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The upcoming episode of ID's 48 Hours is all set to delve into the murder of Cayley Mandadi, a 19-year-old sophomore, whose death still remains a huge mystery, with no one really getting a punishment for the crime. The circumstances surrounding her murder are so convoluted that her then-boyfriend, who likely committed the crime, got away with an aggravated assault charge.
This case will be covered in the episode titled For the Love of Cayley Mandadi, which is slated to air on September 8, 2024, at 8:00 PM EST. The synopsis for the episode reads:
"When a beloved college student dies with unusual bruising, her parents go to extreme lengths to prove her death was no accident."
Cayley Mandadi's murder contains many tiny but consequential details that will intrigue any true crime fan. Here are five such details that make this murder unique.
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5 key details in Cayley Mandadi's death
1) Cayley Mandadi had consumed ecstasy on the day of her death
As Cayley went to a music festival with her boyfriend Mark, both of them had allegedly consumed ecstasy before they got into a fight. So, when she was brought into the hospital, she was also treated for a drug overdose, but she was already in a critical condition by then.
2) Cayley was in an abusive relationship
19-year-old Cayley, who was a sophomore at Trinity University, was dating a 22-year-old Texan man, with whom she allegedly had a strained relationship. According to friends of the deceased, she often turned up with bruises on her hands and legs, which were possibly due to Mark Howerton's violent nature.
Once, her friends even called the cops on Mark, who was allegedly shouting and threatening Cayley in their room. The police later found he was on drugs.
3) Mark Howerton claimed that he and Cayley had rough but consensual s*x on their way back from the festival, leading to her bruises
Mark Howerton and Cayley Mandadi got into a fight at the music festival, and to make up, they reportedly had s*x at a local gas station. Mark claimed that this was completely consensual but rough. Following this, Cayley started feeling unwell and soon Mark discovered she wasn't breathing.
Cayley's cause of death was later determined to be blunt force trauma, making it seem more like a murder than a drug overdose or accident.
4) Mark Howerton had discrepancies in his story about Cayley Mandadi's murder
Mark had a version of the events that happened but changed multiple details during the intense interrogations. This solidified the doubts for the authorities and they charged him for the murder of his girlfriend. Mark surrendered to the police in February 2018.
5) Despite all the clues, Mark Howerton was never sentenced for Cayley's murder
In essence, Mandadi's murder remains unsolved to date because no one has been sentenced for her murder. When Mark Howerton stood trial, the jury could not decide on a verdict resulting in a mistrial. On his second trial in 2023, which came after the delays caused by COVID-19, Mark was found not guilty of the murder but was charged with aggravated assault.
He was sentenced to prison for 20 years, with the earliest date for parole set in 2033. He remains in prison right now.
The upcoming episode of ID's 48 Hours will cover this case in more detail.
