Case of Fredericksburg woman murdered, house set on fire still unsolved 17 years later

FREDERICKSBURG, Texas - Seventeen years have passed since a Fredericksburg woman was murdered and her house set on fire.

It happened on May 14, 2007, at 506 Franklin Street. 55-year-old Linda Muegge's body was burned. She was found lying face down under a pile of debris.

Lt. Terry Weed, with the Fredericksburg Police Department, said there needed to be an autopsy.

"It was one of those that something did not look right," he said. "Once they cleaned the body up, I was like, 'oh, my God.' That's where you saw the injuries and so on."

Authorities say she had stab wounds and was hit on her head and neck. Her underwear was down to her knees, but there were no signs of sexual assault.

A knife was found in the living room. The fire was believed to have been started by an accelerant.

Her cell phone and wallet were never found.

Muegge's mother, Louise Watts, and Muegge's sister, Shannon Ramsey, recall getting the phone call with the news of her death.

"For days, I couldn't believe it," Watts said.

"I hit the floor on my knees, and I swear, I was gone," Ramsey said.

Ramsey says Muegge made a big impact on people.

"Linda, very opinionated, very strong person, very strong personality, strong sense of what's right or wrong," she said. "She and I had a lot of bad years when we weren't close, we were getting close, and someone took that away from us."

Watts, soon to be 100-years-old, wants to know what happened.

"Something I'll never get over, never forget. Maybe that's why I'm hanging on to 100, maybe 101, maybe 102," she said.

"I think what offends me the most is whoever killed her destroyed a lot more than just Linda's life. They literally destroyed our family," Ramsey said.

Investigators have worked with the Texas Rangers, FBI, and other experts on the case.

"There are no tips that we have that have not been unanswered, that have been looked at that have carried us further," Weed said.

"I still have her phone number in my phone. I'm waiting for whoever took her purse and stole her cell phone to hit speed dial and get me," Ramsey said.

"It's one of those that weighs on you," Weed said. "She's not forgotten. As long as I'm here, that's not going to happen."

As the anniversary of Muegge's death approaches, family members hope someone will come forward.

"If you're out there, and you did it, for God's sake, turn yourself in," Ramsey said.

"Anybody who knows Linda may know something and not think it means anything, it wouldn't hurt to tell the authorities because you never know, anything might help," Watts said.

"Somewhere out there or up there or down there is the person who did this. For my mother, I'd like her to have a person to pin it on. For me, a higher power will let me know when it's time," Ramsey said.

More information on the case can be found on the FBI and DPS websites.