Murders of Katherine and Sheila Lyon
American murder case (1975) / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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The murders of Katherine and Sheila Lyon were the abduction, sexual abuse and murder of two sisters – aged 10 and 12 respectively – who disappeared from a shopping center in Wheaton, Maryland, on March 25, 1975.[4]
Katherine and Sheila Lyon | |
---|---|
Born | Katherine Mary Lyon (1964-03-29)March 29, 1964 Sheila Mary Lyon (1962-03-30)March 30, 1962 |
Disappeared | March 25, 1975 Wheaton, Maryland, U.S. 39.0367°N 77.0551°W / 39.0367; -77.0551 |
Died | c. March 26, 1975 |
Cause of death | Undetermined. Homicide |
Resting place | Unknown. Possibly Taylor's Mountain, Thaxton, Virginia[1] 37.3899°N 79.6673°W / 37.3899; -79.6673 (approximate) |
Nationality | American |
Other names | The Lyon Sisters[2] |
Occupation | Students |
Known for | Missing persons Murder victims |
Height | Katherine: 4 ft 8 in (1.42 m) Sheila: 5 ft 2 in (1.57 m) |
Distinguishing features | Katherine: Caucasian female. 85 pounds. Blonde hair, blue eyes. Birthmark on inside of upper thigh. Sheila: Caucasian female. 100 pounds. Blonde hair, blue eyes. Far-sighted. Wears spectacles with gold wire rims.[3] |
Described as a crime which shattered the innocence of the suburbs of Maryland,[5] the disappearance of Katherine and Sheila Lyon initiated one of the largest police investigations in the history of the Washington metropolitan area, although their fate would remain unknown for thirty-eight years, by which time their disappearance had long become a cold case.[6]
A re-investigation of the sisters' disappearance in 2013 led detectives to charge a convicted child sex offender named Lloyd Lee Welch, Jr. with the first-degree murder of the Lyon sisters. Welch was indicted for their murders in July 2015; he pleaded guilty to two counts of first-degree murder in September 2017 via a plea bargain in which he admitted to participating in the girls' abduction, but not their sexual assault and murder. He was sentenced to two concurrent terms of 48 years' imprisonment.[7]
The bodies of Katherine and Sheila Lyon have never been found,[7] although authorities believe their bodies were burned and buried upon a remote mountain in Bedford County, Virginia.[7] Furthermore, prosecutors have named other members of Welch's family – including his uncle[8] – as persons of interest in the girls' abduction, abuse and murder, although no other individuals have been charged due to insufficient evidence.[9]