In 1894 in Linn County, four members of the Meeks family (Gus, Delora, Hattie and Mary) were brutally murdered by George and William Taylor, wealthy citizens of northeast Missouri. "I was going to be at that house when she came walking up the driveway," she said. In one case, two victims died when their home was intentionally set on fire in Selma. Instead, after Bland's voice was identified as the kidnapper making ransom demands, agents surrounded the house and waited to obtain a warrant. Given the suspects strange features and supposedly awkward gait, some have proffered the idea that the killer was a woman disguised as a man. Authorities at the time said the note indicated the ransom money was in the attic, and that's where roughly $250,000 had been found. These rumors provided investigators with their first major theory. Cold Case e-mail: coldcasetips@AlabamaAG.gov. The case file on Brown remains what it . You'd go to location A, and then he'd call you on that payphone and tell you to go to location B, which might be 20 miles down the road," Lawson said. Lawson said much of those first few months after Carrie's disappearance and Bland's suicide is a blur. Jowers was buried the following Wednesday at Demopolis Memorial Gardens in Marengo County, according to a brief newspaper obituary. Mitchell started a group called Concerned Citizens of Jasper Countyand made t-shirts with every murder victim whose family has not gotten justice. Indeed, the victims were nearly decapitated by their killer. This group was created to bring attention to the high number of people missing, suspicious deaths and unsolved murders in Walker County Alabama (Neighboring counties). 1 song on U.S. charts the night of Saturday, Oct. 12, 1996, when a Gene Stallings-led Crimson Tide football team won a road game 24-19 over North Carolina State in Raleigh to move to 6-0. Other clues at the crime scene included the position of the bodies. If mistakes were made, it wasn't because of a lack of effort. (WSAV) There are 42 unsolved murder cases in Jasper County dating from 1979 to 2018. Without question, the massacre was a gangland killing, yet no one is sure if the perpetrators were members of the Patriarca crime family, the Bulger gang, or some other unknown Italian or Irish crime outfit. Over the years, weve added more names because unfortunately, weve lost more people, he said. Copyright 2019 WSFA 12 News. One victim had been stabbed to death with a hunting knife, while another had been bludgeoned to death.[6]. Upon a close examination of the crime scene, police discovered that each victim had been struck in the head with some kind of blunt object. Carrie Lawson was declared dead two years after her disappearance. "He has not mentioned anything about this other matter to me," Belser said. People who may have evidence or clues about cold case sexual assaults and murders are encouraged to call or email the Attorney General's Office and share this information. All rights reserved (About Us). 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. I was a problem child as I was coming up, and you know got in trouble and things of that nature, he said, I met this guy and he told me, he said You know, you need to be part of the solution and not the problem and thats pretty much what changed my life., My cousin Sean Jones, he went missing February 18, 1999, he said, And 2017, on the same exact day my first cousin, Darnell Williams, he was murdered on Hilton Head Island. Mitchell added, Just like any other family we want justice.. Buy newspaper front pages, posters and more. Both had been beaten to death with a baseball bat that had been a birthday present for Peter. The sheriff admitted 10 years is a mighty long time for any family to suffer without any sort of resolution, but he insists its not a lack of trying on the investigators part. A quarter century since she vanished without a trace in a mystery that became one of the most talked-about missing person cases in Alabama history. That doesn't make any sense. A woman who has been in prison for more than 30 years in the kidnapping of a young Jasper lawyer, whose body has never been found, has again been denied parole. The victim's vehicle was found partially submerged in the Tennessee River. Without a suspect and no information that could lead to one, detectives kept following leads without any success. Whited had a string of arrests for traffic and drug offenses through the years including one for possession of a crack cocaine pipe less than three weeks after two hunters found Dailey's body with a gunshot to the head on April 26, 1995, documents show. This quick thinking saved the young girls life, and, for a time, it saved her mothers life as well. 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? Then they got in my car and they left.". His wife, Sheila, who has since moved out of Alabama, was McPherson's cousin. They came to this conclusion because a local bank revealed that Dorothy Harris had visited them 30 minutes prior to the murders. Police have never revealed her name. This booking photo provided by police in Decatur, Ala., shows Johnny Dwight Whited. According to a story written by reporter Wendy Reeves and published in the Tuscaloosa News the day after the shooting, Jowers was shot in the head while walking a girlfriend to her car in the parking lot of Classics Lounge at 613 37th Street between 2:10-2:15 a.m. The first discovery was a vehicle belonging to one of the abducted four. [5] Such overkill caused Plumas County Sheriffs Office special investigator Mike Gamberg, along with Sheriff Greg Hagwood, to suspect that as many as six people may have taken part in the murders. When she entered the salon, she first saw the corpse of 62-year-old Dorothy Harris. Jones was also implicated in the deaths of Amanda Greenwell, 16, of Douglasville, Ga. and Katherine Collins, 45, a New Orleans sex worker. He has lost so much financially, emotionally, everything. This Walker County Alabama Most Wanted List posts the top 50-100 fugitive criminals on the run. The family had migrated from Connecticut to Keddie following Glennas separation from her husband James. Then the phone rang at the Decatur Police Department. The first man suspected was Ted Uland, the owner of Records Security. McPherson was the "nurse" who made the call, and she dropped Bland off at the Lawson home to carry out the kidnapping. And it bothers me that my kids have to read stuff like that.". The source material for author Beth Lowrys 2016 true crime book Who Killed These Girls?, the yogurt shop murders continue to haunt the citizens of the Lone Star State. TUSCALOOSA, AL The highly-publicized trial of football star and accused murderer O.J. 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.. "I fully expected when we got down there, they would have found her and it would be over. "I couldn't help but think that anybody would tell, or leave a note, about where she was," Lawson said. They rushed to the car, and it began. YouTubes privacy policy is available here and YouTubes terms of service is available here. 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. 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. Jones recanted his confession and police found no evidence to link Jones to her murder, but have never eliminated him as a suspect. In the week that followed, local media also reported that a handgun was recovered in the parking lot of the bar. The other three were so badly burned that further examination was almost impossible.[9]. Jeremy Bryan Jones is shown Thursday, Dec. 1, 2005 during the sentencing phase of his capital murder trial in Mobile, Ala.. Judge Charles Graddick gave him the death sentence. All three women had been attacked with a knife; the killer had slashed each of their throats. It has also plagued the family of a woman who has been behind bars for 25 years in connection with the crime. The FBI, usually tight-lipped, staunchly defended their actions in an interview with The Birmingham News. It's a case that people still talk about. 3. Prior to their deaths, Hinson and Gierse had moved to Indianapolis in order to start their own microfilm company called B&B Microfilm Services. if (document.context) document.write ("&context=" + escape(document.context)); Authorities said it was not clear what prompted the call from Whited, who was jailed for the killing with bail set at $15,000. During the stakeout, Bland, his wife and two daughters slept on mattresses in the living room, ducking when police lights bore into their windows. My uncle lived in Nebraska. The three men were reputed to be very hard workers. ", "What has been taken from me personally is immeasurable," said Carrie's sister, Margaret Smith Kubiszyn. The case file on Brown remains what it is; thick, unsolved and no justice at least for now. Unsolved Crimes If you have information concerning any of these crimes, please contact our Criminal Investigations Division through our Report Form or by phone at 205-669-4181. "I've always admired my dad so much -- he just keeps plugging on. var m3_r = Math.floor(Math.random()*99999999999); If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation. |, Powered by Creative Circle Media Solutions. 2023 Advance Local Media LLC. At around 2:00 AM on June 29, 1978, three gunmen entered a Boston bar called Blackfriars. Self, who was hired by Carrie Lawson's family, investigated her disappearance for a decade. if (document.referrer) document.write ("&referer=" + escape(document.referrer)); Amazon. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Mitchell says hes seen a steady increase in murders since he started working in law enforcement in the Lowcountry in 2005, adding theyve just started to see a decrease this year. When Lawson Sr. arrived at the site, however, there were about five police cars there totally unconnected to the kidnapping case, purely a coincidence. July 12, 2013 / 6:03 PM / CBS Chicago. If the case was easily solved, it would have not gone cold. Patrice Endres was abducted from her Cumming, Ga. hair salon on April 15, 2004. Alabama Department of Corrections lists McPherson as being in a Birmingham work release program. Shaquille Granta football star at the school, somebody killed him, said Detective Charles Mitchell with the Hardeeville Police Department. var zoneid = '30'; All rights reserved. The article ran two days before Endres body was found and police seemed to consider Jones a prime suspect. For two days, police and citizen volunteers searched the area for the missing workers. She even managed to put away her groceries before she was attacked. The case of Jack Kelly made things a little interesting. Brynn Rainey, 27, vanished . "But that call just never came.". "I was convinced as soon as we got him the money, we were going to get Carrie back and nail this bastard," Lawson said. Thats why law enforcement across Jasper County is asking for the communitys help. It was daylight before agents would go inside and find Bland dead from what was ruled a self-inflicted gunshot. 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. The potential suspect was described to then-Homicide Unit Commander Capt. By definition, he is a serial killer.. For a while, Hinson and Gierse had worked for Records Security, a company based in Jasper, Indiana. The Smith family kept at it, though, offering a $100,000 reward and privately funding searches that continue to this day. Everywhere I went in Jasper, people wanted to hug me and talk about it," he said. "Macarena" by Los Del Ro was also the No. If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation. Discuss Jasper, Alabama (AL) on our hugely popular Alabama forum. Mitch McRae told the AJC then that he didnt buy Jones story of having stopped at the salon to ask for directions, but the article seems to indicate McRae suspected Jones killed Endres. Her remains were found 600 days later, on Dec. 6, 2005, in Dawson County, Ga. Court records don't include a defense attorney who could speak on behalf of Whited on the murder charge, but he already was awaiting trial on a methamphetamine charge with his trial scheduled for May. Simpson had just ended in early October 1996, but remained fresh in the public psyche and dominated . Several people were inside the bowling alley, including three adults and four children. Glenna was found naked from the waist down and gagged with a blue bandana and her own panties. After asking Senac to retrieve $5,000 from the bowling alleys safe, the gunmen shot all four several times. Four days after Kelly Lynn Albright disappeared from her family's home, she was found dead in a field. It was not uncommon for all three to clock in hours of overtime in order to accomplish projects. "Nobody's ever come up with a reason.". "He called the payphone and said, 'I'm watching you right now. }else{ Lawsons family remains opposed to McPherson being paroled, and Lawsons sister - Margaret Smith Kubiszyn - attended Thursdays hearing. He said he and another man guarded Carrie at an abandoned house in Marshall County and then she was taken to Jackson County and strangled. Maybe you're interested in having your business become one of the latest sponsors for Tuscaloosa Patch? "I have four sisters-in-law and I'm close with them, but missing a sister is so difficult. While never closed, the case went cold without new evidence. Under the FBI's direction, Lawson wore a directional beeper to let agents follow him as he made the drop. 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. Earl Lawson told himself one thing, even as it was happening: It will all be over soon. "I knew, and I guess that I was overly hopeful, that the minute I got back to my house, the word is going to be that he released her and we'd find her," he said. The murder occurred after Gus agreed to testify in court about the Taylor brothers' dishonest money-making schemes. Not only does this list deal with some of the worst mass murders in American history, but each remains unsolved to this day. Still, Bland didn't know that and called off the drop. The murders were carried out for a variety of apparent reasons, ranging from greed to bloodlust. Ierardi was a known associate of Stephen The Rifleman Flemmi, the second-in-command of the Winter Hill Gang and a close friend of James Whitey Bulger. 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. He wasn't arrested then, however, but FBI instead staked out the house throughout the weekend. The numbers are only getting. Churches would cook for all of the search groups," Kubiszyn said. Drugs -- primarily cocaine -- helped fuel that fall. By all appearances, the Burger Chef murders probably came as the result of a botched robbery. 'https://mountaineaglebanners.creativecirclemedia.com/www/delivery/ajs.php':'http://mountaineaglebanners.creativecirclemedia.com/www/delivery/ajs.php'); Despite Bland's death, and McPherson's swift arrest on first-degree kidnapping charges, the searches for Carrie continued by hundreds, if not thousands. Sheriff Granthum is convinced science will end up playing a huge role in solving the remaining cases. Use at your own risk. document.write ("?zoneid="+zoneid+"&block=1&blockcampaign=1"); For a time, Illinois investigators suspected serial killer Angel Maturino Resendiz, a Mexican-born and Texas-based transient who was arrested in 1999. 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. Johnny Dwight Whited called investigators saying he wanted to confess to the slaying, authorities said Thursday. The show includes interrogation footage of Jones from Jan. 19, 2005. "The FBI, they're pretty direct on what you can expect," he said. Then, when the police arrived, they found two more bodies in the utility room at the back of the store. Crime in Jasper, Alabama (AL): murders, rapes, robberies, assaults, burglaries, thefts, auto thefts, arson, law enforcement employees, police officers, crime map All Cities Alabama, Alabama smaller cities, Alabama small towns Jasper main page US Crime Crime rate in Jasper, Alabama (AL) Namely, members of Bostons underworld frequented Blackfriars, and on the night in question, several men in the bars basement were busy playing a game of backgammon when they were fired upon. The motive appeared to be robbery, as a trunk which was rumored to contain around 1500 dollars was missing. 28 unsolved murders in 10 years in one west Alabama county and city, Pike Road head football coach resigns after 1 season, Alabama, 4 other states prevail in suit to block Equal Rights Amendment certification, Millbrook man arrested for harassing high school students, Troy University closes its Confucius Institute. Present for Peter ' I 'm close with them, but remained unsolved murders in jasper, alabama in the utility room at crime... Lawson said much of those first few months after Carrie 's disappearance and Bland 's is... Reported that a handgun was recovered in the Tennessee River it would have not gone cold the.! Lawson 's family, investigated her disappearance maybe you 're interested in having business... Before she was found and police found no evidence to link Jones to her murder, but each remains to! 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