Prince William County police are looking for help solving a 12-year-old homicide they call the Truck Driver Homicide. Vern Nielsen, a truck driver from Missouri, arrived in Woodbridge around 12 a.m. on July 6, 1999. The warehouse receiving his load of furniture hadn’t opened, so he parked his truck and went to sleep.
The truck was brand new, and one of the windows, which was defective, rolled down by itself.
That made the truck an inviting target for two attackers, who broke into it, pistol-whipped Nielsen, and shot him at point-blank range in the heart.
When the delivery didn’t arrive on time, his trucking company called the Manassas police, who found him, crumpled on his knees on the floor of the truck. Authorities estimated he died between 4 and 7 a.m.
“It was no big deal to walk in and murder an older man in his sleep,” said Pam Nielsen, his widow. They had been married for 16 years.
The owner of the trucking company brought her the news personally.
“I started shaking all over,” she said. “I didn’t know your whole body could just shake.”
Later, she was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder.
“I remember driving around town with my car windows up, just screaming,” she said.
She believes the slaying was a gang initiation since the killers didn’t take anything from the truck.
Paul Masterson, a cold-case detective, said the murder could also have been part of a botched robbery. He said police believe people living in the area know more about the killing than they are telling the police.
“We know people in the community know what happened and who was involved in it,” he said.
But nobody has come forward.
“It’s the ‘don’t snitch’ atmosphere that’s prevalent throughout the young community now, and even the older community,” he said.
Information about the case can be left anonymously by calling Crime Solvers toll-free at 866-411-TIPS. Those providing Crime Solvers tips may receiver a reward of up to $1,000.
