Phoenix couple's murder puzzles police year later

Homicide investigators are accustomed to digging into a victim's past. The habits people hide from their loved ones — infidelities, drug involvement, prostitution, shady business deals — often serve as a road map to the killer.

But in the year since William and Barbara Singer were discovered murdered in their north Phoenix home, police say they have not uncovered any of the vices emblematic of a murder target.

The couple volunteered regularly and both had worked in the medical field — William taught EMT skills around the state, Barbara was a nurse practitioner at Phoenix's Crisis Nursery.

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"They were 'saints,'" Cristie Eisentraut, Phoenix homicide detective, said.

In many ways, the elements of the case present opposing theories. Given the couple's sterling reputation in the community, it seemed unlikely the killings would be personal. But the lack of forced entry suggested otherwise, especially given Barbara's dedication to security measures.

July 2, 2014

It was a health-care worker who first called police to the Singer home near 35th and Grovers avenues on July 2, 2014. She arrived at their home for a therapy session with 81-year-old William Singer, but neither William nor Barbara answered the door.

William had recently been released from the hospital after complications with adult-onset diabetes and could barely walk. He wasn't one to miss an appointment, his son, Bill Singer Jr., said.

Upon arrival, police quickly ruled out a murder-suicide, a phenomenon not uncommon in the elderly community.

Detectives are not releasing the cause of death or what they believe the sequence of events were, but evidence leads investigators to believe the two had been dead for days.

Searching for motives

Police traced the Singers' final hours back to June 28, when the couple, separately but in close succession, visited an ATM near 35th Avenue and Bell Road.

Both husband and wife can be seen on the nearby bank's surveillance footage making withdrawals around 10:30 p.m. But the trip's late-night time frame doesn't fit the couple's routine, Eisentraut said, and William appears to be under "duress" as he approaches the machine.

There were other indications the motive was as simple as financial gain, Eisentraut said. The couple had acquired a broad collection of goods over the years, and several articles were discovered missing from the home after the murders.

"We have that element of possible burglary and robbery, but we can't exclude the possibility of it being a personal attack on the Singers, due to the nature of the brutality of the murders," she said.

Leads

The month after the couple were found, police sent out disseminated sketches of two men who seemed at the time to be promising leads.

The pair had been traipsing door-to-door in the area, ostensibly trying to peddle or fix the cable. But the men's uniforms seemed off, and neighbors suspected the visits were a ruse to get inside houses.

Police now think it's unlikely these two were connected with the homicides, as the men have been spotted in the same neighborhood since the murders.

Investigators have tracked 50 to 60 leads, ranging from business associates to family members. They combed the area for anyone with a history of home invasions and ran both Valley and nationwide searches for cases that seemed to match elements of the Singers' murders.

And a cell phone expert cross-referenced the couple's phone records with the numbers of all persons of interest identified so far, but produced no matches.

None of the efforts have materialized into a clear suspect, but Eisentraut said she hasn't yet definitively ruled many out, either.

"At this point in the investigation I am keeping as much of an open mind as possible," she said.

Their life

The two met in 1974, through a set-up by William's sister Jo, when her mother-in-law lived in the care center where Barbara was working.

"My aunt and uncle liked her very much, thought hmm, that would be a good match for my father," Bill Jr. said.

The two wed at the foot of South Mountain at William Sr.'s sister's home. It was a second marriage for both.

They each flourished in their respective careers.

"They both wanted their lives to mean something in terms of being able to help other people and bring joy and happiness to other people," Bill Jr. said. "They shared that same kind of passion."

But family said it was their commitment to each other that defined the couple. The two were "inseparable," Bill Jr. said. They shared a passion for novels, traveling and just sincerely enjoyed each other's conversation.

"Rarely did we see Barbara alone, rarely did we see Bill alone," William's nephew Skip said. "They did most of what they did together. ... They loved each other."

The final year of their life was physically trying for both of them.

William's health was waning, and he dealt with pains and periodic hospitalizations while doctors worked to fine-tune his medication dosage. Barbara suffered from a fall a few years earlier and was unable to return to the crisis center.

But William was anticipating a procedure the couple came to see as their life beacon. His cardiologist had just cleared him for shoulder surgery, Bill Jr. said, and the two planned to finally take their dream trip to the Panama Canal after his recovery.

"They were excited about entering into a different phase of their lives," he said.

How to help

Investigators urge the public to contact police if they noticed anything strange in the area around the time of the attack, or if they know anyone with a tendency to be violent towards elders.

If you have any information, please contact detectives at 602-262-6151 or Silent Witness at 480-WITNESS.