Naman Shrestha
When a 52-year-old mother and librarian named Andrea Cincotta was found dead in her Virginia apartment in 1998, the entire community was left shell-shocked. As the detectives dug deeper into the case, two suspects emerged, one of whom came clean many years later. The perpetrator also made a shocking claim that upended the case. All the intricate details of the case and the investigation that ensued are explored in the episode titled ‘Death and Denials’ of Investigation Discovery’s ‘911: Did the Killer Call?,’ which also features insightful interviews with Andrea’s loved ones and officials who worked hard to solve the case.
Andrea Cincotta Was Found Dead Inside Her Closet by Her Fiance
On May 10, 1946, in Washington, DC, Phillip and Ella Exler Appel welcomed Andrea Appel Cincotta into the world as their little bundle of joy. Described as an empathetic and compassionate woman, Andrea could light up even the dullest room with her mere presence. She was married at some point, during which she gave birth to her son, Kevin Cincotta. The doting mother later divorced her husband and focused on raising her beloved son. Her passion for books and reading allowed her to land a job at the Arlington County Library.
In the early 1990s, Andrea was a single working mother when she crossed paths with James Christopher Johnson. As sparks flew between them, they began dating and stayed together for several years until fate intervened in August 1998. On the fateful day of August 21, 1998, the librarian spent some time swimming at the pool before working on a special project at the library. Around 11 am, she reportedly returned home in the 1700 block of North Rhodes Street in Arlington, Virginia. The 52-year-old woman shared the apartment with her fiancé, James, who was an employee at a Home Depot at the time.
Several hours later, in the early hours of the following day, the police received a 911 call from James, who claimed that he had found his fiancée’s remains inside the bedroom closet. During the 911 call, he explained to the dispatcher, “Uh, I thought my girlfriend was missing. I hadn’t seen her. She — we were supposed to go out tonight…Uh, but I — I figured I’d give her some time. Uh, I think she’s dead.” When the police arrived at the crime scene, they found Andrea’s remains in a fetal position inside the closet, with bruises on her arms and a strange imprint on her thigh. The detectives found no signs of a struggle or forced entry, but learned that her vehicle and car keys were missing. The cause of her death was determined to be asphyxiation by the medical examiner.
Andrea Cincotta’s Fiancé Was Considered a Prime Suspect in the Case
As part of the investigation, the detectives brought Andrea Cincotta’s fiancé, James Christopher Johnson, in for questioning. He told the police that when he couldn’t find Andrea after returning home from work on August 21, 1998, he made a few phone calls inquiring about her whereabouts. According to him, he dozed off around 11:30 pm while waiting for her and woke to find the bedroom closet door closed, which was unusual. He claimed that upon opening the closet, he found Andrea inside. James also told the detectives that several other items, such as a jar of coins, a roll of quarters, and her purses, were missing from the apartment. He gave a polygraph test, but the results showed signs of deception.
During the 28-hour interrogation in the span of three days, the police reportedly lied to him about finding his fingerprints on Andrea’s remains to see if he would confess. In the later stages of the interrogation, James began confessing after the detectives told him to imagine how he had carried out the crime. He claimed that he hit her across the neck, causing her to fall down and hit her head. Since his story didn’t align with the physical evidence and autopsy, the police released him and didn’t charge him with the murder. Andrea’s son, Kevin, didn’t believe James was responsible for the crime, so he led the detectives to a man named Bobby Joe Leonard. Kevin told the investigators that Bobby had met Andrea several weeks earlier when she asked him to get rid of an old computer.
At the time, Bobby was in a Philadelphia jail after being accused of assaulting his wife. So, the detectives questioned him in jail and asked him about Andrea’s murder. Not only did he provide an alibi for the day of her killing, but his fingerprints and DNA didn’t match the evidence found at the crime scene. Thus, he was eliminated as a suspect. Reportedly, about a year later, he was arrested for the rape and attempted murder of a 13-year-old girl, whom he left in a closet. For that crime, he was convicted in 2000 and sentenced to life in prison. As for Andrea’s homicide case, it went cold due to a lack of evidence and leads.
The Killer Accused Andrea’s Fiancé of Hiring Him to Commit the Crime
Nearly two decades later, in 2018, the investigators got a break in the case of Andrea Cincotta’s killing as the former suspect, Bobby Joe Leonard, agreed to talk about it in exchange for taking the death penalty off the table. During his interview, he claimed that he had found God and wanted to confess. He told the detective, “I just reached out with both of my hands, and grabbed her by the throat, and started choking her. And she just laid down on the ground. I mean, like, there was literally no struggle or fight or anything.” He then admitted to placing her in the closet and stealing her car, which he allegedly abandoned along the Interstate.
In a shocking turn of events, Bobby also alleged that he was hired by a man, whom he believed to be Andrea’s boyfriend, to kill her at the apartment. According to Bobby, the man who hired him told him that he would receive $5,000 in a shoe in the closet for committing the crime. The killer told the detectives that he didn’t find any money in the closet, and he couldn’t follow up with the man because of his arrest a while later. Bobby was charged with the killing of Andrea Cincotta, and due to his allegations, the police also charged James Christopher Johnson in connection with the crime. However, James denied talking to Bobby and having any involvement whatsoever.
Bobby Joe Leonard is Currently Incarcerated at a Virginia Prison
A few years later, on July 27, 2022, Bobby Joe Leonard pleaded guilty to first-degree murder in the death of Andrea Cincotta. In September 2022, James Christopher Johnson also went to trial for his possible involvement in Andrea’s homicide. The prosecution focused on Bobby’s testimony against James, while the defense argued that there was no evidence that supported Bobby’s allegations. In October 2022, the jury deliberated for about an hour and found James not guilty, acquitting him of the charges. About a month later, in November, Bobby was sentenced to life in prison for killing Andrea. As of today, the 58-year-old killer is serving his sentence at Buckingham Correctional Center in Buckingham County, Virginia.
You must be logged in to post a comment.