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0 / 24 Fotos
Michael Jordan
- In 1993, Michael Jordan's father, James Jordan, went missing. Days later, his car was discovered near Fayetteville, North Carolina, and so was his corpse. Two men, Daniel Green and Larry Demery, were arrested and are serving life in prison for the carjacking and murder incident.
© Getty Images
1 / 24 Fotos
Sofia vergara
- In 1998, the 'Modern Family' star's older brother, Rafael, was abducted and killed by kidnappers in Colombia.
© Reuters
2 / 24 Fotos
Kelsey Grammer
- The 'Frasier' actor not only lost his two half brothers in a scuba-diving accident when he was a child, but he also lost his father, who was murdered by a stranger just outside his house. If that wasn't enough, in 1975 Grammer's 18-year-old sister Karen was abducted and murdered by serial killer Freddie Glenn.
© Getty Images
3 / 24 Fotos
Charlize Theron
- Charlize Theron's father, Charles, was fatally shot by her mother, Gerda, in 1991. The actress' father was a heavy drinker and threatened both his wife and daughter. The attorney general determined that the incident was in self-defense.
© Getty Images
4 / 24 Fotos
Jennifer Hudson
- In 2008, Hudson's brother-in-law, William Balfour, who was separated from her sister, Julia, murdered Hudson's mother, Darnell Donerson, her brother, Jason Hudson, and her seven-year-old nephew, Julian King (son of Julia). Balfour was sentenced to life in prison.
© Getty Images
5 / 24 Fotos
Dylan McDermott
- The actor lost his mother Diane in 1967, when he was five years old. Her boyfriend, John Sponza, claimed that Diane took her own life, but in 2011 the case was reopened. Sponza was considered a suspect, but had already died in 1972.
© Getty Images
6 / 24 Fotos
Serena and Venus Williams
- The tennis stars' older half sister Yetunde Price was murdered in 2003 while driving in Compton, Los Angeles, with her boyfriend. Theories range from the couple being mistaken for rival gang members, or that the intended target was supposedly her boyfriend, Rolland Wormley.
© Getty Images
7 / 24 Fotos
Ice Cube
- The rapper-turned-actor was 12 years old in 1981 when his half sister, Beverly Jean Brown, was murdered by her husband, Carl Clifford Brown. Carl died less than a year later.
© Getty Images
8 / 24 Fotos
Roman Polanski
- The director's wife, actress Sharon Tate, was infamously targeted by the Manson family in 1969. Cult leader Charles Manson died in 2017, after serving life in prison.
© Getty Images
9 / 24 Fotos
Patrick Duffy
- In 1986, both the actor's mother, Marie, and father, Terence, were killed by two men, Sean Wentz and Kenneth Miller, in a bar owned by the couple in Montana. The men were sentenced to 75 years in prison.
© Getty Images
10 / 24 Fotos
Bill Cosby
- In 1997, Bill Cosby's son Ennis was changing a tire near Interstate 405 in Los Angeles when he was fatally shot during an attempted robbery.
© Getty Images
11 / 24 Fotos
Mark Ruffalo
- On December 1, 2008, the actor's brother, Scott Ruffalo, was shot in the head at his Beverly Hills condo. Shaha Mishaal Adham and her boyfriend Brian Scofield were arrested, but Adham insisted that Scott shot himself while playing Russian roulette. She passed away in 2012 and the case was closed. Scott's death remains a mystery and the possibility of homicide hasn't been discarded.
© Getty Images
12 / 24 Fotos
Dave Navarro
- The famous guitarist lost his mother, Constance, in 1983. She was murdered inside her home in LA. The killer, Constance's ex-boyfriend John Riccardi, was caught thanks to a viewer tip, after Dave Navarro appeared on the show 'America's Most Wanted' in 1991. Riccardi was sentenced to life without parole.
© Getty Images
13 / 24 Fotos
Dwayne Wade
- The former basketball player lost his cousin, Nykea Aldridge, who was fatally shot while pushing her child in a stroller in Chicago's Parkway Gardens in 2016. The 32-year-old mother of four was hit when two men exchanged gunfire nearby. Her child was unharmed.
© Getty Images
14 / 24 Fotos
Malcolm X
- Malcolm X's father, Reverend Earl Little, died after being run over by a streetcar in 1931 in his hometown of East Lansing, Michigan. Many believe Little was pushed into his death by white supremacists.
© Getty Images
15 / 24 Fotos
Duane and Gregg Allman
- Duane and Greg of the Allman Brothers Band were three and two years old, respectively, when their father, Willis Turner Allman, was murdered by a hitchhiker in 1949.
© Getty Images
16 / 24 Fotos
Jake Zyrus
- In 2011, the singer's father, Ricky Pempengco, was murdered following an altercation at a grocery store in the Philippines. Pempengco was stabbed to death with an ice pick by a drunk man named Angel Capili Jr., who turned himself in and confessed to the crime.
© Getty Images
17 / 24 Fotos
Omarosa Manigault Newman
- The reality TV star was just seven when her father was murdered. Then, in 2011, her brother was shot dead in his sleep by his girlfriend's ex-boyfriend.
© Getty Images
18 / 24 Fotos
Ron Ely
- The actor, best know for playing Tarzan, tragically lost his 62-year-old wife Valerie Lundeen Ely after their son, Cameron Ely, stabbed her to death at their home in California on October 15, 2019. Cameron was fatally shot by police at the scene.
© Getty Images
19 / 24 Fotos
DJ Khaled
- On February 4, 2018, Jonathan Tuck, the brother of DJ Khaled's wife Nicole Tuck, was murdered in New York City. He was reportedly trying to buy drugs when he was killed.
© Getty Images
20 / 24 Fotos
Chuck Palahniuk
- The American novelist, best known for being the author of 'Fight Club,' lost his father, Fred Palahniuk, in 1999. The writer's father was killed by the ex-husband of a woman he was dating.
© Getty Images
21 / 24 Fotos
James Ellroy
- In 1958, the crime fiction writer's mother, Geneva Ellroy, was strangled to death. James Ellroy was 10 years old at the time. The case remains unsolved.
© Getty Images
22 / 24 Fotos
Melvin Mora
- The former MLB player was still a young boy when he witnessed his father Gregorio being killed in front of him in Venezuela. The killer had mistaken his father for someone else. Sources: (Ranker) (Grunge)
© Getty Images
23 / 24 Fotos
© Getty Images
0 / 24 Fotos
Michael Jordan
- In 1993, Michael Jordan's father, James Jordan, went missing. Days later, his car was discovered near Fayetteville, North Carolina, and so was his corpse. Two men, Daniel Green and Larry Demery, were arrested and are serving life in prison for the carjacking and murder incident.
© Getty Images
1 / 24 Fotos
Sofia vergara
- In 1998, the 'Modern Family' star's older brother, Rafael, was abducted and killed by kidnappers in Colombia.
© Reuters
2 / 24 Fotos
Kelsey Grammer
- The 'Frasier' actor not only lost his two half brothers in a scuba-diving accident when he was a child, but he also lost his father, who was murdered by a stranger just outside his house. If that wasn't enough, in 1975 Grammer's 18-year-old sister Karen was abducted and murdered by serial killer Freddie Glenn.
© Getty Images
3 / 24 Fotos
Charlize Theron
- Charlize Theron's father, Charles, was fatally shot by her mother, Gerda, in 1991. The actress' father was a heavy drinker and threatened both his wife and daughter. The attorney general determined that the incident was in self-defense.
© Getty Images
4 / 24 Fotos
Jennifer Hudson
- In 2008, Hudson's brother-in-law, William Balfour, who was separated from her sister, Julia, murdered Hudson's mother, Darnell Donerson, her brother, Jason Hudson, and her seven-year-old nephew, Julian King (son of Julia). Balfour was sentenced to life in prison.
© Getty Images
5 / 24 Fotos
Dylan McDermott
- The actor lost his mother Diane in 1967, when he was five years old. Her boyfriend, John Sponza, claimed that Diane took her own life, but in 2011 the case was reopened. Sponza was considered a suspect, but had already died in 1972.
© Getty Images
6 / 24 Fotos
Serena and Venus Williams
- The tennis stars' older half sister Yetunde Price was murdered in 2003 while driving in Compton, Los Angeles, with her boyfriend. Theories range from the couple being mistaken for rival gang members, or that the intended target was supposedly her boyfriend, Rolland Wormley.
© Getty Images
7 / 24 Fotos
Ice Cube
- The rapper-turned-actor was 12 years old in 1981 when his half sister, Beverly Jean Brown, was murdered by her husband, Carl Clifford Brown. Carl died less than a year later.
© Getty Images
8 / 24 Fotos
Roman Polanski
- The director's wife, actress Sharon Tate, was infamously targeted by the Manson family in 1969. Cult leader Charles Manson died in 2017, after serving life in prison.
© Getty Images
9 / 24 Fotos
Patrick Duffy
- In 1986, both the actor's mother, Marie, and father, Terence, were killed by two men, Sean Wentz and Kenneth Miller, in a bar owned by the couple in Montana. The men were sentenced to 75 years in prison.
© Getty Images
10 / 24 Fotos
Bill Cosby
- In 1997, Bill Cosby's son Ennis was changing a tire near Interstate 405 in Los Angeles when he was fatally shot during an attempted robbery.
© Getty Images
11 / 24 Fotos
Mark Ruffalo
- On December 1, 2008, the actor's brother, Scott Ruffalo, was shot in the head at his Beverly Hills condo. Shaha Mishaal Adham and her boyfriend Brian Scofield were arrested, but Adham insisted that Scott shot himself while playing Russian roulette. She passed away in 2012 and the case was closed. Scott's death remains a mystery and the possibility of homicide hasn't been discarded.
© Getty Images
12 / 24 Fotos
Dave Navarro
- The famous guitarist lost his mother, Constance, in 1983. She was murdered inside her home in LA. The killer, Constance's ex-boyfriend John Riccardi, was caught thanks to a viewer tip, after Dave Navarro appeared on the show 'America's Most Wanted' in 1991. Riccardi was sentenced to life without parole.
© Getty Images
13 / 24 Fotos
Dwayne Wade
- The former basketball player lost his cousin, Nykea Aldridge, who was fatally shot while pushing her child in a stroller in Chicago's Parkway Gardens in 2016. The 32-year-old mother of four was hit when two men exchanged gunfire nearby. Her child was unharmed.
© Getty Images
14 / 24 Fotos
Malcolm X
- Malcolm X's father, Reverend Earl Little, died after being run over by a streetcar in 1931 in his hometown of East Lansing, Michigan. Many believe Little was pushed into his death by white supremacists.
© Getty Images
15 / 24 Fotos
Duane and Gregg Allman
- Duane and Greg of the Allman Brothers Band were three and two years old, respectively, when their father, Willis Turner Allman, was murdered by a hitchhiker in 1949.
© Getty Images
16 / 24 Fotos
Jake Zyrus
- In 2011, the singer's father, Ricky Pempengco, was murdered following an altercation at a grocery store in the Philippines. Pempengco was stabbed to death with an ice pick by a drunk man named Angel Capili Jr., who turned himself in and confessed to the crime.
© Getty Images
17 / 24 Fotos
Omarosa Manigault Newman
- The reality TV star was just seven when her father was murdered. Then, in 2011, her brother was shot dead in his sleep by his girlfriend's ex-boyfriend.
© Getty Images
18 / 24 Fotos
Ron Ely
- The actor, best know for playing Tarzan, tragically lost his 62-year-old wife Valerie Lundeen Ely after their son, Cameron Ely, stabbed her to death at their home in California on October 15, 2019. Cameron was fatally shot by police at the scene.
© Getty Images
19 / 24 Fotos
DJ Khaled
- On February 4, 2018, Jonathan Tuck, the brother of DJ Khaled's wife Nicole Tuck, was murdered in New York City. He was reportedly trying to buy drugs when he was killed.
© Getty Images
20 / 24 Fotos
Chuck Palahniuk
- The American novelist, best known for being the author of 'Fight Club,' lost his father, Fred Palahniuk, in 1999. The writer's father was killed by the ex-husband of a woman he was dating.
© Getty Images
21 / 24 Fotos
James Ellroy
- In 1958, the crime fiction writer's mother, Geneva Ellroy, was strangled to death. James Ellroy was 10 years old at the time. The case remains unsolved.
© Getty Images
22 / 24 Fotos
Melvin Mora
- The former MLB player was still a young boy when he witnessed his father Gregorio being killed in front of him in Venezuela. The killer had mistaken his father for someone else. Sources: (Ranker) (Grunge)
© Getty Images
23 / 24 Fotos
Tragic stories of celebrities who lost family members to violence
Parents, siblings, and even children
© Getty Images
The death of a family member is always a painful thing to endure, but having a loved one's life taken by another person is even worse. Sadly, many famous people have lost family members in quite tragic and indeed brutal ways. These celebs still carry the weight of their losses, and some of the murderers are still alive to tell the story.
In this gallery, we revisit the murder cases that still haunt many stars. Click on to know all about them.
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