Dateline: 5 harrowing details about Jennifer Ramsaran's homicide, revisited

Dateline has always featured true crime cases with twists and turns like an Agatha Christie crime novel, and the case of Jennifer Ramsaran is another one of those stories.

More than 10 years later, the details that surround her death still disturb anyone who dares to revisit them.

Jennifer, a mother of three from upstate New York, vanished just days before Christmas in 2012. Her husband, Ganesh "Remy" Ramsaran, would later stand on trial for her murder, though the case wouldn't end there.

Let's revisit 5 of the most chilling details from the case.

Dateline: 5 harrowing details about Jennifer Ramsaran's homicide

1. A husband’s chilling 911 call and a phone found in his hands

According to Dateline, Jennifer Ramsaran was last seen on December 11, 2012, when her husband Remy, claimed that she left for Syracuse to shop. A few hours later, he made a call to 911 in which he sounded frightened:

"Uh, my wife left this morning between 10 and 11….. and she hasn't been back, and I'm really freaked out. This is totally unlike her, and none of our friends have heard from her," Remy said on to the 911 operator.

However, Remy's quick and eager involvement in the investigation later made him a suspect. At the police station, he used the "Find My iPhone" app, which tracked and placed her device miles away. Yet when officers searched the area, they found nothing.

Ganesh "Remy" Ramsaran & Jennifer Ramsaran (Image Via: Dateline NBC)

The very next day, Remy surprisingly found the phone himself. He called 911 again, saying: "I found my wife's iPhone."

While the iPhone's getting found should have been helpful, it made investigators doubt Remy. Was it luck, or a well-planned move? The iPhone was good as new and oddly clean for something that had been miles away and outdoors. This made the authorities wonder if Remy was trying to control the narrative from the very start.

2. Dateline reveals the discovery of Jennifer’s van with ominous signs inside

Five days after Jennifer's disappearance, her father made a discovery that would shift the investigation. Her red minivan was sitting in an apartment complex parking lot, just eight miles from her home. Inside, investigators found traces of blood, evidence that proved Jennifer was harmed.

Jennifer Ramsaran (Image Via: Dateline NBC)

Soon, the possibility of foul play became apparent. On February 26, 2013, more than two months after she went missing, Jennifer's naked body was finally found near an out-of-the-way road in South Plymouth.

By then, the New York winter had somewhat preserved and covered her remains. The medical examiner confirmed what her family feared most: Jennifer had been murdered.

The image of her ditched and deserted van stuck with many. This was not a disappearance that ended in the missing person being okay. It was a homicide, a breadcrumb that pointed detectives closer to home than they initially thought.

3. Affairs, betrayals, and a marriage built on secrets

Behind the suburban guise, Jennifer and Remy's marriage was falling apart. Jennifer, a quiet woman who poured love into raising their three children, had fallen into the world of online gaming, particularly "Kingdoms of Camelot," being her favorite game to play. She even formed a close bond with another player named Rob, all the way from England.

Ganesh "Remy" Ramsaran & Eileen Sayles (Image Via: Dateline NBC)

But Remy wasn't innocent either, as he was having an affair with Jennifer's best friend, Eileen Sayles. Eileen admitted that the two had been intimate with each other the day before Jennifer vanished. Reflecting on his reaction when she tried to end it, she once told investigators;

"He gets upset. You know, he wants what he wants."

This infidelity on both sides of the coin placed Remy under suspicion. To prosecutors, his wanting to be with Eileen without the obstacle of his wife is what formed the possible motive for a murder. The picture painted was of a man who sought a "perfect life": a perfect wife, children, and, at the same time, the thrill of an affair.

4. Dateline mentions a suspicious alibi that didn’t hold up under scrutiny

On the day Jennifer vanished, Remy told police he had gone for a run after she left for Syracuse. On the surface, it sounded normal enough. But investigators quickly noticed cracks in his story. CCTV footage failed to capture him on the route he detailed, and he was only seen on camera once when he showed up at the YMCA.

Jennifer Ramsaran & Eileen Sayles (Image Via: Dateline NBC)

Richard Cobb, who was an officer with the Chenango County Sheriff's Office at the time, said:

"His alibi of running this certain route appears to be false."

Blood evidence intensified those suspicions. A spot was found on the mattress, and investigators also discovered Jennifer's blood on the sweatshirt that Remy had been wearing. These findings only pointed to a rough confrontation between the two.

5. A trial riddled with errors and a shocking plea years later

In 2014, Remy was convicted of second-degree murder and was sentenced to 25 years to life. However, in 2022, that conviction was upended. The reason was as shocking as the case itself: Ineffective counsel.

Ganesh "Remy" Ramsaran (Image Via: Dateline NBC)

His original lawyer had no previous experience in murder cases, relied on Google searches to understand forensic details, and even admitted during closing arguments that he had questioned his client's guiltlessness "a million times."

Dateline reveals how both prosecutors and defense attorneys later concluded that Remy's first trial had been insubstantial. His new defense team pointed to the DNA found under Jennifer's fingernails that did not match Remy, which once again pointed fingers at another possible suspect.

Yet instead of rolling the dice at another trial, Remy struck a plea deal in 2023. He pleaded guilty to manslaughter and accepted a 22-year sentence.

In one Dateline interview, Remy shockingly described prison life as redeeming. he told correspondent Andrea Canning:

"Prison is easy. You don't understand. There's so much freedom in prison..."

His lack of remorse continues to haunt Jennifer's family, making the outcome of the case all the more devastating.

The Dateline coverage of Jennifer Ramsaran's murder pulls back the curtain on a story of betrayal, secrets, and a woman whose life was taken away far too soon. Every tiny detail, from her husband's behavior to the courtroom twists, adds to a picture of a crime that still disturbs a decade later.

While Remy Ramsaran now serves time in jail for manslaughter, his words and actions leave more questions than answers. For Jennifer's family, the loss remains a wound that time cannot ever fully heal.