Kriti Mehrotra
When Cody Virgins from Casa Grande, Arizona, disappeared in January 2017, the entire community immediately jumped into action to look for him. The 25-year-old correctional officer was a proud member of society, a good family man, and a responsible young adult, so it was unlike him to go off the grid. Thankfully, as explored in Oxygen’s ‘The Catfish Murders: A Killer Profile,’ it didn’t take long for authorities to identify and apprehend his killer.
Cody Virgin Was a Hard-Working Young Man With a Supportive Family
Born on August 30, 1991, in Tucson, Arizona, to Lisa Castro and Craig Virgin, Cody Virgin grew up in a comfortable, joyful, stable home alongside 3 siblings. He had two brothers – Tony Voigts and Chase Virgin – as well as a sister – Conner Day – but things changed for them around 2000 when Lisa passed away. The family did their best to move forward in life and adjust to their new normal, but the grief undeniably persisted in the back of their minds.
Nevertheless, Cody developed a passion for the outdoors, enjoyed golfing with his remaining family, and found solace in music, movies, video games, as well as social situations. He even graduated high school, pursued further studies, worked part-time to make ends meet, and then evolved into an overnight correctional officer at a local state prison. It was at the La Palma Correctional Facility that he first met fellow officer Nataly Randolph, who went on to become not only his romantic partner but also his live-in girlfriend. According to records, they seemed to be in a happy, healthy relationship despite the fact that she was rather recently divorced.
Cody Virgin Was Found Murdered in a Bonfire in the Arizona Desert
However, when Cody received a Facebook friend request from a woman named Paige Woods, with whom he seemed to have many mutuals, he accepted it without thinking twice. Then came some alleged flirtation between the two that lasted roughly 4 months until she finally asked him if he wanted to meet her, maybe at a bonfire in Arizona City. She dropped him a pin of the location – it was in the middle of nowhere; just a dark, desolate desert for miles – but he agreed since he was curious and knew how to handle himself. As per reports, he left for their encounter sometime after 9 pm on January 30, 2017, never to be heard from or seen alive again.
Cody’s family was waiting to hear all about his meeting with Paige the following morning since he had hidden anything from them, so they were concerned by his complete radio silence. Therefore, when they couldn’t reach him themselves by late afternoon, they immediately contacted the Pinal County Sheriff’s Office, relayed every necessary detail, and reported him missing. Unfortunately, despite quick actions, only his abandoned 2013 Dodge Dart was initially found in the Tater Hills area, and there was blood as well as rake/shovel marks around it. Then, on February 4, the Sheriff’s helicopter spotted a recent bonfire mark in the desert, within which they discovered the 25-year-old’s charred remains. His autopsy later revealed his cause of death to be a single gunshot wound to the head, meaning he had been shot and burned to rid all possible evidence.
Cody Virgin’s Assailant Was Apprehended Before His Remains Were Even Recovered
After Cody’s loved ones realized he was missing, they not only reached out to the Pinal County Sheriff’s Office to report everything they knew, but also looked up Paige Woods on Facebook. According to records, their intention was to find her, message her, and hopefully get some answers about the young man’s whereabouts, but her entire account had been changed/scrubbed. The name on her profile was no longer Paige Woods, but Britney James, and all her pictures, posts, friends, and everything else had been deleted, as if to indicate this was a brand-new page. A few investigators thus began looking into this situation while the search for the 25-year-old continued, just to discover it was a catfish profile. The man behind Paige was 26-year-old William Daniel Randolph, who had known Cody since he was the latter’s girlfriend’s – Nataly’s – ex-husband.
Since Paige Woods never existed and catfishing in itself is not a crime, detectives chose to question William to see if he could provide them with anything concrete. At one point, they asked about his vehicle before indicating they wished to search it, but he responded that it had broken down and then refused to provide its location. So, he was arrested on the charge of hindering an investigation, following which pictures of his black 2001 Dodge Ram pickup truck were released to the general public. Within the ensuing 24 hours, a tip led to his car being recovered and impounded, resulting in the Sheriff’s Office announcing that Cody’s case was now being considered a homicide.
On February 3, they noted that Cody was still missing and that William’s truck was still being forensically analyzed following the issuance of a search warrant. However, they believed his truck had been “used during the commission of a homicide,” especially since the tires were recently changed and there was blood present. So, after the 25-year-old’s remains were found in the desert area the next day, William was additionally charged with first-degree murder and aggravated harassment. He was initially held on a $500,000 bond, but it was later doubled to $1 million, with records indicating the original sum was determined before the victim’s remains were discovered.
William Daniel Randolph Is Currently Incarcerated in an Arizona Prison
William Daniel Randolph initially maintained that while he was responsible for catfishing and luring Cody owing to his involvement with his ex-wife, he had no hand in the homicide. There was no evidence to back his claims, and some of the victim’s loved ones later even expressed their anger over his and Nataly’s alleged relationship status, indicating the two were still in communication despite being divorced. Cody’s brother Tony once told True Crime News, “(She) gave him some type of false hope that if maybe he got rid of Cody that he would be able to be back with her again, and so that drove William to do things that are just unimaginable.” However, it’s imperative to note that Nataly was quickly cleared of any potential wrongdoing by the authorities, and it was confirmed that she was at work on the night of her boyfriend’s disappearance and murder.
William’s trial date was thus scheduled for 2019, but it was postponed after his team filed a motion, claiming they did not believe they would be ready for it until 2021. By this point, the prosecutors had already made it clear they would be seeking the death penalty in the matter because the crime was so “heinous, cruel, cold, and calculated.” In the end, on June 14, 2024, he pleaded guilty to one count of first-degree murder so that the death penalty would be dropped in exchange for life in prison without the possibility of parole. He was sentenced to the same in October of the same year. So today, at the age of 36, William is serving his time at the minimum-security Arizona State Prison Complex–Winslow (Kaibab Unit) in Navajo County, Arizona, where he is expected to remain for the rest of his natural life.
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