'We know who killed her': PI blows the lid on mysterious 1994 killing of ... trends now
A private investigator who has dedicated nearly a decade of her life to unmasking the killer of a 19-year-old Arkansas student believes the suspect is soon to face charges.
LaDonna Humphrey is an author and advocate based near the city of Fort Smith, where Melissa 'Missy' Witt grew up and was last seen alive.
The teen vanished on December 1, 1994, after going to surprise her mother at a bowling alley. Six weeks later, hunters discovered her naked body in the Ozark National Forest.
'We are very confident that we know who killed Melissa, which is a huge place to be,' Humphrey told the U.S. Sun.
The author has dedicated the past eight years of her life to scrutinizing the cold case in the hopes of preventing the teenager from becoming 'just another female victim.'
Melissa 'Missy' Witt, 19, vanished from the parking lot of a bowling alley in Fort Smith, Arkansas in December 1994
Her body was discovered by hunters in Ozark National Forest (pictured) six weeks later. She was naked and without her belongings
LaDonna Humphrey, an author and private investigator, has dedicated nearly a decade of her life to hunting Witt's killer - and believes the suspect will face charges 'imminently'
As a mother to five daughters herself, Humphrey feels personally responsible to find Witt's killer - and believes he will be charged 'imminently.'
On the day of her disappearance, the teen was planning to meet her mother after an argument but never made it inside the bowling alley.
Investigators found blood in the parking lot and apparent signs of a struggle.
An autopsy showed she had been strangled before she was dumped in the forest, around 45 miles from home. Her clothing and belongings were never found.
Humphrey has written several books about the decades-long cold case, and the third and final installment features interviews with members of law enforcement who investigated the case.
The book, which is out later this month, lays out three pieces of evidence Humphrey believes will lead to the identification of the real murderer.
For years, police held convicted killer and rapist, Larry Swearingen, as the prime suspect in Witt's case.
Swearingen had been found guilty of the 1998 murder of another 19-year-old, Melissa Trotter, in neighboring Texas.
He professed his innocence up to the day of his execution in August 2019, and Humphrey herself is convinced he was not involved in Witt's case.
