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Murder of Ruth Witter

91-year-old Ruth Witter had her home burglarized in February 2000. The perpetrators strangled her and dumped her body in Saratoga National Historical Park in Stillwater, New York.

As the investigation progressed, authorities zeroed in on Witters’s step-great-granddaughter, 18-year-old Katherine Seeber, and Seeber’s boyfriend, Jeffrey.

After telling several lies, Seeber finally caved in and took the police to the body.

There was forensic evidence linking Seeber to the scene of the crime, so she decided not to risk taking the case to trial.

Legal Proceedings

She agreed to plead guilty to second-degree murder, and she was sentenced to 20 years to life in prison. As part of her deal, she also had to testify against Jeffrey.

At Jeffrey’s trial, Seeber testified that the crime was a burglary gone wrong. She said Jeffrey committed the murder, then she said they both taped Witter up and dumped her in Stillwater.

Jeffrey was acquitted at trial but couldn’t stay out of trouble and went on to serve prison time for burglary and other offenses over the following years.

Seeber gets her conviction overturned

Seeber’s fate took a positive turn in 2008 after a forensic technician who played a role in her plea was exposed for falsifying test results.

The technician had claimed that fibers on the duct tape around Witter’s mouth matched fibers from the gloves that Seeber had worn.

While he was being investigated for his transgressions, he decided to delete himself.

The scandal was great news for Seeber, and soon, her attorneys went to court and got her conviction tossed out.

Plea Deal

She was set to go to trial again, but instead of retrying the case, the prosecution went to Seeber with a plea deal, which allowed her to get out almost immediately.

In May 2012, she entered an Alford plea to manslaughter and burglary. The Alford plea allowed her to maintain her innocence.

At the sentencing, she apologized to the Witter family, saying, “I am very sorry for your loss and the pain and suffering I’ve caused you.” “I’m sorry for all of my actions and inactions.”

She also continued to point the finger at Jeffrey, saying he was abusive and “had a hold on my life.”

She furthermore spoke about the classes she had taken in prison, her involvement with the Church of Jesus Christ and Latter Day Saints, and her involvement in domestic violence programs. She wanted people to know she was ready to make a positive contribution to society. She was sentenced to 14 and a half years in prison.

Release from prison

She was released on July 16th, 2012, having served 12 years.

Those who saw her grow from an immature 18-year-old to a mature 31-year-old had high hopes for her future, but her time in the free world didn’t last long.

Since Seeber had lost both her parents while she was incarcerated, she was planning to move to Washington to be near her brother.

However, the move never came to fruition. It’s unclear if that was by choice or if she wasn’t allowed to move because she was on two and a half years of supervised release.

Katherine Seeber’s Murder

Fast forward to June 4th, 2013, at around 5:30 pm, she was attacked and stabbed by her ex-boyfriend, Pedro, at her home in Queens.

Police received several calls reporting the violent attack. When they arrived at the scene, they pronounced the 32-year-old Seeber dead.

Pedro, who already had a lengthy criminal history, was arrested and charged with second-degree murder.

Online records don’t indicate what happened to Pedro, so it’s unclear if he was convicted of the crime.