What REALLY happened to JonBenét Ramsey? The true story behind Netflix's new documentary about six-year-old beauty queen's murder
- JonBenét Ramsey was found in Colorado home brutally beaten to death in 1996
- Netflix's Cold Case: Who Killed JonBenét Ramsey explores six-year-old's death
- READ MORE: New JonBenét Netflix documentary hints at bombshell new details
Less than three decades ago, the world was rocked by the tragic case of a six-year-old child pageant queen who was found dead in her home.
JonBenét Ramsey was reported missing after her family found a ransom note demanding $118,000 for the child's return inside their Boulder home in Colorado on December 26, 1996.
The child's body was later found by her father in the basement of the family's home, brutally beaten and strangled to death.
The case became one of the highest-profile mysteries in the US, not only because of her age, but due to the brutal circumstances of her murder, the glamorous pageant photos that accompanied news reports and the fact her killer was never caught.
Now, a new Netflix docuseries explores her death in detail, offering a fresh perspective on the family's decades-long quest for justice.
Cold Case: Who Killed JonBenét Ramsey is now available to watch on the streaming platform, having launched on November 25.
Directed by Joe Berlinger, the three-part series investigates the mishandling of the case by law enforcement and the media.
As the series follows the Colorado authorities' quest to bring JonBenét's killer to justice and 'allow her family to finally have peace of mind,' FEMAIL explores the tragic circumstances behind the pageant princess' death 28 years ago.
JonBenét Ramsey was reported missing after her family found a ransom note demanding $118,000 for the child's return inside their Boulder home in Colorado on December 26, 1996
Cold Case: Who Killed JonBenét Ramsey is now available to watch on the streaming platform, having launched November 25
Who was JonBenét Ramsey?
JonBenét Ramsey was an American child pageant queen who died aged six in Colorado on December 26, 1996.
JonBenét was born in August, 1990, in Atlanta, Georgia, and was the younger of two children of Patricia 'Patsy' Ramsey and John Bennett Ramsey. She had an older brother named Rurke, who was born in 1987.
During her young years competing in pageants, she'd been crowned Little Miss Colorado, Little Miss Charlevoix, Colorado State All-Star Kids Cover Girl, and National Tiny Miss Beauty.
How did JonBenét Ramsey die?
The six-year-old beauty pageant contestant was murdered on December 26, 1996, in her Boulder, Colorado home.
JonBenét had been reported missing by her parents, Patsy and John, earlier that day.
Her mother called 911 to say her daughter was missing and a ransom note demanding $118,000 for the child's return had been left behind.
Police arrived on the scene on the night of December 25, but did not find JonBenét until 1 pm the following day in the basement of the family's home.
The girl was bludgeoned and strangled - upon discovery, it was determined that JonBenét had a broken skull and had died of asphyxiation through the use of a garrote.
JonBenét Ramsey was an American child pageant queen who died aged six in Colorado on December 26, 1996
JonBenét was born in August, 1990, in Atlanta, Georgia, and was the younger of two children of Patricia 'Patsy' Ramsey and John Bennett Ramsey
She was covered by a white blanket with a nylon cord around her neck, her wrists bound above her head and her mouth covered by duct tape.
There was no clear-cut evidence of rape, but police did not rule out sexual assault.
Her death was ruled a homicide, but nobody was ever charged for her killing.
The only people known to be in the Ramsey house at the time were Patsy, John, and their 9-year-old son, Burke.
Who killed JonBenét Ramsay?
Although JonBenét's killer has never been identified, the director of Netflix's new documentary has revealed why he believes the family of the murdered six-year-old is innocent.
Speaking to the New York Post, Joe said: 'I am firmly convinced that the Ramsey family is innocent. And I am also firmly convinced that this case can be solved, if the Boulder Police Department finally does what it's supposed to do.'
He added that he believes all suspects should be 'put back on the table' as many 'likely suspects' were ruled out at the time because of the faulty DNA analysis.
However he did acknowledge that even the Ramsey family should also be DNA tested again because they would be more than happy to assist.
Pictured: The site where six-year-old JonBenét Ramsey was killed in Boulder, Colorado, 1996
Bereaved father John Ramsey, 80, took part in the Netflix documentary in the hopes it could find the answers to his daughter's murder case.
Joe said: 'John Ramsey agreed to sit down with us, did not ask to be paid, and was not paid — we don't pay our subjects — and asked for no editorial input.
'No questions were off limits. To me, that is an 80-year-old guy who… wants to get that case solved. It's just unthinkable that the family had anything to do with this.'
Joe told the publication that he believes an intruder entered the home and murdered the little girl, calling it 'a much more plausible scenario'.
The district attorney at the time of JonBenét's death said her parents were under 'an umbrella of suspicion' early on.
JonBenét's parents gave several televised interviews, but resisted police questioning except on their own terms.
Theorists have also questioned whether their son Burke, who was aged nine at the time of JonBenet's death, killed his sister accidentally in a moment of rage, and his parents covered it up.
But tests in 2008 on newly discovered DNA on her clothing pointed to the involvement of an 'unexplained third party' in her slaying, and not her parents or Burke.
The district attorney at the time of JonBenét's death said her parents were under 'an umbrella of suspicion' early on
Officials in 2006 announced that suspect, John Mark Karr (pictured centre), had been arrested in Bangkok, Thailand, but DNA tests failed to link him to the crime scene
Among the suspects was convicted paedophile Gary Oliva (pictured), who allegedly confessed to the killing
The grave of JonBenet Ramsey in Marietta, Georgia, pictured
That led former district attorney Mary Lacy to clear the Ramseys of any involvement, two years after mother Patsy died of ovarian cancer in 2006, calling the couple 'victims of this crime'.
Investigators had identified other suspects, and developed a theory about an intruder, or several intruders, entering the home and killing the pageant princess.
Among the suspects was convicted pedophile Gary Oliva, who allegedly confessed to the killing.
Others included the Ramsey's housekeeper, as well as the man who portrayed Santa Claus at a holiday party the youngster attended.
Officials in 2006 announced that another suspect, John Mark Karr, had been arrested in Bangkok, Thailand.
He'd allegedly told an American investigator that he drugged JonBenét and sexually assaulted her before accidentally killing her.
But prosecutors dropped that probe after DNA tests failed to link him to the crime scene.
Investigations are ongoing. Police and officials in Boulder in December 2021 said they'd processed 1,500 pieces of evidence and analysed nearly 1,000 DNA samples in their hunt for the killer.
Cold Case: Who Killed JonBenét Ramsay is available to watch on Netflix now.
