Laura Sue Benjamin, aged 23, was found dead on May 26, 1979, in the Angeles National Forest near Big Tujunga Dam in Los Angeles County, California. Her body was discovered in a drainage culvert, and it was determined that she had been shot twice in the head. Laura had been missing for over two months before her body was found. The investigation revealed that she was a victim of Thor Nis Christiansen, a Danish-American serial killer who targeted young women, often hitchhikers, in California during the late 1970s.
Christiansen's modus operandi involved offering rides to his victims, then shooting them in the head with a .22 caliber pistol before sexually assaulting their bodies. Laura Sue Benjamin was one of several victims who shared similar physical characteristics, leading to the series of murders being referred to as the "look-alike" murders. Christiansen's other known victims included Jacqueline Ann Rook, Mary Ann Sarris, and Patricia Marie Laney, all of whom were young women with long, straight hair.
The investigation into Laura's death and the other murders eventually led to Christiansen's arrest on July 11, 1979, after one of his surviving victims, Linda Preston, identified him in a Hollywood tavern. Christiansen was charged with multiple counts of first-degree murder and was sentenced to life in prison in June 1980. However, his time in prison was short-lived, as he was stabbed to death by an unknown fellow inmate on March 30, 1981, while in the exercise yard at Folsom State Prison.
The case of Laura Sue Benjamin and the other victims highlighted the dangers faced by young women hitchhiking during that era and brought attention to the need for improved safety measures and awareness. The tragic loss of Laura and the other victims remains a somber reminder of the brutal crimes committed by Thor Nis Christiansen.
