Murder mysteries that remain unsolved for decades are often some of the most perplexing and haunting cases.
Such is the one of Eva Kay Wenal, a former Playboy Bunny and model, who was brutally murdered on May 1, 2008, in her Atlanta suburban home.
Despite their best efforts, investigators and Kay's loved ones have been left with unanswered questions, grappling with the loss and uncertainty for over 15 years.
At the time, Kay was 60 but looked half her age and had a charming personality that made her the centre of attention.
Her husband, Harold "Hal" Wenal, a real estate developer, had given her a fairytale marriage after sweeping her off her feet.
The Wenals were known for their luxurious lifestyle and extravagant trips.
Eva Kay Wenal's rise to wealth and fame
Kay had a difficult childhood, marked by constant moves due to her father's job in the oil business and her parents' bitter divorce.
She married young and had a child soon after college, but her first marriage ended in divorce.
She then became a certified dental assistant and found quick success as a cocktail waitress at a Playboy Club in Miami.
In December 1972, Kay was praised for being an “asset to Playboy” and helping out a local organisation, VIVA Florida.
Kay's sister Pam Sleeper described her as a wonderful person who didn't hold back on anything and made people feel special.
Ms Sleeper told the Daily Beast of her sister: "She could come down hard on you if she thought you were wrong. She didn’t hold back on anything.
"She would hold you accountable. But she was also very giving and she shared everything that she had. She made you feel special."
Her beauty and determination always made her stand apart, according to Pam. She was loved by everyone and always held others accountable.
By the 1980s, Kay's life was marked by her marriage to Harold, and they were known for their luxurious lifestyle and extravagant trips.
But despite her charming personality, Kay's murder remains a mystery, leaving her family and the community wondering who could have committed such a brutal act.
How did Eva Kay Wenal die?
On the day of her murder, Hal left for work as usual, and Kay joined him at his company’s offices later.
She stayed for about 30 minutes and returned home feeling unwell.
Kay had intended to spend the afternoon helping to find tenants for her husband's shopping centres but ended up staying home. She was reading a book on the couch with her glasses on when someone knocked on her door.
When she went to answer it, she was met with sudden and shocking violence. The attacker assaulted her several times, slamming her head against the wall or floor and punching her in the face.
Then, the attacker slit her throat twice, a brutal coup de grace that suggested intense personal anger and hatred, police said.
The killer left behind no fingerprints, and there were no signs of forced entry, only a blood-stained towel in the closet of the upstairs master bedroom.
Nothing was taken from the house, including Kay’s jewellery, wallet, and credit cards, even though they were all easily accessible.
The killer didn't even take the rings from her fingers, which appeared to be valuable and likely expensive.
Hal discovered the grisly scene when he arrived home later that night. He told police that he found Kay lying in a large “pool” of her own blood.
The harrowing murder shocked their affluent community.
When the Gwinnett Police Department started investigating, they uncovered a host of secrets, including a slew of lawsuits against Hal’s companies, sightings of a mystery man wearing wire-rimmed glasses who was lingering near the Wenals’ house, and a bizarre letter to a local newspaper claiming to be from Kay’s lovelorn admirer.
For the past 15 years, authorities have been unable to find Kay’s killer.
Hal died just two years after Kay, in 2010. Kay’s sister, Pam Sleeper, is the one who still holds out hope for a break in the case. “Someone knows something,” Pam insists.
“All we need is one person to help us figure out what happened to my sister. I’m not going to give up.”
A puzzling investigation
The gruesome murder rocked their affluent community, and, although it remains unsolved to this day, the police uncovered a host of secrets during their investigation.
Investigators looked into several possible suspects, including Kay's ex-husbands, but ruled them out.
A letter sent to a news outlet accused Kay of being a "money-grubbing whore," and the author claimed to have had a relationship with her, although it is unclear if this was true.
No suspects were identified from the letter. Investigators also found some "fetish wear" in Kay's closet, but her husband Hal said that it was from a Halloween costume.
The police continued to investigate the case for two years but were unable to find any solid leads.
A stranger was seen in the neighbourhood at the time of Kay's death, but investigators were unable to identify him.
The case remains open, and the killer has not been caught.
