JonBenét Ramsey murder cops admit paedo who confessed to killing her WAS obsessed with tragic beauty queen
A CONVICTED paedophile who confessed to killing six-year-old beauty pageant queen JonBenét Ramsey was 'obsessed' with her and kept a stash of images of the child.
Gary Oliva, 54, is currently serving a 10-year sentence for possession of child abuse images and has been a longtime suspect in the murder.
JonBenét’s death made national headlines in the US in December 1996 when she was found dead in her family’s home in Boulder, Colorado.
The child beauty queen was bludgeoned, strangled and hidden underneath a white blanket with a nylon cord around her neck, her wrists bound above her head and her mouth covered by duct tape.
Now has published details of a redacted police report made at the time of Oliva's arrest in 2016 for possessing child abuse images.
The report says Oliva had 335 photos of JonBenét on his phone when it was seized by cops.
The JonBenét Ramsey case
JonBenét Ramsey was found dead on December 26, 1996 in the basement of the family home in Boulder, Colorado.
Her parents, John and Patsy, had a party the night before on December 25 and put their daughter to bed about 9pm.
Patsy woke up at 5am to find a three-paged ransom note on the stairs claiming JonBenét had been kidnapped.
She was found by her father in the basement and had been bludgeoned, strangled and hidden underneath a white blanket with a nylon cord around her neck, her wrists bound above her head and her mouth covered by duct tape.
JonBenét's parents and brother were formally cleared of any involvement in 2008 with DNA evidence.
Her brother Burker, who was nine at the time, was implicated in her death after a CBS documentary came out in 2016.
He has since publically denied it.
The report states: "Of these photographs, 19 were images from [REDACTED] autopsy, likely from the photographs that had been leaked to the press in years past.
"There were also many photographs of what appear to be shrines to [REDCATED]. It is unknown where these shrines are located, or if they were created by Oliva or not."
In a recent letter, Oliva reportedly claimed: "I pleaded guilty to the murder of JonBenét as well as countless charges of assaults and sexual abuse against many children, there were various agreements made by me and the court which I signed many pages."
The letters were reportedly sent to music publicist Michael Vail, who is a former high school classmate of Oliva’s.
Vail suspected Oliva was involved with JonBenét’s murder for 22 years and that the written confession is enough proof to have him charged with the crime.
The letters have now been shown to Boulder police.
Police spokesperson Laurie Ogden said: "The Boulder Police Department is aware of and has investigated Mr Olivas’ potential involvement in this case.
"We have passed the additional information you provided on to investigators. We will not comment on any actions or the status of this investigation.”
Nobody has been charged with the six-year-old’s death since her body was discovered by her father John Ramsey in the basement of the family home almost 23 years ago on December 26, 1996.
Detectives believe she was murdered on Christmas Day.
The family were immediately thought of as suspects by police, but JonBenét’s parents and brother were cleared in 2008 by DNA evidence.
Oliva does not explain why he was at the Ramseys' home that night, but investigations show he was using an address just ten blocks away when she was murdered.
He was arrested in 2016 for possessing child abuse images on his phone and started sending Vail the letter from his cell in Limon Correctional Facility.
Vail said his suspicions began when Oliva - due for parole in October 2020 - called him sobbing on the night JonBenét's body was found saying he had "hurt a little girl".
The 55-year-old said that they had kept in touch since high school and he tried to get more information out of him at the time, but would only say he was in the Boulder, Colorado area.
Vail said he called police again multiple times, but he never heard back from investigators.
He said he stayed in contact with Oliva in the hope he would someday confess to being involved with the little girl's death.
Vail said: "I've continued this for decades now, even with him being in prison. But he has only just admitted to killing her. He is a danger to society.
"The day he walks free is the day I will be terrified for every child and family."
Lou Smit, a retired Colorado Springs homocide detective hired to help in the investigation, told CBS programme "48 Hours Investigates" in October 2002 that Oliva was a suspect.
Investigators theorise that several men, including Oliva, were involved in breaking into the Ramsey home.
On the night of Christmas Day, John and Patsy Ramsey hosted a party and put their daughter to bed at about 9pm.
At 5am the next morning, Patsy found a three-page random note on the stairs claiming JonBenét was kidnapped and demanded £78,000 ($118,000 based on inflation).
Even though Oliva's handwriting reportedly doesn't match the ransom note, police believe it could have been penned by an accomplice.
Theories about who killed JonBenét have only brought more questions than answers.
A Netflix documentary in 2017 about the unsolved murder saw Australian director Kitty Green interview 200 people in 15 months.
At the time she said: "I went in open minded, spoke to 200 people but I'm no closer to the truth.
"I can't see us getting a conviction, it will remain unsolved. It left me with more questions than answers."
In September 2016, JonBenét's brother Burke spoke out to deny he was the killer after the two-part CBS sensational documentary 'The Case Of: JonBenet Ramsey' claimed the evidence pointed to him.
Burke, who was nine at the time of his sister's death, categorically said "no" to murdering his sister during an interview with US host Dr Phil.
He said: "I don't know what to say to that, because I know that's not what happened.
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"There's been people who have said that's not even physically possible for a nine year old to do that.
"Like you won't find any evidence, because I didn't do it."
Burke later settled a £588million ($750million) defamation case against CBS.
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