Who Murdered Riley Fox
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The unsolved murder of three year old Riley Fox in 2004 captured the attention of a nation. A loving daughter and playful sister, Riley was brutally murdered and her body was left in a nearby creek. Despite a lengthy investigation conducted by the Will County Sheriff’s office, the perpetrator has never been identified.
Riley was last seen alive on June 6, 2004 in her Wilmington, Illinois home that she shared with her parents Kevin and Melissa Fox, and her seven year old sister, Lauren. Kevin and Melissa told police that they put Riley to bed that night and when they checked on her at 1:30 a.m. Riley was gone. The Fox family contacted authorities and search efforts began, but Riley was found dead in Forked Creek, with a plastic garbage bag over her head and duct taped around her neck. She was only about two and a half miles away from her home.
The police investigation of Riley Fox’s death included a poster campaign throughout the town and postings on the internet from family and friends offering a reward for information. Hundreds of people were interviewed, however the police were unable to find any new clues.
After Riley’s death, Will County Sheriff Paul Kaupas implemented a new policy in which Amended DNA Collection Form is used when an offender is arrested. This requires police to collect a DNA sample from anyone arrested starting in June 2005, thus helping to piece together potential links of the murder to other unsolved cases in the future.
The Fox family eventually settled a lawsuit with the Village of Wilmington due to the mishandling of their daughter’s case by the Wilmington Police Department. The police never sought out a potential sexual predator who had a criminal record in the area and was suspected to be involved in a case involving a missing child.
In December of 2019, a grand jury began hearing evidence in the case of Riley Fox. After fourteen years, Melissa and Kevin Fox cling to the hope that one day the person responsible for their daughter’s death will be brought to justice.
Until an arrest is made, this unsolved murder of a little girl remains a tragedy that chilled the entire nation.