Richard Biehl, a Catholic priest, was murdered and mutilated in a motel room in a small Virginia town.
Background:
Richard Biehl (52) was a Catholic priest who spent most of his adult life in Boston. For the summer of 1998, Biehl had taken time away from his diocese and was going to take a cross country road trip. Through June and early July, Biehl was slowly making his way down the US east coast. On July 2, Biehl arrived in Virginia and found a motel to spend a few days.
Crime:
On July 4, 1998 Monsignor Richard Biehl was found murdered and mutilated in a motel room.
There were no signs of forced entry into the room, and the motel staff said that Biehl was there the days before with no problems. No one in the area had any idea why anyone would want to kill Biehl. Later in the day after his body was found the police searched the surround area, and in the nearby woods around the motel his car was found abandoned. They keys were left in the car, and there was some patches of blood on the door handle and steering wheel. Some of the blood belonged to Biehl, some of it to an undiscovered individual.
According to Page County Police Chief Marshall, one of the first things of note was that Biehl’s body was mutilated, and his hands were severely beaten. Another strong clue was a blue bandana found on his body. Close ones to the victim would later state that Biehl had never worn or carried such a bandana, and he was not seen with it on any of the photos of himself that were taken with a camera he had brought on the trip. The bandana was made more a mystery as it somehow disappeared during the course of the investigation of the crime scene at the motel. It is believed that either one of the investigators or detectives somehow misplaced the bandana, or perhaps a witness or worker at the motel took it. Police have searched for the bandana since then and they have not found it. Whether it had any value as evidence or was significant in any way to the crime will likely never be answered.
The case has remained unresolved. A match was never linked to the DNA found at the crime scene or in the car. The police have a theory of their own though, and it seems the reason behind the brutal murder may have something to do with an extramarital affair. Police chief Marshall has always refused to reveal more details to the public and has remained confident no one will ever be found guilty of the murder of Richard Biehl.