Virginia Couple Murdered While On 2002 Beach Vacation

May 28, 2002 was the Tuesday after Memorial Day weekend, and Geney Crutchley’s employees at her Fairfax, Virginia insurance office were waiting for her to show up to a meeting she had scheduled with them. Immediately, her employees knew something was wrong. Even when on vacation, Geney would call and check in; missing a meeting she scheduled was absolutely unheard of. They knew Geney and her boyfriend, Josh Ford, had been away to Ocean City, Maryland for the holiday weekend.

Meanwhile, Josh’s brother, Mark, was growing worried because his brother had missed a scheduled phone call to catch up.

Geney’s employees called the Fairfax police to report her missing. In turn, they called the police in Ocean City, a three hour drive away.

Officers in Ocean City drove to the parking lot of the condo where the couple was staying. Her car was still in the parking lot, and the detective noted the undisturbed sand that had settled around the vehicle. The car hadn’t been moved in several days.

Inside their condo, it looked as if they’d simply disappeared. Their belongings were unpacked and scattered around. There were half drank glasses of wine on the coffee table and snacks on the counters. The couple’s cash and credit cards were still in their wallets, though their driver’s licenses were missing.

Police found a receipt from a Friday night grocery run after they had arrived in Ocean City. Another receipt from Greene Turtle Bar dated for Saturday night was in the condo.

Authorities went to the Greene Turtle, hoping to find someone who remembered seeing Josh and Geney. A waitress who had worked there on Saturday night remembered seeing the pair and recalled how polite they were in the midst of a busy weekend night. She didn’t remember seeing them again after they paid.

Ocean City’s bus system had a stop in front of the Greene Turtle, and it was common for intoxicated tourists to take the bus as they enjoyed the seaside town’s nightlife. Detectives spoke with a bus driver who remembered seeing the pair on the bus that Saturday night. Josh and Geney had offered to pay the bus fare for another couple who didn’t have change for a $20 bill.

The driver described the second couple as a white couple in their twenties. The four of them rode the bus to Seacrets, another Ocean City hotspot. Employees at Seacrets remembered seeing the couples together in the club, but it was there the trail went cold.

As worry for the couple increased, there was an unlikely break in the case when a silent alarm was tripped at an area Hooters restaurant.

Find out how police cracked the case on People Magazine Investigates: “Natural Born Killers” on ID on Aug. 22 at 9/8c. See more episodes on discovery+.