On November 2, 2010, 34-year-old Julie Bryant Mitchell was found brutally murdered in her Oklahoma City home. Her stepson discovered her body in the master bedroom closet, having suffered a violent beating. The official cause of death was determined to be multiple blunt force trauma to the head. In a heart-wrenching discovery, her one-year-old daughter was found physically unharmed, sitting next to her mother's body.
The investigation into Julie's death quickly uncovered a complex web of
illegal gambling activities. Her husband, Teddy Mitchell, was a known bookie, and it came to light that he was running high-stakes poker games out of their home. This revelation led to him being considered a suspect in his wife's murder, a claim he has consistently denied. At the time of the killing, Teddy Mitchell was on a flight to California. While he was never charged in connection with his wife's death, the investigation did lead to his conviction on federal charges for illegal gambling and money laundering, for which he served 27 months in prison.
Another individual who came under scrutiny was Michael Wayne Thomas, an Edmond insurance agent. Thomas's checkbook was discovered at the Mitchell residence, and it was revealed that he had gambling debts owed to Teddy Mitchell. For years, Thomas remained a person of interest in the case, though he was never arrested and maintained his innocence. The investigation took a shocking turn in June 2025 when, during a scheduled interview with investigators via a Zoom call, Michael Wayne Thomas took his own life.
Despite the years that have passed and the multiple layers of the investigation, no arrests have ever been made for the murder of Julie Bryant Mitchell. The case remains officially open but unsolved, leaving a lingering sense of tragedy and unanswered questions for her family and the community. The motive for the crime is believed to be monetary, as a safe in the closet where her body was found was missing $30,000.
