4 chilling details about Skylar Neese's murder

Episode 38 of Dateline: Secrets Uncovered's Season 9 brings forward a chilling story of stabbing and betrayal from West Virginia as Skylar Neese lost her life at the hands of her two closest friends - Shelia Eddy and Rachel Shoaf.

The 16-year-old Morgantown resident had sneaked out of her bedroom window around 12:30 a.m. on July 6, 2012, to drive around in her friend's sedan. She left her cellphone charger behind and the window ajar, hoping to return the same night. Six months after her disappearance that night, Neese's unidentifiable body was recovered from an area close to the state lines.

The official synopsis of the episode reads,

"Skylar Neese,16, vanishes without a trace, turning her parents' world upside down; police think she ran away, but clues on social media point to a more sinister reason for her disappearance."

The episode will be re-aired on November 8, 2023, on Oxygen at 10.00 p.m. EST.

Disclaimer: This article discusses details of a murder case. Reader's discretion is advised.

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Four chilling details about Skylar Neese's murder

1) Skylar Neese was killed by her best friends

The prime suspects arrested, Shelia Eddy and Rachel Shoaf, were friends from University High School who were closest to Skylar. The trio was considered to be inseparable by others.

Shelia Eddy, Rachel Shoaf, and Skylar Neese (Image via CBS News)

While Skylar and Shelia grew up together since the age of 8, Rachel became their friend in their first year. Eddy was close to the Neese family as well, and Mary Neese recalled considering her as one of her own and said,

“Shelia didn’t even knock on the door when she came over, she just came on in.”

Skylar kept the trio together during difficult times as Shelia and Rachel's parents went through their divorces.

2) The murder plan was hatched months before the murder

Both Shelia and Rachel had devised a plan to murder Skylar months before they had executed it. The two agreed to it one day in their science class.

Rachel Shoaf, Shelia Eddy, and Skylar Neese (Image via New York Post)

While they went over the details of the plan at school, which some students had overheard as well but passed it off as a joke. However, things started looking grim for Eddy and Shoaf after the murder, as a few of their mates called them out publicly on Twitter.

3) Disturbing social media posts depicted a problematic relationship

Due to a lack of evidence, it became more and more difficult for the Star City police officers to pursue either of the prime suspects in the Skylar Neese murder case. However, once the case was handed to Chris Berry, a state trooper, who created a fake online persona and followed Neese's social circle for any clues.

Shelia's tweet for Skylar after the murder (Image via Twitter)

Investigators observed that the dynamic between the trio had been edging towards bitter for quite some time, as evident from the posts online. A post from Neese that day before her disappearance read,

“sick of being at f**king home. thanks ‘friends’, love hanging out with you all too.”

Another post read,

“you doing s*** like that is why I can NEVER completely trust you.”

Investigators followed their social media activity to understand what time would suit a confession once one of them cracks.

4) Skylar's body was left to decompose close to the state lines

As Shelia Eddy and Rachel Shoaf stabbed Skylar Neese with kitchen knives, they stabbed her knee, leaving her immobile. Shoaf had carried her father's shovel in the car with which the duo intended to bury the body. However, the soil was too tight to dig into, which prompted the two to leave the body covered with dirt and twigs open to decomposition.

Skylar Neese's memorial site (Image via Observer Reporter)

Skylar's body was recovered from Wayne Township, Greene County, after Rachel's confession. The crime lab confirmed the unidentifiable body to be Skylar Neese's on March 13, 2013.