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NBC’s Dateline episode titled Finding Venus follows the distressing case of Venus Stewart’s disappearance and murder. Venus Stewart was a 32-year-old mother who went missing from her home in Michigan in April 2010. Her husband Doug was convicted in 2011. Though he initially denied the charges, in 2018 he confessed to the crime and led the authorities to the place where he had murdered and buried her body.
Venus’ disappearance and the following trial of Doug were closely followed by the public and media. The investigators had spent years looking for her body, the location of which Doug refused to divulge. It took eight years for the families to find closure when Doug finally confessed to the murder and revealed the location of Venus’s remains.
Who was Venus Stewart?
Venus Stewart was a 32-year-old mother of two young children. She had a turbulent marriage with her husband, Doug Stewart. She had accused him of domestic violence and claimed that he had molested their daughter. Venus moved to Michigan from Virginia to start fresh with her two children after cutting ties with her husband. Venus had filed for protective orders against Doug.
What happened to Venus Stewart?
In April 2010, Venus Stewart went out to check the mail but never came back home. She was living in her parents’ house in Colon Township. She had left behind all her personal items, including her wallet and documents. She was reported missing, just two months after she moved there.
With the knowledge of their troubled marriage, the authorities suspected her husband, Doug. The police found traces of blood in his truck in Virginia, along with a bill receipt for a tarp and shovel. He maintained innocence and said that he was in Virginia on the day she disappeared.
The trial and conviction
During the trial, a witness called Ricky Spencer alleged that Doug had convinced him to impersonate him while he was in Michigan. It was meant to be an alibi. As per News Channel 3, during the trial, Ricky testified,
“He mentioned he was going to bury her where they wouldn’t be able to dig there for over 100 years, like a national park. He said that in his will, like when he gets older, he’d have a location where she was.”
Doug was convicted on two charges in her murder in 2011. He was found guilty of first-degree premeditated murder and conspiracy to commit first-degree murder. He received a life sentence without the possibility of parole. During that time, the location of Venus’s remains was still unknown.
However, in 2018, he finally confessed to the crime. But that came at a cost. An Xbox gaming console, to be exact, and other privileges.
On the dreaded day, he revealed that he had ambushed his wife at her parents’ house. He choked her until she blacked out. As per the News Channel 3 report, Doug recalled,
‘I don't know what I was thinking back then... I was just on a mission’
He shared that he had visited the wooded, isolated area near Fulton. When Venus started waking up, he struck her hard and killed her. He took her body to the site and buried her.
About the burial site in the isolated location, he said,
“I had come here the night before. I had planned for this to be the spot… I don't know how I did it. I just can't believe I did it."
Venus Stewart’s remains have finally been found
For years, the authorities searched for Venus’s remains in Southwest Michigan. None of the leads helped them find the body until Doug finally revealed it himself.
Along with the authorities, Western Michigan University archaeology students were also called in to excavate Venus’s remains. Michigan State Police Detective Sgt. Chuck Christensen shared,
“I'm glad we were able to get closure on this and keep going.”
Venus Stewart’s remains were buried in a wooded site in Southern Kalamazoo County, just about 12 miles from her parents’ house. The Venus Foundation, an organization run by her family members, took to Facebook to share their gratitude to all those who helped find Venus’s remains.
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