5 chilling details about Amanda Gordon's murder

Amanda Gordon, a 30-year-old woman from Cedar Park, Texas, seemingly just vanished without a trace in December 2019. Later, her burnt remains were found in a ranch, kickstarting one of the most vicious cases of homicide in the recent history of Cedar Park. What was even more shocking was that the perpetrator was none other than Amanda's husband, Samuel Byrd.

The upcoming episode of See No Evil on Investigation Discovery will cover this case in detail. This episode, titled The Missing Cameras, will air on August 22, 2024, at 9.00 PM EST. The synopsis for the episode reads:

"When 30-year-old, mother-of-two, Mandi Gordon disappears, investigators turn to CCTV for clues to help them find her; they uncover a complex web of lies and a betrayal that lead to a botched cover-up, and a grisly discovery on a remote ranch in Texas."

Ahead of the episode, let us delve into some chilling details from the murder of Amanda Gordon, which continue to interest true crime fans across the world.

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5 chilling facts about Amanda Gordon's murder

1) Amanda Gordon's murder was discovered because she seized contact with her mother

As someone very close to her mother, Amanda always kept in touch. But when Amanda did not contact her mother for two days, she got worried and called the police to perform a welfare check on her. This check ended up revealing a lot of things, including the first strings of suspicion on Samuel Byrd.

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2) Amanda's remains were found on a ranch in Bastrop County

The police found Amanda's burnt remains in a ranch (Image via Pexels)

Amanda was not found when the authorities went for the welfare check but her burnt remains were found in two separate places on a ranch in Bastrop County, a pond and a burn pit. Authorities also determined that there was a deliberate attempt to destroy the evidence. But they could figure out that the remains were positively Amanda's.

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3) Samuel Byrd had a history of abuse with Amanda Gordon

Samuel had abused Amanda Gordon multiple times (Image via Pexels)

Samuel Byrd reportedly had a history of physical and emotional abuse. Amanda's mother claimed that he routinely abused the 30-year-old woman but she never went to the police because he threatened her against it. This was also one of the reasons Amanda's mother freaked out when she did not hear from her.

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4) Samuel Byrd was also reportedly having an affair, which ultimately worked against him

During the welfare check, the police entered Samuel's house and questioned Samuel and his brother Josiah, who initially claimed that Samuel had passed out from drugs and woke up to find Amanda dead. He also revealed that he was having an affair with a woman named Rachel Buckley, who had his vehicle.

As the police reached Rachael Buckley, she testified that Samuel had indeed left his vehicle with her, and even asked her to buy some cleaning supplies including bleach and ammonia. He also dropped a bag with her on December 11, which reportedly contained a spent shell casing, Amanda’s eyeglasses, Amanda’s cell phone, and a handgun.

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5) Samuel Byrd was ultimately charged and sentenced for the murder of Amanda Gordon

Samuel Byrd remains in prison today (Image via Pexels)

While it was difficult to implicate Samuel initially without any physical evidence, the police arrested him for drug-related charges and held him till they had enough evidence to take him to court.

He was found guilty of Amanda Gordon's murder and sentenced to 45 years in prison. He continues to serve his term in Mark W. Stiles Unit in Beaumont, Texas. He will be eligible for parole in 2042.

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The upcoming episode of See No Evil will cover this case in greater detail.