WV WV - Leah Hickman, 21, Huntington, 14 Dec 2007 - #2

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I live in Huntington and think its a shame that nothing has been accomplished on this case.

it always confused me how law enforcement claimed they brought scent dogs to the basement and the dogs found nothing, but her body ended up being found there.
 
First, RIP Leah and condolences to her family.

I have been researching the Israel Keys' timelines and cross referencing his whereabouts with cold cases. Keys flew to Indianapolis IN on 04 December 2007, rented a car and drove 537 miles on that cars odometer. He subsequently flew back to Anchorage on 16 December 2007. Indy to Huntington WV is roughly 261 miles which is just under half of 537 (268.5).

Because of Keys' apparent lack of MO, seemingly random nature of his crimes, and meticulous planning, it is very difficult to pin down his actions. Leah's murder is certainly within his reach and I have found no mention of him in this case as a possible suspect.

I am not proclaiming by any means that he is responsible, just that it might be a possible lead to look into. There seems to be conflicting information as to when and where he rented and turned in his car. I may be way off base, but this looked interesting to me, maybe someone with more savvy could look at it?
 
Just bumping this thread...I find it very sad that Leah Hickman's killer still has not been brought to justice. Anyone out there with some kind of influence with HPD who might know where things stand today? It will be 8 years this December, I believe since her murder...
 
It’s December again Leah. Each year, when the temperatures drop and snow begins to flurry, people begin decorating for Christmas and getting into the Holiday spirit of giving. I do those things. And, then it dawns on me that the anniversary of your death is getting near. Each and every Dec. since 2007, my mind comes back to thoughts of you. How in the world can this case still be unsolved? How can you killer still be on the loose? How can he or she go unpunished for such a heinous crime?

Huntington, WV is small town. There is a lot of crime there, mostly drug related. Most of the murders there are also drug related. This case has none of that. A nice girl, who took classes at Marshall University and worked part time at the Dress barn. Lived with her half-sister. Went out for a drive through dinner and was later found stuffed in the crawl space of the laundry room of her apartment building. She was wrapped in black plastic. The police departement said that who ever committed the crime knew the layout of the building and the laundry room. They said that the public should not be worried and are not in danger. To me, this means that they knew who the perp was, and that this was a personal crime.

Looks like it’s time for my yearly phone calls to the both the police department and the local news station. We, the public have not forgotten.
 
Called the news station again. They said they would have a brief piece about Leah Hickman on the evening news. Stay tuned
 
Here's the story done yesterday. The link also includes past articles on the case.

The Leah Hickman case, eight years later

http://www.wsaz.com/news/headlines/Three_Years_Later_the_Leah_Hickman_Murder_Case_Remains_Unsolved.html

Eight years ago, Marshall University journalism student Leah Hickman went missing.

A week later, her body was found in a crawl space in her apartment building on 8th Avenue and a murder investigation began.

Nearly a decade has passed, and the family is still desperate for answers.
Click to expand...
 
so weird how this was huge at the moment it happen all over court tv at the time and as fast as we learned the name leah it was all gone just as quick...last i can remember they believed it was leah's sisters bf or ex bf that had lived together in that appt but then leah had taken the appt over after her sister.. So he might still of had a key and leah had made it knowen she was very affraid of this guy...and i remember the police searched the building but nothing found then someone found her in the crawl space so the police were looked at as incompitent in the first place after that never heard the name again unless i had brought it up myself...
 
http://www.herald-dispatch.com/news...cle_b2ff0646-2c77-5a1b-89c3-9be7d739bffb.html

Memorial services have been set for Saturday, May 21, in memory of four Tri-State teenagers and a Marshall University student whose deaths have remained unsolved for several years.

The Huntington community is invited to join the service at 6 p.m. at the First Church of the Nazarene, located at 321 30th St., Huntington...

The event will also remember Leah Hickman, a 21-year-old Marshall University student who was killed nine years ago.
Click to expand...
 
Still thinking of you, sweet Leah.

so many tumors went around at the time but yes the boyfriend was strongly suspected. The sister was as well, not sure why because most people close to them have said they were close and got along well.

there were reports that the boyfriend had an injured arm after Leah's disappearance. Also heard the plastic she was wrapped in was common at either his or sisters work. Rumors swirled that her parents knew the sister had a hand in it and just decided to never peruse it because they didn't want to lose another daughter?? Never been able to confirm any of that, so that could be hearsay.

what really confuses me is how LE could search that building , with dogs even, and completely miss her ..then for some reason go back and find her.

what confuses me also is her family did not really seem to push this much after she was found.

Samantha Burns who disappeared around the same area and Chad fulks and Brandon basham were caught for it, never have found her body..Chad even got out of jail to go search the woods but her body has never been found. That family still pushes for her to be found...a missing man in the area I went to high school with missing and his family is still actively looking and posting.

they never caught who killed those poor teens on prom night either.

huntington is a drug ridden hotbed of lies and corruption.the police force seems very incompetent, and wouldn't surprise me if some of the LE there is corrupt as well.

still think of Leah a lot. Surely such a sloppy crime left behind DNA. I hope one day whoever did this is caught.
 
I hope this is the year that there's justice for Leah.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
It still makes no sense how her body was not found, then they came back and magically it was there. How do dogs miss that the first time around?

someone knows what happened to Leah. Her body was in an odd area that would have taken muscle to get up there. Surely they left behind DNA, etc. can't believe LE hasn't even been able to provide any information at all.

ive heard its common knowledge in the community that people know who killed those teens on prom night. Rumor is it was big time drug dealers involved.

That whole city is crime ridden and dangerous.
 
Bumping for Leah ... the case that brought me to Websleuths. I want justice for this sweet girl!
 
Bumping for Justice for Leah Hickman. You will be caught. And I cannot believe there has been no arrest in this case.
 
Cherry said:
Bumping for Justice for Leah Hickman. You will be caught. And I cannot believe there has been no arrest in this case.
Click to expand...
Have any MSM sources named Jessica Vickers's ex-boyfriend? The lack of action on this case makes me wonder whether he has LE connections.
 
10 years tomorrow since Leah went missing.

http://www.mydailyregister.com/news/21498/prayer-vigil-set-for-10th-anniversary-of-hickman-death

“Grace Baptist Church is holding this prayer vigil because we want to support the family and friends who desire justice and closure,” shared Church Secretary Jade Schultz. “We want to show our support for the police department for their continued effort in this investigation. We know the best way we can do that is through continual prayer and continual awareness.”
 
I was just thinking about this case today and wanted to bump the thread! It's hard to believe that there has still not been justice for Leah.
 
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