Who Is The Lumberton Serial Killer? Kristin Bennett, Rhonda Jones, Megan Oxendine and Cynthia Jacobs Maybe Are Just A Few Of His Victims.

Kristin "Christina" Noel Bennett

Making other people happy made her happy. She was a good person.

She was born on August 15th, 1984 in Oneonta, New York. She moved to Maxton, N.C., to live with her new boyfriend in 2009. Christina signed over parental rights of her three children to her friend, Falicia Locklear, while working to overcome addiction and leave that troubled relationship. Kristin then went to Lumberton. She always found a way to reach her children, who affectionately knew her as "Mama Christina." And never failed to call them on their birthdays'. Sadly, the calls stopped coming in the fall of 2014.

Fast forward to the spring of 2017. The previous fall, Hurricane Mathew ravaged Lumberton and made the violent city even worse. Government data showed that the residents of this small-knit community of 22,000 have a one in 55 chance of being raped, assaulted or killed.There is over 60 gangs in the county that Lumberton resides in.  Some of the police you have to watch out for also. 22 deputies have been charged with kidnapping, money laundering and/ or distribution of cocaine. The former sheriff even was imprisoned. 

On Peachtree Street, a blue home stood vacant and boarded up, as its owner put his plans to renovate on hold. The house had became a hotbed for crime in a neighborhood where drugs and prostitution are prevalent.

On April 18, 2017, Kristin's nude body was found inside the blue house.  She was covered by a blanket, inside a television cabinet. It took days to positively identify her body due to how badly decomposed it was. No external or internal injuries were identified on her body. Cocaine was found in her system. The cause of her death was undetermined.

Bystanders smelled a foul odor coming from a trash bin by the blue house. That is when Rhonda Jones' nude body was discovered upside down inside the trash bin. Her body was so badly decomposed that it took her days to be positively identified as well.

Rhonda Lynn Jones

She was kind natured with a sweet soul and a big personality. She  was smart and always had a smile on her face. Nothing gave Rhonda more joy then spending time with her 5 children.

She was born on September 15th, 1980 to Sheila Price and James Ray Hammonds. Rhonda’s father was in and out of her life, and growing up, she and her siblings clung to each other and their mother. 

Rhonda battled drug addiction and tried several times to overcome her problems. When she was just 16, she enrolled in classes at the University of North Carolina at Pembroke and went on to work at American Indian Mothers, Inc., a non-profit that serves the needs of American Indians and minorities living in North Carolina. She was always trying to take herself to a better place, but the world always reached back up and dragged her down. 

Her four youngest children were in their father’s custody, but Rhonda had an upcoming court date to discuss visitation rights. While spending several days at a rehab facility in late March 2017, the thought of seeing her children pushed Rhonda to be better.

The last time her mom saw her alive, Rhonda was happy and excited about getting to see her babies. She hugged and kissed her mom and told her she loved her.

Rhonda had failed to make it home for Easter on April 16th. She also never made the court date. It was April 18th and it  had been 15 days since Sheila saw her daughter when she received the call that Rhonda's body had been found. 

A neighbor noticed a leg sticking out from under the lid. Her body had decomposed and was partially covered in trash. Rhonda's glasses were missing. She had small cuts and wounds to the mid-line forehead, right lateral nose and left para-midline upper nose. A nasal bone fracture was present with a small amount of red-purple hemorrhage in the surrounding soft tissues. The upper attachment of the right ear revealed a superficial tear without underlying hemorrhage, and a couple of abrasions were found on her back. This suggested that she may have been suffocated to death. However, just like Kristin's manner of death, Rhonda's was ruled as undetermined.

Toxicological analysis revealed Rhonda had cocaine in her system.

The local news crew was at the scene interviewing residents about the two woman's deaths. Megan Oxendine walked up to the camera man. She was shaking as she told him how sad she was and she couldn't believe what had happened. 

Megan had her hair pulled back and was wearing a Chicago Bulls sweatshirt. She had a black backpack strapped to her back. She crossed her arms and looked off in the distance as gave a small interview about knowing Rhonda from the neighborhood.

“I ain’t never seen her act out or nothing. She’s just quiet. She didn’t really mess with too many people... I don’t understand how somebody could do somebody’s child, mother, niece, like that.”

Six weeks later, Megan's backpack was found in a trash can. Several blocks away, behind the same abandoned blue home where Kristin's and Rhonda's body had been found, Megan's nude body was discovered partially obscured beneath tree branches and roof shingles. She was bloodied and gagged.

Megan Ann Oxendine

"May God, our refuge and our strength help you through your sorrow and in His mercy grant you peace to lighten each tomorrow."

-Sheriff Kenneth Sealey

She was brave and she'd give you the shirt off her back. She’d run outside barefooted. She was a real country girl who loved fishing. Megan always had a love for all animals, especially horses. She would pick up stray dogs. Megan dreamed of becoming a veterinarian. She was her sisters' protector as well as the prankster of the family. She sometimes would throw her green snake on family members. Megan loved her baby girl.

Megan was raised in a good, nice family. Her battle with heroine deepened significantly in the year before her death. She moved with her boyfriend to Lumberton, where it was hard for her to fight her addiction.

Megan had been inside that blue house when the body of Christina Bennett was discovered. She and a man were doing drugs inside the home when they came across the body. She was shaken by the discovery of the bodies as she spoke on the news.

Two weeks after the bodies of Christina and Rhonda were found, Megan was hit from behind and assaulted by at least five unknown people. She was beaten up and bleeding. Someone had cut pieces of her hair off.

“She said they tried to kill her, and I kept asking her [who], but she said she had no idea who they were,” Megan's sister, Taylor Oxendine said. “All I could do was keep asking, and she was crying, and just said ‘I don’t know, Taylor! I don’t know!’”

Megan refused to get medical treatment, but her mother, Shelia Oxendine, called the police. This upset Megan and she left her mother's home. Police found Megan walking down the road and brought her back to her mother’s home.

On June 3, 2017, Megan's body was found. Her shirt had been underneath her. She had a wound on the back of her head and appeared to have something stuffed in her mouth. Megan was found in a fetal position, as if she was trying to hide or defend herself.

Her family first learned of her death through Facebook. Sheila then called police to try to find out what was going on, but they couldn't clear anything up at that time. It wasn't until three days later that the body was confirmed to be Megan's. 

Toxicologic findings indicate the use of illicit drugs at some point. And as the same in Kristin's and Rhonda's death, Megan's cause could not be determined.

After Megan's body was discovered, Lumberton police requested help from the FBI.

In July 2017, Cynthia Jacobs, who was the last person to see Megan alive and well, disappeared.

Cynthia "Twister" Jacobs

She was independent and like to live on her own.

At the time of her disappearance, she was 5-feet-6-inches tall, 110 pounds in weight, with brown hair and brown eyes. She has the tattoo of  the word "Kris" on her chest. She had a known history of prostitution. She was well-known, and so were the people who pimped her out for years. Cynthia's sister-in-law believes that she knew something about the death of Megan, Kristin and Rhonda.

Kristin's, Rhonda's and Megan's rape kits sat on the shelf, untested, for more than a year.

Alarmed that they may have a serial killer on their hands, local law enforcement contacted the Charlotte division on the FBI and asked for assistance. The FBI canvased the neighbored and knocked on over 800 doors. Authorities have stated they have received tips throughout this process but nothing that would lead to an arrest. The FBI is offering a $30,000.00 reward for information to help them determine how Bennett, Jones and Oxendine died. The families of the victims have publicly complained stating they are not getting the help they desire from law enforcement. Authorities however may be holding some information close in order to find the person responsible and eventually prosecute them for their crimes.

The murders of Kristin, Rhonda and Megan as well as Cynthia's disappearance, aren't the only ones that happened around the same time frame or location. They are just the ones most likely linked together.

"You're broken down and tired

Of living life on a merry go round

And you can't find the fighter

But I see it in you so we gonna walk it out

And move mountains

We gonna walk it out

And move mountains

And I'll rise up

I'll rise like the day

I'll rise up

I'll rise unafraid

I'll rise up

And I'll do it a thousand times again

And I'll rise up

High like the waves

I'll rise up

In spite of the ache

I'll rise up

And I'll do it a thousands times again

For you

When the silence isn't quiet

And it feels like it's getting hard to breathe

And I know you feel like dying

But I promise we'll take the world to its feet

And move mountains

We'll take it to its feet

And move mountains

And I'll rise up

I'll rise like the day

I'll rise up

I'll rise unafraid

I'll rise up

And I'll do it a thousand times again

For you

All we need, all we need is hope

And for that we have each other

And for that we have each other

We will rise

We will rise

We'll rise, oh oh

We'll rise

I'll rise up

Rise like the day

I'll rise up

In spite of the ache

I will rise a thousands times again

And we'll rise up

Rise like the waves

We'll rise up

In spite of the ache

We'll rise up

And we'll do it a thousands times again

For you"

Andra Day - Rise Up

Was Olympic Marathoner Amy Bechtel A Victim Of A Serial Killer?

Amy Joy Wroe Bechtel

She was shy, quiet, disciplined and goal-oriented. She enjoyed rock climbing and amateur photography in addition to running, and hoped to someday be an Olympic marathoner.

She was born on August 4th, 1972 in Santa Barbara, California to Duane and JoAnne Wroe. She graduated from the University of Wyoming, where she met her husband, Steve Bechtel. 

They both had degrees in exercise physiology. They were married in 1996 when Amy was 24 years old. 

The couple were avid fitness enthusiasts. Amy loved running while Steve loved climbing. They moved to Lander, Wyoming, because its rugged terrain made it a perfect training ground for them. Lander was a small town with a population of population around 7,000. 

In college, Amy was a competitive long distance runner, and hoped to try out for the 2000 Summer Olympics. 

Amy and Steve both worked part-time at Wild Iris, the local climbing shop, and Amy also waited tables at the Sweetwater Grill and taught a youth weight-lifting class at Wind River Fitness Center. 

They had recently bought a home of their own and planned to move in sometime during late July 1997. For the time being the couple was staying in an apartment. 

On was July 24th, 1997, at 9:30 a.m. Steve left to go rock climbing with a friend while Amy left to teach fitness. She told Steve that she was going to run errands for the new house after class. Amy was seen at a local photo shop at approximately 2:30 p.m. After that she went to Gallery 331, where she spoke to the proprietor, Greg Wagner. She seemed to be in a hurry and looked at her watch several times.

Authorities believe that Amy then drove to the Shoshone National Forest to practice the course of an upcoming 10K run she was enrolled to compete in. A woman resembling Amy was seen running along Loop Road wearing black shorts similar to those she had worn earlier that day.

At 4:30 p.m., Steve returned to an empty apartment after spending the day with his friend Sam Lightner  rock climbing in the mountains above Dubois. He then allegedly spent the rest of the day moving things from their apartment to their new house.

Around 8:15 p.m., Steve visited his neighbors, Todd and Amy Skinner, who were cooking dinner. He didn't seem to worried when he asked them if they'd his wife.

At 10:30 p.m., Amy still was not home yet, so Steve called police.

"Uh, yeah, hey, I’ve got a person missing here, I think, and I wondered if you had a spare around anyplace?” said Steve.

At around 11 p.m., Steve went back over to the Skinner's, whom had just gotten back from a movie. The Skinners went out to look for Amy while Steve stayed behind in case she called or came home. The Skinners drove along several roads that Amy liked to frequent on her jogs.  

At around 1 a.m. on the 25th, after driving on Loop Road for about an hour, the Skinners found Amy's white Toyota Tercel wagon is parked by the side of the road where the Loop Road splinters out to the smaller, pine-shrouded Burnt Gulch turnoff. It had stormed in the afternoon the day before. There were puddles below the driver’s door and behind the vehicle, but no footprints, no tire tracks in the mud. The Skinners then called Steve.

Inside Amy's car were her $180 sunglasses, her car keys left on the driver’s seat, and Amy's to-do list. According to the list,  she had already contacted phone and electric companies to have services turned on at her and her husband’s newly purchased home, dropped off the recyclables from the gym where she worked at the recycling center and been to the photo store. There were other things she hadn’t yet done, or at least hadn’t yet checked off the list. The thing at the very bottom of the list was run. Only Amy's green Eagle Creek wallet was missing.

Steve and two dozen of his friends started the search. Later that day there were ATVs, dogs, dirt bikes, and over 100 volunteers showed up. The next day horses and helicopters joined in. Eventually, more than 500 people covered a twenty-mile radius searching for Amy. The only that was found was a footprint similar to her sneaker on Loop Road, but it was lost before police could retrieve it. After eight days, the massive search was called off. And that is when the area around Amy's car was declared a crime scene.

A female camper claimed she had seen a blue pickup truck racing through the forest with a strange blonde woman in the passenger seat. She claimed that she saw it the next day during the search. Later, she identified that truck as Steve's. However, Steve made a phone call from his home at 4:43 p.m., the same time as the sighting. 

Investigators found several journals in Amy and Steve's home. In them Steve wrote about an apparent need for control in his journal and also penned an undated poem that revolved around murdering a person and then hiding the remains. Steve claimed the journals had comprised song lyrics he had written for his band, and that they were unrelated to Amy.

Some described Amy and Steve's relationship as idyllic, but others stated that Steve was jealous and often belittled Amy, and that her demeanor changed whenever she was around him. Amy's brother, Nel, said that she had a suspicious bruise on her arm a few weeks before her disappearance. She said that Steve would get a little "rough" sometimes. She did not act as if it was serious. However, Nel believed that he was abusive.

Investigators noted that there were gaps in Steve's activities for the day that Amy went missing.

On August 1st, 1997, Steve was interrogated by police that falsely claimed to have evidence proving he had murdered his wife, so Steve terminated the interview.

On August 5th, Steve was interrogated by the FBI and accused again of murdering his wife. Steve then retained the counsel of Kent Spence. By then, Steve had already been interviewed four times by investigators. Spence advised Steve not to take the polygraph they were asking him to take.

In late August 1997, the FBI requested satellite photos from NASA of the area on the day of Amy's disappearance, but the photos were of no help.

Amy's family believes Steve might know more about Amy's disappearance than what he has said. They want him to take a lie detector test.

Steve maintains his innocence and believes that authorities focused on him due to a lack of suspects and evidence in Amy's disappearance. Steve remarried several years after Amy vanished and still lives in the house they purchased days before her disappearance.

In 2001, Amy's dad passed away.

In June 2003, a Timex Iron Man digital watch was discovered by a doctor hiking near the Popo Agie River and was turned in to police. It was the same as the watch Amy was last seen wearing, but it has never been proven to have been hers or not.

In 2004, Steve had Amy declared legally dead.

In 2006, Todd Skinner died in a climbing accident.

Dale Wayne Eaton, a convicted murderer on Wyoming's death row, has also been cited as a suspect in the case. According to Eaton's brother, he had been near the area where and at the time Amy disappeared. Eaton had a diminished mental capacity and has never confirmed or denied his involvement in Amy's case.

At the time of her disappearance, Amy was 5'5" - 5'6", 110 pounds with blonde hair and blue eyes. She had pierced ears. She wore a size 8 shoes and gas-permeable contact lenses. Amy had scars on both shins and knees, a checker-shaped scar on her lower back, and a scar on her left cheek approximately half an inch by two inches in size; the scar is only noticeable when she is cold.
She was last seen wearing a yellow or gold tank top, blue or black shorts, Adidas Trail Response sneakers, a Timex Ironman Triathalon watch and a small double wedding band on her left ring finger.

The Search Is Still On For Who Killed Liberty German And Abigail Williams

Paul Etter of Indiana, 55, had initially been accused of kidnapping and raping a woman before killing himself on June 27th of 2019. He fatally shot himself during a standoff with police who were waiting to charge him with the abduction and assault of a 26-year-old woman that he is said to have kept captive on his family's farm. Now it appears he is also a possible suspect in the murders of Liberty German and Abigail Williams.

Liberty German was 14 years-old and Abigail Williams was 13- years-old when they disappeared on February 13th, 2017 after a relative dropped them off for a hike near the Monon High Bridge - an abandoned railroad bridge near their hometown of Delphi. They posted several photos of themselves on Facebook, while crossing the scenic Monon High Bridge. Their bodies were found the next day in a wooden area half-a-mile away. 

A grainy image of what police believe is a suspect in the slayings was captured by Libby on her phone, as he walked along the trail, head down, toward the girls. The suspect was wearing jeans, a blue jacket, a brown hoodie and a hat.

Libby also captured a snippet of audio on her phone of someone giving the command "Down the Hill" to the two teens.

Two sketches were released of possible suspects in the girls' murders. Police say that the second sketch "more accurately" represents the person who killed the teens in February 2017.

Possible Suspect In Custody Of the Murders Of the murders Abigail Williams and Liberty German in Delphi.

Could the Murder of April Tinsley be related to unsolved murders of Abigail Williams and Liberty German?

The Unsolved Murders of Abigail Williams and Liberty German