In November of 2001, UM aired the segment of an unidentified elderly man who was found dead and stuffed in a steamer trunk in the spring of 1996 (hence the name "Steamer Trunk Corpse"). The man has been positively identified as Jack F. Watkins. A woman named Nancy Jean Siegel has been arrested for fraud and stealing Social Security benefits from Watkins, but has not been charged with his murder.

Click on to the following link for more details.

http://www.leesburg2day.com/current.cfm?catid=6&newsid=7573

Thanks for this information, this case has always bothered me. It was so obvious from the start why he was murdered, so sad.

You know I live near DC and it was on the news here not to long ago. I didnt see the episode of UM that showed that case and in the news stories it was never said that it was showed on UM. Apparently the woman has been stealing his SS checks for many years. But she claims no knowledge of his death and last time I saw it on the news she hasnt been charged.

Teresa

Thanks for the link. I was just watching this segment on one of my tapes lately; nice to see that there's a partial solution.

:)

This reminded me of a Bones episode actually. Any headway on charges?

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4183/is_20030909/ai_n10057192/

found ths article after the link for the original failed, if anyone else wants.

Nancy Jean Siegel was convicted of second-degree murder and was sentenced to 33 years in prison. The case is the subject of a book: "In the Arms of Evil," by Carlton Smith. It was released in the spring of 2010.

I just placed an order for the book.

Adding to my amazon list right now.

I'm regretting ordering the book, as the reviews are generally terrible. There is one four-star review, however.

Just a little anecdote.

I remember a detective interviewed in the segment about this case mentioned that the victim had one of his heart valves replaced with a prosthesis, and that "the physician didn't return the card" that is included with such devices. Doctors aren't responsible for returning those cards to the manufacturer with the patient's information filled out on them--nurses are.

I first saw this story years before I became a nurse. Coincidentally, I work in cardiac surgery and probably fill out one of those cards and additional information sheets that come with heart valve prostheses at least once a week. Although the primary reason for such documentation is to assist the FDA in tracking medical devices in the event of a recall, the forensic implications are huge. Had that card been in the manufacturer's and hospital's records, this case may not have even had to have been featured on UM. I think of this story every single time I complete them, and take care to write carefully and legibly.

As corny as it sounds, you truly never know when you might help solve a mystery.