Texas

Texas True Crime: Decapitation Murders

Published

1 year ago

February 20, 2025

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — Some of Houston’s grizzliest murders may be crimes you’ve never heard of. In 1979, a series of horrific killings terrified the city and left detectives baffled. Five young people were violently attacked – and in some cases, their bodies were left headless.

For more than 45 years, the families of those five victims have lived with the heartache of not knowing who killed their loved ones in such a gruesome way.

Sister Margaret Ann Calcutta says she is still searching for answers in her sister Mary’s murder. Mary Calcutta moved to Houston from Pittsburgh in the late 1970s, looking for adventure.

“Mary was always very happy, you know,” recalled Sister Margaret Ann. “We used to call her princess.”

27-year-old Mary accepted a clerk job in Houston and got her own place at the Orchard Apartments, a sprawling complex that catered to young, single working professionals. But in July of 1979, her best friend in Pittsburgh remembers getting a frantic call from her.

“It popped right out of my mouth – why are you calling me on a weeknight?” said Beth McKinstry, who was Mary’s best friend. “She explained that there was a murder in her building and she was afraid.”

A couple floors below Mary, a 33-year-old single mom, Alys Rankin, had been found stabbed to death and sexually assaulted. But perhaps most disturbing, she had been decapitated – and her head was missing.

Beth McKinstry recalls how frightened Mary sounded on the phone.

“We talked about all the precautions that she could take,” she said. “We talked about not letting anybody in that you didn’t know. We talked about walking the halls and making sure you look over your shoulder.”

But two weeks after Alys’s murder, police were called to another gruesome scene at the Orchard Apartments – this time, at Mary’s place. Mary’s body was found on her bathroom floor. She had been stabbed to death so many times that she was nearly decapitated. Police say she, too, had been sexually assaulted.

“I couldn’t process it,” said Beth. “But I remember that the detective called me and asked me some questions about Mary. Would Mary open the door for anybody that she didn’t know? I said absolutely not. I said she wouldn’t do that on a normal basis. And especially after we talked about that. I’m sure she wouldn’t do that.”

But, just seven hours before officers showed up at Mary’s apartment, there was another young woman violently attacked and killed. Doris Armstrong Threadgill was stabbed to death in her townhome, just nine miles north of the Orchard Apartments. The 26-year-old’s throat was deeply slashed, to the point that she was nearly decapitated. However, investigators noticed some differences this time. There were no signs of a struggle, like there were in Alys and Mary’s murders, and Doris wasn’t sexually assaulted.

“Either she made herself a very easy target or she knew the killer,” said HPD Detective Richard Rodriguez.

Then, two months later, another pair of violent slayings captured headlines. 18-year-old Bobby Spangenberger and 17-year-old Joann Huffman had been boyfriend and girlfriend for less than a year, when they were murdered in October 1979. Their bodies were dumped a few miles from each other in northwest Houston. Joann had been shot to death and her body was discovered in a park. Bobby’s body was found in the trunk of a vehicle at a used car lot – and his head was missing.

“Our whole lives changed,” said Brenda Spangenberger, Bobby’s sister. “I mean, completely and totally in a second.”

Today, detectives are still trying to determine if all five murders are connected.

“I think it’s highly irregular that you have multiple suspects all in the same area decapitating people at the same time,” said Detective Rodriguez. “But I’m not ready to say it’s the same individual.”

Detective Rodriguez is examining crime scene photos and witness statements. But the missing piece in this case is forensics and all the advancements in DNA over the past four decades.

“With the technology we have today, there is a whole lot there,” he said.

In our latest episode of Texas True Crime, we take you inside the evidence room in this case, for an exclusive look at what police collected and which items could possibly be tested for DNA. Plus, how Sister Margaret Ann Calcutta is working alongside a retired detective who vows to keep searching for answers in her sister Mary’s death.

“Texas True Crime: Decapitation Murders” is now streaming on the ABC13 app.

Watch Texas True Crime on your favorite streaming devices, like Roku, FireTV, AppleTV and GoogleTV. Just search “ABC13 Houston.”

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Longhorns Daily News: Texas baseball’s Dylan Volantis named SEC’s Co-Pitcher of the Week

Published

11 hours ago

May 5, 2026

Press Room

Longhorns Daily News: Texas baseball’s Dylan Volantis named SEC’s Co-Pitcher of the Week

The Southeastern Conference (SEC) announced on Monday that Texas baseball pitcher Dylan Volantis will share this week’s Pitcher of the Week award with LSU’s Zac Cowan. From Texas Athletics’ announcement:

“Against No. 10 Mississippi State, Volantis registered a co-career-best 12 strikeouts and scattered three singles across six scoreless innings. After the Bulldogs notched a two-out infield hit in the first, the 6-foot-6, 220-pound left-hander retired 10 of the next 11 batters he faced. Volantis capped off that stretch by punching out the side on only 10 pitches in the fourth. Overall, the Thousand Oaks, Calif., native threw 107 pitches, which marked the most by a Longhorn this year. In Texas’ 3-1 victory, the Longhorns totaled 19 strikeouts, tying their most in a nine-inning game in program history.“

WHAT THEY’RE SAYING ABOUT THE LONGHORNS

Austin American-Statesman: Where did Reese Atwood, Leighann Goode get selected in AUSL Draft?

Austin American-Statesman: Texas beach volleyball falls 3-2 to UCLA in national semifinals

Austin American-Statesman: Texas tennis teams advance to Sweet 16 rounds of the NCAA Tournaments

Austin American-Statesman: Why was Texas starter Ruger Riojas pulled after only 71 pitches?

247Sports: Horns247 Roundtable: One under-the-radar storyline around Texas football our staff is watching

Inside Texas: Are the tides beginning to turn for Texas’ most important players for postseason success?

Inside Texas: Six under-discussed Texas football offseason topics

ICYMI IN BURNT ORANGE NATION

No. 4 Texas rallies from early deficit for 11-6 win over No. 10 Mississippi State

Lack of timely hitting dooms No. 4 Texas in 7-4 loss to No. 10 Mississippi State

Dylan Volantis powers No. 4 Texas to 3-1 win over No. 10 Mississippi State

Texas basketball executed ‘aggressive’ plan in the NCAA transfer portal

Four-star RB Noah Roberts picks Texas

RECRUITING ROUNDUP

247Sports: The Stampede: 10 more targets that could join Texas’ 2027 class

Inside Texas: Inside Scoop: News on five-star targets, notes, Texas coaches hit recruiting trail

Inside Texas: Texas Recruiting Update: Texas seeing elite OT Ismael Camara, Marcus Fakatou trims list

Inside Texas: Sean Miller estimates ’20-25′ college basketball rosters worth over $20 million

Inside Texas: Recruiting Shift: A&M momentum may actually help Texas with John Meredith

Inside Texas: Flip Watch: 10 committed prospects Texas could make a move on

SEC SHOWDOWN

Austin American-Statesman: Texas Softball: Longhorns secure double bye in SEC Tournament

247Sports: How a Game of Thrones reference helped Luke Harrison overcome bad start, lead Texas baseball to big win

Good Bull Hunting: Aggie baseball drops series to No. 8 Auburn

Rock M Nation: Struggles in Georgia: Mizzou baseball suffers series sweep to top-ranked Bulldogs

And The Valley Shook: Tigers sweep South Carolina to stay alive

Rocky Top Talk: Inconsistency continues to plague Tennessee baseball

Roll ‘Bama Roll: How sweep it is, Alabama takes down Vanderbilt

A Sea Of Blue: UK eyes Memorial Coliseum naming rights deal in major revenue push

WHAT WE’RE READING

SB Nation: The Chicago Sky just signed one of the WNBA’s best free agents

SB Nation: Nelly Korda is one of the most dominant athletes in the world right now

SB Nation: Carolina Hurricanes ‘beer skate’ so popular that things are getting dumb on eBay

NEWS ACROSS LONGHORN NATION AND BEYOND

What a ride it’s been for these seniors.

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‘Muslim only’ event at taxpayer-funded Texas waterpark gets major splash back: ‘Should we expect a Christians only day?’

Published

23 hours ago

May 4, 2026

Press Room

‘Muslim only’ event at taxpayer-funded Texas waterpark gets major splash back: ‘Should we expect a Christians only day?’

A taxpayer-funded Texas waterpark is getting splash-back for a “Muslims only” event next month after a local Islamic group rented out the facility.

A flier for the DFW Epic Eid event on June 1 noted three times that attendance was strictly for Muslims — and modest swimsuits are required.

“Seems like a civil rights violation,” one outraged commenter said.

“Should we expect a ‘Christians Only’ day?” another commenter asked.

Radio host Dana Loesch asked, “How is a taxpayer-funded, city-owned entity allowed to discriminate against non-Muslims at a public water park?”

After the backlash, the organizer of the event, Aminah Knight, told The Post that she is backtracking on how she is advertising it — “to make it clearer that this is a modest dress-only event centered around celebrating Eid.”

The third-annual event is being held at Epic Waters in Grand Prairie, outside Dallas, a massive, 80,000-square-feet indoor waterpark opened in 2017 at a cost of $88 million.

The park was funded by a 0.25% sales tax residents approved at the ballot box in 2014.

The FAQ for the event says “the entire waterpark has been exclusively reserved for Muslims.”

Although the event website says men and women will not be separated during the event, it notes “we ask all attendees to uphold Islamic etiquette just as they do in other mixed gender spaces,” and encourages all visitors to follow a “modest” dress code and lower their gaze around members of the opposite sex “to help preserve a spiritually mindful and welcoming atmosphere for all.”

The website offers suggestions, including an entire “what to wear” section of the site, complete with purchase links for modesty-approved swimwear for women, girls, boys and toddlers.

Event tickets are being advertised for $55 a pop, or $65 with food included, all of which will be certified halal, according to the flyer.

Also advertised is a private prayer room, which will be available between 5:30 and 7:30 p.m. on the night of the celebration.

A new flier for the event — released on Monday — removed the worlds “Muslim only” and replaced it with “modest dress only” and added the line “come and celebrate Eid with us, all are welcome!”

Knight told The Post that she did not mean to exclude non-Muslims in organizing the event.

“The core intention behind this event is to create a space where individuals and families who value modest dress and a modest environment can come together and feel comfortable enjoying a recreational space that often doesn’t naturally accommodate those preferences,” she said.

“While the event is rooted in celebrating Eid within the Muslim community, the guiding principle for attendance is the modest dress code.

“Guests are expected to follow that guideline; such as burkinis for women and swim trunks with shirts for men.”

Knight said the park regularly rents out the space for private events, and that this event is no different.

A spokesperson for the water park said the event is “not hosted or organized” by Epic Waters, and that it makes its space available for rent to a variety of groups, including faith-based orgs like DFW Epic Eid.

“These groups regularly book our venue for birthday parties, celebrations, youth events, corporate programming, and other activities, including full-park buyouts for large-scale private or ticketed events. As with all rentals, the hosting entity, not the waterpark, determines the event’s programming,” the spokesperson said.

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Spencer Torkelson’s home run lifts Detroit Tigers past Texas Rangers, 7-1

Published

1 day ago

May 4, 2026

Press Room

Spencer Torkelson’s home run lifts Detroit Tigers past Texas Rangers, 7-1

Spencer Torkelson hit a two-run homer and the Detroit Tigers pulled away to a 7-1 victory over the Texas Rangers on Sunday night.

Torkelson had gone five games without a homer after tying a franchise record by homering in five consecutive games.

Kevin McGonigle had two RBI singles and Matt Vierling added a two-run double for Detroit, which has won all five of its home series. Hao-Yu Lee chipped in a run-scoring single.

Tyler Holton served as an opener and retired two of the three batters he faced. Brant Hunter (4-0) tossed 3 1/3 scoreless innings for the win, allowing two hits and striking out two.

Rangers starter Jack Leiter tied his career high with 10 strikeouts. He lasted 6 2/3 innings and was charged with five runs.

Leiter struck out six of the first eight batters he faced. He didn’t allow a baserunner until he issued a four-pitch walk to Riley Greene. Torkelson fell behind in the count 0-2, then clubbed a hanging slider over the left field wall to give Detroit a 2-0 lead.

McGonigle’s line drive single in the sixth knocked in Jake Rogers, who led off the inning with a liner that bounced past center fielder Evan Carter for a triple.

Texas scored in the seventh on Kyle Higashioka’s RBI groundout. The Tigers then scored four runs in the bottom of the inning, highlighted by Vierling’s two-run bloop double.