5 chilling details about Sherri Rasmussen's murder

Sherri Rasmussen was murdered in 1986 in what was thought to be a case of a botched burglary. However, more than two decades after the incident, the Los Angeles Police Department uncovered the real person behind her murder, and it turned out to be someone closer than expected.

Stephanie Ilene Lazarus, a detective in the Los Angeles Police Department turned out to be the real killer. She thought that she had gotten away with the murder, but two detectives re-opened the cold case to solve the mystery behind Sherri Rasmussen's death.

People Magazine Investigates on Investigation Discovery delved into the details of Sherri Rasmussen's murder in episode five of its second season. The synopsis of the episode, titled Once Bitten, reads:

"Sherri Rasmussen and John Ruetten are enjoying newlywed life until one morning when Sherri calls into work sick; that night, John returns home to find his wife murdered; years later, detectives discover Sherri's killer was too close for comfort."

The episode will be re-aired on Investigation Discovery on May 6, 2024, at 11.00 PM EST.

Read on to learn about the five most chilling details about the murder of Sherri Rasmussen ahead of the upcoming episode of People Magazine Investigates.

---

5 details about the murder of Sherri Rasmussen

Sherri and her husband John (Image via @MyFavMurder/X)

1) She was found murdered just after her honeymoon

Sherri Rasmussen was 29 when she was found dead in her apartment by her husband John Ruetten. The couple were back from their honeymoon in 1986, and Sherri had taken a day off from work.

Her body was found on the living room floor. There were three gunshot wounds from a .38 handgun. She had two broken fingernails and bite marks on her arm. Forensic reports showed that she was also involved in an altercation with her attacker.

---

2) Her case was initially closed as a burglary gone wrong

A poster of People Magazine Investigates (Image via ID)

The police investigated the case in 1986 and ruled out anyone close to Sherri as a suspect. The site of the murder suggested a burglary attempt, and the police closed the case citing it as a botched burglary.

However, Sherri's family, especially her father Nels Rasmussen, did not believe that a robber could easily outmuscle Sherri, who was 6 feet tall and kept in great shape.

---

3) Jealosy prompted the murder of Sherri Rasmussen

Sherri was murdered by Stephanie Ilene Lazarus, an ex-lover of her husband, John Ruetten. When the details of the case were uncovered, it was found that John and Stephanie were involved in s*xual relations between 1981 and 1984.

Stephanie was distraught about John marrying another person. Per Nels Rasmussen, Stephanie even confronted Sherri many times about it. Shortly before her murder, Sherri confided in her father, telling him that Stephanie might have been stalking her.

---

4) Sherri Rasmussen's killer, Stephanie, was a detective herself

Stephanie Lazarus during her trial (Image via Getty)

Stephanie Lazarus was a detective of the L.A. Police Department at the time of her arrest in 2009. She had successfully evaded any major suspicion. The prosecution also believed that her experience as a police officer helped her frame the crime scene.

She murdered Sherri with an off-duty .38 gun to avoid suspicion and later reported it as stolen.

---

5) A bite mark helped link DNA samples to Sherri's murderer

DNA sampling helped solve the case (Image via Pexels)

Saliva samples from a bite mark on Sherri's arm helped link Stephanie to the murder. In 2004, a forensic analyst Jennifer Francis uncovered that the saliva on Sherri's body was that of a woman.

This helped the investigating detectives in 2009 to narrow down their suspects. They covertly obtained a DNA sample of Stephanie Lazarus and found it matched the sample tested by Jennifer Francis in 2004. This conclusively linked Stephanie to Sherri's murder.

---

Catch all the details about Sherri Rasmussen's murder on the re-air of Season 2 Episode 5 of People Magazine Investigates on Investigation Discovery.