Molly Matheson and Megan Getrum Murders: How Did They Die? Who Killed Them? – The violent rape and murder of Molly Matheson, 22, of Fort Worth, and Megan Getrum, 36, of Plano, were committed by Reginald Kimbro, a serial rapist. He has now been found guilty and is currently serving a life sentence without the chance of parole for the two murders that occurred in 2017 and four additional sexual assault cases. Kimbro admitted his guilt before the trial began, earning a plea agreement that spared him the death penalty.
In just a few days, Matheson and Getrum were both killed. Both victims had dated in the past with the killer, so both are connected to the same killer. On the other hand, Megan had never met Kimbro and was severely attacked while on a hike close to her Plano home. The DNA evidence that linked the serial rapist to the killings was the same in both cases.
The horrific deaths of Molly Matheson and Megan Getrum will be covered on Friday’s episode of NBC Dateline, as well as how Reginald Kimbro was finally apprehended and his campaign of sexual assault in Texas came to an end. “Wreckage” is the episode’s name, which will air on the network on September 23, 2022, at 9 p.m. ET.
Also Read: Where is Molly Matheson and Megan Getrum’s Killer Reginald Kimbro Now?
Who Was Megan Getrum and Molly Matheson and How Did They Die?
After being born in Florida, Molly Jane Matheson’s family relocated to Fort Worth, Texas. After completing her high school education at Keller Timber Creek High School in Fort Worth, she enrolled at the University of Arkansas. The 22-year-old, however, apparently quit school and returned to Fort Worth in 2015. She was a sales manager at a women’s clothes store that lived close to Texas Christian University at the time of the incident.
Tracy Matheson, Molly’s mother, was worried when her daughter didn’t arrive at work on April 10, 2017. Even though her daughter lived in a garage apartment across the street from her, the worried mother reached out to a friend.
Tracy chose to physically check things out and ensure her daughter’s safety at the 22-year-home old’s despite the friend’s assurance that Molly’s car was parked outside. The door was unlocked, and she found that Molly wasn’t present. Tracy called her name and started to look about the home, turning around to the backyard before entering the bathroom.
Megan Leigh Getrum enjoyed camping, hiking, and exploring new places. The 36-year-old went hiking in Plano, Texas’ Arbor Hills Nature Preserve on April 14, 2017. About a week after the murder of Molly Matheson, Reginald Kimbro sexually attacked and strangled Megan Getrum while police were looking into him.
Megan was attacked on April 14, 2017, while she went out for a nighttime trek in the neighbourhood’s Arbor Hills Nature Preserve. Megan was last observed alive that evening. Her body was discovered in Lake Roy Hubbard, Texas, on April 15, 2017. She had experienced sexual assault, just like Molly. In addition, there were indications of drowning, blunt force trauma to the back of the head, and strangulation.
Who Killed Megan Getrum and Molly Matheson?
The police investigated Molly Matheson’s case by reviewing her phone messages and records to see if they had any clues. Records revealed that on April 9, 2017, at about 10:26 p.m., she got a text message from a man by the name of Reginald Kimbro. A few days after Molly was discovered, he was taken in for questioning, and the authorities discovered that he knew the 22-year-old from her time in Arkansas. Although they split up after a while of dating, Molly and Reginald kept in touch.
The following night, Reginald claimed he went to Molly’s apartment, and they started kissing. He said, nevertheless, that Molly declined his request for intercourse, so on April 10, 2017, at 1:30 am, he left. Around 2:59 a.m., Reginald sent her a text message on her phone thanking her for some suggestions. She never did read that text, though. The perpetrator seems to have gone to great lengths to hide his footprints at the crime scene. Molly was placed under a shower to wash away any traces of the crime, but DNA was still discovered on her body and collected.
The officers also discovered wet laundry inside the unit. Two sets of women’s underwear, a fitted sheet, a pillowcase, washcloths, a towel, a pair of shorts for jogging, and a pair of men’s underwear were all included in the shipment. The shorts discovered in Molly’s apartment were thought to be his by the authorities because Reginald acknowledged wearing them on the night of April 9. Later, the biological evidence from the scene and Reginald’s DNA matched.
Similarly, Megan, who was subjected to sexual assault, provided biological evidence. This DNA also matched Reginald, linking him to two homicides and sexual assaults. The authorities would later learn that he had a history of attacking women. Reginald was on the police’s radar for sexual assaults in several locations in Texas in 2012 and 2014 before being apprehended for the killings. Reginald was accused of raping and choking three different women.
His sperm was discovered on the woman in each case, but no arrests were made. The 2012 case, according to the authorities, involved a lady who first decided not to file charges but changed her mind once the murder probe got underway. Despite a woman being raped in Allen, Texas, in January 2014, Reginald’s DNA was only discovered in the rape kit in February 2017, more than a month before Molly was killed. Additionally, Reginald’s former partner claimed that he enjoyed strangling during sex and occasionally went too far and wouldn’t stop.
In the end, Reginald accepted a plea agreement in March 2022, just before the trial began, and admitted to the two murders and four further sexual assaults. Reginald was consequently sentenced to life in prison without the chance of release. As a result, the authorities who dealt with the prior sexual assault instances came under fire. One lady claimed that the officer who interrogated her didn’t believe her. Advocates for the victims claimed that if Reginald had been detained sooner when his DNA was found to match that of the victim of the 2014 sexual assault, the killings might have been prevented.
This Friday, NBC Dateline will explore Molly Matheson and Megan Getrum Murder case in greater detail.