Unsolved Florida: St. Pete detectives examine Jean Ault's 'bizarre' 2002 murder

Unsolved Florida: Jean Ault's murder

An active and beloved mom, aunt and neighbor was enjoying her retirement when she was murdered, and her killer has never been caught. Genevieve Curtis reports.

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Jean Ault, a 74-year-old retiree with a love for travel, gardening, and volunteering, was packing her van for a camping trip in March 2002 – but she never made it there.

Her body was found days later, on March 23, 2002, in the quiet waters of Coquina Key Park – just miles from her home in Lakewood Estates. She had been bound and beaten.

Twenty-three years later, her killer has never been caught.

Pictured: Jean Ault.

For her family, friends, and the St. Petersburg detectives still working the case, the pain and the questions have never gone away.

"Why did this happen? Who did it?" asked Peter Forcinito, Ault’s nephew. "I still miss my aunt."

A beloved neighbor and adventurous spirit

The backstory:

Jean Ault was a fixture in her neighborhood, Lakewood Estates. She played tennis, gardened, and was active in the neighborhood crime watch. She also cared for foster children and volunteered as a parks greeter in exchange for campsite stays.

"She was brave and independent," Forcinito said.

Forcinito had a special relationship with his aunt.

"I think it was her sense of adventure. I think I am that way too," he said.

Jean worked for the state’s unemployment office, helping people find jobs. When she retired, she was ready for adventure and bought a camper van.

Pictured: Jean Ault.

She would volunteer as a greeter at national parks to get a free campsite.

"I’m so glad she got to do some of that before this terrible tragedy, because that was her dream," said Forcinito.

A 'bizarre' murder

Jean was getting ready to meet a group of camping friends for a long weekend.

Jean’s neighbor, Jack Stubbendick, remembers her stopping by that Thursday morning in 2002 to return a book. She said she still needed to load her bike, change clothes, and pick up pastries before hitting the road. But when she didn’t show up at her destination in Manatee County, her friends reported her missing.

A few days later, her body was found in the water, among the mangroves off Coquina Key Park.

"It was a true mystery," said St. Pete Assistant Police Chief Mike Kovacsev. He was a rookie homicide detective at the time and Ault’s murder was his first case.

"It was a very difficult case," he said.

They retraced the errands she ran that day, giving them a narrow timeline for her murder.

Her lunch was left untouched inside her house.

Investigators believe Jean may have interrupted a burglary in her garage.

Pictured: Jean Ault's home.

"For some reason, an individual approached her in that garage area, a struggle occurred in that area. And she was ultimately taken. Whether she was killed there or killed in the van, which is more likely, but everything occurred in the garage," said Kovacsev.

Jean was bound between her hands and legs before being beaten and dumped in the water.

"It had to have been so, so terrifying. I mean, in the manner in which she died, it just had to have been horrible," said Forcinito.

Her beloved van was found days later, abandoned at an apartment complex on 54th Avenue South. The only thing missing: her bicycle, a Huffy model.

Pictured: Jean Ault's van.

Despite door-to-door interviews and surveillance of the van, detectives hit one dead end after another.

Her murder stunned her neighbors, devastated that such a heinous crime could happen in their quiet golf course community in the middle of the day.

"Everything we just kind of kept going down, we just kept hitting dead end after dead end," said Kovacsev.

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Fears before the murder

About a year before her death, Jean confided in her nephew that she felt unsafe. She mentioned harassment from neighbors—enough that she considered moving.

"That was a red flag for me," Forcinito said. "My aunt was a very brave person, she wasn’t someone who scared easily."

Investigators explored that lead, including whether her role in the neighborhood crime watch played a part in her death, but nothing solid emerged.

The case eventually went cold.

"Jeans picture is still on our website. We hold ourselves accountable to having that lasting memory to make sure that we don't forget," said Kovacsev.

Closure in sight?

Today, Jean’s case sits on the desk of Cold Case Detective Wallace Pavelski, who hopes new forensic tools might provide the breakthrough earlier investigators couldn’t reach.

"There are things they didn’t have available to them back then that I can use now," Pavelski said.

Pictured: Cold Case Detective Wallace Pavelski.

DNA testing now allows detectives to get a full profile from a single strand of hair and map connections through genealogy. But testing could cost up to $10,000 for a single piece. Pavelski says the department is working to secure the funds.

Investigators believe the killer likely knew the area of South St. Pete well. Given the proximity of Jean’s home in Lakewood Estates, her body being found in Coquina Key and the van dumped at an apartment complex off of 54th Street South.

"All I need is one good piece of information," he said. "Maybe someone saw who was driving her van that week. Maybe they know something they didn’t realize was important."

A family still waiting

Jean’s daughter and sister have since passed away, never knowing what happened to Jean. But Peter Forcinito hasn’t stopped hoping.

"Certainly can’t give up," he said. "There’s still hope that something will come up that can solve this."

In her neighborhood of Lakewood Estates, Jean’s presence is still felt. A magnolia tree she once gifted a neighbor as a wedding present, now towers tall and vibrant. They call it "The Jean Tree" a magnificent reminder of the woman, who like the tree, was so full of life.

"Her life was much more exciting and beautiful than the way she died," Peter said.

What you can do:

If you have any information about Jean Ault’s murder, contact St. Petersburg Police or Crime Stoppers. Even the smallest detail could help bring long-awaited justice.

The family is also offering a $10,000 reward for information that leads to an arrest or credible closure of the case.

The Source: Information for this story was gathered by FOX 13's Genevieve Curtis.

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