Top 10 crimes solved with the help of lie detection services
Over the last few decades, there have been a series of fascinating and often gruesome criminal cases around the world, in which lie detection services such as polygraph tests have played a significant role. Although South Africa, like most countries, only accepts polygraphs and lie detection services as supporting evidence in court when it comes to criminal cases, it does not limit the potential for these methods to assist in solving a crime. In just a few minutes of reading, check out some of the most tragic and bizarre cases that were cracked wide open with lie detection services.
The murder of Jorelys Rivera solved with lie detection services
It was the day after the body of a young woman by the name of Jorelys Rivera was found in a trash compacter in suburban Atlanta, USA, that suspect Ryan Brunn was brought in for police interrogation. Brunn was confident at first, but as time wore on this façade began to crumble. It was Keith Sitton, a special agent from Georgia, who decided to hook-up Brunn to a polygraph machine – and after which began to fire off various questions to the 20-year-old suspect. Of course, Brunn denied any involvement with Rivera’s murder.
Despite his efforts to appear innocent, Brunn scored poorly in his test (particularly the questions about his alleged involvement in Rivera’s death and the disposal of her corpse). This test as well as supporting evidence ensured that Brunn was arrested the following day for his involvement in Rivera’s murder.
The case of Renee Walker investigated with lie detection services
Murdered through multiple stab wounds, 31-year-old Renee Walker’s body was found in her Manhattan apartment three days after her death. At first, police were stumped as to finding suspects for the murder of the single mother and it appeared that the case might go unsolved. However, a certain detection Charles Matthew joined the case and ended up solving it in an unbelievable time frame of 4 days. Matthew managed to track down a suspect by the name of Matthew Johnson, and proceeded to hook him up to a lie detection machine and conduct 3 separate tests which spanned over an excruciating 11 hours.
In each case, all results pointed to Johnson’s apparent guilt. Consequently, Johnson was charged with the murder with little to no supporting evidence – which came back to bite the detective and the law when young Johnson appealed his case and alleged that he was coerced into taking the test and giving a confession. The court ruled that Johnson was to be given another test by a different lie detection services professional, which he passed. After this, Johnson walked free.
The Weleetka murders
The Weleetka murders, one of the most notorious murder cases of 2008, was ultimately put to rest with the assistance of a polygraph test. According to the Oklahoma police, who were charged with the investigation, the lie detection test was a crucial piece of the investigation. This case is a special one, as the guilty party was not even a suspect on the police’s radar until he agreed to take a polygraph test. Kevin Sweat, fiancée of the missing woman around whom the investigation was centred, participated in a lie detection test that brought the investigation to his father’s plot of land.
There, they found the body of his fiancé as well as several .40 calibre casings (those matching another murder in the region that had until then gone unsolved). Sweat was ultimately sentenced for the murder of his fiancé as well as another Weleekta woman.
The case of Joseph Cambron
On the 30th of September, 2014, in the town of Louisville, local detectives began investigating the fatal stabbing of a 12-year-old boy. One suspect, 21-year-old Joseph Cambron was asked to participate in a polygraph test, which he did not pass. The results indicated that he was a prime suspect and was directly involved in the death of the young boy. Using these results, detectives managed to get a confession out of Cambron, an admittance that he was responsible for the stabbing of the victim.
Detectives also recovered a 7-inch knife from Cambron that had allegedly been used in the murder of the child. During Cambron’s initial interview and lie detection test, he revealed that he had been accused of the sexual abuse of at least 5 juveniles – marking him as a dangerous individual. Although the polygraph test results were not allowed to be utilised in the court, supporting evidence led to Cambron’s unwinding.
A question of Luke Mitchell’s innocence
A man previously convicted for the murder of a young girl in Scotland managed to petition for a lie detection test to contest his verdict which he believed to be unjust. This test was eventually released on YouTube. The lie detection services professional asked Mitchell the following questions among others:
“Did you stab Jodi (the victim) on June 30th, 2003?”
Were you present when Jodi was stabbed?”
Mitchell answered “no” to both of these questions and the test and examiner both established that he was telling the truth and to this day, he continues to profess his innocence. Unfortunately for him, the polygraph test remains inadmissible in the Scottish court – which means that Mitchell will stay locked up until there is further evidence available that proves his alleged innocence.
The interesting case of millionaire Adrian Prout
47-year-old millionaire Adrian Prout was a suspect in the murder of his 55-year-old wife (from whom he was separated), whose body was found in a woodland grave. In March 2012, it was reported that Prout had taken and failed a lie detector test as part of the investigation. The test was actually paid for by Prout’s new fiancée, Debbie Garlick, in the hopes of helping Prout’s case and proving his innocence. However, Garlick’s efforts backfired severely.
Prout ultimately failed the test, and surprised detectives with his confession that the test results were indeed valid. The results then served as an important piece of supporting evidence in the case, which led to Prout being put behind bars. Shockingly, Prout was reported to having not shown an ounce of emotion or regret when admitting to the crime shortly after the test.
The case of David Pietz
In 2006, the body of Nicole Pietz was found in the woods near Washington, and it was determined that the cause of death was strangulation. She was found about 1 week after she had been reported missing. Her husband, David Pietz (who was 36 years old at the time) became the primary suspect in the trial. During the court case, several women approached officials to inform them that they had been engaging in romantic relationships with the accused, as well as made note that Pietz had been prone to spiking his wife’s drinks in the past in order to get her to engage in polyamorous relations with the women.
Pietz was put through a lie detector test, which he failed. When asked whether he would participate in a second test, he quickly declined the offer, which made him ever more suspicious in the eyes of the detectives. After this, officials were convinced that Pietz was the culprit, and they did not let him out of their sights. This led to the garnering of additional evidence that ensured Pietz’s sentencing and lengthy stay behind bars.
The chilling case of Richard Madden
Tragedy struck when a 10-year-old was murdered in Cecil County in 2013. Her body was discovered a mere 60 yards away from her home less than a day after she was reported missing. She had been living in a Port Deposit home with a couple whom she considered to be her grandparents, but who were not blood relatives. Eventually, a certain Richard Madden was encountered by the police, and became a person of interest in the case.
It turned out that the home was owned by his stepparents who had been taking care of the young girl. Madden agreed to take a lie detector test that was proposed by the investigators. Madden arrogantly agreed in order to prove his “innocence,” but the move backfired significantly. Naturally, he failed the test and it was discovered that Madden lied about his involvement in the young girl’s disappearance.
After the test poked holes in his argument of innocence, investigators were able to link DNA from the murder scene to Madden, and he was sentenced for the murder of the young girl.
The case of Raymond Clark
A short while before her wedding in 2009, Yale graduate student Annie Le May was reported missing and ultimately found to be murdered at the age of 24. She had been working on research pertaining to treatments for chronic diseases before her disappearance. Investigators identified several potential suspects, but when they turned their attention to 26-year-old Raymond Clark, who had worked as an animal research assistant alongside the deceased, that the case began to show some development. Detectives conducted a lie detector test on Clark who ultimately failed it, leading the police to zoning their entire investigation onto him.
These efforts led to the discovery of Le May’s body, which was found inside a wall at her research laboratory. Tragically, her body was discovered on the exact day that she was supposed to be married. Clark was sentenced to 44 years in prison for her murder.
The murder of Angela Coleman
In April of 2001, a 36-year-old woman by the name of Angela Coleman was found dead in an abandoned house located in Columbia. The cause of death was determined to be strangulation. Her body had then been set alight in what was assumed to be an attempt to destroy evidence of the act. Her murderer had never been caught and the case grew cold. That is until 7 years later when DNA had advanced some, when a DNA profile for the case was developed which pointed to a certain Clarence Terrelle Myers.
Upon investigation, it turned out that Myers had been an inmate at the Volusia County jail, and was soon interviewed by police. Myers alleged that while he did not have anything to do with Coleman’s murder or setting her corpse alight, he had engaged in sexual acts with the deceased after finding her dead (which was why his DNA was found in relation to the scene, he alleged).
Naturally this was hard to believe and detectives felt at wit’s end. This was when they reached out to a lie detection services professional with the help of some Daytona Beach Detectives. The results of the test was thus: Myers had shown deception on all questions relevant to the crime. When confronted with his failed test, Myers admitted that he was responsible for everything ill that had befallen the victim.
Lie detection services offered by Polygraph Truths
As you can see, lie detection services have played a significant role in the closing of various criminal cases. Although in most countries polygraph results are inadmissible in court, they certainly help investigators and other officials pick up important trails that they may not have been able to otherwise. Should you wish to utilise lie detection services in relation to a criminal case, we at Polygraph Truths are trusted professionals and examiners who can offer reliable and thorough lie detector tests.
