Carol Denise Spinks

Carol Denise Spinks, 13, was abducted in Southeast Washington, D.C. on April 25, 1971, while walking home from a neighborhood store. Her body was found six days later along I-295 near Suitland Parkway. Her case is treated as the first of six killings linked to the unidentified offender the press dubbed the “Freeway Phantom.”

Washington, DC

• 1971: Case opens — victim reported missing or found.
• Documented milestones (renewed investigation, media coverage, family advocacy) to be added as sourced.
• Present: case remains unresolved. No named suspect has been convicted.

• Victim identity, age, and the April 25, 1971 abduction date, per the Metropolitan Police Department.
• Case is treated as the first in the linked Freeway Phantom series.

• No confirmed suspect has been named and convicted.
• Full forensic and investigative case-file details are not comprehensively public.

• Metropolitan Police Department (MPDC) — official case page
• Wikipedia — background reference
• Project Cold Case
• Murder Accountability Project
• NamUs