UPDATE

: Authorities are questioning the veracity of the supposed confession described below.

John Mark Karr, a 41-year-old schoolteacher, has admitted to kidnapping and killing JonBenet Ramsey. The surprise confession comes after 10 years of dead-ends and false accusations in a mystery that gripped the American imagination ?and airwaves.

Authorities arrested Karr in Bangkok on Wednesday, later saying he referred to the killing as an ?accident.? The Ramsey family?s attorney chastised the media and law enforcement officials from the original investigation for casting suspicion on the family: ?John and Patsy lived their lives knowing they were innocent, trying to raise a son despite the furor around them.?

UPDATE: Thai authorities said Karr told them he drugged and had sex with the child, and then realized he had “accidentally” killed her.


MSNBC:

Investigators at one point said JonBenet?s parents were under an ?umbrella of suspicion? in the slaying. And some news accounts cast suspicion on JonBenet?s older brother. But the Ramseys insisted an intruder killed their daughter, and no one was ever charged.

In the months after the slaying, Patsy Ramsey went before the cameras, vigorously defending herself and her husband, chastising the media and blasting local law enforcement as incompetent.

Link

Wait, before you go…

If you're reading this, you probably already know that non-profit, independent journalism is under threat worldwide. Independent news sites are overshadowed by larger heavily funded mainstream media that inundate us with hype and noise that barely scratch the surface.  We believe that our readers deserve to know the full story. Truthdig writers bravely dig beneath the headlines to give you thought-provoking, investigative reporting and analysis that tells you what’s really happening and who’s rolling up their sleeves to do something about it.

Like you, we believe a well-informed public that doesn’t have blind faith in the status quo can help change the world. Your contribution of as little as $5 monthly or $35 annually will make you a groundbreaking member and lays the foundation of our work.

Support Truthdig