Carol Denise Spinks On the evening of April 25, 1971, 13-year-old Spinks from Southeast was sent by an older sister to buy groceries at a
7-Eleven located a half-mile away from her home, just across the border in
Maryland. On her way home from the store, Spinks was abducted; her body was found six days later at 2:46 pm behind
St. Elizabeths Hospital on a grassy embankment next to the northbound lanes of
I-295, about 1,500 feet south of
Suitland Parkway. Examination revealed she had been both physically and sexually assaulted and strangled, was dressed but missing her shoes, and had only been killed a few days previously. Eleven days later, her body was located only from where Spinks had been found About two hours later (around 9:20 pm) the Crocketts' phone rang and was answered by her 7-year-old sister, who had waited at home while her family searched the neighborhood. Crockett was on the other line, crying. "A white man picked me up, and I'm heading home in a cab," Crockett told her sister, adding that she believed she was in
Virginia before abruptly saying, "Bye" and hanging up. A short time later, the phone rang again and was this time answered by the stepfather of Crockett. It was Crockett again, and she merely repeated what she'd said in the last telephone call, adding "Did my mother see me?" and indicating she was alone in a house with a white male. As with the other cases, her shoes were missing and unidentified green fibers would also be found on her clothing. A witness apparently saw her getting into a blue Volkswagen, and although investigated, the lead led nowhere. 18, from
Baltimore boarded a
city bus around 11:30 pm to return to her
Maryland Avenue home. Approximately six hours later, a police officer discovered her body, which had been stabbed multiple times and strangled, in a grassy area near Prince George's County Hospital, along an access ramp to
Route 202 from the Baltimore–Washington Parkway. Unlike the other victims, she was still wearing her shoes, and a coat had been placed over her chest. One of its pockets contained a note from the killer: this is tAntAmount to my insensititivity to people especiAlly women. I will Admit the others wheN you cAtch me iF you cAn! FRee-wAy PhanTom Based on handwriting samples, authorities surmised that the note, written on paper cut from the victim's school
notebook, had been dictated to and handwritten by Woodard. They also speculated that, given the absence of indications of duress in the writing, apart from evidence of
dysgraphia, she may have known her kidnapper. She was last seen boarding a bus at 11:20 pm near his house. A few hours later, her strangled body was discovered dumped alongside I-295, just south of the District line. As with other victims, her shoes were missing, but no signs of sexual assault were found although traces of semen (assumed to be from the boyfriend) were found. ==Investigation==