In the early days of March 1998, the city of Norfolk, Virginia, became the final chapter in the life of 34-year-old Linette Hillig. On March 5th, her body was discovered discarded behind a local bingo parlor, a grim end to a life that had seen its share of hardship. Hillig, a female with a history of prostitution arrests, became another victim in a string of violent deaths that would later be connected to a single, chilling confession.
The discovery of her body set in motion an investigation that would initially stall, leaving her case cold for a period of time.
The quiet investigation into Hillig's death was suddenly revitalized by events unfolding in Detroit, Michigan. A former U.S. Navy sailor named John Eric Armstrong was arrested for the murders of several women there. During his confession, the 300-pound former serviceman, who had been stationed aboard the USS Nimitz, began to detail a horrific global killing spree that spanned years and continents. Among the litany of horrors he recounted to police was the murder of a prostitute in Norfolk, Virginia.
Armstrong provided disturbing details about the killing, claiming he had strangled Linette Hillig and then, in a final act of brutality, run over her body with his Jeep. His confession seemed to match the evidence found at the scene, including the fact that Hillig's body had indeed been run over. The timing also fit, as the USS Nimitz had docked in nearby Newport News just four days before Hillig's body was found.
Despite the seemingly credible confession, the path to justice for Linette Hillig remained unclear. While Norfolk police acknowledged the connection and saw Armstrong's confession as a significant break in the cold case, they did not immediately name him as a suspect or file charges. Investigators in other cities where Armstrong claimed to have killed expressed doubts about the credibility of his expansive confessions, leading to a degree of caution. While an FBI agent close to the case suggested Norfolk authorities were prepared to press charges, Armstrong was ultimately tried and convicted for the murders he committed in Michigan, receiving a life sentence. The official resolution of his connection to the death of Linette Hillig remained a lingering question.
