Do you know who murdered Janie Elizabeth Thompson and Sandra Ann McAfee in 1975? Janie Elizabeth Thompson was a young African-American woman of 21, on the cusp of her life, when it was violently taken from her. Born in South Carolina to James Thompson and Hazel Lee Blake Thompson, Janie was part of a large family, with several brothers and sisters.
The night of Friday, May 2, 1975, ended in tragedy for Janie and her friend, 21-year-old Sandra Ann McAfee. The two women were together inside an apartment at 2417 Double Oaks Road in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Double Oaks community, originally built in the 1950s, was a large, historically Black neighborhood. By the mid-1970s, it was a community facing the complex challenges of urban life, but it was still a place where families and friends made their homes.
Late that night, a relative of Sandra's became concerned after being unable to reach her. At approximately 11:25 p.m., the relative went to the apartment, designated as Unit A, to check on her. Inside, a horrific discovery was made.
Both Janie Thompson and Sandra McAfee were found dead, each having been shot. The promising lives of two young women were extinguished in a brutal act of violence that left a community in shock and two families devastated.
The Charlotte Police Department, now the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department (CMPD), immediately launched a double homicide investigation. Detectives processed the scene at the Double Oaks apartment, gathering evidence and trying to piece together the final hours of the victims' lives. They worked to understand the relationship between the two women and what could have led to their murders. However, the initial investigation did not lead to a suspect, and no arrests were made.
As years turned into decades, the case grew cold. The families of Janie Thompson and Sandra McAfee were left without answers, grappling with the profound and permanent loss of their loved ones. The passage of time did not erase their pain or the fundamental questions of who was responsible and why. The file on this double homicide eventually moved to the CMPD's Cold Case Unit, where it remains today, one of hundreds of unsolved cases that represent a continuing search for justice for victims and their families.
The case of Janie Thompson and Sandra McAfee is a reminder of the enduring impact of violent crime. For more than four decades, the person or people responsible for their deaths have evaded capture, leaving a void in the lives of those who knew and loved them. The investigation into their murders remains open, awaiting the one piece of information that could break the silence.
As of today, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department continues to seek information that could lead to an arrest and finally bring closure to the families of these two young women. Anyone with knowledge about the murders of Janie Elizabeth Thompson and Sandra Ann McAfee is urged to contact the CMPD Homicide Unit Tip Line at 704-432-8477. The case remains a priority for investigators, who believe that someone, somewhere, holds the key to solving this decades-old crime. 
