Young couple Channon Christian and Christopher Newsom were raped, tortured and murdered in in 2007 — a case so harrowing that some police officers needed therapy after discovering their bodies
Liam McInerney Content Editor
19:00, 04 Jun 2026
Christopher Newsom was raped and set on fire — two days later his girlfriend Channon Christia was found in rubbish bin(Image: Family of victims/CBS)
A YouTuber renowned for covering true crime has revealed he’s stumbled upon one of the “darkest” cases to date — with numerous details proving too harrowing for him to discuss. Adrian Stewart operates Coffeehouse Crime, which boasts an impressive 2.9million subscribers who tune in to his weekly videos exploring the world’s most chilling cases.
However, his most recent episode proved particularly harrowing, and he titled the video ‘Tennessee’s House of Secrets – America’s Most Horrific Case?’
In the video’s description, he wrote: “The murders of Channon Christian and Christopher Newsom is one of the most horrifying stories I’ve covered. Their killers were not only barbaric, but extraordinarily brash with their decisions.”
Below, we revisit the brutal murders and disclose what became of the five individuals responsible for their unimaginably agonising deaths.
Channon Christian and Christopher Newsom
They were both tortured before their deaths(Image: -)
Channon, 21, and Christopher, 23, had been together for three months when their lives came to a devastating end.
They resided in Knoxville, Tennessee, where Channon was pursuing sociology studies. She lived with her parents and older brother and was characterised as bubbly and outgoing. Her boyfriend worked as a carpenter and was known as a devoted baseball enthusiast with a laid-back personality.
Disappeared
The young couple vanished on the evening of January 6, 2007. They had arranged to go for dinner together before joining friends at a party — but they never arrived. The following morning, neither could be contacted, and their worried families reported them missing. Both of their phones were switched off and Channon had failed to show up to work as planned.
However, just a day after the pair disappeared, a worker made a harrowing discovery on a railroad track near Chipman.
Murder
It turned out to be the naked body of Christopher, who had been raped, shot in the back and set alight. His hands were bound and clothing had been wrapped around his head and fastened with shoelaces.
Christopher’s remains were in such a dreadful condition that his devastated parents were advised against viewing them — meaning they could only embrace the body bag.
While the horrifying find, which left some officers requiring therapy in the aftermath, was almost impossible to comprehend, one urgent question remained — where was his girlfriend Channon?
The four men and one woman responsible for what happened(Image: NBC/News Centre Maine)
Tragically, this was answered just two days later, when officers discovered her body inside a rubbish bin at a property with a for sale sign outside.
A post-mortem report subsequently established that she had been wrapped in plastic bags and discarded in the bin while still alive.
Police were directed to her body after her abandoned vehicle was located, which uncovered fingerprints belonging to Lemaricus Davidson.
Her remains were discovered close to Davidson’s home, and further suspects were subsequently identified, including his brother, Letalvis Cobbins, and his associate, George Thomas. A fourth suspect, Eric Boyd, was later apprehended before Vanessa Coleman, who was in a relationship with Cobbins, became a person of interest.
The investigation ultimately uncovered that Channon and Christopher had been carjacked and abducted before both were raped, tortured and murdered.
While Christopher was taken to a set of railway tracks where he was shot and set alight, his partner endured two days of horrific torture.
Those named above repeatedly beat her, bound her to a chair and sexually assaulted her. They also poured bleach into her body before wrapping bags around her and forcing her inside a trash can, all while she remained conscious. She ultimately suffocated and died.
Adrian, speaking to his subscribers, said: “I have to say those details push the boundaries of this case beyond anything that I’ve ever covered before. What these five monsters did to Channon and Christopher was cruel, degrading, and utterly inhuman.
“And all of this was done towards two people who had never even wronged any of them. And I think that’s why this case still makes people so furious because Channon and Chris weren’t merely killed. They were humiliated, tortured, and literally treated like garbage.”
Justice
It later emerged that Davidson, Cobbins, Boyd, and Thomas transported Christopher to the railway tracks where he was killed.
This followed his sexual assault at a house where he and his girlfriend had been taken against their will. In the early hours, he was forced into a car while gagged, blindfolded and restrained with a dog chain and leash around his neck before being brought to the tracks.
Thomas was forced to fire first, the shot striking his neck, before a second bullet hit his back. Davidson then fired a third shot, hitting the victim in the head, before the attackers doused him in petrol and set him ablaze.
The group then returned to the house, where Channon suffered a torn membrane in her mouth after being orally raped by Cobbins. She was further raped by Davidson before the perpetrators attempted to destroy evidence using bleach.
The case resulted in numerous trials and retrials, with Davidson, Cobbins and Thomas convicted on multiple charges including murder. Davidson, believed to be the ringleader, received the death penalty while the others were handed life sentences.
Boyd was subsequently found guilty of murder, robbery, kidnapping and rape-related charges and received two life sentences.
Coleman was sentenced to 53 years for her role in Channon’s death. She had remained with Channon while the others led Christopher to the tracks. A subsequent retrial saw her sentence reduced to 35 years in prison.