Colonial Parkway murders suspect identified
On January 20, 2026, the FBI identified Alan Wade Wilmer Sr., who died in 2017, as the suspect in the 1986 murders of Cathleen Thomas and Rebecca Dowski on the Colonial Parkway in Virginia. As of January 21, 2026, Wilmer Sr. has been linked to four victims in the Colonial Parkway murders investigation, including Annamaria Phelps, Daniel Lauer, and Teresa Lynn Spaw Howell, in addition to Thomas and Dowski. Advances in forensic science and DNA analysis were crucial in identifying Wilmer and making these connections. Wilmer Sr. is also linked to at least six other murders and disappearances in Virginia between 1986 and 1989.
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Track this story2026
2 updates
2026
2 updatesThe FBI has linked Alan Wade Wilmer Sr. to two additional victims in the Colonial Parkway murders investigation, bringing the total to four. Wilmer Sr., who died in 2017, is now connected to the deaths of Annamaria Phelps and Daniel Lauer, and Teresa Lynn Spaw Howell, in addition to Cathleen Thomas and Rebecca Dowski. Advances in forensic science and DNA analysis were crucial in making these connections.
The FBI has identified Alan Wade Wilmer Sr. as the suspect in the 1986 murders of Cathleen Thomas and Rebecca Dowski, bringing a resolution to the decades-long cold case. Wilmer, who died in 2017, is also linked to at least six other murders and disappearances in Virginia between 1986 and 1989. Advances in forensic science and DNA analysis were crucial in identifying Wilmer.
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1989
2 updates
1989
2 updatesThe bodies of Annamaria Phelps and Daniel Lauer, who went missing in September 1989, were found at a hunt club property near a rest stop where their car was recovered. Phelps showed evidence of stabbing.
Teresa Lynn Spaw Howell, 29, was found murdered in Hampton, Virginia, hours after leaving a club. She had been sexually assaulted and strangled.
1988
3 updates
1988
3 updatesCassandra Hailey and Keith Call were reported missing after a university party. Their car was recovered on the Colonial Parkway, but their bodies have never been found.
The body of Laurie Ann Powell, 18, who was last seen in March 1988, was recovered from the James River near Ragged Island with multiple stab wounds.
The body of Brian Pettinger, who went missing in December 1987, was recovered from the James River marsh in Suffolk. He had blunt force trauma to the back of his head and drowned. His wrists and ankles were tied, and a rope was around his neck.
1987
1 update
1987
1 updateThe bodies of David Knobling, 20, and Robin Edwards, 14, were found shot to death on the shoreline of Ragged Island. Edwards had been sexually assaulted.
1986
1 update
1986
1 updateThe bodies of Rebecca Dowski, 21, and Cathleen Thomas, 27, were discovered in Thomas's car along the Colonial Parkway. They had been strangled and stabbed, and their throats were cut. Their purses were in the car, which the killer had unsuccessfully tried to torch.
Story began · 40 years ago