The Murder of Melissa James
It’s unfortunate that they talk about the killers of this case more than the actual victim. This was a horrible crime, and Melissa James’ killers deserve to be in jail for the rest of their lives.
Melissa
Melissa is forgotten about so much in this case, and I want to find as many pictures of her as I could.
Kelly Ryan and Craig Titus seemed like they lived the perfect life. They were at the top of their game in bodybuilding, had a lot of money and seemed like they were truly in love.
Craig and Kelly
Kelly Ryan started her career as a gymnast, and later did dance when she went to the University of South Carolina. She later got into bodybuilding after seeing it on TV. She was a celebrity in the bodybuilding world. She met Craig Titus at one of her competitions and he said he “fell in love with her right away.” Kelly resisted at first because Craig had a reputation.
Craig Titus was arrested in the 90’s for selling ecstasy, and he also had tested positive for steroids in the past. He was open about using steroids and has said that:
“Dude, you won’t get this big unless you use steroids. ”
Kelly and Craig finally dated, and they eventually moved to Las Vegas and got married in July 2000. They got married at the Little White Wedding Chapel. They soon became celebrities and were on several magazine covers together, and did fitness expositions too. They soon hired a personal assistant named Melissa James.
Little White Wedding Chapel, Vegas
Melissa James was a professional dancer and was a trained dance instructor. She taught ballet, hip-hop and jazz. She opened up her own dance studio in Florida when she was 19, but it didn’t last long. She moved to Vegas shortly after she met Craig Titus at one of his fitness competitions, he persuaded her to move to Vegas.
She moved to Vegas and moved in with Craig and Kelly, but it only lasted a few months. She told her mother, Maura James that they never paid her and that they were often in an drug-fueled state of paranoia. Craig and Melissa were also more than friends, according to Craig. Kelly also knew and didn’t like Melissa after that.
Craig booked a ticket home for Melissa, and she was supposed to fly home for Christmas. She never returned home.
The Murder:
On December 14th, 2005, Melissa’s body was found in the trunk of a car, Kelly’s red Jaguar to be exact. The car was found torched in the middle of the desert. However, the brutal murder of Melissa James started at Craig and Kelly’s. Melissa was attacked with a Taser, and it was used 5 times. There was a tie from a bathrobe found around her neck, and wire from a speaker.
During the autopsy, there was evidence that strangulation was used to kill her. She was also obviously very badly burned, but they could still tell that her whole head was wrapped in duct tape. There was also a toxic level of morphine found in Melissa’s system.
Craig and Kelly tried telling the cops that they didn’t kill Melissa, that she injected herself with morphine and overdosed. Craig had also called some friends that night about how they found Melissa dead. He also gave his friends a duffel bag. In the bag they found a taser and stun gun. Craig also called his friend Anthony Goss to help disposed of Melissa’s body.
Evidence:
There’s even more evidence of their guilt. Anthony Goss is seen on surveillance at 3:40am going into a convenient store. Kelly used her credit card to buy 7 bottles of lighter fluid, and Craig is seen driving the red Jaguar up and helping her load the car.
Arrests:
Anthony also left behind a flashlight, it was found not too far away from the Jaguar. The police used his credit card statements to see that he purchased the same brand of flashlight. (OKAY, I’M SORRY BUT ALL 3 OF THEM ARE SOME OF THE DUMBEST CRIMINALS). The police had enough to bring Anthony Goss in for questioning.
They tried to bring Kelly and Craig in too, but they fled. Craig traded in his truck for a new one, and they took money from their house. Their money was hidden inside small canisters around the house.
The FBI was called in, and Craig and Kelly were tracked to being in Boston. Kelly was arrested at a beauty salon while she was getting her nails done, and Craig was arrested a few blocks away.
Craig, Kelly and Anthony at trial
Trial:
On May 31st, 2008 instead of going through a trial, Craig and Kelly both pleaded guilty to reduced charges.
Kelly Ryan pleaded guilty to arson. She also entered an Alford plea (a guilty plea in criminal court, where the defendant does not actual admit their guilty,) for battery with a deadly weapon to cause bodily harm. She was sentenced to 6 to 26 years in prison. On October 24th, 2017, she was released on parole after serving a 12 year sentence.
Craig Titus was sentenced to 21 to 55 years in prison.
Anthony Goss was found guilty of arson and accessory to murder.
Other information:
Kelly divorced Craig while in prison.
Apparently while in jail, Craig tried to arrange a hit against 3 of the people who testified against him. Police immediately put a stop to it.
A man named Ron Brady, who apparently was a huge fan of Craig’s tried to help him and told Craig he thought he was innocent. He said:
““He’d asked me to help expose the wrongdoings of these people that were trying to testify against him, but never to have them harmed in any way.””
According to Brady, another inmate named Dean Cassim was in on it. Dean Cassim was actually working with police.
FINAL THOUGHTS:
I’m all for running, working out and going to the gym but I would not want to watch or do anything with bodybuilding. I give mad props to whoever does that, and whoever is confident in themselves though.
I think Kelly Ryan should still be in jail too. She was there for the whole murder, and I believe helped Craig with all of it. I mean she is caught on camera buying the lighter fluid and driving the car on the night of the murder.
I think Craig is a piece of shit, and Kelly too. They were obsessed with fame and didn’t care about who they hurt. They both deserve to be rotting in prison.
I also think their friend Anthony deserves to rot as well. Why would you agree to helping someone who just killed another human being? That makes no sense to me. If it was me, I would never help anyone who can kill another human being and have no remorse.
Sources:
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/bodybuilders-plead-guilty-in-gruesome-slay/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kelly_Ryan
