly sought after property on rental website Airbnb. Located on the borders of Hyde Park and Marble Arch, the former Ethiopian Embassy had been one of London's most desirable areas to stay – but it is now the site of her horrific murder. In the early hours of 8 April, neighbours heard piercing screams. But despite concerned calls from friends, police only entered the house more than 13 hours later, where they found the body of 27-year-old Kamonnan with multiple stab wounds. Kamonnan, who was also known as Angela, is thought to have made a living as a property manager, renting out Airbnb properties across London. She had recently signed a two-year lease for the six-bedroom home and her family…

When Sean Vincent Gillis was arrested on suspicion of murder in April 2004, he quickly realised he couldn't lie his way out of the situation – something he had done when initially questioned 24 hours earlier. Deciding he may as well come clean, he asked the officer with him, “Hey, you got a pencil?” He then proceeded to name not just the three women he was suspected of killing, but five others, all unsolved homicides in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Not only had he strangled and then mutilated the women, he had also committed sex acts with their bodies. He'd even told the police, “I'm sorry I hurt people, but I would do it again.” But there was one problem – he'd asked for an attorney and hadn't been given one,…

When Welcome Witbol walked through the gates of the notorious maximum security Pollsmoor Prison in Cape Town, he was already a hardened gangster with a long and violent criminal career. Witbol had been sent behind bars after being charged with murder, kidnapping and extortion. But whatever reputation he had enjoyed on the outside was meaningless from the moment he was incarcerated at what is widely considered to be one of the most dangerous jails on the planet, and home to more than 7,000 of South Africa's most violent killers and rapists. Thrust into a cell holding 120 fellow inmates, he was soon attacked. In a confused attempt to stop the beatings, Witbol blurted out a word he didn't understand because he'd heard another prisoner successfully use it to placate his…

Next month sees Harrogate play host to the 21st Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival. Championing international crime fiction and thriller writing, this year's chair Ruth Ware has assembled a stellar line-up of award-winning authors and huge industry names, including Richard Osman, Chris Carter, Mick Herron, M.W. Craven, Louise Candlish, Jane Casey, Elly Griffiths, Dorothy Koomson and many more. Here are just a few of the highlights this year……

Shortly after 10pm on a freezing night in February 2011, police were called to a duplex on the Cape Cod peninsula in Massachusetts. Officers arriving at 42 Fresh Holes Road in the village of Hyannis were met with a grisly scene – 31-year-old father Todd Lampley had been shot to death inside his bedroom. As shell casings were found outside the property, it appeared as if his killer had been standing outside, firing the fatal shots through the ground-floor window. However, the shell casings weren't the only items recovered at the crime scene. As well as a mobile phone, investigators found a sweet potato, which seemed bizarrely out of place. They didn't know it yet, but these two things would lead them to the killer and the method of execution.…

In the news On 30 March 2024, police were alerted to an abandoned car located on a rural stretch of highway in Kansas. The call had been made by concerned relatives of Veronica Butler, who had been searching for her when they discovered her vehicle by the road. Bloodstains were visible in the car and on the road, and Veronica's glasses and a hammer were found close by. A purse belonging to Jilian Kelley, a local preacher's wife, was also found inside the car. There was no sign of either woman, but it was clear something sinister had occurred. The Oklahoma Sheriff's Department immediately put up missing posters featuring images of the two women, hoping members of the public using the highway may have witnessed what had happened to them.…

Five people were killed after a shootout at a crowded Halloween house party at an Airbnb property in 2019. DJ Omar Taylor, 24, Oshiana Thompkins, 19, Tiyon Farley, 22, Javlin County, 29, and Raymon Hill Jr, 23, lost their lives after attending the “Airbnb Mansion Party” in Orinda, known as one of the safest cities in California. At least 100 people attended the mass party – which had been advertised on social media – at the four-bedroom house, which had been hired out for one night through the rental website. At 10.50pm, police received reports of gunshots being fired inside the property. “The shots just kept going and all you heard throughout the house was, ‘He's dead. He's dead. She's not breathing,’” partygoer Tiara Chambers said. A friend of Omar's,…

In July 1978, the bodies of two young Westerners were discovered off the coast of Guatemala. Weighted down by heavy machinery parts, they showed signs of torture. The locals were frightened they would bring bad luck, and they were swiftly buried in unmarked graves. On the other side of the world, in Manchester, two families were desperately hoping for news of their loved ones, a young couple who had stopped sending letters while travelling through Central America. Eventually, the remains found in the sea were identified as belonging to those British youngsters, Chris Farmer, 25, and his girlfriend Peta Frampton, 24. However, no one was charged with the brutal murders and the families faced a four-decade quest for justice. DREAM TRIP Childhood sweethearts from the age of 14, Chris and…

On 24 March, CBS aired episode 21 of the 37th season of US news show 48 Hours. “The Menéndez Brothers’ Fight For Freedom” focused on the retrial bid of Lyle and Erik Menéndez, who have been behind bars for over 30 years for shooting their parents, José and Kitty. The show description read, “This promises to shed light on one of the most notorious criminal cases in recent history” – and it's a case that isn't over yet. THE ACCUSED At the time of the crimes, Lyle was 21 and Erik was 18. When police arrived at 722 North Elm Drive, Beverly Hills, the boys claimed to have been at the cinema at the time of the shootings. Police believed them until, over the next few months, they began splashing…

How did you get involved in Eric? My first proper engagement was sitting down with [writer] Abi [Morgan] and [director] Lucy [Forbes]. The minute Abi started pitching it to me, I was hooked. She's an incredible storyteller and she enticed me into this complex, multifaceted and troubled character's journey, the drama around him and the other protagonists, and the central conceit of the psychological split whereby his creation of an imagined puppet [Eric] becomes a reality. It felt very original. How much preparation did you do for the role? Quite a bit. I looked at puppetry in that era, the whole Jim Henson [creator of the Muppets] world of it. Also, the aesthetic of the time – everything from facial hair and body type, to the journey of that group…

CRIME NEWS CASES UPDATE Adam Montgomery has been given 45 years to life behind bars for the murder of his five-yearold daughter Harmony. Montgomery, 34, was sentenced for killing the little girl in December 2019 in Manchester, New Hampshire, after she wet herself in his car. He then carried her dismembered body around in a bag for three months, before disposing of her in March 2020. Montgomery – who is currently also serving at least 33 years on a firearms charge – refused to attend court during his trial, but it is understood he did attend the sentencing. He was offered a reduced sentence if he revealed the location of Harmony's remains, but refused to do so. Prosecutor Ben Agati said, “He has just shown yet again in this courtroom,…

On early April 2024, lawyers working on behalf of convicted murderer Tim Bliefnick filed a 50-page appeal requesting their client be awarded a new trial. The basis of their filing centres around what they believe was inadmissible evidence, errors in the prosecution's closing arguments, and conflict between the prosecution and the judge. The appeal comes as a devastating blow to the loved ones of Becky Bliefnick who, after a 2023 trial, were left in no doubt as to who killed their daughter, sister and friend. The case gripped the US, not least because years before the murder, Bliefnick appeared to make a fatal error in front of millions when he appeared on prime-time TV as a contestant on Family Feud. Hosted by Steve Harvey, the popular show pits two families…

CULTS EXPOSED Twenty years ago, Fresno in California would be forever changed by its worst mass killing. The murders of nine members of an incestuous cult left a trail of trauma, all caused by one man who purported to be a vampiric Messiah. ABUSIVE FAMILY Born in 1946, Marcus Wesson had an abusive upbringing. His overtly strict mother Carrie was a devout member of the Seventh-day Adventists church group, leading nightly bible readings with her children, and punishing them for any behaviour she deemed out of line with the teachings of the church. Wesson's father Ben was an abusive drunk, who sexually assaulted not only his own children, but also one of his son's school friends. Ben's alcoholism also meant that maintaining employment was difficult and because of his inconsistent…

Charlie Webster was seven when her stepfather moved into her family home. It was the start of her childhood crumbling as her mother's new partner targeted her because he viewed her as a threat. He began abusing her, first verbally – calling her “thick”, “ugly” and “pathetic” – and then physically. His constant scrutiny left her scared to leave her room, even to go to the toilet, and kept her isolated from her family. Seeking solace from her unhappy home life, Charlie took up running, but her vulnerability opened her up to abuse by her coach Paul North, who groomed her along with others. He was given a ten-year sentence in 2002, after being convicted of multiple counts of sexual assault and rape. She opened up about this in BBC…

HISTORIC CRIME The town of Chowchilla was a lot like many other small towns in California in the late 1970s. Known as a “cow town” thanks to its ranches and history of cattle farming, it took less than a minute to drive down its main road, and the community was a close-knit one that didn't bother to lock its back doors. But on 15 July 1976, this sleepy nook 150 miles from San Francisco would become the site of one of the most notorious and bizarre crimes in US history. SNATCHED That afternoon had been a scorching one, and the summer school students from Dairyland Elementary had just enjoyed a trip to the municipal swimming pool. As they trooped onto their distinctive yellow school bus, they greeted regular driver Frank…