Killer Attraction on ID: What did Randy Roth do and where is he now?

Randy Roth, a former Marine Corps serviceman, was convicted in the 1991 killing of his fourth wife, Cynthia Roth, who drowned at Lake Sammamish in Washington.

He was also suspected in his second wife Janis' killing, who died in 1981 during a hike up the Beacon Rock. He was the only person present during both incidents and was to land hundreds of thousands of dollars in insurance claims.

ID's Killer Attraction is slated to chronicle the case against Randy Roth in an upcoming episode, titled Don't Marry Randy, this Saturday, February 25, 2023. The synopsis states:

"Ten years after losing his second wife and divorcing his third, widower Randy Roth marries a fourth time to Cynthia; one day, Cynthia drowns while on a family getaway, turning Randy into either the unluckiest husband or a cold-blooded killer."

Don't Marry Randy will air on the channel at 9.00 pm ET.

In 1992, Roth was convicted on one count of first-degree theft and one count of second-degree before later pleading guilty to additional counts of second-degree theft. He is currently serving at Stafford Creek Corrections Center in Aberdeen, Washington.

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What happened to Randy Roth's fourth wife Cynthia during their trip to Lake Sammamish?

Randy and Cynthia first met in a baseball league in Everett, Washington, where the latter's sons played. They dated for a few months before getting married in August 1990 - this was Randy's fourth marriage.

A few weeks before their first wedding anniversary, in July 1991, Randy took his fourth wife and two children to Lake Sammamish in Washington.

The couple rowed their raft into deep water while the children played on the shore. But a while later, Randy paddled back to the coast and Cynthia was found unresponsive. Lifeguards' attempted to revive her to no avail and she had to be rushed to a local hospital, where the 34-year-old was later declared dead.

Randy admitted to authorities that the two had been swimming in the lake when the raft close to them capsized onto Cynthia, who was experiencing a leg cramp, causing her to drown.

Investigators, however, came to the conclusion that Cynthia's death was not an accident after multiple witnesses came forth describing Randy's callous attitude throughout the upsetting incident as suspicious.

They claim that Randy never signaled for assistance as he slowly rowed Cynthia to the shore. The lifeguards said that Randy deflated and rolled up the raft as they worked to resuscitate her.

Detectives also found out about a $300,000+ life insurance policy in Cynthia's name with Randy listed as the beneficiary, which seemed like a possible murder motive.

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Randy Roth's second wife Janis Miranda died under suspicious circumstances at Beacon Rock a few years before

As they further dug into Randy's backstory, they discovered that his second wife had also died unexpectedly in an accident with him around the same time. At the time, he received life insurance coverage of more than $100,000.

His second wife, Janis Miranda, allegedly slipped and fell to her death while they were out hiking up the Beacon Rock in Skamania County, Washington, in November 1981.

Establishing an obvious pattern, investigators suspected Randy Roth was involved in his fourth wife Cynthia's killing. In October 1991, he was arrested as more circumstantial evidence that supported the theory surfaced.

Stacey Reese, a single mother and his coworker at a car dealership, testified in Randy's 1992 trial that he spoke about being free from Cynthia days before she died and had even invited her to travel to Reno using the tickets Cynthia had given them for their anniversary.

According to Cynthia's good friend and guardian of her two children, Linda Bakyer, the victim had stored her will in a bank's safe deposit box, which was found empty after her death. Bank records revealed that Randy visited shortly after the incident, but the accused claimed that his wife never told him about the will.

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Randy Roth was found guilty in connection with fourth wife's death and is serving time since 1992

Randy Roth was convicted on multiple charges including first-degree murder in 1992 (Image via Bromberger Hoover Photography/Getty Images

The prosecution portrayed Randy Roth as a man who only wanted to profit from the insurance payout. His former wife Janis' daughter also testified, alleging that her mother showed her an envelope containing money and instructed her to take it if something were to happen to her, but Randy got to it first.

In 1992, the jury announced a guilty verdict after deliberating for more than eight hours. He was found guilty of multiple charges, including first-degree murder and second-degree theft, and he subsequently entered a guilty plea to an additional second-degree theft charge.

At the age of 37, Randy was sentenced to one year for theft and 50 years for first-degree murder and is currently serving time at the mixed-level Stafford Creek Corrections Center in Aberdeen, Washington.