New clues in brutal crime 22 years ago could put him behind bars
New DNA tests can unlock the solution to a 22-year-old murder mystery --
and may put a Kennedy family relative behind bars.
Thomas Skakel, nephew of Robert and Ethel Kennedy, has been the
prime suspect in the 1975 murder of 15-year-old Martha Moxley, who was
savagely clubbed to death outside her home in posh Greenwich, Conn.
But Skakel refused to cooperate with police and was never charged.
Now FBI tests on fluids found on Martha's clothing may provide the evidence
that points to the killer. And the key figures behind the ongoing tests are
three men from the O.J. Simpson trial -- including disgraced detective Mark
Fuhrman!
"It's going to come out at last -- and bring me some peace after all these
years," a jubilant Dorthy Moxley, Martha's mother, told The ENQUIRER.
And Fairfield County state attorney Jonathan Benedict, who's awaiting the
DNA test results, told a reporter: "We're expecting some sort of resolution."
On the night she was murdered -- Halloween Eve -- Martha and two friends visited the
home of Ethel Kennedy's brother Rushton Skakel and his seven children.
The two friends left before Martha. At 9:30 p.m. she left too, saying goodbye
to 17-year-old Thomas Skakel outside, then heading across the street to her parents'
14-bedroom home.
She never made it to her front door. She died in a flurry of blows from a golf club.
In her attacker's frenzy, it shattered into three pieces.
Her jeans were pulled down around her ankles -- though the medical examiner concluded
she hadn't been sexually assaulted.
Thomas Skakel quickly became suspect No. 1. He was the last person seen with the
victim. And the golf club belonged to the Skakel family!
What's more, Thomas had a violent temper and was under psychiatric care for mental
problems before the murder, said investigators.
But Skakel's parents hired high-powered lawyers who insisted that any questions the
police had for the Skakel family had to be submitted in writing. About a month after
the murder, Thomas was shipped off to Ireland -- and as the years passed the case
bogged down.
It's finally been revived by an unlikely "team."
Mark Fuhrman, the most controversial prosecution figure in the Simpson case,
is writing a book about the Moxley slaying. Fuhrman got in touch with Martha's
mom and suggested she ask two men -- who'd been on the opposite side from Fuhrman
in the O.J. case -- for help.
At her request, Dr. Michael Baden, the former New York City medical examiner,
reviewed the autopsy report on Martha. Dr. Henry Lee, the Connecticut state police forensic expert, agreed to do DNA testing of Martha's clothing for traces of bodily fluids.
"Suddenly I had a team of heavyweights behind me," said Mrs. Moxley. "It was so
wonderful after all the years of frustration."
Fuhrman, whose book "Murder in Greenwich" is due to be published in April, has
said he will disclose the name of the murderer. He told a reporter the killer is
"a person of power, wealth and influence."
The ENQUIRER, in a world exclusive nearly seven years ago, revealed that Skakel
was the prime suspect in the case. He told us at the time: "I didn't kill Martha
Moxley. I don't know who did it."
But Mrs. Moxley declared: "I know someone in the Skakel house killed her. If they
were innocent they would have cleared themselves by now!"