CNS News–Billy Mansfield Jr., a convicted serial killer already serving five life sentences for the murders of young women and girls in California and Florida, has confessed to an additional crime—the murder of Carol Ann Barrett, an 18-year-old from Ohio, during her spring break in Florida in 1980.
Barrett was abducted from the Treasure Island Motel in Daytona Beach Shores and found deceased the following day along Interstate 95 in Jacksonville, approximately 100 miles from where she was last seen. The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office reopened Barrett’s case in 2017, identifying Mansfield, now 65, as a suspect.
Mansfield’s criminal history includes the rape and murder of René Saling in California, a crime that led investigators to his family’s home in Spring Hill, Florida, where the remains of four other victims were discovered buried on the property.
These victims included Elaine Zeigler, Sandra Jean Graham, Theresa Caroline Fillingim, and an unidentified woman, all of whom lost their lives in 1980. After extensive interviews over two years, Mansfield admitted to his involvement in Barrett’s abduction and murder, aligning with witness descriptions at the time.
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Despite this confession, the State Attorney’s Office in Florida’s 4th Judicial Circuit decided against charging Mansfield for Barrett’s murder, given his existing life sentences in California. The sheriff’s office noted Mansfield’s cooperation in other cold case investigations, indicating his potential involvement in additional unsolved crimes.
This confession sheds light on a decades-old case, providing some measure of closure to the victim’s family and contributing to the broader effort to resolve cold cases. Mansfield’s admission underscores the persistent challenges and complexities involved in investigating and prosecuting serial crimes, particularly those spanning multiple jurisdictions and decades.