Dana Laskowski lived in Puyallup, Washington. Recently separated, the 36-year-old single mom of triplet daughters had just moved into a new home and was excited for the next chapter of her life. Instead, all of her hopes and dreams for the future were cut short by someone she trusted.
Dana was Brutally Strangled to Death
On August 31, 2001, a couple called the police and requested a welfare check, claiming their nanny, Dana Laskowski, had not shown up for work and was not answering the phone. Officers made their way into Dana’s home through an unlocked back door and made a shocking discovery.
Dana was lying face down on the couch with one arm twisted behind her back. Cold to the touch, it was clear she had been dead for several hours.
An autopsy determined that Dana had been strangled to death with so much force, that the bones in her neck were crushed. There were abrasions on her knees and elbows indicating she fought for her life until the very end.
A Long List of Suspects but No Cigar
Dana was on bitter terms with her soon-to-be ex-husband, Stan. He told investigators that he took their daughters camping the night of the murder and provided a gas receipt to corroborate his alibi. He was ruled out.
Dana was dating a man named Micheal who lived in Vancouver, Canada, and they were on the verge of breaking up. Phone records proved they spoke the night of her death. Micheal told investigators that Dana seemed tense and didn’t say “I love you” back. After their phone call, he decided to drive to Puyallup and visit her to talk about their relationship but he was stopped at the border and was not allowed entry into Canada. Border patrol records corroborated Micheal’s alibi and he too was ruled out as a suspect.
The next suspect was a man named Patrick who installed Dana’s cable at her new house. He became obsessed and stalked her for a month before her death, leaving flowers and strange poems on her porch. In one letter, Patrick wrote that he was watching Dana and mentioned things only someone with access to her home would know. Dana told her aunt and her employer that if she were to end up dead, Patrick would be responsible.
Patrick insisted that he had nothing to do with Dana’s death and even offered up a sample of his DNA. He claimed he was working at the time of the murder, after which he went out for drinks with his friends. Patrick’s employer and his friends corroborated his alibi and he was ruled out.
All three men had motives to kill Dana yet there was no evidence linking any of them to the crime. Investigators were baffled. That’s when they decided to take a look at a memorial book from Dana’s funeral in the hopes the killer had left a message. What they found, broke the case wide open.
A Cryptic Memorial Book Entry Led to the Killer(s)
One month after the murder, Dana’s 17-year-old niece Amanda left a cryptic message in a memorial book in her honor. It read, “I’m so sorry I wasn’t a better niece for you. 34 days clean and sober. It’s all for you.”
Amanda had a tumultuous relationship with her parents. She often ran away from home and went to Dana, who was like a second mother to her. Dana even kept the back door to her home unlocked so that Amanda and her best friend Emily Lauenborg, 17, could sleepover or take a shower.
Amanda and Emily were both heavy drug users and they hung out with a troubled group of friends who called themselves the “Park Rats.”
There was something off about Amanda’s post. It appeared as though she was remorseful over Dana’s death and knew something investigators didn’t.
Amanda was called in for questioning. She told investigators that she ran into a friend named Blaine on the day of Dana’s murder. She said his arms were covered in scratches and that he once attacked her after she rejected him. She theorized that Blaine attacked and killed Dana out of revenge.
It turned out that Blaine had a lengthy criminal record and he became the prime suspect in the case. Unfortunately, he lived in another state. While investigators waited to have Blaine extradited to Washington, they paid a visit to two of his friends in prison, who dropped a bombshell.
Emily Killed Dana and Wore Her Shirt to the Funeral
Both inmates claimed that Blaine didn’t kill Dana, Amanda’s best friend Emily Lauenborg did, and everyone knew it. Two other members of the “Park Rats” also told the police that Emily killed Dana and bragged about it.
At first, investigators scoffed at the idea that a petite girl standing at 5’2″ would have been strong enough to strangle someone to death but it turned out that Emily was into wrestling and weightlifting. She was so strong she was nicknamed “the mutant.” Several friends claimed her go-to move was to twist one arm behind someone’s back — the same position that Dana had been found in. They said she stole Dana’s t-shirt and wore it to the funeral.
Emily Wrote About the Murder in Her Diary
Emily was uncooperative and did not have an alibi. Investigators obtained a warrant to search her home and found a diary entry titled “10 things I want to do before I die.” For #9, Emily wrote, “Kill someone and get away with it.”
In another entry written after an argument with Amanda, Emily wrote, “I could fucking strangle that bitch just like her aunt.”
Investigators also found a black t-shirt belonging to Dana in Emily’s room and discovered that she was wearing it in photos taken at her funeral.
Amanda Did Nothing to Save Her Aunt’s Life
Amanda was questioned again and this time, she admitted that Emily murdered her aunt. She said they walked into Dana’s home through the unlocked backdoor high on drugs. They asked her for money to buy more drugs but she refused and told them to leave. Dana placed her hand on Emily’s shoulder to guide her to the door and that’s when the teen snapped.
Amanda said Emily put her aunt in a headlock, twisted one arm behind her back, and pushed her face down into the couch. She claimed she turned away because she did not want to get involved, at which point she heard gurgling followed by the sound of a crack. Amanda said that Emily murdered Dana because she was jealous of their relationship.
On March 3, 2003, Emily was arrested and charged with first-degree murder. She was tried as an adult and pleaded not guilty.
Prosecutors offered Amanda immunity if she testified against Emily at the trial, however, they were concerned that she would change her mind at the last second. They also feared that the jury would not convict Emily based purely on circumstantial evidence and that she would walk free. They ultimately offered her a plea deal for 6 and 1/2 years and she accepted.
Emily was released from prison in 2009. She married a man named Darren Wickman and they had children together. They divorced in 2013. Emily now goes by the name Emily Seaboch and lives in Puyallup, Washington.