Joshua Wayne Crawford, a young man of just 21 years, met a tragic end on his birthday, July 2, 2003. His lifeless body was discovered in his apartment at 6949 Exeter Court, Frederick, Maryland, a case which remains unresolved to this day.
Joshua was born on July 2, 1982, to Donald E. Crawford and Terry Lynn Scalera Horman. He was the middle child, with his older brother Brian and his younger brother Marshall. Everyday things were fine for Joshua. He worked at Scalera’s Custom Painting and liked painting, fishing, playing pool, and hanging out with his friends.
On that day, Joshua’s mother, Terry, tried to call him to wish him a happy birthday but got no answer. When she heard that her son had died, her worst fears came true. The Sheriff’s Department came to her door. His friends couldn’t get him to answer, so they broke into his flat through a window and found his body. No one knows for sure if these friends were ever thought to be suspects in the case.
The details of how Joshua died were very scary. Based on the autopsy report, he died from suffocation and blunt force injuries. Over his nose and mouth, duct tape was wrapped around his head, and his wrists and ankles were tied together. It looked like the head had been hit hard and there were several stab wounds. There were no signs of forced entry, which made investigators think that Joshua may have known the person or people who attacked him. Although it’s not clear if this happened during the attack or was just an attempt to draw attention away from the situation, the flat was found in a mess.
During the investigation, a lot of questions came up. Did Joshua’s apartment leave the duct tape at the crime scene, or did the person(s) who did it bring it? There might be prints on the tape. Were they from the flat that held his wrists and ankles together? And most importantly, could these bindings lead to touch DNA? It is still unknown what kind of weapon was used to do the blunt force trauma and what kind of knife was used to do the stab wounds. It’s also not clear what order the horrible acts happened in.
The Frederick County Sheriff’s Office is investigating Joshua’s de*ath, but they haven’t said anything new yet. So, his mother hired a private investigator to find out what happened. Terry Horman thought the police hadn’t done enough and felt let down by them. She gave the Sheriff’s Office the names of six possible suspects, but she says they only interviewed one.
For the private investigation, Samuel Hanna was hired. He is a retired constable with 38 years of experience in the Madison County Sheriff’s Department in Indiana and a former chief of the Elwood Police Department in Indiana. In an interview, Hanna said he was surprised that the case hadn’t moved forward and was sure that it could be solved.
When Chuck Jenkins was a detective in the major crimes division of Frederick County, he personally took care of the case. He says that every possible lead has been carefully looked into. But Terry is upset that she doesn’t know which detective is in charge of her son’s case and that the investigation isn’t moving forward or communicating with her. In the end, she got help from a staff attorney at the Maryland Crime Victims’ Resource Centre, who helped her get back some of Joshua’s personal items that had been taken as evidence.
Joshua was still wearing his jewellery, which was worth about $1,000, when his body was found. Since robbery wasn’t a reason for the mur*der, it’s been suggested that it may have been personal. The only thing that was reported stolen from his flat was a Peavey 6 string Predator Electric Guitar, which was worth less than $300. This adds to the theory.
Joshua’s de*ath is still a mystery that begs many questions and leaves room for many theories. Even though years have passed, Joshua’s family, friends, and investigators are still looking for answers and hold on to the hope that justice will be done for him.
