The Death of April Tinsley - w/ Interview

For three decades, the abduction, rape and murder of 8-year-old April Tinsley in April 1988 had frustrated Indiana investigators. The mysterious killer's taunting messages admitting to the crime, scrawled on a barn door and on paper notes threatening to kill again, only added to the desire to solve the cold case. Still, no suspect could be found. But thanks to advances in genealogy and DNA technology, the suspected killer was arrested and then confessed to the crime, more than 30 years after April's death. John D. Miller, 59, was preliminarily charged with murder, child molesting and criminal confinement of a victim under 14. Police connected him to the homicide by using DNA from the scene of the murder and from the taunting messages, and inputting them into a genealogical database. DNA from Miller's garbage matched DNA from the crime scene and from the taunts, and when police brought him in for questioning, he confessed to the disturbing killing. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices