John D. Miller is behind bars for murdering an 8-year-old girl, April Marie Tinsley, whose body was found in a ditch in Fort Wayne, Indiana.
On the afternoon of April 1, 1988, April, who was a first-grade student at Fairfield Elementary School, was walking to her home in the 300 block of West Williams Street when she suddenly remembered leaving an umbrella at her friend’s house, according to the FBI.
April turned around and began walking toward East Hoagland Avenue, which was the last time anybody saw her alive.
When she didn’t make it home in time for dinner, her mother contacted the Allen County Police Department and reported April missing, which prompted a city-wide search.
Over 200 police officers and volunteers joined together to help search for April, but to no avail.
April’s mother told ABC21 WPTA News that “there were a lot of times where I had people say to me, you should’ve kept her home.
“You should’ve kept her home. You can’t prison your own child; you gotta let them outside and play.”
On April 4, 1988, April was found dead. A jogger in DeKalb County discovered her body in a ditch, which was located on the side of a rural Spencerville road, about 20 miles from her home.
An autopsy showed that April died of asphyxiation.
It was also determined that she had been sexually assaulted, as traces of DNA were found on her undergarments.
Fort Wayne authorities searched the database for a match but were unsuccessful.
The mayor of Fort Wayne, Indiana, Paul Helmke, told IndyStar that “it’s one of the tragedies that happened that you wished you could have prevented, wished you could have done something about, wished you could have helped bring the closure.”
In 1990, the killer began taunting the police and the Fort Wayne community.
He left disturbing handwritten notes, nude photos, and used condoms on the bicycles of three girls, as well as inside several mailboxes in the area.
One note read, “I killed April Marie Tinsley. I will kill again.”
Another note read, “Hi, honey. I been [SIC] watching you. I am the same person that kidnapped, raped, and murdered April Tinsley. You are my next victim.”
Investigators tested the condoms, and they matched the DNA that was found on April’s body.
With newly discovered evidence, detectives were able to release a composite sketch to the public, based on the DNA profile, but it didn’t bring them any closer to finding out who killed April.
Investigators received a break in the case three decades later, on May 11, 2018, when a DNA sample was sent to Parabon NanoLabs, a forensics company in Reston, Virginia.
Parabon NanoLabs used genealogy websites on July 2, 2018, that linked to two men: John D. Miller, then 59, and his brother.
Detectives said they began “staking out” Miller’s mobile home in Grabill, Indiana, watching his every move.
When they rummaged through his trash, they discovered used condoms and sent them in for testing.
The results revealed that the DNA found on April’s body and the DNA found on the condom matched.
On July 16, 2018, Miller was arrested at his home and subsequently booked into the Allen County Jail on charges of kidnapping, child molestation, and murder.
He was held without bond, according to Wane 15.
While in custody, Miller confessed to killing April. He told detectives that he kidnapped her when he saw her walking on Hoagland Avenue.
He then drove her to his mobile home and raped her.
Miller said he decided to choke her to death so she wouldn’t tell anyone what he had done. Afterward, he said he dumped her body in a ditch.
The Journal Gazette reported that Miller was set to go on trial in February 2019, but he instead took a plea deal and pleaded guilty to murdering April Marie Tinsley.
In December 2018, Miller was sentenced to 80 years in prison. He received 50 years for murder and 30 years for child molestation.