Although a police officer, Arthur Eggers was described as timid, patient, and constantly dominated by his wife. Meanwhile, his wife who was 10 years younger often insulted Arthur and boasted everywhere that she could sleep with multiple men without him daring to say anything. However, this woman did not expect that she had misjudged her husband.
The dismembered body
On January 2, 1946, two pedestrians accidentally discovered a tightly wrapped bundle discarded in a remote ravine area of San Bernardino, California. When they opened the bundle, they were horrified to find inside a blue and white striped blanket the dismembered, nude body of a woman.
With the victim’s head and hands missing, authorities had difficulty identifying her through dental records or fingerprints. They estimated the body had been there less than a day.
However, the investigation gained hope 4 days later when the victim’s big toes became bloated. From this, experts estimated she was between 35-40 years old, around 5’7″ tall. She had been shot twice, one bullet piercing her heart causing death. Her blood type was A.
Searches around the area where the dismembered body was found yielded little besides some scattered footprints. Hundreds of missing person reports poured in from across the country, but no families could identify the body when shown it.
The Suspect Officer
During this time, a Temple City, California police officer named Arthur Eggers (51 years old) also reported his wife Dorothy Eggers (41) as missing.
Arthur Eggers lived 80 miles from San Bernardino. The man reported his wife missing on the same day the dismembered body was discovered. When brought to identify the remains, Arthur insisted it was definitely not his wife, as she was shorter than the victim. In his description of Dorothy, Arthur listed her as only around 5’2″ tall.
Arthur stated he and his wife of 18 years had an argument over money. An angry Dorothy then stormed out and never returned or contacted the family. Arthur claimed she left voluntarily and nothing bad could have happened to her.
However, a doctor who previously treated Dorothy was then brought to San Bernardino to view the remains. He recognized a scar on the victim’s leg and the swollen big toe joints. After careful examination, he stated with certainty that it was his patient Dorothy Eggers.
While finally identifying the victim, police still had no leads on a suspect for her murder.
Not long after Dorothy’s body was found, Arthur sold his car to the police chief. The chief noticed blood stains in the trunk that matched Dorothy’s blood type A.
Combined with inconsistencies in Arthur’s story and other mounting evidence, suspicions about the husband grew.
The Suspicious Husband
The couple’s two daughters, Marie (19) and Lorraine (12), confirmed the blue and white striped blanket the body was wrapped in belonged to their family. Hair samples from the blanket matched those found in the home.
There were also dark stains in the Eggers’ bathroom. Arthur initially claimed it was “food coloring” Dorothy threw at him during an argument. Testing later revealed it was blood.
Additionally, when Arthur sold the family car to a colleague, the colleague noticed the vehicle registration was still in Dorothy’s name despite her being missing. When he asked Arthur how he transferred ownership without her signature, Arthur claimed Dorothy had pre-signed everything before leaving.
However, Marie later testified that her father tried to force her to forge her mother’s signature on the car title so he could sell it. To fulfill her father’s request, Marie practiced writing Dorothy’s name multiple times.
A revolver was also found in Arthur’s home. Ballistics experts confirmed it was the gun used to kill Dorothy, with human tissue and blood found on it.
A witness also stated seeing Arthur cleaning out the trunk area of his car on January 3, 1946 – one day after Dorothy’s body was discovered.
The Unfaithful Wife
With all the accumulated evidence against him, Arthur Eggers was arrested on January 22nd. From there, the truth about the Eggers’ marriage also emerged.
None of the couple’s acquaintances, not even Dorothy’s own mother, could believe mild-mannered Arthur was involved in his wife’s death. He was seen as timid, patient, and constantly dominated by Dorothy despite her frequent insults. She was a strong-willed personality.
Their marriage had been happy until about 2 years before Dorothy died. She suddenly announced wanting to change her boring life, making it difficult for Arthur. Neighbors began noticing when Arthur was away, Dorothy would go dancing and stay overnight with strangers. But Arthur trusted his wife “not to think too much about it.”
However, Dorothy eventually began openly boasting about her dalliances with other men, confident Arthur “wouldn’t dare do anything.” Little did she know, she had misjudged her husband.
The Cuckold Husband
With the accumulating evidence, police arrested Arthur Eggers for the murder of his wife Dorothy Eggers.
Initially, Arthur denied all accusations. “I didn’t harm a hair on her head. I didn’t kill her. I wanted her there to raise the kids,” Arthur insisted. But days later, he began changing his stance by confessing.
Arthur revealed their marriage had been happy until about 2 years before Dorothy’s death. She began seeing other men frequently and even openly boasted about her affairs. Dorothy was confident Arthur wouldn’t dare do anything. However, she misjudged her husband.
According to Arthur’s confession, on December 29, 1945, he left for his police shift at 5 pm. After finishing work around midnight, Arthur returned home around 1 am and heard the front door slam. He saw a man exiting his house who quickly walked away upon noticing Arthur.
Arthur was stunned. He rushed inside to the bedroom he shared with Dorothy. Turning on the lights, he was further shocked to find his wife nude.
In a rage over her infidelity, Arthur confronted Dorothy, but she just laughed it off. Unable to control his emotions, Arthur grabbed his revolver to chase after the other man. As Dorothy tried to intervene, “the gun went off accidentally during our struggle,” Arthur claimed.
Death Sentence for the Wife-Killer
Arthur admitted in his fury, that he dismembered and disposed of Dorothy’s body in multiple locations, later dumping the gun and saw used to cut her up. Police scoured the town and surrounding areas, only finding the knife and saw but not Dorothy’s missing body parts.
However, in the days after, Arthur changed his confession, now claiming he burned her body in the house. But police found no evidence to support this.
At his May 1946 trial, Arthur’s lawyers argued he suffered from insanity and raised doubts the body was actually Dorothy’s.
Meanwhile, Arthur repeatedly altered key details in his story. He then told the court he believed his wife was still alive and mocked the trouble he was in.
But with the overwhelming physical evidence and eyewitness testimony against him, the jury found Arthur Eggers guilty of first-degree murder. He was executed in the gas chamber at San Quentin Prison on October 15, 1948.
