Shraman Mitra
The city of Mississauga, Ontario, witnessed a terrifying murder when Linda Andersen was found murdered in her bathtub on January 3, 2003. Quite surprisingly, the incident was initially classified as an accident, but a witness statement about eleven months after the murder led the police to Linda’s teenage daughters, Sandra and Elizabeth Andersen.
Although the names of the victim and perpetrators have been changed to protect their identities, the movie ‘Perfect Sisters’ is based heavily on this shocking incident. Well, if you are intrigued to know more and want to find out where the sisters are at present, we have you covered.
Who Are The Bathtub Sisters?
Sandra and Elizabeth Andersen were given the moniker, The Bathtub Sisters, after they were convicted of drowning their mother, Linda Andersen, in the bathtub. Linda had an extremely tough married life as both her first and second husbands abandoned the family and forced her to care for her children as a single mother. Still, she tried her best to earn enough so that her children could have a comfortable life. Even though Sandra, Elizabeth, and their brother, Bobby, didn’t have to deal with financial issues while growing up, they witnessed their mother become an alcoholic to combat depression.
In fact, reports mentioned that around the time of her murder, Linda would remain intoxicated for a significant part of the day, which made authorities classify the tragedy as an accident. On January 3, 2003, Sandra and Elizabeth placed a call to 911, claiming they had come home only to discover Linda completely unresponsive in the bathtub. Once first responders reached the spot, they found Linda floating face down in the bathtub, and an autopsy later determined that she had drowned to death.
However, a thorough search of the house revealed nothing suspicious, and since there was no sign of a forced entry, the police classified the incident as an accident. When questioned, Sandra and Elizabeth denied all involvement in the crime and claimed they were at a restaurant with a friend all evening. The sisters also mentioned that Linda was already drunk by the time they set out for the restaurant, and it was not unusual for her to take a bath while intoxicated.
On the other hand, the police also got in touch with a neighbor who stated he saw Linda around 9 pm that evening when she asked him for cigarettes and alcohol. Subsequently, about an hour and a half after Linda was last seen alive, the same neighbor spotted Sandra and Elizabeth returning home from the restaurant, and he claimed they were in the house for ten minutes before the police arrived. Meanwhile, the sisters’ alibi also proved quite solid, and there was no evidence to tie them to the crime.
The Bathtub Sisters Are Out of Jail And Leading a Private Life
About 11 months after the incident, one of Sandra and Elizabeth’s male friends approached authorities and claimed the girls had confessed to killing their mother. The friend mentioned that Sandra and Elizabeth were drunk at a party when they began boasting about committing the perfect murder. Since there was no evidence to arrest the sisters, the police wired the male friend’s car and asked him to try and make the sisters confess a second time. Upon being instigated by their friend to talk about the murder, the sisters finally opened up and admitted to drugging Linda with several Tylenol 3 tablets before forcing her head underwater until she died.
Once Linda passed away, Sandra and Elizabeth made the scene look like an accident before making up a fake alibi with the latter’s boyfriend. With the recorded confession in hand, the police conducted another detailed search of the Andersen home, which revealed a laptop that had incriminating messages from the sisters to Elizabeth’s boyfriend. Hence, with enough evidence to warrant an arrest, both sisters were taken into custody and charged with murder.
In court, both Sandra and Elizabeth were tried as juveniles and convicted of first-degree murder. As a result, they were sentenced to 10 years in prison in 2006, where they would spend the first six years behind bars and the next four years under community supervision. Meanwhile, Elizabeth’s boyfriend was also convicted of conspiracy regarding Linda’s murder. At present, both sisters have been released from prison, and while Sandra chose to earn a living as a Scientist after graduating from university, Elizabeth pursued a law degree.
On top of it, Sandra also appeared in an interview with Global News in 2020, where she mentioned that even though they killed Linda because of her alcoholism and addiction, the sisters had planned to take their own lives shortly afterward. Still, Sandra insisted that the incident haunts her to this day, although she is currently trying to make the best of the situation as a single mother. However, readers should note that neither Elizabeth nor Sandra has revealed their faces or actual names to the public, making their current whereabouts quite unclear.
Read More: Linda Andersen Murder: How Did She Die? Who Killed Her?
