In the fall of 1991, just as the season was starting to change, a couple fishing at sunrise at a small lake in Fayetteville, North Carolina, noticed something floating near the surface of the water. At first, they thought it was a blow-up doll. But upon closer inspection, the couple saw hair on the legs and realized it wasn’t a doll. It was a human being—a person who would be identified as 24-year-old Jimmy Riddle.
Jimmy was also known to some of their friends as Jamie, but how much their identity played into their death isn’t clear. What the police have to go on are potential witness statements, items left at the crime scene, and maybe, just maybe, DNA.
Nearly 35 years after Riddle’s killing, there’s a new detective on the case…a detective determined to unearth the answers once and for all.
Courtesy of Fayetteville Police Department
Episode Info
If you know anything about the murder of Jimmy or Jamie Riddle in Fayetteville, North Carolina, please call the Fayetteville Police Department at 910-433-1529. You can also call Fayetteville/Cumberland County Crime Stoppers with tips at 910-483-8477. Anonymous tips for an open/unsolved case through Fayetteville/Cumberland County Crimestoppers could receive up to a $5,000 reward for information leading to the arrest.
Please note: While writing this episode, our team worked with trans sensitivity readers and editors to ensure that we address Riddle’s episode and this topic with respect
A photo of Riddle. Courtesy: Riddle Family
Riddle as a child. Courtesy: Riddle Family
Tire tracks from the crime scene photos. Courtesy: Fayetteville Police Department.
A photo of Riddle. Courtesy: Riddle Family
The suspect sketch of one of the last people to have been seen with Riddle alive. Courtesy: Fayetteville Police Department
The suspect sketch of one of the last people to have been seen with Riddle alive. Courtesy: Fayetteville Police Department
A current image of College Lake where Riddle's body was found. Photo taken by audiochuck staff.
Ann Maas and Max Riddle. Photo taken by audiochuck staff
Our reporter Annie Roderique-Jones, interviewing Max Riddle. Photo taken by audiochuck staff.
Episode Source Material
Original reporting by Annie Roderique-Jones
