Still A Mystery is investigating the unsolved murders of Eric Cates and Zachary Lamb, who were both murdered for reasons that are unknown.
Cates was found dead in the small town of Empire in Walker County, Alabama, in 2015, and Lamb was gunned down in front of his pregnant fiancee outside their apartment in Spokane, Washington, in 2014.
Neither man was thought to be in any trouble and had their whole lives waiting ahead of them, and in both cases, the police remain stumped as to the killer’s identity.
The Murder of Eric Cates
On March 21, 2015, a group of hunters discovered the bodies of 32-year-old Eric Cates and his dog, Gypsy, in a burnt-out truck behind an old school building.
An autopsy report revealed that Cates had been alive when the fire had started but could not determine his actual cause of death.
The deaths were initially put down as an accident or a drug overdose; however, the case has since been classed as a homicide. But unfortunately, the identity of the murderer remains a complete mystery. Surveillance footage has shown that Cates’s truck was the only vehicle to enter the area on 20/21 March.
Cates’s mother, Tobbie Stover, continues to fight for justice for her son. He had dabbled in drugs in the past, but his mom says he had cleaned himself up, and the toxicology reports confirmed that to be true.
Watch the Latest on our YouTube ChannelThe investigators have not released a possible motive for his murder, but Stover has suggested that he may have been murdered by criminal elements who perceived him as a “snitch.”
The Murder of Zachary Lamb
Zachary Lamb and his pregnant fiancee were driving home after an evening meal in November 2014 when they noticed that another vehicle was following them.
Lamb’s fiancee would later tell the cops that they had been having some car trouble which caused their vehicle’s speed to be a bit erratic. This has led the police to believe they were the victims of a road rage incident.
When they pulled up outside their apartment, the killer shouted abuse, including a racial slur at Lamb. The individual seemed to want to have a fight with Lamb, but when the 26-year-old got out of his car, he was immediately struck in the chest with two bullets.
The police are still completely baffled by this crime. Lamb was not engaged in any illegal activity and had no enemies. It appears to be a senseless case of road rage or perhaps a hate crime.
More from Still A Mystery
Follow the links to read about more murders profiled on ID that remain unsolved.
In May 2017, Dorian Bluford flew from Houston, Texas, to Knoxville, Tennessee, to start a new life in a new city. He had a new job and a new car all lined up. But tragically, he was stabbed to death within six hours of landing in Knoxville.
Aliza Sherman and Sheila Deviney were both brutally murdered in broad daylight. Sherman was killed in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, and Deviney was murdered in Garvin County, Oklahoma. And both murders are still a mystery.
Still A Mystery airs at 9/8c on Investigation Discovery.