Ed Solving Missing-Person Cases / Anti-Abduction Tips

[catsmate]

I have literally hundreds of stories like that, but I haven't read through most of them, because like yours, they always make me feel so sad and sometimes I even cry.

At least finding them is some kind of closure for the family, although I don't think it's ever enough.

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Elaine O'Hara's body came to light when evidence was found after the water level in Vartry Reservoir declined in he hot weather.

 

[AmyStrange]

All these stories about the missing found in water reminded me of Lake Mead last summer...


Human remains found at Lake Mead identified as missing Las Vegas man
Story by Linsey Lewis

FROM: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/crim...entified-as-missing-las-vegas-man/ar-AA1aoCzC


LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — The Clark County coroner’s office has identified three sets of remains found at Lake Mead last year as one man who disappeared in 1998.

Claude Russell Pensinger was 52 years old when he was last seen in July 1998, the office said.

Since May, four sets of human remains have been found at Lake Mead.

On July 25, 2022, swimmers found Pensigner’s remains floating near Boulder Beach. Portions of the remains found on Aug. 6 and Aug. 16 were confirmed to also belong to Pensigner...

(SNIP)

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[AmyStrange]

Law enforcement seeks help to identify barns in BTK serial killer cold case investigations
LAUREN DEL VALLE AND JEAN CASAREZ, CNN
September 4, 2023 at 6:34 AM

FROM: https://www.aol.com/law-enforcement-seeks-help-identify-164200063.html


A law enforcement team in northeast Oklahoma believes the prolific serial killer known as “BTK” may be responsible for several additional unsolved missing person and homicide cases. Now they’re hoping the public can help them identify barns and silos in Oklahoma, Kansas and Missouri that the self-proclaimed BTK killer Dennis Rader sketched in never-before-seen detailed drawings.

Last month, the Osage County Sheriff’s Office publicly confirmed it was investigating Rader as the “prime suspect” in a 1976 cold case in their jurisdiction and several other unsolved crimes across three states.

The investigators believe the killer may have buried 16-year-old Cynthia Dawn Kinney in a barn near the Kansas-Oklahoma border. Kinney was last seen at a laundromat in Pawhuska, Oklahoma, in 1976. Her body has never been found.

CNN obtained images of Rader’s drawings, which were first recovered by law enforcement after his arrest in 2005.

Rader pleaded guilty to 10 murders that took place from the 1970s to the 1990s in Wichita, Kansas, for which he’s serving 10 consecutive life sentences in a state prison. He suggested in a letter found long before his capture that he should be called “BTK,” short for “bind, torture, kill...

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[AmyStrange]

Kansas authorities find ‘pantyhose ligature’ in new search of BTK killer’s former home
Story by Bevan Hurley

FROM: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/crim...search-of-btk-killers-former-home/ar-AA1fG92H


Authorities in Kansas say they have found “items of interest” in several cold case investigations during a search of “BTK killer” Dennis Rader’s former home.

Osage County Sheriff Eddie Virden told Fox News that investigators had dug up Rader’s former property in Park City over two days this week after linking him to unsolved missing person cases.

“Through the investigation, we developed information of some possible trophies of Dennis Rader’s, and we followed up on those leads and worked with Park City,” Mr Virden told the news site.

He said officers “did a dig in the area, and we did recover some items of interest”.

According to Fox News, one such item was a “pantyhose ligature”...

(SNIP)

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[AmyStrange]

WMU students to be paid to help MSP detectives solve cold cases
Story by Greyson Steele, Battle Creek Enquirer

FROM: https://www.msn.com/en-us/lifestyle...p-msp-detectives-solve-cold-cases/ar-AA1ibkck


KALAMAZOO — The Michigan State Police is strengthening its partnership with Western Michigan University's Cold Case Program, launching a pilot initiative that will pay students to help detectives solve various unsolved cases in Michigan.

As part of the initiative, students will officially become part of the MSP as either state police cadets or student assistants. They will be paid for their work both in the Cold Case Program offices and up to an additional four hours a week at an MSP post or facility.

"MSP’s generosity is going to ease the financial burden that so many of our students face," Dr. Ashlyn Kuersten, director of WMU's Cold Case Program, explained Friday during a ceremony announcing the expanded partnership. "Broncos can now dedicate their attention to classes and case work, preparing them for their careers in law enforcement. Ultimately, the public servants of MSP have given these students an inside track to a meaningful career that will serve the public good."

The partnership between WMU's Cold Case Program and MSP began in 2019 and has already proven beneficial for both parties, with students assisting detectives in solving multiple cold cases in the last two years...

(SNIP)

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[AmyStrange]

Cases That'll Shake You To Your Core
by Anna Kopsky
BuzzFeed Staff

FROM: https://www.buzzfeed.com/annakopsky/unsolved-missing-persons-cases


1. Joan Risch, disappeared 1961

Risch was 31 when she vanished from her Boston home, leaving nothing but blood on her kitchen floor. Her daughter ran to a neighbor that day, saying, "Mommy is gone and the kitchen is covered with red paint.'' Weeks prior, Risch had checked out a book from the library about a woman who disappeared and left nothing but blood and a towel.

2. Fred Valentich, disappeared 1978

The Australian man was flying a small plane when he told air traffic control about a strange object flying near him, got cut off mid-sentence, and vanished. Neither he nor his plane were ever found, and some believe he was taken away by a UFO.

3. Malaysia Airlines Flight 370, disappeared 2014

This Boeing 777 disappeared in 2014, but no one can confirm exactly what happened to this plane and the 239 people on board. Only some debris has been found, even after searchers scoured 46,000 feet of ocean floor.

4. Cherrie Mahan, disappeared 1985

She was the first child to be on the official "Have You Seen Me?" posters, after she disappeared from her bus stop one day after school. Her parents refuse to put an actual gravestone down for her until they learn what happened — currently, they're using an angel statue at the family's cemetery plot as a memorial.

5. Asha Degree, disappeared 2000

Drivers claim they saw the 9-year-old walking along North Carolina's Highway 18 around 4 a.m. in February 2000, but there's not much more information on the girl, who would now be 27. Police and the FBI announced this year that they're going to "beef up" the investigation on the case...

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[dellarte]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Springfield_Three

[*snip*]Where no one would ever be able to find them.[*snip]

Apart from yourself, a man unnamed by you, a reporter and media outlet, a mechanical engineer, some Yahoo Groups, a friend who "...knew some of people behind the political forces that were involved in their disappearance..." - according to your full post, upthread, that is.

Official status of the so-called Springfield Three is that they are missing. Two of the missing are now legally deceased.

Anyone who believes they have a contribution to make in this case may do so via the Submit an anonymous Tip online link at: The Springfield Three - Springfield, Missouri

Random speculation causes family and friends of victims unnecessary suffering.

 

[AmyStrange]

Apart from yourself, a man unnamed by you, a reporter and media outlet, a mechanical engineer, some Yahoo Groups, a friend who "...knew some of people behind the political forces that were involved in their disappearance..." - according to your full post, upthread, that is.

Official status of the so-called Springfield Three is that they are missing. Two of the missing are now legally deceased.

Anyone who believes they have a contribution to make in this case may do so via the Submit an anonymous Tip online link at: The Springfield Three - Springfield, Missouri

Random speculation causes family and friends of victims unnecessary suffering.

You're right of course, but the GPR results certainly aren't something that should be so easily dismissed.

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[AmyStrange]

10 Oldest Cold Cases Ever Solved

FROM: https://www.oldest.org/people/cold-cases-ever-solved/


Cold cases are the subject of some of the most popular TV shows, movies, and documentaries in the world, especially the U.S. All of the cold cases on this list took place in the U.S. and went unsolved for numerous decades. Most of these cases were broken when new technology revealed new evidence that could be used to make arrests and convictions. While all of these cold cases were technically solved, justice was not always served because too much time had passed and the suspects were already dead. Hopefully, the families of the victims can find some peace in knowing who took their loved ones away.

As of August 2020, the information on this list is as accurate as possible and will be updated as needed.

Please Note: The well-known case of Maria Ridulph was not included on this list although it is often cited as one of the oldest cold cases ever solved. While a conviction was made in 2012, all charges against Jack McCullough were dismissed and he was declared innocent in 2016. This means that Ridulph’s case remains unsolved...

(SNIP)

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[AmyStrange]

Kidnapped in Thailand: When 'friends' sell you to human trafficking syndicates
By Bernama - October 10, 2023 @ 6:38pm

There are many ways people get trafficked but the most common one
seems to be through job scams that promise unrealistically high salaries
that don’t match the victims’ qualifications.​

FROM: https://www.nst.com.my/news/nation/...friends-sell-you-human-trafficking-syndicates


KUALA LUMPUR: One evening in April, David got an offer that excited him. A small business owner selling phone accessories in Sarawak, he had been at a loose end and seeking to increase his income.

Someone in a WhatsApp group he was in suggested a business opportunity while he was vacationing in Chiang Mai, Thailand. On top of it, the person, whom David described as "more like an acquaintance", offered to pay for the trip for him and a friend.

Speaking in halting English and Malay, occasionally requiring the help of an interpreter, the 22-year-old man told Bernama he wondered why this person, dubbed Steven, was so generous especially since he had only known the guy for a few months.

But then he thought he should not look a gift horse in the mouth.

It was a decision that would come to haunt David and his friend Laura (not her real name) – instead of meeting Steven in the mountainous and historical Chiang Mai, they were abducted at gunpoint and transported across the border through Chiang Rai, Thailand. Their captors then sold them to a scam centre in Laukkaing, Myanmar, where they were held for two weeks...

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[AmyStrange]

41-YEAR-OLD COLD CASE FROM ARIZONA IDENTIFIES MAN WHO HUNTED FOR GOLD
IVY GRIFFITH
OCT 11, 2023

FROM: https://celebmagazine.com/41-year-old-cold-case-from-arizona-identifies-man-who-hunted-for-gold/


On September 9, 1982, human remains were discovered in the Arizona desert. The remains were located in a rural desert area around Hackberry Road near Kingman. Along with the body, authorities were able to recover a hair comb, a can opener, fingernail clippers, a toothbrush, a tattered short-sleeve shirt, and remnants of denim pants.

However, the person’s identity remained elusive. A medical examiner in Tucson was able to identify the mystery person as a “white male, 55+ years old, between 6’1” and 6’2.” Officials could not determine a cause of death at the time. And they placed his passing sometime between 1979 and 1981.

The Mohave County Medical Examiner’s Office obtained the remains in 2020. Since then, they have tried to identify the mystery victim but were unsuccessful. Until, that is, February 2023.

In February, the cold case was cracked when investigators were able to provide a sample from the victim to Othram Inc. Othram is a genetic laboratory that operates in Texas, and they were able to identify the long-mysterious body. In a statement about the long-standing case, the sheriff’s office said, “Using advanced DNA testing, forensic-grade genome sequencing, and forensic genetic genealogy, they were able to identify the victim as Virgil R. Renner from Humboldt County, California...

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[AmyStrange]

HOW DO COLD CASE INVESTIGATORS IDENTIFY A BODY WHEN DNA TESTING IS NOT POSSIBLE?
OCTOBER 18, 2023 BY LAURAH NORTON

FROM: https://crimereads.com/how-do-cold-...tify-a-body-when-dna-testing-is-not-possible/


The risk of becoming an unidentified decedent, or a John or Jane Doe, isn’t something most of us will face when we die—but it is a possibility, especially for the most vulnerable among us. There are tens of thousands of long-term unidentified persons in the United States, whose cases have sat for years, even decades, without resolution. In life, we can prove who we are in any number of ways. There are webs of connecting threads. But in death? Those identifiers fade, or snap. They can be forcibly removed, or they’re stolen by time, or environment, or chance.

Some of those victims were discovered only minutes after death and yet still cannot not be identified. I’ve seen cases where the lack of a driver’s license or other ID was enough to stall a case—even when the victim was a local, and a drawing of their face ran in the paper. And when the situation provides fewer clues—say, a single femur washed up on shore in Maine, or a cranium recovered in the desert of New Mexico? Tracing a single element back to its source can feel like an impossible task.

But we know that isn’t true. The headlines tell us so: John and Jane Doe cases are solved with ever-increasing frequency, largely thanks to the advent of forensic investigative genetic genealogy (FIGG), a discipline that’s been known by a number of names in its brief time on the forensic scene.

When the Golden State Killer, Joseph DeAngelo, was arrested back in 2018, a world of possibility opened up. To the general public, anyway—the field’s pioneers had been working behind the scenes for quite some time. They’d identified Doe victims before DeAngelo’s face ever flashed across our newsfeeds...

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[AmyStrange]

Man identified among 10,000 pieces of human remains on suspected serial killer’s farm
Story by Graig Graziosi
(2023-10-19)

FROM: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/crim...on-suspected-serial-killer-s-farm/ar-AA1iwzkk


The remains of a man who was killed 30 years ago were found on the property of a suspect serial killer in Indiana, according to police.

Coroner Jeff Jellison of Hamilton County, Indiana, announced on Tuesday that the bone fragment remains found on the property were those of Allen Livingston, a 27-year-old queer man who disappeared in 1993.

His remains were among 10,000 human remains investigators have collected over the years at an 18-acre farm called Fox Hollow in Westfield, Indiana, according to Law & Crime.

The property belonged to Herbert Baumeister, a suspected serial killer who died by suicide in 1996 shortly after police obtained a warrant for his arrest. He was being questioned at the time about a string of gay men who had gone missing from the area between the 1980s and 1990s...

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[AmyStrange]

Witt documentary gets millions of views and dozens of new leads for cold case
Posted: Oct 20, 2023 / 01:34 PM CDT
Updated: Oct 20, 2023 / 01:34 PM CDT
by: Chad Mira

FROM: https://www.nwahomepage.com/news/wi...-views-and-dozens-of-new-leads-for-cold-case/


FORT SMITH, Ark. (KNWA/KFTA) — A 30-year-old cold case has more than a hundred new leads thanks to a local woman’s new documentary.

With fallen branches, thick brush and tangled trees, the Ozark National Forest has provided cover for a dark mystery. Melissa Witt, like any 19-year-old, had dreams of a bright future. The Fort Smith woman was described as friendly, kind-hearted, and loving.

“The entire community loved Melissa. She was just this happy-go-lucky, wonderful person and had all of that just brutally ripped away from her,” author and private investigator LaDonna Humphrey said.

December 1, 1994, Witt went missing, believed to be abducted from a Fort Smith bowling alley. There were signs of a struggle, but Witt was nowhere to be seen. Six weeks later, two hunters found her body in the Ozark National Forest near Turner Bend, but investigators still have not been able to find her killer...

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[AmyStrange]

Families of missing people connected to resources at Missing in Florida Day in Tampa
Posted at 5:08 PM, Oct 19, 2023 and last updated 2:34 PM, Oct 19, 2023
By: Mary O'Connell

FROM: https://www.abcactionnews.com/news/...-resources-at-missing-in-florida-day-in-tampa


TAMPA, Fla. — Advocates and law enforcement came together Thursday in Tampa to bring awareness to unsolved homicides and missing person cases, gather more public information, and bring closure to families...

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Organizers said the event, dubbed Missing in Florida Day, is meant to provide resources to families of missing people and spread awareness of those cases in the state.

People could take important steps like filing new missing persons reports and submitting DNA samples for genetic testing.

"You just never know what fabric of information will help us bring closure on a case," said Citrus County Sheriff Mike Prendergast.

Prendergast heads up the Florida Cold Case Advisory Commission. He urged that if anyone has any information at all about a cold case, they want to talk to you.

"There's 900+ John and Jane Does in Florida, and those people's families, as well as those victims, they deserve to know what happened to their loved ones," said Prendergast...

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[PitPat]

Yes of course every loved one of a missing person deserves to know where she or he is. Not even up for debate.

Could get into the more the generals about that.

What I've seen so far are individual cases. And there is kind of no end to them, sadly.

Like how does law enforcement decide how many resources to put into it, the circumstances and when to ask for help? I think these are the bigger questions.

And could help, and especially when, with the individual ones.

 

[AmyStrange]

Yes of course every loved one of a missing person deserves to know where she or he is. Not even up for debate.

Could get into the more the generals about that.

What I've seen so far are individual cases. And there is kind of no end to them, sadly.

Like how does law enforcement decide how many resources to put into it, the circumstances and when to ask for help? I think these are the bigger questions.

And could help, and especially when, with the individual ones.

Well first of all, I'm not sure exactly how each individual local LE agency handles each individual case, but most agencies do send a missing person report to the FBI.

The rest depends on whether it's a child or an adult, and whether there are unusual circumstances or signs of foul play.

If there are signs of that happening, LE tends to put more resources into finding them, including Amber, Silver, and now Ebony Alerts in California.

The problem with an adult is their right to privacy, but children don't have that right, and LE can do a lot more in finding them, unless they conclude the child is a runaway.

I'll try and find more information along those lines, or if you find anything yourself, please post it here.

Thank you.

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[PitPat]

That's kind of the thing to it, in my opinion. There is no uniformity to it. US alone has thousands of jurisdictions. Some are equipped for it, others are not. In some cases there's not much else to do so let's start looking.

And then there's the matter of age. What's the cutoff for a possible runaway? Fourteen?

If it's a judge's daughter, they're going into full force. Especially if white.

All LE say that they treat every homicide/missing/kidnapping case the same way, but I think most of know that it is not true.

Ever seen a true crime doc where a cop got murdered? Guess how many resources they're going to put into it before a gang shooting.

Justified? You tell me.

 

[AmyStrange]

That's kind of the thing to it, in my opinion. There is no uniformity to it. US alone has thousands of jurisdictions. Some are equipped for it, others are not. In some cases there's not much else to do so let's start looking.

And then there's the matter of age. What's the cutoff for a possible runaway? Fourteen?

If it's a judge's daughter, they're going into full force. Especially if white.

All LE say that they treat every homicide/missing/kidnapping case the same way, but I think most of know that it is not true.

Ever seen a true crime doc where a cop got murdered? Guess how many resources they're going to put into it before a gang shooting.

Justified? You tell me.

Keep in mind that every single LE agency in the US does NOT have an unlimited budget, and that has a lot to do with it, but does that justify any of your complaints?

HELL NO!

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[AmyStrange]

Keep in mind that every single LE agency in the US does NOT have an unlimited budget, and that has a lot to do with it, but does that justify any of your complaints?

HELL NO!

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PitPat, I hope you understand that I didn't mean that your complaints were unjustified.

They are very, very justified, and I'm sorry if I didn't explain myself very well.

Hell, after rereading it, even I was confused by what I posted.

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