Summary
Overview
This episode investigates the 1989 murder of Marina Ramos, whose body was discovered in the Arizona desert by tourists. For over 30 years, she remained unidentified as a Jane Doe until investigator Lori Miller reopened the cold case in 2021. The episode traces Marina's life, her mysterious disappearance with her two young daughters, and the shocking discovery that her children were abandoned in a California park just days after her murder. The case remains unsolved, with investigators seeking public help to identify key suspects.
Discovery in the Desert
Four friends from Ohio stumbled upon what they initially thought was a dead animal near a yucca tree in the Arizona desert on December 12, 1989. Upon closer inspection, they discovered the naked body of a young woman who had been violently murdered just hours before. The remote crime scene, located miles from any highway in northern Arizona near Nevada, contained remarkably well-preserved evidence including tire tracks, drag marks, and two sets of detailed shoe prints that would prove crucial to the investigation.
- Four tourists discovered a woman's body in the Arizona desert on December 12, 1989, initially mistaking it for a dead animal
- The victim had been murdered violently 6-24 hours before discovery, dying from blood loss with blunt force injuries and throat slashes
- Crime scene contained exceptionally clear shoe prints - a Nike size 10.5 and a size 7, suggesting two perpetrators
- Tire tracks and drag marks showed killers drove in, dragged the victim from the car, ran her over, then slashed her throat
- One perpetrator walked away to use the bathroom before they left, showing they weren't in a hurry
" It is a naked woman laying dead in the road. And it's likely only because of them that she was ever found. "
" After they killed her, that is when one of them walks a little ways away and proceeds to go to the bathroom out there in the desert. "
The Jane Doe Investigation and Failed Leads
Initial investigation efforts in 1989-1990 struggled to identify the victim despite having physical evidence. The autopsy revealed she had recently given birth and had other children, yet no missing persons reports matched her description. A potential connection to serial killer Joseph Michael Neesonson was explored but ultimately ruled out. The case went cold for three decades until 2019 when a special cold case unit was formed.
- Autopsy showed the victim had milk in her ducts indicating recent childbirth and had given birth to other children previously
- No drugs or alcohol were found in her system, contradicting initial assumptions she was a 'Vegas girl'
- FBI suggested possible connection to serial killer Joseph Michael Neesonson who committed similar crimes in Washington in 1989
- Neesonson had ties to Mojave County Arizona and lived there with Henry Staub in 1987
- Case went completely cold from 1991 to 2021 with no investigative activity
" This was so over-the-top violent that it feels personal. I mean, was it sexually motivated? I mean, it could have been because, I mean, she's found naked, right? But they don't find clear evidence of sexual assault. "
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