BOWLING GREEN, KY – On November 3, 2026, Robert Scott Froberg, 61, was sentenced to life in prison for the 1996 abduction and murder of 7-year-old Morgan Violi.
United States Attorney Kyle G. Bumgarner of the Western District of Kentucky, FBI Special Agent in Charge Olivia Olson, Chief Michael Delaney of the Bowling Green Police Department and Commonwealth’s Attorney for the 8th Judicial Circuit Kori Beck Bumgarner, made the announcement.
Morgan Violi was abducted on July 24, 1996, while playing with her sisters and friends at the Colony Apartments in Bowling Green, Kentucky. Witnesses saw a white man grab Morgan, put her in a maroon Chevrolet van and drive away. Two days later, the van suspected to be involved in the abduction was found in Franklin, Tennessee, and searched for evidence. Morgan’s body was found discarded in woods near White House, Tennessee. on October 20, 1996. For years, Morgan’s kidnapping and murder went unsolved despite significant national media attention and ongoing efforts by law enforcement.
Relying on advances in forensic science, the FBI tested evidence found in the abandoned maroon Chevrolet van. A hair found in the abandoned van was tested by the FBI laboratory and returned an association with Robert Scott Froberg, who was serving a lengthy sentence in the Alabama Department of Corrections.
Acting on this forensic lead, law enforcement began investigating whether Froberg may have committed the kidnapping and murder. Investigators determined that Froberg had escaped from the Alabama Department of Corrections during the timeframe Morgan was abducted and murdered.
Law enforcement learned that after escaping from the Alabama Department of Corrections, Froberg traveled to Mount Carmel, Pennsylvania. While in Mount Carmel, Froberg attempted to abduct a seven-year-old little boy. Froberg was arrested and taken to the Northumberland County Jail. Subsequently, Froberg escaped from the Northumberland County Jail. He traveled to Dayton, Ohio, where he stole a maroon Chevrolet van approximately half a mile from his parent’s house. Froberg traveled south, exiting I-65 in Bowling Green, Kentucky, where he spotted Morgan playing in her apartment complex, snatched her and drove south.
Froberg admitted to investigators that he drove Morgan to White House, Tennessee and parked near a barn. Morgan was screaming and crying. Froberg acknowledged strangling Morgan to death and throwing her in a ditch. He fled to Franklin, Tennessee where he left the stolen van on his way to Huntsville, Alabama. Eventually, Froberg made his way back to Pennsylvania where he was arrested and returned to the Alabama Department of Corrections. For decades, Froberg’s horrific crime remained unsolved. Froberg was scheduled to be released from custody by the Alabama Department of Corrections in the near future but will now spend the rest of his life in federal prison.
On November 3, 2026, United States District Court Judge Greg Stivers accepted the plea agreement and sentenced Froberg to life. A life sentence in federal court means that Froberg will never be released from prison as there is no parole in the federal system.
United States Attorney Kyle Bumgarner and First Assistant United States Attorney Brian Butler stated, “Morgan Violi’s kidnapping and murder forever changed the lives of her family and, indeed, the entire Bowling Green community. The terror of an unknown stranger lurking to steal and murder an innocent child hung over Bowling Green for three decades. Not a day has gone by that her family did not grieve Morgan and work for answers. Morgan’s family and law enforcement’s tenacity finally led to answers, the culprit’s arrest, and ultimately, to his life sentence. Fortunately, the man that committed this monstrous crime will never see a day outside of the custody of the Bureau of Prisons.”
Special Agent in Charge Olivia Olson of the FBI Louisville Field Office stated, “While Mr. Froberg’s life sentence will never fill the void left in the hearts of Morgan Violi’s loved ones, the FBI hopes it closes a dark chapter for her family and for the Bowling Green community. Even though thirty years has passed since the abduction and murder of Morgan, this FBI, alongside our law enforcement partners, never stopped tracking down every lead and exhausting all available resources. Through diligent, persistent investigative work, Mr. Froberg has finally received the punishment he deserves.”
This case was investigated by the FBI, the Bowling Green Police Department and the Robertson County, Tennessee Sheriff’s Office.
United States Attorney Kyle Bumgarner and First Assistant United States Attorney Brian Butler prosecuted the case.
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Source: U.S. Attorney’s Office — Western District of Kentucky — U.S. Department of Justice press release.