Naman Shrestha
In the episode titled ‘Screaming Terror’ of Investigation Discovery’s ‘The Killer Beside Me,’ the primary focus is on the tragic demise of 67-year-old Alice Hufnagle in November 2002. As the detectives followed a trail of evidence and leads, they were led to multiple dead ends. Several months later, they finally found a shocking clue that led them straight to an unlikely suspect, who turned out to be the perpetrator. The documentary features insightful and emotional interviews with Alice’s loved ones and the officials who worked hard to get to the bottom of the case.
Alice Hufnagle Was Found Dead in the Bedroom by Her Estranged Husband
On August 9, 1935, in Lansdale, Pennsylvania, William Joseph Curley III and Anna C. Stover Curley welcomed a little bundle of joy into the world in the form of Alice Marie Curley Hufnagle. One of 10 children, she grew up in Lansdale alongside her siblings, including Agnes M. Curley Cunningham, Mary E. Curley, Eleanor Curley O’Connor, Robert Curley, and James P. Curley. The warm and loving woman married Charles P. Hufnagle, but later parted ways with him. She was the mother of six children, including five daughters — Ann Clemens, Alicia, Terri Lex, Cynthia, and Susan Benatti — and a son named Chuck.
On the professional front, Alice ran a successful real estate company called A.C. Hufnagle Real Estate. Later, she found love with Jack Lauman, who had his own well-drilling business, and the two got married. In February 1996, she landed a job as a pharmacy clerk at a Giant grocery store in East Norriton Township. By the late 1990s, her marriage to Jason began deteriorating. Although he moved out of her home in East Norriton Township, Pennsylvania, and they ended their marriage, they remained friends. In an unexpected turn of events, 67-year-old Alice was found dead in her upstairs bedroom on November 23, 2002, by Jason.
After he informed the police about the shocking discovery, the detectives arrived and taped the crime scene. She had suffered a significant blunt force trauma and had duct tape around her neck and forehead. The investigators also found strands of hair and blood samples on and around the remains. The evidence also indicated that she was sexually assaulted. They noticed a broken bathroom window, indicating how the perpetrator had entered the house. The medical examiner revealed that Alice had multiple bruises and abrasions on her face and upper arm, and that she died of asphyxiation.
The Police Considered Multiple Suspects in Alice Hufnagle’s Inner Circle
Since Jack Lauman was the individual who found Alice Hufnagle’s remains, the authorities interviewed him as part of the investigation. He told them he arrived at her place to repair a toilet and let himself in with a spare key he had. As the individual who discovered her and reportedly owed her alimony, he was interviewed by the investigators as part of their early inquiry. However, he agreed to take a polygraph test, which indicated that he was telling the truth. After his DNA and alibi were checked, he was ruled out as a suspect. The detectives then looked into Alice’s coworkers, but it led to another dead end. The police also focused on Mike Horani, the boyfriend of Alice’s daughter, Susan, who worked at a restaurant near both Alice’s home and workplace.
While questioning him about the same, the detectives noticed that he had an injured hand, which he and Susan confirmed occurred during an argument. When authorities tested his DNA, he was eventually ruled out of the investigation. They also looked into one of Alice’s neighbors, who had a prior rape conviction. It turned out that he was in Hollywood, Florida, at the time of the murder. Although the DNA evidence found at the crime scene didn’t match anyone in the DNA database, it was determined that the hair found on Alice belonged to an African-American male. Thus, the authorities returned to Alice’s workplace in July 2003 to check whether they had missed any crucial details earlier.
Alice Hufnagle’s Killer Was Someone She Worked With
Upon digging deeper, the detectives noticed that Jeffrey Ivan Vample checked in to work for only 15 minutes on the fateful day. On July 25, they interviewed Jeffrey, who had an injury on his right arm. He told them he had injured his arm while moving a heavy piece of furniture. He allowed the detectives to check out the furniture that caused the injury and get a DNA swab. While looking around the house, they found a box that contained pornography and another box that contained duct tape, strands of blonde hair, and a Scream-style mask. A search warrant executed at his house also led to the discovery of a black cape that went with the Scream-style mask and a pair of women’s underwear.
Armed with enough evidence against him, the police questioned him and pushed for a confession. Initially, he claimed that he “accidentally inserted himself” into her, and she was alive when he parted ways with her. However, when confronted with the evidence against him, he confessed to his crimes. According to investigators, Jeffrey admitted to breaking into Alice’s home in the costume from the ‘Scream’ movie with the intent to sexually assault her, stating that he strangled her after she removed his mask and recognized him. He was arrested and charged with first- and second-degree murder, rape, burglary, robbery, aggravated indecent assault and possessing instruments of crime, in connection with Alice Hufnagle’s death.
Jeffrey Vample is Currently Incarcerated at a Pennsylvania Prison Facility
About a year after Jeffrey Vample’s arrest, he ended up pleading guilty to the first-degree murder of Alice Hufnagle in order to avoid getting the death penalty. Ultimately, he was convicted of seven charges in total, including rape and first-degree murder. In the end, Jeffrey was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for his gruesome crimes. As of today, the 47-year-old killer is serving his sentence at State Correctional Institution – Houtzdale, located along Pennsylvania Route 153.
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