Murder of April Tinsley
April Marie Tinsley | |
|---|---|
Photograph of April Tinsley | |
| Born | March 18, 1980 Fort Wayne, Indiana, U.S. |
| Died | April 1, 1988 (aged 8) Fort Wayne, Indiana, U.S. |
| Cause of death | Asphyxiation |
| Body discovered | April 4, 1988, Spencerville, Indiana, U.S. |
| Resting place | Greenlawn Memorial Park, Fort Wayne, Allen County, Indiana, U.S. 41°03′45″N 85°13′45″W / 41.06250°N 85.22917°W |
| Known for | Victim of child murder |
April Marie Tinsley (March 18, 1980 – April 1, 1988) was an eight-year-old girl from Fort Wayne, Indiana, United States, who was kidnapped, raped, and murdered in 1988. Her killer left several anonymous messages and notes in the Fort Wayne area between 1990 and 2004, openly boasting about April's murder and threatening to kill again.
Via forensic genealogy, the Fort Wayne Police Department (FWPD) identified April's murderer as John Miller in July 2018. On December 21, Miller pleaded guilty and was sentenced to eighty years in prison on the charges of child molestation (rape) and murder.
April's case was investigated by the FWPD and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and was covered in the television series America's Most Wanted, Crime Watch Daily and The Genetic Detective, and on the cable network Investigation Discovery.