Cult Murders 1979-1980 Victims: 3
Between October 1979 and February 1980 three (3) separate murders tied together by one man and one woman Carl Drew and Robin Murphy. These murders became known as the "Fall River Cult Murders" .
Doreen Levesque, 17, Victim #1
Doreen was a reported runaway from New Bedford. On Oct 13 1979 her body was discovered behind Diman Vocational High School in Fall River. Her wrists were tied with fishing line, sexually tortured, stabbed in the head and had suffered multiple skull fractures. Police initially suspected one of her clients. since it was know she was engaged prostitution. The Medical Examiner determined her injuries were caused by multiple people, physical evidence suggested a ritual killing.
Robin Murphy pleaded guilty of the murder of Doreen Levesque. Charges against another suspect, who Murphy accused of doing the crime were dropped. Murphy later recanted her testimony.
Barbara Raposa, 22, Victim #2
On Nov 8 1979 Raposa's boyfriend (Andre Maltais) files a missing person report with the Fall River Police Department. Rapoza was known to participate in drugs and prostitution. On Jan 26 1980 Raposa's body is discovered in a wooded area off Jefferson Street, Fall River. She was discovered with hands bound behind her back, and her skull was crushed.
During the investigation of Rapoza's death, Maltais frequently spoke with police, provided information about a "satanic cult" and offered his assistance in helping solve Doreen Levesque's murder. Maltais denied any knowledge of the crime, however, a few days later he contacted police after receiving very specific details of the murder in “a psychic dream.” Police brought Maltais to the crime scene, allowing him to describe what he had seen in his “dream.” It turns out that he knew exactly where the woman’s body had been discovered, its positioning, time of death, method of killing and various other details that were not made public. Maltais was arrested on Feb 7 1980 and charged with the murder of Barbara Rapoza. He was convicted of 1st degree murder on Jan 30 1981 and sentenced to life in prison. He died in prison in 1998. He was later considered to be a suspect in a few other unsolved area rapes dating back to the early 1970s, but no additional charges were ever brought against him.
Karen Marsden, 20, Victim #3
On Apr 30 1980 a portion of a human skull was discovered in a wooded area known as "Family Beach" in Westport. A search of the area yielded numerous items of clothing, bloodstained rocks, and a clump of hair. The remains were later positively identified as Karen Marsden. Karen was a single mother, a reported runaway, and was engaged in prostitution.
From February to November 1979 Marden had worked (prostitution) for Carl Drew. In the summer months Marsden met Robin Murphy, who was also acquainted with Drew. Detectives from the Fall River Police Department made contact with Marsden hoping to learn more. Fearing for her life, she referred to Carl as “The Devil” and told police of the consequences she expected for her betrayal. She claimed that Drew organized his prostitution ring and ruled with an iron fist.
In 1981 Carl Drew was convicted of 1st degree murder in death of Karen Marsden and was sentenced to life in prison without parole.
Cast of Characters
Robin Murphy
Robin was both a prostitute and an aspiring pimp, Robin was a tough street kid who was described as possessing a high degree of intelligence and a domineering personality. In the days after the arrest Andre Maltais, Robin Murphy contacted police and offered to testify against Maltais as a witness to the murder. Robin claimed to have been present for the killing of Doreen and agreed to turn state’s evidence in that case. In exchange for her cooperation she brokered a plea deal which placed her in protective custody and granted immunity in both murders. Murphy had testified that Maltais had killed Barbara Rapoza after discovering her cheating on him with another man. Murphy also testified she was present on the night of the murder.
According to her initial statement, Robin heard no screams and claimed to see nothing. In fact, she told police that she wasn’t even certain that Doreen Levesque had been murdered until she saw it in the newspapers a few days later. In time, her story evolved to include various details and Satanic embellishments, all of which slipped her mind during the initial interview.
As part of her witness protection agreement in the Raposa case, Robin Murphy was relocated to Dallas, Texas. Following the accusations that connected her to Karen Marsden’s murder, a warrant was issued for her arrest and she was immediately brought back to Fall River. Carl Drew and Carl Davis were also indicted and placed under arrest.
During her interrogation, Robin Murphy told police “everything” (in truth, the story that would continually change throughout trial and be recanted during parole hearings). Murphy testified that Karen Marsden had become too much of a liability, since she was a witness to the killing of Doreen Levesque and rumored to have gone to the police. Carl Drew along with Carl Davis, forced Murphy to take part in the murder as an act of loyalty to the cult.
Murphy was sent to prison in January 1981 and remained there until paroled on May 3 2004. On July 19 2011 Murphy was arrested for probation violation, by Massachusetts State Police in Revere. Murphy was in the presence of a convicted felon who also was in possession of heroin, a violation of her parole conditions.
On Oct 18 2012 the Probation Board revoked her probation and she was remanded back to prison for five (5) years. In Oct 2017 Murphy faced the Parole Board again seeking to be released. Her request was denied on Nov 1 2017 and she will be eligible to apply again in 2022. With a life sentence, Murphy is eligible to apply for parole at least every five years or more often if the Parole Board allows it. She can also be denied parole and spend the rest of her life in prison.
In a new twist, Murphy has now recanted her testimony she gave in 1980 and now also denies any involvement Marsden's murder, Murphy told the parole board that she lied at the trials of Drew and Maltais because she felt Drew was a danger to society and should be in prison and Maltais deserved to be punished because he sexually abused her (allegedly).
On March 8 2022 Murphy appeared before the parole board again seeking to be released. During the hearing, she told the parole board that she lied about her involvement in the killings in order to ensure that Drew and Maltais went to prison.
On November 10 2022 The parole board denied parole again. The board stated Robin, now 59, hasn't proved she is willing to be honest or take accountability for her past behavior. On March 5, 2024, her request for parole was heard again.
Carl Drew
Carl Drew, originally from New Hampshire, was was unknown to the local authorities, He was a pimp with a violent reputation who ran his business out of the Bedford Street. Drew eventually and found his place among Fall River’s criminal underground, keeping company with bikers, drug addicts and prostitutes.
Drew had a direct connection to the victim: he was her pimp. Unfortunately, there was nothing to link him to the murder beyond the unsubstantiated claim of a young drug addict. Carl Drew would go down as the guiding hand of the ‘Fall River Cult Murders.’ He also had a felony record with past convictions for assault, weapons possession and armed robbery. Robin Murphy’s testimony painted him as a violent killer and the jury was inclined to agree. Additional testimony came from his ex-girlfriend, Leah Johnson, who claimed that Drew admitted to her that he had killed a girl along with Davis, Murphy and another woman (presumably Carol Fletcher) while under the influence of drugs, and that he allegedly gave Johnson a diamond ring that belonged to Marsden.
Drew was convicted in the first-degree murder of Karen Marsden on March 13 1981, was sentenced to life imprison with no possibility of parole. He has filed numerous appeals over the years seeking a new trial. His most recent, and final, was denied in 2006.
Maureen "Sonny" Sparda
Soon after the death of Karen Marsden, a woman named Maureen (“Sonny”) Sparda contacted police and named Robin Murphy as Karen’s killer. Sonny was a former prostitute who lived in the Harbor Terrace housing projects near Fall River’s waterfront. She hosted a number of Satanic gatherings in her apartment and acted as something of a den mother figure to the young prostitutes, runaways and drug-users who hung out there. She was also Murphy’s ex-lover. According to her, Robin had admitted to the murder during a phone conversation.
Carol Fletcher
Carol Fletcher, who accompanied Marsden when she took police on a tour of the Freetown State Forest a few months earlier, also came forward with information. She claimed that Robin Murphy and Carl Drew were responsible for the murder of Marsden. Drew’s friend Carl Davis, was also present. Fletcher, herself, had driven the group out to the secluded wooded area where the Satanic sacrifice took place.
Carl Davis
The case against Carl Davis fell apart completely. He never stood trial for his alleged role in the abduction and ritual slaughter of Karen Marsden. However, the following year he was arrested for assaulting Sonny Sparda with a deadly weapon. Allegedly, Davis beat the three-month pregnant Sparda and stabbed her in the head with a knife because she had information implicating both him and Robin Murphy (and absolving Drew) in Marsden’s murder. He served seven years in jail and today is free.
Witness Tampering, Police Misconduct Allegations
The convictions proved to be a legal nightmare, allegations of witness tampering, falsified information, insufficient counsel, legal rights violations and police misconduct all loomed in the cases against Maltias and Drew. Robin Murphy recanted her entire testimony in an unsuccessful bid for a new trial in 1984.
In a statement to the Parole Board Robin Murphy stated : “I believe Carl Drew was guilty of killing Karen and many, many other women in the area, I believed he belonged in jail, but also knew justice was not taking place. So I made the story up.” She also recanted being present at the Raposa murder and admitted to fabricating the testimony that led to Maltias’ conviction.
In an even more surprising turn of events, a number of other witnesses also recanted their trial statements, claiming that they were made under police pressure or else the influence of drugs. Carol Fletcher, a key witness who was allegedly present for Karen Marsden’s murder, maintains that she was threatened by police into making her false statements in order to convict Carl Drew. She now claims that the murder did not even take place in the woods of Westport. According to her revised version of events, Robin Murphy killed Marsden in Fall River and the body was dismembered and dumped at various locations.
Detective Sergeant Paul Carey, Fall River Police Department
Detective Sergeant Paul Carey, from the Fall River Major Crimes Division worked on the case and has his own theory: “I still believe that Murphy was the real ringleader, not Drew; that Levesque was murdered because Murphy was also in love with her and became jealous when Levesque started seeing Drew. I believe Murphy and Marsden were present when Levesque was killed. I think Murphy killed Raposa because Raposa was in love with Maltais. Murphy admitted that she and Raposa had previously been lovers. And, I believe Murphy killed Marsden because of the two previous murders. Marsden was at the scene of those murders, and I believe Murphy knew she was the weak link and might get them convicted.”
Conclusion
The more bizarre claims made during the ‘Fall River Cult Murder’ investigations are likely works of fiction. Many of the “facts” are, in fact, based on the word of a mentally unstable young woman who was known to manipulate those around her. It also eventually came to light that a fair bit of witness tampering, manipulation and misconduct took place throughout the investigation by police, including detectives who may have helped frame the case based on their own religious beliefs.
All three (3) women – all connected through their occupations and extracurricular occult activities – were brutally murdered under similar circumstances.
As expected, the court trials of Andy Maltias, Carl Drew, Robin Murphy and Carl Davis were a media circus. Headlines screamed of Satanic rites, sexual torture and cult murder. The public, in turn, remained unconvinced that these individuals had acted alone. Many believed that these four individuals were only the tip of the iceberg and a dangerous cult was still active in the area, providing for urban legends in the years that followed.
There are some who say ‘The Fall River Cult’ never really existed. It was simply a product of the ‘Satanic Panic’ era, made up entirely by the police and tabloid media to sensationalize the slayings of three young prostitutes who may or may not have dabbled in the occult and connect them in a way that would capture the public’s imagination (and perhaps advance a few personal careers). Given the social climate of the time, these claims are not exactly out of the realm of possibility.
Between October 1979 and February 1980 three (3) separate murders tied together by one man and one woman Carl Drew and Robin Murphy. These murders became known as the "Fall River Cult Murders" .
Doreen Levesque, 17, Victim #1
Doreen was a reported runaway from New Bedford. On Oct 13 1979 her body was discovered behind Diman Vocational High School in Fall River. Her wrists were tied with fishing line, sexually tortured, stabbed in the head and had suffered multiple skull fractures. Police initially suspected one of her clients. since it was know she was engaged prostitution. The Medical Examiner determined her injuries were caused by multiple people, physical evidence suggested a ritual killing.
Robin Murphy pleaded guilty of the murder of Doreen Levesque. Charges against another suspect, who Murphy accused of doing the crime were dropped. Murphy later recanted her testimony.
Barbara Raposa, 22, Victim #2
On Nov 8 1979 Raposa's boyfriend (Andre Maltais) files a missing person report with the Fall River Police Department. Rapoza was known to participate in drugs and prostitution. On Jan 26 1980 Raposa's body is discovered in a wooded area off Jefferson Street, Fall River. She was discovered with hands bound behind her back, and her skull was crushed.
During the investigation of Rapoza's death, Maltais frequently spoke with police, provided information about a "satanic cult" and offered his assistance in helping solve Doreen Levesque's murder. Maltais denied any knowledge of the crime, however, a few days later he contacted police after receiving very specific details of the murder in “a psychic dream.” Police brought Maltais to the crime scene, allowing him to describe what he had seen in his “dream.” It turns out that he knew exactly where the woman’s body had been discovered, its positioning, time of death, method of killing and various other details that were not made public. Maltais was arrested on Feb 7 1980 and charged with the murder of Barbara Rapoza. He was convicted of 1st degree murder on Jan 30 1981 and sentenced to life in prison. He died in prison in 1998. He was later considered to be a suspect in a few other unsolved area rapes dating back to the early 1970s, but no additional charges were ever brought against him.
Karen Marsden, 20, Victim #3
On Apr 30 1980 a portion of a human skull was discovered in a wooded area known as "Family Beach" in Westport. A search of the area yielded numerous items of clothing, bloodstained rocks, and a clump of hair. The remains were later positively identified as Karen Marsden. Karen was a single mother, a reported runaway, and was engaged in prostitution.
From February to November 1979 Marden had worked (prostitution) for Carl Drew. In the summer months Marsden met Robin Murphy, who was also acquainted with Drew. Detectives from the Fall River Police Department made contact with Marsden hoping to learn more. Fearing for her life, she referred to Carl as “The Devil” and told police of the consequences she expected for her betrayal. She claimed that Drew organized his prostitution ring and ruled with an iron fist.
In 1981 Carl Drew was convicted of 1st degree murder in death of Karen Marsden and was sentenced to life in prison without parole.
Cast of Characters
Robin Murphy
Robin was both a prostitute and an aspiring pimp, Robin was a tough street kid who was described as possessing a high degree of intelligence and a domineering personality. In the days after the arrest Andre Maltais, Robin Murphy contacted police and offered to testify against Maltais as a witness to the murder. Robin claimed to have been present for the killing of Doreen and agreed to turn state’s evidence in that case. In exchange for her cooperation she brokered a plea deal which placed her in protective custody and granted immunity in both murders. Murphy had testified that Maltais had killed Barbara Rapoza after discovering her cheating on him with another man. Murphy also testified she was present on the night of the murder.
According to her initial statement, Robin heard no screams and claimed to see nothing. In fact, she told police that she wasn’t even certain that Doreen Levesque had been murdered until she saw it in the newspapers a few days later. In time, her story evolved to include various details and Satanic embellishments, all of which slipped her mind during the initial interview.
As part of her witness protection agreement in the Raposa case, Robin Murphy was relocated to Dallas, Texas. Following the accusations that connected her to Karen Marsden’s murder, a warrant was issued for her arrest and she was immediately brought back to Fall River. Carl Drew and Carl Davis were also indicted and placed under arrest.
During her interrogation, Robin Murphy told police “everything” (in truth, the story that would continually change throughout trial and be recanted during parole hearings). Murphy testified that Karen Marsden had become too much of a liability, since she was a witness to the killing of Doreen Levesque and rumored to have gone to the police. Carl Drew along with Carl Davis, forced Murphy to take part in the murder as an act of loyalty to the cult.
Murphy was sent to prison in January 1981 and remained there until paroled on May 3 2004. On July 19 2011 Murphy was arrested for probation violation, by Massachusetts State Police in Revere. Murphy was in the presence of a convicted felon who also was in possession of heroin, a violation of her parole conditions.
On Oct 18 2012 the Probation Board revoked her probation and she was remanded back to prison for five (5) years. In Oct 2017 Murphy faced the Parole Board again seeking to be released. Her request was denied on Nov 1 2017 and she will be eligible to apply again in 2022. With a life sentence, Murphy is eligible to apply for parole at least every five years or more often if the Parole Board allows it. She can also be denied parole and spend the rest of her life in prison.
In a new twist, Murphy has now recanted her testimony she gave in 1980 and now also denies any involvement Marsden's murder, Murphy told the parole board that she lied at the trials of Drew and Maltais because she felt Drew was a danger to society and should be in prison and Maltais deserved to be punished because he sexually abused her (allegedly).
On March 8 2022 Murphy appeared before the parole board again seeking to be released. During the hearing, she told the parole board that she lied about her involvement in the killings in order to ensure that Drew and Maltais went to prison.
On November 10 2022 The parole board denied parole again. The board stated Robin, now 59, hasn't proved she is willing to be honest or take accountability for her past behavior. On March 5, 2024, her request for parole was heard again.
Carl Drew
Carl Drew, originally from New Hampshire, was was unknown to the local authorities, He was a pimp with a violent reputation who ran his business out of the Bedford Street. Drew eventually and found his place among Fall River’s criminal underground, keeping company with bikers, drug addicts and prostitutes.
Drew had a direct connection to the victim: he was her pimp. Unfortunately, there was nothing to link him to the murder beyond the unsubstantiated claim of a young drug addict. Carl Drew would go down as the guiding hand of the ‘Fall River Cult Murders.’ He also had a felony record with past convictions for assault, weapons possession and armed robbery. Robin Murphy’s testimony painted him as a violent killer and the jury was inclined to agree. Additional testimony came from his ex-girlfriend, Leah Johnson, who claimed that Drew admitted to her that he had killed a girl along with Davis, Murphy and another woman (presumably Carol Fletcher) while under the influence of drugs, and that he allegedly gave Johnson a diamond ring that belonged to Marsden.
Drew was convicted in the first-degree murder of Karen Marsden on March 13 1981, was sentenced to life imprison with no possibility of parole. He has filed numerous appeals over the years seeking a new trial. His most recent, and final, was denied in 2006.
Maureen "Sonny" Sparda
Soon after the death of Karen Marsden, a woman named Maureen (“Sonny”) Sparda contacted police and named Robin Murphy as Karen’s killer. Sonny was a former prostitute who lived in the Harbor Terrace housing projects near Fall River’s waterfront. She hosted a number of Satanic gatherings in her apartment and acted as something of a den mother figure to the young prostitutes, runaways and drug-users who hung out there. She was also Murphy’s ex-lover. According to her, Robin had admitted to the murder during a phone conversation.
Carol Fletcher
Carol Fletcher, who accompanied Marsden when she took police on a tour of the Freetown State Forest a few months earlier, also came forward with information. She claimed that Robin Murphy and Carl Drew were responsible for the murder of Marsden. Drew’s friend Carl Davis, was also present. Fletcher, herself, had driven the group out to the secluded wooded area where the Satanic sacrifice took place.
Carl Davis
The case against Carl Davis fell apart completely. He never stood trial for his alleged role in the abduction and ritual slaughter of Karen Marsden. However, the following year he was arrested for assaulting Sonny Sparda with a deadly weapon. Allegedly, Davis beat the three-month pregnant Sparda and stabbed her in the head with a knife because she had information implicating both him and Robin Murphy (and absolving Drew) in Marsden’s murder. He served seven years in jail and today is free.
Witness Tampering, Police Misconduct Allegations
The convictions proved to be a legal nightmare, allegations of witness tampering, falsified information, insufficient counsel, legal rights violations and police misconduct all loomed in the cases against Maltias and Drew. Robin Murphy recanted her entire testimony in an unsuccessful bid for a new trial in 1984.
In a statement to the Parole Board Robin Murphy stated : “I believe Carl Drew was guilty of killing Karen and many, many other women in the area, I believed he belonged in jail, but also knew justice was not taking place. So I made the story up.” She also recanted being present at the Raposa murder and admitted to fabricating the testimony that led to Maltias’ conviction.
In an even more surprising turn of events, a number of other witnesses also recanted their trial statements, claiming that they were made under police pressure or else the influence of drugs. Carol Fletcher, a key witness who was allegedly present for Karen Marsden’s murder, maintains that she was threatened by police into making her false statements in order to convict Carl Drew. She now claims that the murder did not even take place in the woods of Westport. According to her revised version of events, Robin Murphy killed Marsden in Fall River and the body was dismembered and dumped at various locations.
Detective Sergeant Paul Carey, Fall River Police Department
Detective Sergeant Paul Carey, from the Fall River Major Crimes Division worked on the case and has his own theory: “I still believe that Murphy was the real ringleader, not Drew; that Levesque was murdered because Murphy was also in love with her and became jealous when Levesque started seeing Drew. I believe Murphy and Marsden were present when Levesque was killed. I think Murphy killed Raposa because Raposa was in love with Maltais. Murphy admitted that she and Raposa had previously been lovers. And, I believe Murphy killed Marsden because of the two previous murders. Marsden was at the scene of those murders, and I believe Murphy knew she was the weak link and might get them convicted.”
Conclusion
The more bizarre claims made during the ‘Fall River Cult Murder’ investigations are likely works of fiction. Many of the “facts” are, in fact, based on the word of a mentally unstable young woman who was known to manipulate those around her. It also eventually came to light that a fair bit of witness tampering, manipulation and misconduct took place throughout the investigation by police, including detectives who may have helped frame the case based on their own religious beliefs.
All three (3) women – all connected through their occupations and extracurricular occult activities – were brutally murdered under similar circumstances.
As expected, the court trials of Andy Maltias, Carl Drew, Robin Murphy and Carl Davis were a media circus. Headlines screamed of Satanic rites, sexual torture and cult murder. The public, in turn, remained unconvinced that these individuals had acted alone. Many believed that these four individuals were only the tip of the iceberg and a dangerous cult was still active in the area, providing for urban legends in the years that followed.
There are some who say ‘The Fall River Cult’ never really existed. It was simply a product of the ‘Satanic Panic’ era, made up entirely by the police and tabloid media to sensationalize the slayings of three young prostitutes who may or may not have dabbled in the occult and connect them in a way that would capture the public’s imagination (and perhaps advance a few personal careers). Given the social climate of the time, these claims are not exactly out of the realm of possibility.