Alan Helmick became famous as an American businessman and realtor who was shot dead by his wife Miriam Helmick (The Whitewater Widow) in June 2008. His death became one of the 30% of the total of matricide in the United States.
Helmick’s Woes started when he unfortunately lost his wife of 36 years. Then, he met Miriam – a dancer who later stole from him, attempted to kill him by setting his car on fire, and later shooting him to death.
While his life was cut short at 62, his wife Miriam got a life sentence and 108 years imprisonment.
How Alan Helmick was Killed By His Wife Mariam
On June 10, 2008, Alan Helmick was at his residence on Siminoe Road in Whitewater, Colorado when he was shot in the head by his wife, Miriam. He died the same day and was 62 years old at the time.
Following this, his wife who is now serving a jail term called 911 and claimed that Alan was a victim of robbery. The story was off since his phone and wallet were found at the crime scene. Also, nothing seemed to have been taken away from the house.
She later claimed that her life was also at risk and was scared that she might get killed by the same people who killed her husband.
Over a month before the murder, Alan was waiting in his car when it caught fire. Luckily, he made it out alive.
However, what was bizarre about the incident was that a wick was found shoved into the full gas tank. Clearly, someone caused the fire. It remained a question of who was responsible.
Afterward, Miriam claimed that the life of the couple could be in danger. Amid the danger, the couple found a card with threats on the life of Alan’s wife. It was later deduced that it was Mariam who bought the card and wrote the threat to divert attention from herself in case her husband gets murdered.
Also, he had been dealing with ailments that left him bedridden for months. However, his health improved before he was killed by his then-51-year-old wife.
Alan was buried in Delta, Delta County, Colorado, USA. He was survived by his 3 children and 5 grandchildren.
Alan’s Wife Forged Her Late Husband’s Checks Before His Murder
In a podcast where her neighbor was interviewed, it was revealed that Miriam Helmick forged checks in Alan’s name about a year before she killed him. This would be about a year after they were married.
The Whitewater Widow did not stop with the forgery even after killing her ex. Instead, she forged 11 checks between July 15, 2007, to May 1, 2008.
Therefore the motive of her killing her husband could be for his wealth. It is recorded that she had earlier confided in a woman that she was interested in getting married to an older man who was rich and who could be close to his grave.
Following the murder, Alan’s wife was realized to have forged $16,000 in checks on one of her husband’s bank accounts. She was also reported to have sold the properties of her late husband without the knowledge of his children and grandchildren.
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How Alan’s Wife Was Arrested and Sentenced to Life For His Death
Miriam was Alan’s second wife and after she killed him, she moved to Florida and started using his late wife’s name and documents.
In December 2008, she was arrested outside a relative’s Arlington home. She was put in the Duval County jail on a $2 million bail.
There were many other odds against Miriam. While investigations were going on, it was realized that she had been browsing for (according to Murderpedia)
Ambien overdose,” “buy purple foxglove” and “Viagra overdose.” Ambien is a sleeping pill, foxglove a poison and Viagra an erectile-dysfunction drug that can have serious side effects on those with heart problems like Alan Helmick had.
In any case, she was charged with first-degree murder attempted first-degree murder, and 11 counts of felony.
At 52, she received a mandatory sentence of life without the possibility of parole. She also received life imprisonment and 108 years in prison.
It turns out that the murder case was not the first time Miriam had a brush with the law.
In 2004, she was arrested twice for embezzlement and larceny charges. This was while she was still married to her first husband and shortly before she became married to Alan Helmick.
Miriam May Have Killed Her Ex Before She Killed Alan
Miriam was previously married to Jack Giles and had at least one child, a son who lived in Florida.
In 2002, Giles was found shot dead. His case was not like Alan’s as it was ruled as suicide since his finger was found on the trigger.
However, it gained attention after Alan’s murder and Miriam became a suspect. Regardless, the case was not reopened and Miriam had to only pay for her crimes against Alan.
Looking at how she met Alan, she was a dance instructor and they met at a dance studio, about 2 years before the famous murder. At the time, Alan was a well-to-do lonely businessman who had lost his wife (Sharon) of over 3 decades.
Alan was 59 while Miriam was 48. The deceased started dancing after his wife passed.
Their (Alan and Miriam) lives were seemingly good and Miriam Helmick had established herself as a businesswoman and dance instructor. She became the founder of a dance studio which didn’t succeed.
There are pointers that she established the business with the funds from the checks she forged from her husband.
She later also started breeding horses – a business that her husband started for her.
His family and friends started to think something was off when Alan would not respond to calls or texts – something unusual about him! Miriam would keep her late husband’s phone in her purse and would sometimes return to answer calls.
