Where is Nathan Carroll now? Details explored ahead of 20/20 on ABC
Nathan Carroll emerged as the unlikely linchpin in the Bonnie Woodward cold-case break, yet he vanished from public view almost as quickly as he entered it. In 2018, the then-24-year-old accepted full immunity and walked investigators through his father, Roger Carroll’s, rural Illinois property. He pointed out the shooting spot, the burn pit, and the creek where ashes were dumped.
His detailed testimony, delivered again at trial two years later, helped secure a 65-year sentence for Roger. Afterwards, relatives on the Carroll side cut off contact, and Nathan Carroll reported receiving alleged threats.
Court filings for Roger’s pending appeal list no current address, suggesting that Nathan Carroll now lives under the radar. He is possibly still in Illinois but shielded by sealed records.
20/20 revisits his pivotal role in the two-hour episode I Have Killed For You, airing Friday, June 6, at 9 pm ET on ABC. And streaming the next day on Hulu, raising fresh questions about where Nathan Carroll is today.
Born mid-1990s, Nathan Carroll grew up in Alton, Illinois, befriended Heather Woodward at church and hosted her after she fled home
Nathan Carroll’s involvement in the Bonnie Woodward investigation began with his friendship with Heather Woodward. She allegedly left her home in June 2010 and moved into the Carroll residence. At that point, Nathan had never met Bonnie Woodward.
However, he later told investigators his father, Roger Carroll, called the step-mother “a bad person” and accused her of mistreating Heather, as per an ABC News report dated June 6, 2025.
Heather turned up at a nearby library eight days after Bonnie Woodward disappeared from the Eunice Smith Nursing Home lot, but Bonnie was still unaccounted for. Fingerprints placed Roger Carroll at Bonnie’s red Chevy Avalanche, but prosecutors initially found this evidence insufficient for charges.
The case stood still until March 2018, when Monica Carroll alleged domestic assault by her husband. As per the ABC News report dated June 6, 2025, during her statement, she quoted her husband:
"I have killed for you."
Monica’s disclosure reopened the investigation. Officers located Roger in nearby woods after an attempted insulin overdose. They arrested him on murder and domestic battery charges. Nathan Carroll, then 24, was subpoenaed before a grand jury and granted full immunity.
Under oath, he described hearing eight or nine gunshots, seeing legs in tan scrubs, and helping maintain a large brush fire. He testified, his father insisted the fire had to be stoked the whole time. Jennifer Mudge on Good Morning America, as per the ABC News report dated June 6, 2025, stated:
"It had to be stoked all night, all day, all night, every couple of hours, and Roger had Nathan help him do that."
Nathan Carroll guided police to the shooting site, burn pit, and ash dump
Following the grand-jury session, Nathan Carroll led detectives to 3 specific points on the Carroll farm. This includes the spot where shots were fired, a burn pile, and a creek. Investigators recovered 27 bone fragments but could not confirm they were Bonnie Woodward’s remains. The physical evidence, though, corroborated Nathan Carroll’s timeline.
Court records show that he also identified a Stoeger Cougar 9 mm handgun seized in 2010 as the weapon used, as per The Telegraph report dated October 1, 2020. At trial in March 2020, prosecutors argued Roger Carroll had stalked Bonnie Woodward’s schedule and used Heather as bait.
Heather testified that Roger banned her from phones or computers and ordered her not to reveal her stay at the farm. Circuit Judge Eric Pistorius, quoted by The Telegraph on October 1, 2020, described the murder as:
"This was a meticulously planned, senseless death."
Meanwhile, Madison County First Assistant State’s Attorney Crystal Uhe noted that without Nathan’s testimony, the case might still be open, according to a report by The Telegraph on October 1, 2020. After four hours of deliberation, the jury convicted Roger Carroll of first-degree murder and firearm enhancement, resulting in a 65-year sentence.
Roger Carroll is now housed at the maximum-security Menard Correctional Center in Chester, Illinois, where he is serving his 65-year sentence, imposed in March 2020. As reported by ABC News, court records show that he has filed a direct appeal, and the Illinois Supreme Court granted him leave to appeal earlier this year. The case is expected to be argued sometime this fall.
Where Nathan Carroll is today and how 20/20 revisits his role
Since testifying, Nathan Carroll has kept a low profile. Some relatives cut off contact. He also reported receiving threats, prompting him to guard his whereabouts. Current appeal filings for Roger Carroll list no public address for Nathan, suggesting he resides privately, possibly still in Illinois.
No court documents mention formal witness-protection enrollment, and no recent media interviews or social-media accounts can be linked to him. The 2-hour 20/20 episode I Have Killed For You airs Friday, June 6, at 9 pm ET on ABC.
The broadcast revisits Nathan’s testimony, the quote that broke the cold case, and the pending Illinois Supreme Court appeal. By tracing how Nathan’s detailed account transformed a decade-old disappearance into a murder conviction. 20/20 provides viewers with the most complete public portrait to date of the witness who helped solve Bonnie Woodward’s case.
Stay tuned for more updates.
