threat to public safety

When JonBenet was murdered in 1996, community officials appeared to downplay the potential of a killer on the loose in Boulder, so as not to 'alarm the public'. Not so in the case of 19 year-old Vanessa Pham, where the authorities have been straight-up with the public about the potential that in June 2010 an unknown murder - even a serial killer - took this lovely girls life. And Vanessa's killer, like the one that tortured and murdered JonBenet, is still on the loose - -

Police: Vanessa Pham's Unknown Killer a 'Threat' to Public Safety
Published in the Falls Church News-Press
By Natalie Bedell


A cousin of the 19-year-old Falls Church woman murdered last month described herself Monday as a “wreck” who’s been playing detective from her Norwalk, Conn. home while the stabbing of her relative, Vanessa Pham, goes unsolved by Fairfax County police.

Theories ranging from a slaying by a member of nearby homeless communities to the plotted jealous rage of a female acquaintance are being mulled by friends and a local private investigator. But Fairfax County Officer Don Gotthardt said Tuesday police are now convinced the killer is an unknown person, having already eliminated any potential suspects from Pham’s inner circle.

“I don’t want to scare the public, but we believe this is a whodunit,” he added.

Monday marked the one-month anniversary of her death, a reminder too her murderer is still on the loose...

“I don’t want this to be a JonBenét Ramsey-type case, where no one ever knows what happened,” [Vanessa's cousin Tracy To] she said. “That would make me a very angry and bitter person for the rest of my life. I need to have closure.” [read more]