Joseph Ray

In the heat of a Virginia summer, the life of Joseph Alex Ray, a 26-year-old White man, came to a tragic and mysterious end. He was last seen alive on July 12, 1988. A week later, on July 19, his body was discovered abandoned in a public but secluded area on the on-ramp to Interstate 64 from South Military Highway in the city of Chesapeake. The condition of his remains suggested he had been deceased for some time, and the advanced state of decomposition initially prevented the medical examiner from determining a precise cause of death. Despite this initial uncertainty, investigators with the Virginia State Police classified his death as a homicide, and the Chesapeake Police Department would later list the cause as strangulation in its cold case files.

The discovery launched an investigation that would soon look beyond a single, isolated crime. Joseph Ray’s death bore disturbing similarities to other cases in the Hampton Roads area, a region encompassing Chesapeake, Norfolk, Portsmouth, and surrounding cities. Detectives began to suspect that a serial killer was preying on men in the community. Between 1987 and 1996, at least ten men, including Joseph, were killed in a strikingly similar fashion. The victims were often found nude or partially clothed, left in remote or overlooked locations like roadsides and wooded areas across Chesapeake, Suffolk, and Isle of Wight County. Many had been strangled.

As investigators and a special task force delved deeper, a pattern emerged. Many of the victims were known to frequent the same social areas, including nightlife spots in Norfolk's Ocean View neighborhood and on Granby Street. Some were known to be gay or bisexual, while others had less stable living situations, which sometimes delayed the reporting of their disappearances. Joseph Ray’s case fit squarely into this grim mosaic, suggesting he was another victim of the so-called "Hampton Roads Killer." His body was found just over a year after the first victim in the series, Charles F. Smith, was found strangled in nearby Isle of Wight County.

Years of investigation eventually led police to a primary suspect: Elton Manning Jackson of Portsmouth. In March 1998, Chesapeake Police publicly named Jackson as the suspect in all twelve of the connected homicides. Though evidence was collected, linking Jackson to many of the crimes proved difficult. However, investigators were able to build a strong case against him for the final murder in the series, the July 1996 strangulation of 38-year-old Andrew D. Smith. Blood evidence found in Jackson's home was a match for Smith. In August 1998, a jury found Elton Manning Jackson guilty of the murder of Andrew Smith, and he was subsequently sentenced to life in prison.

While Jackson was convicted for one of the murders and remains the only publicly named suspect for the entire series, he was never formally charged with the homicide of Joseph Alex Ray. The evidence in Joseph’s case, like many of the others, was insufficient to bring to trial. For decades, his death has remained officially unsolved, one of many cold cases that cast a long shadow over the Hampton Roads community. The investigation into his murder is still considered active by the Virginia State Police.

The case of Joseph Alex Ray remains open, a painful and unresolved chapter for anyone who knew and loved him. The Virginia State Police Bureau of Criminal Investigation in Chesapeake continues to hold the file, hoping for a new lead or a technological breakthrough that might finally bring clarity and justice. A reward of up to $5,000 is available for information that leads to an arrest in a Chesapeake cold case homicide. Anyone with information is encouraged to contact the Virginia State Police at (757) 424-6850 or the Chesapeake Crime Line at 1-888-LOCK-U-UP.