Dateline: How did the police catch Todd Winkler in connection to his wife's murder and where is he now? Details explored

Dateline recounted the horrifying and tragic death of Rachel Winkler, a mother of three, who died after being brutally stabbed with a pair of scissors on February 17, 2012. The case was not straightforward for investigators, as Dateline reported that Rachel’s husband, Todd Winkler, claimed she died after he defended himself from her attacks.

Although it was hard for the investigators to believe that a former Air Force pilot with a heavier build than Rachel would have to defend himself so severely that it resulted in the brutal death of his wife of six years. The case brought numerous secrets about the duo’s life, which helped the police in arresting Todd and sending him to prison for committing murder.

More on this in our story.

Dateline: How did the police catch Todd Winkler in connection to his wife's murder? Details explored

As per Dateline, the investigators were sceptical of Todd’s claims since the beginning of the case when he claimed that Rachel had died after a scuffle between the two in their children’s nursery. Investigations revealed that Rachel was having an affair with a man named James White, who worked as a maintenance worker in the airport where she also worked.

Dateline reported that Todd told the investigators that he had known about his wife’s affair for a long time and wanted to mend their broken relationship, but Rachel did not want that. According to him, she even threatened him if he tried to take the children away from her. They later got involved in a fight when she came with a pair of scissors and attacked him, and while defending himself, he had to kill her.

However, looking at the body of Rachel, which had multiple stab wounds and defensive injuries. In contrast, Todd’s relatively minor injuries made investigators suspect he was lying. As per Dateline, they then approached White, who provided them with information that would help them in their investigation.

White told them that he and Rachel were preparing for her divorce from Todd, as they wanted to live together. He also revealed that Rachel had told him about Todd keeping the ashes of his first wife in their bedroom, giving the investigators a place to look at next.

According to Dateline, Todd’s first wife, Catherine, had died in a car accident in 1999. When they called the White County Sheriff’s Office to find out about the case, they discovered the similarities between the cases. Just like in Rachel’s case, Todd didn’t call 911 himself and asked someone else to do that. In Rachel’s case, Todd had minor injuries that looked sketchy, and in Catherine’s case, he claimed that he had trouble breathing after being bitten by an insect, but the investigators found no evidence to determine if Todd was telling the truth.

Although Catherine’s death was concluded as an accident, investigators could now arrest Todd for Rachel’s murder after a report from forensic blood analysis, which proved that Todd had lied about being attacked by Rachel and had inflicted those injuries on himself.

Dateline: Where is Todd Winkler now? Details explored

After being arrested for killing Rachel, Todd went on trial in 2014, as per Dateline. He was later found guilty by the jury and sent to jail for 26 years, and might be eligible for parole in 2031.

After being found guilty, Todd was sent to California's San Quentin State Prison in Marin County.

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