5 key details of Charlie Cammisano's murder explored

The murder of Charlie Cammisano in 2007 shocked the small community of Riverside as the investigation dragged on for twelve years to reveal that the killer was his ex-wife, Letti Strait. Letti shot Charlie dead in his home on September 1, 2007, over issues of child custody and financial troubles.

Episode 5 of Season 28 of Snapped brings the details of Charlie Cammisano's murder as it re-airs on June 25, 2024, at 10 p.m. EST on Oxygen. The episode originally aired on October 4, 2020, and the official synopsis reads:

"A man is murdered and questions are raised about his ties to the mafia, but a closer inspection reveals a spiteful killer with a more personal connection."

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Five details about Charlie Cammisano's murder explored

1) Charlie Cammisano was found dead in his home on September 1, 2007

Charles "Charlie" Cammisano was to be at a family gathering but failed to show up, leading to his nephew coming to look for him at the Riverside apartment. The Platte County Citizen reported Charlie had been at the local bar at the River Market, The Caddyshack, the previous night.

Charlie was found dead in his Riverside home (Image via Pexels)

Charlie's nephew entered the home to find his dead body lying in a pool of blood on the floor. Charlie's body was covered with a blanket and he had suffered a clean gunshot in the head apart from multiple gunshot wounds in the torso, per Fox 4 News.

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2) Letti Strait was collecting SNAP benefits lying about the custody of their children

Cammisano and Letti Strait shared five children, and he became the primary custodian of the children after the couple divorced in July 2003. Charlie was awarded child support for the children. Oxygen reported that Letti owed Charles $19,000 in child support.

Cammisano was struggling financially to care for the children and found out that Letti had been withdrawing SNAP benefits on behalf of the children for the past two years.

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3) The investigations revealed an inconsistent alibi from Charlie's ex-wife, Letti Strait

The investigators at the crime scene received the piece of information from Letti Strait wherein she claimed to have seen Charlie's missing Jeep Cherokee parked in front of his house. However, The Platte County Citizen reported the authorities recovered his Jeep from the Cold Storage Lofts in the River Market a few days after the murder.

Charlie had spent the night before his murder drinking at The CaddyShack (Image via Pexels)

The Jeep had been at the site since the night Charlie spent at the CaddyShack - August 31. This contradicted Letti Strait's statement and caused the police to suspect her involvement.

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4) The DNA from Charlie's missing jeep was matched to Letti Strait

The authorities received suspicious information about Letti. Per Oxygen, Letti and Charlie's children had spent the night of the murder at Letti's friend's house, as they stayed over the weekend at her place. The police officers brought a SWAT team to their house for a house search with a warrant, but they did not find any incriminating evidence to charge her.

Charlie's Jeep Cherokee was found parked near The CaddyShack (Image via Pexels)

Meanwhile, DNA samples were collected from the Jeep's steering wheel. As DNA technology advanced, the samples came back positive for Letti's DNA when compared to samples collected from the cigarette butts from her house search.

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5) Letti and Terry Strait sentenced for the murder of Charlie Cammisano

Authorities arrested both Letti Strait and Terry Strait based on evidence and witness statements. The police had found Terry to own a .25 caliber handgun, which matched the caliber of the bullet Charlie was killed with. The couple was charged with the first-degree murder of Charlie Cammisano in December 2014.

Terry took a plea deal and testified against Letti, who was sentenced to life in prison without parole in May 2020, per KSHB 41 Kansas City. Meanwhile, Terry was sentenced to 14 years in prison.

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Catch all the details of Charlie Cammisano's murder as Snapped airs on Oxygen on Tuesday.