A 78-year-old Texas inmate recently confessed to the FBI more than 90 murders between 1970 and 2005.
At least 10 of those killings could have happened in Florida, and one cold case out of Ocala has finally been solved.
Samuel Little, already serving life in prison in California for three murders, was recently extradited to Texas because of possible connections to unsolved murders there. The FBI and Texas Rangers interviewed Little in spring 2018 about possible ties between the killings in California and an unsolved one out of Odessa, Texas. The FBI said Little was hoping to move prisons, so he was willing to talk.
Crime Analyst Christina Palazzolo with the FBI’s Violent Criminal Apprehension Program and Ranger James Holland interviewed Little in California. During the interview, they said Little confessed to 90 killings in at least 37 cities, going “through city and state and gave...the number of people he killed in each place,” the FBI reported.
The FBI said Little remembers much detail about the killings and his victims, but his memories about dates aren’t as exact. The earliest date he told the FBI was 1970 or 1971.
The Marion County Sheriff’s Office announced earlier this month that one of its cold cases had finally been solved 36 years later because of Little’s confessions to the FBI. On Aug. 16, 1982, Rosie Hill’s remains were found in a wooded area off County Road 326 in Ocala. Investigators said Hill was either strangled or suffocated by her attacker.
In October 2018, Marion County Sheriff's Office Major Crimes Detective Sgt. Michael Mongeluzzo interviewed Little at the Wise County Jail in Decatur, Texas. Mongeluzzo said Little confessed to killing Hill and dumping her body. The detective also said Little told him he killed Hill because "God put him on this earth to do it."
At least 10 other Florida killings are “unmatched confessions,” which means Little described the murders but they have not yet been “definitively corroborated by law enforcement.”
10News reached out to local law enforcement agencies regarding Little's killings in Florida and the Tampa Bay area.
Tampa Police Department spokesperson Steve Hegarty issued the following statement on Little's confessions:
"For the past few months, we have been in contact with other law enforcement agencies and with FBI ViCAP regarding Mr. Little. At this time we have not been able to confirm that he is connected to any of our unsolved cases. However, we continue to investigate the possibility."
Yolanda Fernandez with St. Petersburg Police said the department has already sat down with FDLE and the FBI and found that none of its cold cases "fit the profile of the victims he's claiming in this region."
The Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office said it is actively reviewing cases to see if any are similar to what Little described.
Samuel Little’s unmatched confessions in Florida
Homestead
-- White female killed in 1970 or 1971
Miami
-- Black woman, age 22, killed in 1971. Victim possibly called Linda.
-- Black man, age 18, killed in 1971 or 1972. Victim possibly called Mary Ann or Marianne.
-- Black woman, age 28, killed in 1971 or 1972. Victim possibly worked on Homestead Air Force Base.
-- Black woman between 23-24 years old, killed in the mid-1970s. Victim possibly called Emily. Victim possibly worked at the University of Miami.
Kendall
-- White woman, age 45, killed in 1973. Victim possibly called Sarah. Victim possibly from Massachusetts.
Perry
-- Black female killed in 1993.
Fort Myers
-- Black female killed in 1984.
Tampa Bay
-- Black female killed in 1984.
Plant City
-- Black female killed in 1977 or 1978. Met victim in Clearwater.
The FBI said Little is in poor health and will most likely stay in prison in Texas until his death. They’re continuing to work on identifying his victims and provide closure and justice.
To report potential case links to Little, contact the ViCAP at 1-800-634-4097.
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