The tabloid legacy of the criminal justice system in the 1990s can be summed up in two words: Simpson and JonBenet.
Now it appears that one of the two cases may be definitively solved. CNN is reporting that authorities have arrested a suspect in the 1996 murder of JonBenet Ramsey, a childhood beauty queen who was brutally murdered in the basement of her family’s Colorado home.
This news has been confirmed by two law enforcement officials who talked to CNN earlier.
According to the report, an investigator from the Boulder County District Attorney’s office apprehended the suspect in Bangkok, Thailand and is working to bring him back at this time.
The identity of the suspect has not been released, but MSNBC reported that the suspect was held on unrelated sex charges, according to federal officials.
For years, rumors persisted that John and Patsy Ramsey, JonBenet’s parents, were somehow responsible for the murder. The Ramsey’s claimed to have found a ransom note in the family’s home demanding money for their daughter’s return.
Patsy Ramsey died of ovarian cancer in June.
No further details are available yet, but a press conference is expected later today.
This case has rocked American popular culture for 10 years. It has been the subject is countless tabloid magazine covers, dozens of rumors and until now, no arrests.