Roxanne Wood cold case: The mysterious death of a woman who had her throat slit ‘with a filet knife’ in her own kitchen that went unsolved for 30 YEARS

A popular crime documentary series has delved into the gripping true story of a woman who was found with her throat slit in her own kitchen.

Roxanne Wood’s lifeless body was found in 1987 at her home in Niles, Michigan. The 30-year-old had been sexually assaulted, beaten with a frying pan and was bleeding profusely from a neck wound, which police believed was inflicted with a filet. knife.

But her murder went unsolved for nearly 35 years – with husband Terry’s life “damaged beyond repair” after he was plagued by rumors that he was the killer.

In 2022, the real perpetrator would finally be caught and sentenced to a minimum of 23 years behind bars.

Here, FEMAIL exposed the disturbing reality surrounding the case following an episode of 48 hours investigated the ‘unsolvable’ murder of Roxanne Wood.

The gruesome story originated on February 19, 1987 when Roxanne and Terry, who had been married for five years, went out on a date night.

The “happy and content” couple, who had been looking forward to starting a family, met at a restaurant after work before heading to the local bowling alley.

Roxanne, affectionately known as Rock, arrived in separate cars and eager to end things around midnight, kissed her husband goodbye before heading home.

Terry lingered a bit longer, only to arrive at the house just 45 minutes later, where he made a gruesome discovery.

He saw Roxanne’s lifeless body lying on the kitchen floor, pulled up in her nightgown and her underwear pulled down.

She had been beaten with a frying pan and was bleeding profusely from her neck as the scabbard of a fillet knife lay on the floor.

The knife, believed to be the murder weapon, was retrieved from one of the kitchen drawers but was never found.

Detectives told 48 Hours it was a “brutal, vicious murder,” adding: “There are kids who have grown up locking their doors and are scared when they go to bed at night just because of this case.’

Terry hurried to call authorities, but repeatedly yelled at the dispatcher on the other end of the line, taking the apparent aggression as a “red flag” according to investigators.

As police cordoned off the crime scene, Terry was taken to the local station for routine questioning, where he soon requested a lawyer, setting off even more alarm bells.

Authorities couldn’t find any sign of a break-in at the house, with Roxanne’s husband claiming the couple had been having problems with the lock on the back door at the time.

In the course of the investigation, police reportedly found out that both parties were having extramarital affairs and believed jealousy could be a motivation.

But despite their suspicions, they didn’t have enough evidence to move forward with their case against Terry – and the case stalled within months.

However, Terry would be plagued for the next thirty years by speculation that he was the killer. He was said to be viciously taunted by the nickname ‘Slash’ as ​​he walked into local bars, according to witnesses.

DNA had been collected from the crime scene, but was kept in storage because there was not enough technology to process it.

It was finally uploaded to the criminal database in 1999, but there were no immediate hits.

Only in 2021 would the authorities finally make a breakthrough in the case.

Genetic genealogist Gabriella Vargas was able to create a genetic profile based on the killer’s trace DNA — which was only three percent the size of a normal sample that authorities would usually use — to build a family tree .

And, along with the help of ancestry sites, she was eventually able to narrow it down to just three possible suspects who were brothers.

Detectives quickly ruled out two of the siblings, but the last potential candidate – Patrick Gilham – had a history of violence and sex crimes.

At the time of Roxanne’s death, he also lived only a few miles from the Wood house.

Gilham, who had a history of drinking and drug use, was involved in a similarly brutal incident eight years before Roxanne’s death.

In 1979, he had assaulted the mother of two, Maureen Farag, who had worked as a high school art teacher.

Her husband, Robert, had asked her to leave a side door of their house open because he had forgotten his keys.

But when he eventually returned, he was greeted by a sea of ​​police cars as Maureen recounted what had happened.

She revealed that she had been in bed but heard a noise downstairs and went to investigate.

It was then that Maureen saw a man rummaging through her bag and when she confronted him, he pushed her to the ground.

The attacker attempted to sexually assault her before eventually fleeing with Maureen’s bag, leaving few traces.

But Gilham was pulled over by police for a traffic violation about a week later, when officers spotted Maureen’s credit cards in the front seat.

The perpetrator claimed to have blacked out during the attack, but came to and found his pants around his ankles.

He pleaded guilty to burglary and unlawful deviant conduct before being sentenced to 14 years in Indiana state prison.

Gilham served only seven years, while Roxanne was killed just four months after his release.

Despite their suspicions, authorities were eager to gather more evidence to build a solid case against him.

Undercover agents were eventually sent to collect DNA samples from the suspect and picked up one of his discarded cigarette butts, which he had disposed of outside a laundromat.

And once tested, it matched the sample left at the crime scene in 1987.

Gilham was bought for an interview and photos of Roxanne were shown, causing him to tense up and his hands to shake.

The investigation continued and Gilham was formally arrested in February 2022 – just days after the 35th anniversary of Roxanne’s death.

Footage from his interviews shows him telling detectives, “I can’t believe I did it, if I did it at all. But you say I did…

‘I am a monster. If I did, that’s a monster.’

He said repeatedly that he did not remember committing the heinous crime, but later pleaded no murder over Roxanne’s death.

In April 2022, he appeared in court for sentencing, where Gilham himself said: ‘I can’t believe I did what I did and I pray for them every night.

‘I’m so sorry. I just hope that someday with God’s help they can forgive me.”

The then 67-year-old was sentenced to a minimum of 23 years behind bars. With good behavior, he will be eligible for parole in 2040.

Roxanne’s husband Terry was acquitted, which left him ‘very emotional’, but he had suffered a lot in the years since her death.

His sister-in-law, Janet Wood, said in court that his “life was damaged beyond repair” as a result of the “terrible rumours” that he was the killer.