One morning in August 1986, a contractor showed up to work on the floors in a vacant house in Williamsburg, Virginia. When he arrived, he found a woman on her side in the mostly-full bathtub. In her wake were a trail of clues: a U.S. Army class ring, a mysterious hat with feathers, and sightings in what were likely her final hours.
Still, investigators have evidence on file from 1986 that may help solve the case.
Courtesy of the Hampton Roads Crime Line
Episode Info
Anyone with information can call the James City County Police Department at 757-253-1800 or the Hampton Roads Crime Line at 1-888-LOCK-U-UP.
Lois West was 24 when she was found dead in an abandoned house on Richmond Road in James City County, Virginia. Courtesy: James City County Police Department.
In August 1986, a contractor arrived at a house on Richmond Road to work on the flooring when he found Lois West in the bathtub. The house had been vacant for weeks. Courtesy: James City County Police Department.
When Lois West was found, she was wearing a U.S. Army Class Ring with the letter ‘S’ etched in blue stone. Courtesy: Photo taken by Audiochuck staff.
Episode Source Material
Original reporting by Kate Mishkin.
- The Daily Press: Former patient’s death is enigma to authorities, by Mark St. John Erickson via Newspapers.com
- The Daily Press (Newport News, VA): Woman in bathtub murdered, police say, by Bob Evans via Newspapers.com.
- The Virginia Gazette (Williamsburg, VA): Unsolved crimes never off minds of investigators, by Jeff Lipton via Newspapers.com.