Joyce Chiang's murder: A complete timeline of events

Joyce Chiang was an American attorney who mysteriously disappeared from Washington, D.C. on January 9, 1999. It was three months later when investigators found her decomposed body on the Potomac River.

After forensic examination, it was determined that Chiang was murdered. However, the primary cause of her death could not be determined. Authorities found two possible suspects, but neither could be proven as the culprit.

After twelve years of investigation, it became a cold case. The murderer of the former Attorney General has not been found yet. The investigation behind the murder of Chiang is documented in the Murder Has Two Faces episode 2, titled Capitol Killings. The docuseries, released on May 6, 2025, is available for streaming on Hulu.

What is the story of Joyce Chiang?

As reported on July 30, 1999, by Washington City Paper, Joyce Chiang was born to Taiwanese parents and grew up with three brothers. One of her brothers is American politician John Chiang, who served as the Treasurer of California from 2015 to 2019.

Washington Post reported on January 8, 2000 that after attending Smith College, Chiang went on to enroll into Georgetown University Law School in 1995. She additionally worked as an immigration adviser for Attorney and Congressman Howard Berman. After passing out law college, she started working for the Immigration and Naturalization Service.

The murder of Joyce Chiang

January 9, 1999: Joyce went out for a movie and dinner and disappeared

According to Washington City Paper, on the day of Joyce Chiang's murder, she went out for a movie and dinner. While returning, she reportedly asked one of her friends to stop at a Starbucks between Connecticut Avenue NW and R Street NW.

Patty First, a Justice Department lawyer who had known Joyce for years, said that the latter would walk back to her apartment from the coffee shop. The victim was living with her brother Roger, who first reported her missing, when Joyce didn't reach home. As reported by NBC Washington in May 2011, Chiang's wallet was found by a couple the next day, who were walking through Anacostia Park.

Four days later, the couple reported the discovery after knowing about her disappearance. When the FBI started investigating around the park, they found a torn jacket, grocery and video cards, gloves, and apartment keys, all of which allegedly belonged to Joyce Chiang.

April 1, 1999: The decomposed body of Chiang was discovered in the Potomac River

It was three months after her disappearance when a decomposition body was retrieved from the Potomac River in Fairfax County on April 1, 1999. When forensics performed a DNA analysis, they found it matched with the victim Joyce Chiang, per Washington City Paper.

As seen in the Murder Has Two Faces episode 2 titled Capitol Killings, investigators connected the case of Chiang's with the disappearance of Chandra Levy. She was an FBI Intern who was last seen in the same Starbucks. Investigators soon began to suspect that both of the women were killed by the same person.

Initially, investigations were made on a possible serial killer on the run. However, after Chandra Levy's extramarital affair with a Congressman was discovered as reported by The Times in May 2003, her case took a different turn.

It was in January 2011, when two potential suspects were reportedly detected, who could've murdered Joyce Chiang in a robbery attempt. The suspects named Neil Joaquin and Steven Allen were identified as a team that abducted people off the street.

At the press conference of WTTG-Fox 5 held in May 2011, host John Walsh predicted that Chiang was thrown by abductors into the Anacostia River. Another prediction claimed that the victim accidentally slipped into the icy rice water and drowned. However, despite the theories, none of them were charged.

According to NBC Washington, the victim's family expressed their gratitude for reopening the case. Among the suspects, one is serving prison time in Guyana, while the other is serving life imprisonment for attacking a woman in Georgetown. The true culprit behind the murder of Joyce Chiang has not been found.

As stated on Asian Americans Advancing Justice website, the deceased's family and friends established Joyce Chiang Memorial Scholarship as a tribute to her memory. The scholarship provides one student every year with an internship at the Asian American Justice Center (AAJC) located in Washington, D.C.

Check out our other articles to learn more details about Hulu's Murder Has Two Faces.

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