court clerk Nancy BennallackOnly a few weeks left until her wedding. The young woman spent all her spare time with her fiancé, Farris Salamy, the chief public defender.
The night of October 25, 1970 was not much different. They ate dinner together, chatted until the late hours of the night and talked about their marriage plans.
Salamy left Bennallack’s Bell Street apartment at around 11:30 p.m. to go to his own home. This was the last time the young man saw his fiancee.
When Bennallack didn’t show up for work the next day, one of his friends got curious and decided to stop by the 28-year-old woman’s apartment.
He knocked for a long time on the door, but no one opened it. Then he asked the manager of the apartment for help. When the manager opened the door with his spare key, they were faced with a sight that they could not even see in their nightmares.
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Bennallack lay on his bed, covered in blood. His body was full of cuts. His attacker had slit his throat so deeply that his head was almost detached from his body.
So who could have killed this woman in the prime of her life in the most horrific way imaginable?
This question was answered recently, nearly 52 years after the murder. The Nancy Bennallack case, considered Sacramento’s oldest unsolved case, is finally closed.
“WE NEVER FORGET SUCH CRIMES”
Sacramento Deputy Sheriff Jim Barnes described the August 10 statement as “historic” and said, “When crimes like this are committed, we never forget.”
Indeed, the Bennallack case was reviewed many times over the course of 52 years, but the police were always unsuccessful in finding the murderer.
Finally developed a few years ago genetic geneology Thanks to the technology, Bennallack’s murder also came to light. “Without this vehicle, we wouldn’t be here today,” Sacramento District Attorney Anne Marie Schubert told the press.
Thanks to this technology, Golden State Killer Joseph James Deangelo, one of the most well-known serial killers in the USA, was caught in 2018. Since then, more than 150 cases have been resolved thanks to DNA technology. In this photo, Deangelo is actually seen sleeping standing in the courtroom, not metaphorically.
Thanks to this technology, Golden State Killer Joseph James Deangelo, one of the most well-known serial killers in the USA, was caught in 2018. Since then, more than 150 cases have been resolved thanks to DNA technology. In this photo, Deangelo is actually seen sleeping standing in the courtroom, not metaphorically.
TAPE IS ADHESIVE TO HIDE FINGERPRINTS
Evidence from 1970 to the present was rather limited. Retired Captain Micki Links, who volunteered with the Sacramento Sheriff’s Office, announced that they determined that Bennallack was killed at some point between 11:30 pm on the night of October 25 and the early hours of October 26.
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The suspect had climbed onto the balcony of the second-floor apartment and entered through the sliding door. Evidence showed that the man had bandages on his fingers and had a hard time climbing the balcony.
His fiancée, Salamy, testified to the police that Bennallack was in bed when he left the house, and the sliding door was wide enough for the cat in the house to get in and out.
Bennallack had more than 30 stab wounds on his body. Some wounds on his hands and arms indicated that he was wrestling with his attacker.
One of the most important pieces of evidence in the detectives’ hands was traces of blood. These tracks, which started on the balcony, continued on the pavement below, looped through the apartments and ended in the parking lot. The conclusion of the police was that the attacker, who was cut off during the struggle, left the scene in a vehicle.
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Following the development of DNA technology in the late 90’s, a DNA profile was obtained from blood samples in 2004. This profile was uploaded to the CODIS databases, which contain the DNA of people detained, arrested or imprisoned in the USA, but to no avail.
AND FINALLY THE MURDERER IS FOUND
Another 15 years have passed. In November 2019, the Sacramento Sheriff’s Office unsolved cases unit and the Sacramento Attorney’s Office launched a forensic genetics genetics investigation.
The investigation bore fruit roughly 2 years later, on 21 July 2022. The cops managed to identify the suspect as Richard John Davis. Davis was 27 at the time of the murder and lived on the same estate as Bennallack.
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After revealing the suspect’s identity, Prosecutor Schubert continued:
“They say that justice can sleep for years and wake up when it is least expected. Miracle is nothing but the sleeping justice of a different time coming to make up for the losses of those who were brutally abandoned.
“When we talk about sleeping justice and miracles, there’s no doubt that justice has been sleeping for 50 years in this case. Over the years, the clerks we’ve met at the courthouse often asked us, ‘What’s going on in Nancy’s case?’ Nancy was never forgotten, she was always at the top of our list.”
Bennallack’s murder was also associated with the murder of another young woman in those years. Judith Hakari, a 23-year-old nurse, was murdered just seven months before Bennallack. Both women lived in the Arden region. The distance between Bennallack’s apartment and Hakari’s apartment was only 250 meters. On the night of March 7, Hakari was abducted from the parking lot of the apartment while returning from his shift at the hospital. The interior of her car, which was spotted by her boyfriend, was full of scuff marks, she. The body of the young woman was found 7 weeks later, buried in a laundry bag in a field outside the city. Hakari had suffered severe blows to the face, strangled and raped.
“OPENLY PLANNED”
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Even if the identity of the murderer is found, it is not possible to say that he will be punished. Because Davis was determined to have died on November 2, 1997 in Sacramento. It was stated that there was no crime in Davis’s criminal record other than drunk driving once.
It is not clear why Davis killed Bennallack, but it is known that the windows of his apartment on the estate overlook the young woman’s apartment. Detectives suggested that Davis might be interested in Bennallack, but Links stressed that this was just a guess.
Richard John Davis
“But it’s clear that he planned this attack in advance. He had tapes wrapped around all his fingers to hide his fingerprints. If he were alive, we’d probably be talking about premeditated murder today,” Links said.
Addressing Bennallack’s family who were present at the press conference, Links said: “Unfortunately, because Richard Davis is dead, justice will not be served through the courts. But, Linda and Tom, I hope this brings some peace to you, Nancy and your family.” .
Bennallack’s sister, Linda Cox, said in a written statement, thanking the authorities who solved the murder, “Honestly, I was about to lose hope that Nancy’s case could be closed.”
The reason why Detective Micki Links returned to work at the Sacramento Sheriff’s Office for 30 years, about 10 years after retiring, is because of the establishment of the Unsolved Murder Investigations unit. “I wanted to go back and work on these files again, because I had a heartfelt connection to these cases,” Links said in an interview with the US in 2020. For example, Links stated that he started working on the Bennallack case in 2005 and said, “After all these years, if there is someone who has information about the case, maybe they would like to talk to us.” Another unsolved case that Links emphasized in his interview was the case of Allan Olvera, who was killed at his home on October 11, 2001. Links’ team had also found Phillip Lee Wilson, the murderer of Robin Brooks, who was murdered in 1980, through genetic geneology testing.
Micki Links at the press conference announcing the capture of Robin Brooks’ killer
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