John Ramsey Reveals Why He Didn't Cry When He Found His Daughter JonBenét's Body (Exclusive)

Mar. 15, 2025

JonBenet Ramsey and John Ramsey.Photo:Courtesy of Netflix

Courtesy of Netflix

John Ramseyis opening up about his raw emotions on Dec. 26, 1996, the day he found the body of his 6-year-old daughter,JonBenét Ramsey, in the basement of the family’s Boulder, Colo., home.

“When I found JonBenét, there were no tears,” Ramsey tells PEOPLE in an exclusive interview. “Well, I lost my oldest daughter in a car accident a couple of years before, and when I had the call, I was angry. I was mad. I was shocked. I didn’t cry. I cried for years after that, but at that moment, you’re in shock. I was mad. I was mad at God.”

Earlier that morning, John’s wife Patsy called police after noticing their daughter was missing. On the call, Patsy, who has since died, frantically revealed that she’d discovered a chilling ransom note asking for $118,000 for JonBenét’s safe return.

After John found JonBenét’s body, it was revealed that she’d been sexually assaulted and strangled in their home. The child beauty pageant queen hadduct tape over her mouthand a garrote twisted around her neck.

JonBenét Ramsey.Zuma Press Inc/Alamy

Zuma Press Inc/Alamy

Her death was ruled a homicide and the parents quickly became suspects — something Ramsey believes occurred because of the parents' initial reactions.

JonBenét Ramsey, John Ramsey.

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“We did not act right that morning, therefore they’re guilty,” Ramsey says of what investigators believed. “And it is just incompetence.”

No Ramsey family member has ever been charged in connection with JonBenét’s killing. Patsy died in 2006.

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Nearly 30 years later, the case remains unsolved. Today, Ramsey hopes to encourage someone to come forward with new information and to “put pressure” on police to use advances in DNA technology and genetic genealogy to finally catch JonBenet’s killer.

Ramsey is also speaking out in Netflix’s three-part docuseries,Cold Case: Who Killed JonBenét Ramsey?, which begins streaming Monday, Nov. 25.

source: people.com