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How a couple’s dream honeymoon around the world hid a truly ‘grotesque’ crime
Debbie Cooper’s emails to her family described an adventurous, open-ended honeymoon with her new husband, Jamie Starbuck, travelling through dozens of countries. But the cheerful updates and Jamie’s travel blog began to raise concerns among friends and relatives, who noticed that his posts appeared to describe a solo trip and did not match Debbie’s account of where she was.
Debbie and Jamie met in 2009, moved in together within three months and married less than a year later. Over the following two years, Debbie sent occasional emails but no promised photographs, while friends noted that Jamie’s posts rarely mentioned her; when they also spotted conflicting location details, they compared notes and began investigating.
In short
- Debbie’s travel emails reassured family during a two-year trip.
- Friends noticed Jamie’s blog seemed to describe a solo journey.
- Conflicting details prompted them to investigate.
Explained simply
Debbie Cooper and Jamie Starbuck met in 2009, married within a year and set off on a long trip around the world. Debbie’s emails to family described the honeymoon as an adventure, while Jamie kept a travel blog.
As time passed, Debbie sent fewer updates and no photographs, and people close to the couple noticed that Jamie’s posts seldom mentioned her. Differences between the places described in her emails and his blog led friends and relatives to compare what they knew and look into the couple’s whereabouts.