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Disclaimer: This article contains mentions of assault and murder. Reader discretion is advised.
The upcoming episode of Dateline: Secrets Uncovered, titled “The Call,” will air on Oxygen on Wednesday, April 24, 2024, at 8 p.m. ET. It will delve into the brutal assault and murder of a 16-year-old ballet dancer, Meghan Landowski, found dead in her Portsmouth home in April 2008.
Meghan Landowski’s stepfather, Chris Shortt, had discovered her body inside their residence in Portsmouth and contacted authorities immediately. Prior to that, Meghan had reportedly told her mother that a friend of Chris’s had been touching her inappropriately. They informed the police about the incident. After the murder, they named the man whom Landowski told them about as a suspect in the case. However, authorities released Chris’s friend after questioning, and they charged Robert Barnes, an unlikely suspect.
According to The Virginian-Pilot, authorities speculated that the perpetrator of Meghan Landowski’s murder possessed detailed knowledge of her home’s layout. Investigators focused on Meghan’s connections at Wilson High School. Among them was Robert Barnes, a fellow student who studied music at the Governor’s School of Arts. Although he had previously visited Meghan’s residence, he had no prior criminal record.
The killer’s Nike tennis shoes, stained with blood, left a trail from the location of Meghan’s body to the front door, with blood also present on the doorknob and sink handle. Police determined that two knives were used in the murder, with investigators discovering one of them in the sink. Investigators recovered the other knife from a drain approximately 100 feet from Meghan’s home. DNA analysis confirmed that the DNA found on various surfaces belonged to the killer, not Meghan, and Robert Barnes’ DNA matched this sample.
What was Robert Barnes convicted of?
Robert Barnes pleaded guilty to first-degree murder, attempted rape, statutory burglary, aggravated sexual battery and abduction. The court sentenced him to a total of 42 years in prison. 13 News Now reported that he was sentenced to 38 years in prison for the murder, two years for aggravated sexual battery, and two more years for statutory burglary. As per state records, he is currently at the Pocahontas State Correctional Center.
Barnes reportedly stabbed Meghan Landowski 40 times and at least 12 times after she died. When the police arrived at the crime scene, she was lying in a pool of blood with her face down, WTKR reported. Authorities suggest that Robert Barnes might have also expressed his interest in dating Meghan, who rejected him before. They caught him about six months after the incident. During this period, officials conducted an extensive investigation.
Barnes had taped Meghan Landowski’s mouth and tied her hands behind her back. The tape dispenser used to do this had traces of blood on it. Authorities found that he might have cut himself while using the dispenser, causing his blood samples to remain in various places in the house. Only through these blood samples did authorities catch and confirm Robert Barnes as the killer.
The Dateline: Secrets Uncovered episode, “The Call” will be aired on Oxygen on Wednesday. April 24, 2024, at 8 p.m. ET.
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