'&charset='+document.characterSet : '')); "I still don't know why they didn't arrest him. On November 19, police went to the trailer of 29-year-old Robert Keith Dardeen, who had failed to show up for work at the Rend Lake Water Conservancy District. "Mr. Johnny Swinten, Vietnam Vet. I'd never heard of a carjacking. Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. Thirty years ago . It has also plagued the family of a woman who has been behind bars for 25 years in connection with the crime. WSFA 12 News was unable to reach Browns mom. Both would be murdered. ", Lawson concedes there might have been mistakes during the investigation, but, "To a T, those guys gave 200 percent every day, every minute. Following a negative DNA test in 2008, Springsteen and Scott were both released in 2009. The pair would eventually return to the cabin. "That's the part of the story I tell as often as I can to the people who want to hear it," he said. HARDEEVILLE, Sc. I know my sister, and if she had any inclination that there was going to be harm done to Carrie, she wouldnt have done this.. BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- The days without an arrest turned into months and then . The sixth woman was also held captive but managed to survive. Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. In a sworn statement, Investigator Sean Mukaddam said he initially spoke to Whited, who agreed to show police the crime scene. "I can still see the driveway. HARDEEVILLE, Sc. The murders were carried out for a variety of apparent reasons, ranging from greed to bloodlust. Do you see the house across the street?' The bodies were not found until the following day. He forced Lawson to the ground and instructed Carrie to bind her husband with duct tape. The FBI, usually tight-lipped, staunchly defended their actions in an interview with The Birmingham News. If you have any information on an unsolved murder, you can make an anonymous phone call to the LowcountryCrimeStoppers at 843-554-1111. 26 of them in the city of Selma. If you would like to buy one, you can reach Mitchell at (843) 683-0568, or on Facebook at Charles Mitchell. document.write ("'><\/scr"+"ipt>"); One victim had been stabbed to death with a hunting knife, while another had been bludgeoned to death.[6]. if( width > 480 ){ All told, bar manager John A. Closure came tantalizingly close when four young men were arrested in Texas and West Virginia in October 1999. 6 The Burger Chef Murders. We were supported by thousands of people who didn't even know us, and that's one reason we've been able to move on. Let's just arrest him on a drug charge, get him in jail.' This was due in part to the case of Detective Hector Polanco, who was investigated for coercing 13 false confessions. During the wait, Bland killed himself. Inside the trailer, the police found a veritable house of horrors. It was personal to them.". Brynn Rainey, 27, vanished . Whats going on this weekend in Savannah? June 7, 2021: Alex Murdaugh, 53, calls 911 and reports he found his wife Margaret, 52, and son Paul, then 22, shot dead outside of their home in Islandton, a small community about an hour north of. "Detectives met with Whited who reenacted the crime to detectives and provided corroborated information about the murder," the statement said. She also watched over Carrie afterward, and told investigators that the last time she saw Carrie was within two days after the abduction, and that she was alive at the time. The victims included 34-year-old manager Stephanie Senac, who was in her office with her 12-year-old daughter Melissa Repass, and 13-year-old babysitter Amy Houser. An excavator scooped out the bottom of the pool but found nothing. She said she had a family that loved her very much. Those with information into this or any other cases are asked to call VCU at (205) 464-8690, the Tuscaloosa Police Department at (205) 349-2121, or CrimeStoppers at (205) 752-STOP (7867). Two days after the murder, the Tuscaloosa News confirmed that several people had been interviewed by investigators, which ultimately proved fruitless. City-data.com does not guarantee the accuracy or timeliness of any information on this site. Jones recanted his confession and police found no evidence to link Jones to her murder, but have never eliminated him as a suspect. Both of these suspicions were quickly ruled out, as there was no evidence of ritual activity, and a VCR and a camera were left untouched at the crime scene. He flew his plane down, and he actually picked me up in Cincinnati. Lawson said his father had suffered recent medical issues, so at the time it seemed believable that something could be wrong with him. Instead, after Bland's voice was identified as the kidnapper making ransom demands, agents surrounded the house and waited to obtain a warrant. Jones, facing execution in Alabama since 2005, told the AJC that same year that he had never killed anyone and would one day be free. After asking Senac to retrieve $5,000 from the bowling alleys safe, the gunmen shot all four several times. Instead, immediately call the Walker County Sheriff's Department at 205-302-4874. Police have never revealed her name. If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation. var zoneid = '30'; McPherson appeared before the parole board Thursday. Mitchell started a group called Concerned Citizens of Jasper Countyand made t-shirts with every murder victim whose family has not gotten justice. . For a while, Hinson and Gierse had worked for Records Security, a company based in Jasper, Indiana. Without a suspect and no information that could lead to one, detectives kept following leads without any success. Shorter, AL. Private investigator W.W. "Red" Self sits in his Pinson office in this 2002 file photo. [4] All victims were shot in the head before the two criminals set fire to the bowling alley. There weren't a lot of murders in Jasper," Lawson said in a recent interview, his first about the case in more than 20 years. "It was amazing to watch. (Associated Press). Clearly it wasn't.". 1998 - 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. | All Rights Reserved. Friends, family and federal agents descended upon the small town. Polygraph tests backed his confessions to several murders, the AJC reported in 2005. and last updated 2018-11-20 09:26:20-05. What happens when it comes around to your house? A search of Blands property found the majority of the $300,000 paid by her family. "I was going to be at that house when she came walking up the driveway," she said. |, Powered by Creative Circle Media Solutions. The motive appeared to be robbery, as a trunk which was rumored to contain around 1500 dollars was missing. The intensity lasted for about six weeks, but ultimately the FBI and other agencies pulled out. When buying cowboy boots, there are a few aspects to consider, such as how far up they go on your legs and their design. The trunk was found by hunters nearly three years to the day later, with only the elderly brothers' suits inside. This would prompt an investigation that has yet to see a single suspect charged with the murder. Both beepers, however, transmitted on the same frequency and when the drop was over, the agents -- who had air support -- unwittingly followed Lawson's vehicle instead of the money. The bank was located 32 kilometers (20 mi) away from the hair salon, thus meaning that the murders happened in a very narrow window of time. Cliff and Jimmie were dispatched with the .22, while Debbie was also shot but was likely killed by being drowned in the familys bathtub. "Financially, my dad has spent hundreds and hundreds of thousands of dollars.". They focused on his associates, and eventually turned their attention to Karen Lancaster McPherson, a wife, mother and truck driver from a close-knit, blue-collar Walker County family. It wasn't long before the kidnapper -- later identified as 49-year-old Jerry Bland, a former strip mine operator -- contacted Lawson and demanded a $300,000 ransom for Carrie's safe return. They are $10.00 dollars. The cover of "Facing September," a murder mystery based on the case of Kelly Lynn Albright's murder. Her body was found in the remains of her . "I went to visit him in the nursing home before he died and he said he wasn't afraid to die and he couldn't wait to see Carrie," Kubiszyn said. In response to the murders of 17-year-old Ruth Shelton, 20-year-old Jayne Friedt, 16-year-old Mark Flemmonds, and 16-year-old Daniel Roy Davis, Burger Chef offered the public a $25,000 reward for any clues that could lead to an arrest. The couple got dressed and jumped into their Ford Explorer parked in the carport. if (document.mmm_fo) document.write ("&mmm_fo=1"); Additionally, the homicide unit commander at the time of the murder said investigators believed that several other people were in the parking lot at the time of the shooting and were reluctant to come forward. A new true crime podcast is seeking answers on behalf of the family of Eric Cates, a 32-year-old whose burned remains were found inside his truck beside those of his dog behind the old Empire school in 2015. ", "That doesn't happen to people. [3] The unidentified killer used duct tape to tie up his victims before shooting them execution-style. if (document.referrer) document.write ("&referer=" + escape(document.referrer)); Also, the killer did not seem to be motivated by lust, for none of the victims had been sexually assaulted.[7]. Inside the yogurt shop were the bodies of four young women13-year-old Amy Ayers, 17-year-old Eliza Thomas, 17-year-old Jennifer Harbison, and her 15-year-old sister Sarah. He has lost so much financially, emotionally, everything. A subsequent search of the Walker home found that several items were missing: Cliffs pocketknife, Cliff and Christines marriage license, and a high school majorette uniform that Christine had once worn. document.write ("?zoneid="+zoneid+"&block=1&blockcampaign=1"); It just so happened that Smith and Hickock had driven to Florida in a stolen Bel Air. "I was talking on a payphone. He works as a freelance writer and has been published in The Weekly Standard, The Atlantic, Listverse, and other publications. Robbery is one potential motive floated to the public by investigators, as police speculate Jowers may have been robbed of cash earned at his other jobs as a carpenter and handyman after he had been shot. All rights reserved (About Us). Earl Lawson was bound, and Carrie Lawson was never seen again. Most of the victims in the 28 cases were shot. That is the only person who shares your story. In a sick twist of fate, police learned early on that the witness who found the first body may have arrived at the scene barely minutes after the murders. First published on November 20, 2020 / 6:33 AM. Over the years, weve added more names because unfortunately, weve lost more people, he said. Maybe you're interested in having your business become one of the latest sponsors for Tuscaloosa Patch? Glennas body might have also been arranged in a sexually explicit manner. }else{ This quick thinking saved the young girls life, and, for a time, it saved her mothers life as well. Others suggested that drug addicts had killed the Dardeen family in order to hock their possessions for drug money. "He's made a career out of it," David Smith said affectionately in 2002. He told me to get on the ground on my stomach. November 28, 2003. For two days, police and citizen volunteers searched the area for the missing workers. These cases stem from various situations, and circumstances, but all have one thing in common: people's loved ones have yet to be found. //]]>-->, Copyright 2023, Cleveland Newspapers, Inc., operating as the Daily Mountain Eagle. If you are a current print subscriber, you can set up a free website account and connect your subscription to it by clicking here. Ultimately, the shooters would kill four people before escaping into the unknown. "It was the next morning. Then police got a phone call. Upon further investigation, the employee found $500 missing, along with four other employees. This man served his county, came home, and for some reason or another, someone murdered him Reverend McDaniel Miller, a pastor; he was murdered, gunned down in his home. If the case was easily solved, it would have not gone cold. July 12, 2013 / 6:03 PM / CBS Chicago. The note, however, left no clues on Carrie's whereabouts. "Nobody's ever come up with a reason.". Drugs -- primarily cocaine -- helped fuel that fall. They reportedly found some of the ransom money -- which had been documented by serial numbers -- in a truck on his property. He and his wife, Carrie, had received an urgent call after midnight claiming Lawson's father was gravely ill. The woman claimed to be a nurse at Walker Regional Medical Center. Some of the cases remain unsolved. Anyone with information about Endres murder is asked to call the Georgia Bureau of Investigation or go to unsolved.com. Posted at 1:45 PM, Nov 20, 2018 . Lawson moved away from Jasper about eight months later, joining a Birmingham law firm and renting an apartment in the city. People know who did these cases, and its the fear of them telling and saying what happened to law enforcement, and they scared of the retaliation, he said, As long as we dont say nothing, we be alright, but guess what? Hinsons body was located in the front bedroom, Gierses was located in a back bedroom, and Barkers corpse was found in the bathroom that lay between both rooms. Dana was left lying on his stomach with his hands linked with Johns, thanks to a piece of electrical cord. It turned out to be anything but cut-and-dry. And when Bland killed himself, state charges were being sought because Carrie had not been taken across state lines, which would have constituted a federal crime, they said. Please note in order for the office to follow up on any information . The family had migrated from Connecticut to Keddie following Glennas separation from her husband James. "He would run you around every night. "The fact that Bland killed himself without doing anything is incomprehensible to me.". To complicate matters, the woman with Jowers was unable to provide a description of the suspect. When Lawson Sr. arrived at the site, however, there were about five police cars there totally unconnected to the kidnapping case, purely a coincidence. Glenna and Tina Sharp would suffer the same fate, although Tinas skeletal remains would not be found until years later. Netflixs reboot of the classic Unsolved Mysteries, Buy newspaper front pages, posters and more. Indeed, the victims were nearly decapitated by their killer. She started crying which started to make me cry, Jones said of Endres. Christmas 1959 was supposed to follow this tradition. Murdered. He just wants to know what happened. Christmas is usually a time of good cheer, good food, and good times spent with family. On Saturday, Sept. 28, 1991, federal agents searched Bland's home. According to our research of Alabama and other state lists, there were 61 registered sex offenders living in Jasper, Alabama as of March 01, 2023. "This case affected our community," District Attorney Bill Adair said, noting hundreds of people carried out searches and held prayer vigils. They were able to tentatively identify him by his voice after releasing audiotapes of his ransom demands. Given the suspects strange features and supposedly awkward gait, some have proffered the idea that the killer was a woman disguised as a man. As of April 1, there were around 19 reported murders in Alabama in 2021. There were psychics, and more inmates looking for a way out of lockup for a day, but never any success in finding Carrie's remains. In 2019, there were 39 murders in Montgomery County, Alabama. Bland, once successful in businesses of coal mining and land reclamation, had fallen on hard times and was desperate for money, according to investigators and family members. Family members of McPherson have said they know Karen Lancaster McPherson did wrong, but said they feel shes been punished enough. You lose your future, and also your connection to the past.". During the stakeout, Bland, his wife and two daughters slept on mattresses in the living room, ducking when police lights bore into their windows. I remember someone saying he could kill himself.". When he does talk about it, it's to use it as proof of what God can do in someone's life. Churches would cook for all of the search groups," Kubiszyn said. The next and final discovery occurred on November 19, when all four bodies were found in a rural part of Johnson County. With no football fans or tourists in town, the cool but clear fall weekend had been a relatively uneventful one for Tuscaloosa. A former investigative reporter with Bostons WNAC-TV, Kelly had been fired in November 1976 after making several threatening allegations against Mayor Kevin White. He doesn't talk about Carrie or the case much, but said not a day goes by when he doesn't think about the kindness shown to him and his and Carrie's families. The article ran two days before Endres body was found and police seemed to consider Jones a prime suspect. Throughout the county and city, similar stories of prolonged grief are being played out; 28 unsolved homicides since 2009. Then the phone rang at the Decatur Police Department. It is a case that has outlasted investigators who tried to track her down, one that haunted and hounded Lawson, his family and Carrie's. She was alone with Carrie for a long time when they were holding her and she got to know her and still didnt let her go, she said. Former Washington Post reporter Ron Kessler, in his book "The FBI: Inside the World's Most Powerful Law Enforcement Agency," called the case one of the agency's "biggest failures." No, I don't. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local. "I needed to start over. Lawsons family remains opposed to McPherson being paroled, and Lawsons sister - Margaret Smith Kubiszyn - attended Thursdays hearing. Furthermore, Florida police officers learned through their investigation that the Walkers were interested in purchasing a Chevy Bel Air prior to the massacre. These three would be overpowered and shot dead by the gunmen. "No matter how old your child is, you want to protect your child. The first man suspected was Ted Uland, the owner of Records Security. Two unsolved murders of young women from the 1970s have now been linked to one suspect through DNA and genetic genealogy, according to Northern California prosecutors. On November 18, 1978, an off-duty employee of the Burger Chef, a local fast food joint in Speedway, Indiana, found the restaurants back door wide open. Five years later, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals overturned Springsteens conviction. Flying bug found at Walmart turns out to be rare Jurassic-era insect, Pence won't commit to supporting Trump if he's the nominee, 1894 shipwreck found in Lake Huron, confirming "powerful, tragic story". The murder occurred after Gus agreed to testify in court about the Taylor brothers' dishonest money-making schemes. Making an arrest in these cases, helps families, it gives them some kind of closure, but it will never completely heal, Mitchell said. Kubiszyn, previously told AL.com McPhersons role in the disappearance has always been understated, Buy newspaper front pages, posters and more. document.write ("&loc=" + escape(window.location)); The only tangible evidence is a composite sketch released in 1990 which shows two middle-aged black or Hispanic males with mustaches.