Another Cold Case Solved, by jay7777

[almagata]

They just keep getting solved. 

www.fox13news.com/news/cold-case-cracked-hernando-county-to-give-update-on-high-profile-homicide?utm_campaign=trueAnthem_manual&utm_medium=trueAnthem&utm_source=facebook&fbclid=IwAR1IjZ5VoCfIlWlEc6EVS8cqcHWCxkDdi8L7nsKOtrIeLtBWg_1EjEXd1uo

BROOKSVILLE, Fla. - The man investigators say kidnapped and killed 12-year-old Jennifer Odom as she walked home after stepping off a Pasco County school bus in 1993 may be sentenced to death for the crime.

State Attorney Bill Glass made that announcement during a press conference on Thursday morning after the Hernando County Sheriff’s Office announced it has charged Jeffery Norman Crum with the kidnapping, murder and sexual assault of Odom 30 years later.
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Odom was last seen getting off of a school bus on February 19, 1993, to begin the 200-yard walk to her home in northeastern Pasco County, but she never made it.

At the time, a massive manhunt was launched and every law enforcement agency in the Bay Area was looking for a blue truck that was seen in the area by some of her classmates.
Jennifer Odom courtesy of Hernando County Sheriff's Office.

"Every one of us, including those in law enforcement, can look at Jennifer as our niece, our sister, our granddaughter and realize that it is a tragedy beyond tragedy," stated Hernando County Sheriff Al Nienhuis.

The blue truck was the focus of the investigation for the last 30 years as investigators believed that the driver may have been involved in the abduction.

Six days later, on February 25, Odom’s body was found along a horse riding trails off Powell Road in Hernando County. She had been brutally attacked and murdered.

"We’re not exactly sure how long her abductor kept her captive or when exactly the murder took place, but we are relatively confident the murder took place in that field some time, obviously, prior to her being found," the sheriff stated.
File: 1993 image of a patrol car and crime scene tape outside the orange grove where Odom's body was found.


Two years later on January 5, 1995, a couple hunting for scrap metal in a rural area of Hernando County discovered Jennifer's missing book bag and clarinet case which had fingerprints on it.

Every viable lead for the next 30 years, including those that came from the Pasco County Sheriff Office or the Florida Department of Law Enforcement or private citizens, was investigated thoroughly, according to Sheriff Nienhuis.

Thirteen months before Odom was abducted, a teenager was kidnapped as she got off a school bus in North Central Pasco County. She was brutally attacked and sexually assaulted.

Sheriff Nienhuis says she suffered injuries to her head and skull that were very significant, and she was left for dead. She survived, but her life was forever changed.

The Hernando County Sheriff's Office says it has made an arrest in the cold case kidnapping and murder of 12-year-old Jennifer Odom.

He says she was a true victim. She was not engaged in a high-risk lifestyle and was victimized.

Law enforcement was able to get biological material at the time.

Since there were similarities between the two girls, detectives believed they may be related.

"The investigation never stopped," Sheriff Nienhuis said.

Hundreds of items were tested and retested every time new technology came out in the hopes of finding a smoking gun to solve Odom’s murder.

Approximately 10 years ago, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children reached out to HCSO and offered to scan every piece of paper in Odom’s case so it would be readily available. It was more than 75,000 pieces of paper.

The biological evidence in Pasco County was tested before February 2015 and detectives got a full DNA profile. However, you need to have someone to match it to in the national DNA database. Sheriff Nienhuis says until 2015, there were no leads on that particular piece of DNA.

FDLE compared the DNA to local DNA to see if there were any close matches, which would be a family member. The sheriff says they found the DNA matched the son of the person who turned out to be the suspect.

In February 2015, Detective George Lundgren was contacted by a detective from the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office who let him know that they had a solid lead in the original case in which the teen was found alive.

They were able to narrow it down to Jeffery Norman Crum, who quickly became the number one suspect in the Odom case.
Who is Jeffery Crum?

The sheriff noted that over the years, HCSO had many suspects in the Odom case and Crum was not on that list, so he came out of left field in 2015.

Detectives began an intensive investigation and interviewed everyone they could find for the next several years that may have been associated with Crum around the time Odom was kidnapped and killed.

His information was turned over to the state attorney and the facts and circumstances were turned over to a grand jury a few days ago.

Grand jury proceedings are secret, but they came back with an indictment for murder, kidnapping and sexual assault. Despite, keeping the information close to the vest, authorities did say that Crum worked in drywall and lived in the Pasco County area when Odom was abducted and killed. Officials also say at that time, he drove a blue truck.

"I have confidence that we have the right person, and we have the right aggravators in this particular case to treat it as a death penalty case," stated Glass.

"This is every parent’s nightmare. This is the thing that keeps parents up at night worried about their children," Glass added.

Crum was already serving two life sentences for the sexual battery and kidnapping case out of Pasco County that was prosecuted around 2015.

Hernando County has now charged him with first-degree murder, kidnapping and sexual battery.

"Over the last 30 years countless, literally countless detectives and sworn law enforcement personnel and civilian, and tipsters have had a hand in this investigation. Every piece of the mosaic. The minute Crum was identified as a suspect in the Jennifer Odom case, Detective Lundgren went to work putting a mosaic together, or a puzzle, and I can tell you, other than the conviction in the previous case there was no other piece of the puzzle. That was a big piece of the puzzle. Every other piece of the puzzle that got us to this point were tiny little fragments that gave the state attorney and the grand jury enough confidence to indict Crum," the sheriff said.

During Thursday’s press conference, Sheriff Nienhuis showed an old photo of Crum, and he kept reiterating he was not on the investigator’s radar until the past few years.
Sheriff Al Neinhuis holding an old mugshot of Crum in hopes more victims will come forward.

Sheriff Al Nienhuis holding an old mugshot of Crum in hopes more victims will come forward.

The sheriff says Crum had been arrested in the early 1980s for armed robbery in Hillsborough County. In 1985, he was charged with kidnapping, sexual assault and false imprisonment in Hillsborough County.

He was arrested by Tampa police in 1987 for carrying a concealed weapon. In 1988, he was caught again carrying a concealed weapon and was charged with aggravated assault.

In 1998, he was arrested for domestic battery in Hernando County three times. In 2001, he was arrested for violation of probation in Hillsborough County. He was arrested a few years later for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon in Hernando County.

In 2015, he was arrested in Pasco County for aggravated sexual assault on a child under the age of 12 in Pasco County.

"He’s a bad individual," Sheriff Nienhuis stated.

Communities in Pasco and Hernando counties were on edge after Jennifer Odom's kidnapping and murder back then.

Jeannie Cameron, the general manager at Papa Joe’s Italian Restaurant in Brooksville, said she and others in the community remember hearing about her disappearance all too well.

"So we all remember hearing about her disappearance, Jennifer’s, and about the blue truck and everybody was on alert about looking," Cameron said.

"Back then 30 years ago as a parent, I was very angry that someone could do something like that to a child and then leave her there in the middle of nowhere," said Joseph Giarratana, the owner of Papa Joe’s Italian Restaurant.

Jessica Ellis said she went to Weightman Middle School with Odom and played in the same clarinet section in band class.

"I would say we saw each other a lot. We weren't like close friends, but we knew a lot of the same people. We rode the school bus every day, and I just remember her always being nice," said Ellis, a former classmate.

Grief and fear followed in the days, months and years after Odom’s death.

"I think the bottom line was finding out who did it and getting him off the streets so that anther family doesn’t have to be tormented, because I really feel like the whole community was tormented until they found out the answer," said Cameron.

It’s closure for many in the community who now carry a different perspective.

"With me and everyone else that rode her school bus that knew her. You know, a lot of us are parents ourselves now," said Ellis. "The fact that anyone would do this to a child. It makes me hold my five-year-old a lot tighter now."
The investigation continues

HCSO is searching for additional victims.

The sheriff said that over the years a couple of anonymous tips came in that led investigators to believe that there are several people out there with more information about Odom’s abduction and murder, and he wants them to come forward.

Anyone with information on Odom’s kidnapping and murder, or anyone who may be a victim of Crum is asked to call 352-7546830 and ask for Detective Lundgren if you do have information on Odom’s case.

[Jay7777]

almagata, you beat me to it. I meant to post yesterday but never had the time. I am happy this folder is a group effort. All these older guys thinking they got away with their crime and living amongst us, now going to live behind bars!  

[Jay7777]

California woman's 1991 killer identified after DNA left under victim's fingernails

www.msn.com/en-us/news/crime/california-woman-s-1991-killer-identified-after-dna-left-under-victim-s-fingernails/ar-AA1eE4a0?ocid=ansmsnnews11&cvid=18de7d1b1aa1468ea24f3fb08e973c8d&ei=42

Police in Northern California have solved a gruesome cold case murder more than three decades after it happened.

Vicki Johnson was killed on Jan. 3, 1991 in Seaside, a city previously known as East Monterey. Johnson's body was found near a playground in the city's Sabado Park neighborhood after she was strangled, suffocated and set on fire, Seaside Fire and Police wrote in a Facebook post shared on Monday.

"Ms. Johnsons' death shocked the Seaside community due to the details of the brutality," authorities said. "For decades, the case remained cold and left Seaside with a reputation of a violent and unsafe community."

Johnson's case was "one of many" reopened by the Monterey County District Attorney's Office when it launched its cold case task force, Seaside Fire and Police said. Authorities were then able to identify a suspect in connection with the murder, after submitting additional evidence to the California Department of Justice for DNA testing.

A sample taken from Johnson's fingernails led authorities to identify her Frank Lewis McClure as her suspected killer. He died in 2021 at 77 years old. It is not known if there was a relationship between McClure and Johnson, officials said.

"McClure left significant DNA underneath Ms. Johnsons' fingernails, which could only be a result of Ms. Johnson fighting vigorously for her life," police wrote on Facebook, adding, "The motive of her murder is still unclear. We do know McClure had a history of violence before his passing."

Seaside police are asking anyone with information about unsolved cold cases in the area to contact the department by calling 831-899-6748.

[Jay7777]

Not sure how cold this was but he is caught!

A woman escaped a makeshift cinder block ‘dungeon’ in Oregon, police say. The FBI believes there are more victims in other states

www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/a-woman-escaped-a-makeshift-cinder-block-dungeon-in-oregon-police-say-the-fbi-believes-there-are-additional-victims-in-other-states/ar-AA1eHOlf

www.msn.com/en-us/news/crime/woman-escapes-kidnapper-by-beating-on-cinderblock-cell-door-until-her-hands-were-bloody-fbi-says/ar-AA1eHSX6?cvid=dcd60cc248374fe3a07f0be924c53283&ei=16

After a woman escaped from a makeshift “dungeon” made of cinder blocks in a man’s Oregon home, the FBI says it is looking for additional victims in other states.

The man, 29-year-old Negasi Zuberi, is in federal custody for kidnapping across state lines after a woman from Seattle escaped from his home in Klamath Falls, Oregon, according to a news release from the FBI Portland Field Office. The woman also claimed she was sexually assaulted, the FBI said.

Zuberi, who has lived in at least 10 different states since 2016, has been linked to violent assaults in at least four different states, according to the FBI. Investigators have reason to believe there could be several other victims, the agency said.

CNN is attempting to identify legal representation for Zuberi.

On July 15, Zuberi traveled from his home in Klamath Falls to Seattle where he posed as an undercover police officer to solicit the services of a prostitute, according to the FBI’s news release. The victim said Zuberi pointed a Taser at her, placed her in handcuffs and leg irons and then put her in the back seat of his car, the FBI said.

“Zuberi told the victim she was under arrest,” the Klamath Falls Police Department said in a news release. “The victim reported Zuberi had a firearm, police patches, a taser, and other law enforcement equipment.”

He then drove back to his Klamath Falls home – more than 450 miles away – stopping on the way to sexually assault her, the victim told detectives, the news release said.

Upon arriving at the home, he placed the woman in “a makeshift cell he had constructed in his garage” made of cinder blocks and a metal door that was locked from the outside and left her there, the FBI said.

The woman told authorities she repeatedly banged on the door until she was able to break her way out of the cell, the news release said.

“The victim said she knew Zuberi would kill her if she stayed in the room,” police said. “The victim began punching the security screen door. The victim was able to break the welds on the screen door and pull the metal screen material down. The victim then climbed through a small opening in the door and escaped.”

The woman flagged down a local motorist who called 911, according to the FBI. She was taken to a nearby hospital, where detectives responded to a report of a rape victim, according to Klamath Falls police.

Detectives tracked down Zuberi using cellphone technology a few hours later in Reno, Nevada, where he was taken into custody after a standoff, police said.

“Due to the real possibility this was not Zuberi’s first crime of this nature the FBI was requested,” police said.

Suspect targeted sex workers, roommates, FBI says
“We are fortunate that this brave woman escaped and alerted authorities,” Special Agent in Charge Stephanie Shark said in the release. “While she may have helped protect future victims, sadly we have now linked Zuberi to several violent assaults in at least four states and we believe there may be many more.”

The FBI said it believes Zuberi targeted sex workers or roommates in California, Washington, Oregon, Colorado, Utah, Florida, New York, New Jersey, Alabama and Nevada between August 2016 and July 2023.

Zuberi – who also goes by the names Sakima, Justin Hyche, and Justin Kouassi – is believed to have various methods to “gain control of his victims,” including putting drugs in their drinks, posing as a police officer and soliciting the services of sex workers before “violently sexually assaulting them,” according to the FBI.

“Some of the encounters may have been filmed to make it appear as if the assault was consensual,” the FBI said. “The victims are threatened with retaliation if they notify the police.”

The bureau is asking for the public’s help as it seeks more potential victims and additional information about Zuberi.

[almagata]

Aug 3, 2023 3:16:16 GMT Jay7777 said:

Not sure how cold this was but he is caught!

A woman escaped a makeshift cinder block ‘dungeon’ in Oregon, police say. The FBI believes there are more victims in other states

www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/a-woman-escaped-a-makeshift-cinder-block-dungeon-in-oregon-police-say-the-fbi-believes-there-are-additional-victims-in-other-states/ar-AA1eHOlf

www.msn.com/en-us/news/crime/woman-escapes-kidnapper-by-beating-on-cinderblock-cell-door-until-her-hands-were-bloody-fbi-says/ar-AA1eHSX6?cvid=dcd60cc248374fe3a07f0be924c53283&ei=16

After a woman escaped from a makeshift “dungeon” made of cinder blocks in a man’s Oregon home, the FBI says it is looking for additional victims in other states.

The man, 29-year-old Negasi Zuberi, is in federal custody for kidnapping across state lines after a woman from Seattle escaped from his home in Klamath Falls, Oregon, according to a news release from the FBI Portland Field Office. The woman also claimed she was sexually assaulted, the FBI said.

Zuberi, who has lived in at least 10 different states since 2016, has been linked to violent assaults in at least four different states, according to the FBI. Investigators have reason to believe there could be several other victims, the agency said.

CNN is attempting to identify legal representation for Zuberi.

On July 15, Zuberi traveled from his home in Klamath Falls to Seattle where he posed as an undercover police officer to solicit the services of a prostitute, according to the FBI’s news release. The victim said Zuberi pointed a Taser at her, placed her in handcuffs and leg irons and then put her in the back seat of his car, the FBI said.

“Zuberi told the victim she was under arrest,” the Klamath Falls Police Department said in a news release. “The victim reported Zuberi had a firearm, police patches, a taser, and other law enforcement equipment.”

He then drove back to his Klamath Falls home – more than 450 miles away – stopping on the way to sexually assault her, the victim told detectives, the news release said.

Upon arriving at the home, he placed the woman in “a makeshift cell he had constructed in his garage” made of cinder blocks and a metal door that was locked from the outside and left her there, the FBI said.

The woman told authorities she repeatedly banged on the door until she was able to break her way out of the cell, the news release said.

“The victim said she knew Zuberi would kill her if she stayed in the room,” police said. “The victim began punching the security screen door. The victim was able to break the welds on the screen door and pull the metal screen material down. The victim then climbed through a small opening in the door and escaped.”

The woman flagged down a local motorist who called 911, according to the FBI. She was taken to a nearby hospital, where detectives responded to a report of a rape victim, according to Klamath Falls police.

Detectives tracked down Zuberi using cellphone technology a few hours later in Reno, Nevada, where he was taken into custody after a standoff, police said.

“Due to the real possibility this was not Zuberi’s first crime of this nature the FBI was requested,” police said.

Suspect targeted sex workers, roommates, FBI says
“We are fortunate that this brave woman escaped and alerted authorities,” Special Agent in Charge Stephanie Shark said in the release. “While she may have helped protect future victims, sadly we have now linked Zuberi to several violent assaults in at least four states and we believe there may be many more.”

The FBI said it believes Zuberi targeted sex workers or roommates in California, Washington, Oregon, Colorado, Utah, Florida, New York, New Jersey, Alabama and Nevada between August 2016 and July 2023.

Zuberi – who also goes by the names Sakima, Justin Hyche, and Justin Kouassi – is believed to have various methods to “gain control of his victims,” including putting drugs in their drinks, posing as a police officer and soliciting the services of sex workers before “violently sexually assaulting them,” according to the FBI.

“Some of the encounters may have been filmed to make it appear as if the assault was consensual,” the FBI said. “The victims are threatened with retaliation if they notify the police.”

The bureau is asking for the public’s help as it seeks more potential victims and additional information about Zuberi.

This is an interesting case.  There are quite a number of woman who have gone missing in the southern part of Oregon over the past few years.  These are some of the cases that I know of but there are more. 

6/27/23  Gwen Brunelle from Idaho but went missing in Malheur County sometime around 6/27/23.  Her car was found on a secluded road.

6/17/23 Rene Salazar was last seen walking on Highland Rd near Donaldson Rd. in Grants Pass.

4/20/23 Lynne Siewert from Happy Camp, CA. Her car was found on China Grade Road off Highway 96.

10/17/22 Tammy Pitkin from California but went missing in Linn County sometime around 10/17/22.  Her car was found on a secluded forest road.  One of two dogs she was traveling with was found about six months later a few miles from her car.  The dog did not seem like it had been starving in the mountains in heavy snow for that time. 

6/28/2020 Fauna Frey went missing from Grant's Pass, OR. September 23, 2020, Frey’s missing Jeep was found on Reuben Mountain Road a few miles past Grave Creek Boat Landing in Josephine County.

6/28/23 Evelyn Weaver was found dead in her home in Bend, OR but her car was driving to Klamath Falls and abandoned. 

Press conference.  www.2news.com/video/portland-press-conference-on-reno-arrest/video_4d018896-8a99-5e7e-834e-7a02fb83c475.html?fbclid=IwAR1Cm8S8-X-6MzvHerb3w5SdHrSA3hnS94vegd23dA08rGEKJKEInLheVRo

[almagata]

It is unfortuate that McClure died before he could be arrested. 

Identity of killer in Brutal 1991 California Cold Case, Solved‼️

Seaside, California
Vicki Johnson was killed on Jan. 3, 1991 in Seaside, a city previously known as East Monterey. Johnson's body was found near a playground in the city's Sabado Park neighborhood after she was strangled, suffocated and set on fire.
Vicki's case was "one of many" reopened by the Monterey County District Attorney's Office when it launched its cold case task force, Seaside Fire and Police said. Authorities were then able to identify a suspect in connection with the murder, after submitting additional evidence to the California Department of Justice for DNA testing.
A sample taken from Johnson's fingernails led authorities to identify her Frank Lewis McClure as her suspected killer. He died in 2021 at 77 years old. It is not known if there was a relationship between McClure and Johnson, officials said.
"McClure left significant DNA underneath Ms. Johnsons' fingernails, which could only be a result of Ms. Johnson fighting vigorously for her life," police wrote on Facebook, adding, "The motive of her murder is still unclear. We do know McClure had a history of violence before his passing."
Seaside police are asking anyone with information about unsolved cold cases in the area to contact the department by calling 831-899-6748.

[almagata]

Julia Hernandez-Santiago, 26, was found murdered in Carlsbad, Calif, 36 years ago. On the morning of Oct. 10, 1987, a passerby found Julia’s body on an ivy-covered hillside in a La Costa neighborhood, near Alga Road, in Carlsbad, Calif. The victim had been raped and strangled. The day of the murder, Julia went to a medical appointment. Afterward, she rode a bus back to her neighborhood. She got off the bus, stopped at a store, and was walking home when she was attacked. At the time of the killing, DNA was collected from the victim but they had no suspect to compare the DNA to. 

In June of 2023, James Charles Kingery, 57, was found guilty by a Vista jury of killing Julia Hernandez-Santiago.

The Interview Room Youtube channel interviewed the lead detective about the investigation.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=eZAooM-_EV0&t=16s

[johnnyhands1]

Aug 7, 2023 12:28:19 GMT almagata said:

Julia Hernandez-Santiago, 26, was found murdered in Carlsbad, Calif, 36 years ago. On the morning of Oct. 10, 1987, a passerby found Julia’s body on an ivy-covered hillside in a La Costa neighborhood, near Alga Road, in Carlsbad, Calif. The victim had been raped and strangled. The day of the murder, Julia went to a medical appointment. Afterward, she rode a bus back to her neighborhood. She got off the bus, stopped at a store, and was walking home when she was attacked. At the time of the killing, DNA was collected from the victim but they had no suspect to compare the DNA to. 

In June of 2023, James Charles Kingery, 57, was found guilty by a Vista jury of killing Julia Hernandez-Santiago.

The Interview Room Youtube channel interviewed the lead detective about the investigation.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=eZAooM-_EV0&t=16s

I found another article where Kingery gave an explanation:

"During the trial, he testified that he had a consensual sexual encounter with Hernandez-Santiago and that she was still alive when they split ways on the day of her murder."

thecoastnews.com/kingery-sentenced-in-1987-murder-rape-of-carlsbad-woman/

I wonder if the interviewing detectives showed Ms Hernandez-Santiago's picture to Kingery and asked if he knew her, before explaining why they were asking - and he denied knowing her. That's what usually happens.

[almagata]

Aug 8, 2023 6:31:01 GMT johnnyhands1 said:

Aug 7, 2023 12:28:19 GMT almagata said:

Julia Hernandez-Santiago, 26, was found murdered in Carlsbad, Calif, 36 years ago. On the morning of Oct. 10, 1987, a passerby found Julia’s body on an ivy-covered hillside in a La Costa neighborhood, near Alga Road, in Carlsbad, Calif. The victim had been raped and strangled. The day of the murder, Julia went to a medical appointment. Afterward, she rode a bus back to her neighborhood. She got off the bus, stopped at a store, and was walking home when she was attacked. At the time of the killing, DNA was collected from the victim but they had no suspect to compare the DNA to. 

In June of 2023, James Charles Kingery, 57, was found guilty by a Vista jury of killing Julia Hernandez-Santiago.

The Interview Room Youtube channel interviewed the lead detective about the investigation.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=eZAooM-_EV0&t=16s

I found another article where Kingery gave an explanation:

"During the trial, he testified that he had a consensual sexual encounter with Hernandez-Santiago and that she was still alive when they split ways on the day of her murder."

thecoastnews.com/kingery-sentenced-in-1987-murder-rape-of-carlsbad-woman/

I wonder if the interviewing detectives showed Ms Hernandez-Santiago's picture to Kingery and asked if he knew her, before explaining why they were asking - and he denied knowing her. That's what usually happens.

That is exactly what happened. 

[vivazapata]

Just who you want driving your kids to school:

da2nd.nm.gov/agents-with-the-bernalillo-county-district-attorneys-office-arrest-school-bus-driver-linked-to-four-cold-case-rapes-in-ne-abq-in-the-1980s-and-1990s/


Special agents with the Bernalillo County District Attorney’s office arrested 61 year-old Ralph Anthony Martinez today after forensic genetic geneology DNA investigation linked him to multiple rapes that occurred in Albuquerque more than three decades ago.

Martinez, works as a school bus driver with APS. This year, Agents with the District Attorney’s Sexual Assault Kit Initiative Team (SAKI) collected DNA from the school bus steering wheel, gear shift and switches on the bus Martinez drove. Agents say that DNA matched the DNA evidence collected from the sexual assaults in 1988, 1989 and 1991.

BACKGROUND

In October, 1988, the 19 year-old victim was sleeping at her home in the 1700 Block of Wyoming NE, when a man broke in, told the victim he had a knife, and raped her.

On August 3, 1991, a 35 year-old woman was sleeping in her home in the 8000 Block of Aspen Ave NE, when a man broke in, used the victim’s own gun to threaten her, then raped her.

The victim escaped to a neighbor’s home. The suspect ran away, leaving his underwear and shirt in the bedroom where the rape occurred.

On August 7, 1991, the 18 year-old victim was sleeping in her apartment in the 5300 block of San Mateo NE, when a man broke in and sexually assaulted her.

All three victims went to the hospital where sexual assault kits were collected.

Agents linked Martinez’s DNA to a 4th sexual assault, but that victim is now deceased. That crime happened in 1989 at Snow Heights Blvd. The victim was 59 years-old at the time of the sexual assault.

“I am really proud of the hard work our Sexual Assault Cold Case Unit is doing (SAKI). We hope this brings some amount of justice to these women and their families,” said Bernalillo County District Sam Bregman.

All defendants are presumed innocent unless and until they’re proven guilty in a court of law.

[vivazapata]

Prescott Hiker/College Student murder solved:

www.azfamily.com/2023/08/25/yavapai-county-sheriff-give-new-details-into-1987-murder-college-student/

PRESCOTT, AZ (3TV/CBS 5) -- Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office deputies have cracked the case in the brutal murder of a college student over three decades ago. The murder of Cathy Sposito was unsolved but remained open and active for 36 years. On Friday, Sheriff David Rhodes named Bryan Scott Bennett as Sposito’s killer. Bennett also had more victims who were attacked and sexually assaulted in northern Arizona.

Sposito was killed on June 13, 1987, while hiking Thumb Butte Trail in Prescott. The then-23-year-old rode her bike to the trailhead that morning and began her hike. However, hikers in the area later reported hearing screams for help. By the time they found Sposito, she was dead. Investigators found she was shot in the eye, stabbed, and hit in the head with a rock and ratchet. At the time of Sposito’s murder, Bennett was a 16-year-old high school student in Prescott. Sposito was Bennett’s first victim, investigators said.


The murder of Cathy Sposito was unsolved but remained open and active for 36 years. On Friday, Sheriff David Rhodes named Bryan Scott Bennett as her killer.
According to Sheriff Rhodes, in April 1990, Bennett brutally attacked and sexually assaulted a second victim on the same trail and same time of day as Sposito. The victim was camping with her boyfriend. She went for a hike on the Thumb Butte Trail. Within minutes, Bennett snuck up behind her and held a rock to her head, deputies said. After the attack, he ran off into the woods.


In July 1990, Bennett was accused of attempted assault at a house party in Chino Valley, Arizona. The victim was reportedly drinking and went to lie down in a bedroom. However, Bennett followed the victim into the room and tried to sexually assault her. Witnesses were able to break down the door, and Bennett ran away. He was later arrested by the Chino Valley Police Department but later acquitted due to conflicting eyewitness testimonies.

On June 2, 1993, Bennett went up to a fourth victim at the Prescott post office, held her at knifepoint, and sexually assaulted her multiple times, officials say. He was arrested, but a lack of evidence resulted in no consequences. On Jan. 27, 1994, Bennett returned to his home state of Kentucky and died by suicide.

Detectives had a break in the case when investigating Bennett’s second victim. His body was exhumed and DNA linked him back to Sposito’s case.

[johnnyhands1]

Jul 26, 2022 16:02:35 GMT almagata said:

Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer

Two Orange County Cold Case Murders Solved Through Multi-Agency Effort Using Investigative Genetic Genealogy
Full News Release: bit.ly/3ot3wEN
Orange County, Calif. – The cold case murders of two Orange County women have been solved as a result of a joint investigative genetic genealogy (IGG) investigation by the Garden Grove Police Department, the Orange County Sheriff’s Department, and the Orange County District Attorney’s Office. This is the second Garden Grove cold case murder that has been solved with the help of the Orange County District Attorney’s Investigative Genetic Genealogy unit in the last year.
On May 21, 1987, Shannon Rose Lloyd, 23-years-old, was found deceased in a bedroom she rented in the city of Garden Grove. An autopsy revealed that Lloyd was sexually assaulted and died by means of strangulation. All leads were pursued, but the case went cold.
In 2003, the Orange County Crime Lab linked Lloyd’s homicide with a 1989 Orange County Sheriff’s Department cold case homicide. The body of Renee Cuevas, 27-years-old, was found along Lambert Road near the El Toro Marine base in the morning hours of February 19, 1989. Detectives refused to give up the search for the killer.
It wasn’t until 2021 that the Orange County District Attorney’s Investigative Genetic Genealogy team identified a possible suspect – Reuben J. Smith, a Las Vegas man who had committed suicide in 1999 at the age of 39. A year before committing suicide, in July 1998, Smith was arrested in Las Vegas for sexual assault and attempting to kill a third woman. DNA evidence from Smith’s arrest and the DNA profile found at the crime scenes of Lloyd and Cuevas’s homicides were a positive match.
“The evil in him. I know if I didn’t fight, I was going to die” said the surviving victim from the 1998 attack. The victim, who did not want her identity disclosed, said “It was horrible. The things that he did, the things that he said. He told me he was going to kill me.” She fought back and was able to escape, but this attack still haunts her to this day.
Tom Lloyd, who is Shannon’s older brother, described Shannon by saying “she was tough. She wasn’t scared of much.” Tom added, “It’s hard for me to fathom how anyone can take another person’s life and just discard them.” Tom is grateful for all the hard work by everyone involved in the solving of his sister’s murder.
“The advancements in DNA science and the work of the IGG Unit has been instrumental in solving our second cold case homicide within the past twelve months,” said Garden Grove Police Chief Tom DaRé. “I know with our continued partnership with the Orange County District Attorney’s Office, we will be able to solve many more cold cases and bring closure to the family members of these victims.”
“The outcome of these cases reflects Orange County law enforcement’s dedication to seeking answers and solving complex crimes,” said Don Barnes, Orange County Sheriff-Corner. “It reinforces our commitment to the community that no matter how much times passes, we remain steadfast in our pursuit of justice and the work to bring closure to the victims’ families.”
“The loved ones of Renee Cuevas and Shannon Lloyd have the answers to the question they have been asking for more than three decades,” said Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer. “The justice that every victim deserves was hidden away in DNA, but with advances in IGG technology combined with the relentless dedication of generations of detectives and the talented prosecutors and forensic scientists at the District Attorney’s Office, we now know who killed Renee and Shannon. Justice does not have an expiration date. Whether a crime happened forty years ago or four minutes ago, the residents of Orange County can have confidence that the law enforcement in this county will not rest until justice is served.”
Reuben J. Smith lived in Orange County in the 1980’s before moving to the Las Vegas area. Anyone with additional information about Smith’s activities when he was living in Orange County is asked to call Garden Grove Police Detective T. Ramirez at 714-741-5839 or Orange County Crime Stoppers at 1-855-TIP-OCCS.
Mario Martinez, Lieutenant
[e-mail]
Desk: 714.741.5786
W/C: 714.741.5871
Garden Grove Police Department
Orange County Sheriff's Department, CA

I just stumbled onto this post today.  There is no explanation of why the Las Vegas DNA and Orange County DNA profiles were not both in CODIS - to find this match much sooner without needing IGG.  

The Las Vegas DNA had a name and DNA evidence, which, if matched would have given Orange County a name.   Was it Las Vegas' failure to put it in CODIS, or was it Orange County's failure to even do a DNA profile (and put it in CODIS) until recently?  No one asked, I guess.

After re-reading, I'm guessing it was Las Vegas that never entered it - did the Nevada DNA collection laws lag behind California, such that they couldn't legally enter the DNA of a deceased person?

If Las Vegas made its own internal match between offender and DNA evidence, why wasn't he convicted, and it uploaded to CODIS?  Did he die before being convicted? I'd like to know the DNA investigation history of both LE entities.

Anyone know anything more about this case?

EDIT:  I found this paragraph (from an unrelated case) that seems to show Nevada was using DNA profiles in 1994,  before 1998 Las Vegas crimes above.  It's the "second DNA profile developed" that, I guess, means they're first DNA profile wasn't compatible with CODIS' STR system.  (Yet they matched Smiths DNA with the Orange County offender just recently.  Just seems like some work could have been done sooner in Nevada - unless it was only with recent technology that STR profiles for both was possible.)

oig.justice.gov/reports/FBI/a0126/intro.htm 

"In May 2000, CODIS was instrumental in solving the 1977 murder of a 6-year old girl in Reno, Nevada. Beginning in 1977, various forensic tests were performed on the child's clothing, which was found in a dumpster a few miles from Reno, but the case remained unsolved. In 1994, the perpetrator's DNA profile was developed from the clothing. The DNA profiles of numerous suspects were compared to the perpetrator's profile but no matches resulted. In May of 2000, a second DNA profile from the clothing was developed, using newer technology. When the second DNA profile was entered into CODIS, it matched with the DNA profile of a 57-year old convicted sex offender. The offender lived in the area and had been on parole since his release from prison in 1976. The suspect pled guilty to kidnapping and murder in October 2000 and was sentenced the following month."

[almagata]

Aug 26, 2023 14:33:02 GMT vivazapata said:

Prescott Hiker/College Student murder solved:

www.azfamily.com/2023/08/25/yavapai-county-sheriff-give-new-details-into-1987-murder-college-student/

PRESCOTT, AZ (3TV/CBS 5) -- Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office deputies have cracked the case in the brutal murder of a college student over three decades ago. The murder of Cathy Sposito was unsolved but remained open and active for 36 years. On Friday, Sheriff David Rhodes named Bryan Scott Bennett as Sposito’s killer. Bennett also had more victims who were attacked and sexually assaulted in northern Arizona.

Sposito was killed on June 13, 1987, while hiking Thumb Butte Trail in Prescott. The then-23-year-old rode her bike to the trailhead that morning and began her hike. However, hikers in the area later reported hearing screams for help. By the time they found Sposito, she was dead. Investigators found she was shot in the eye, stabbed, and hit in the head with a rock and ratchet. At the time of Sposito’s murder, Bennett was a 16-year-old high school student in Prescott. Sposito was Bennett’s first victim, investigators said.


The murder of Cathy Sposito was unsolved but remained open and active for 36 years. On Friday, Sheriff David Rhodes named Bryan Scott Bennett as her killer.
According to Sheriff Rhodes, in April 1990, Bennett brutally attacked and sexually assaulted a second victim on the same trail and same time of day as Sposito. The victim was camping with her boyfriend. She went for a hike on the Thumb Butte Trail. Within minutes, Bennett snuck up behind her and held a rock to her head, deputies said. After the attack, he ran off into the woods.


In July 1990, Bennett was accused of attempted assault at a house party in Chino Valley, Arizona. The victim was reportedly drinking and went to lie down in a bedroom. However, Bennett followed the victim into the room and tried to sexually assault her. Witnesses were able to break down the door, and Bennett ran away. He was later arrested by the Chino Valley Police Department but later acquitted due to conflicting eyewitness testimonies.

On June 2, 1993, Bennett went up to a fourth victim at the Prescott post office, held her at knifepoint, and sexually assaulted her multiple times, officials say. He was arrested, but a lack of evidence resulted in no consequences. On Jan. 27, 1994, Bennett returned to his home state of Kentucky and died by suicide.

Detectives had a break in the case when investigating Bennett’s second victim. His body was exhumed and DNA linked him back to Sposito’s case.

There is a whole lot more to this kid's story.  If he was attacking and killing at 16 then committed suicide seven years later, he likely had some serious mental health issues. 

[Jay7777]

I know this has been solved for a while but last night I watched an older Cold Case Files on TV and this sick case came up that still horrifies me!

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oba_Chandler


And to think he claimed to be innocent and yet three years after his execution, they link him to another cold case. Just reading about his life, you see an evil lifestyle from beginning to end. Oba Chandler take evil to a whole new level.

If you get a chance to watch it, it is called: Bodies in the Bay/Cold Hit, from the Cold Case Files.

[Jay7777]

Man Arrested in Cold Case of Missing Kentucky Mom Crystal Rogers

www.msn.com/en-us/news/crime/man-arrested-in-cold-case-of-missing-kentucky-mom-crystal-rogers/ar-AA1gsefT?cvid=4b827011b50f44869803bc1bffda5ed2&ei=5

For eight years, the family of missing Kentucky mom Crystal Rogers has fought for justice, doing their own detective work where local cops fell short and sharing her story widely on podcasts and TV specials.

Amid her loved ones’ quest for answers, Rogers’ father, Tommy Ballard, was shot and killed while hunting with a grandson, a crime that also remains unsolved.

Rogers’ parents always believed Brooks Houck, her boyfriend and the father of her youngest child, had something to do with her disappearance. The last person to see Rogers alive over the Fourth of July weekend in 2015, Houck became authorities’ initial suspect. But he denies any wrongdoing and was never charged.

Now Sherry Ballard—Crystal’s mom and Tommy’s widow—could be one step closer to closure. On Thursday, it was revealed that a grand jury indicted 32-year-old Joseph Lawson with conspiracy to commit murder and tampering with physical evidence in connection to Rogers’ case. Lawson pleaded not guilty, local Fox affiliate WDRB reported.

It’s unclear how Lawson may have known the missing mother-of-five, who was last seen alive at Houck’s family farm in Bardstown. Police have searched that nearly 300-acre property, as well as others tied to Houck, on multiple occasions.

Rogers’ body was never found, and Lawson’s charges mark the first time an indictment was filed in relation to the investigation.

According to WDRB, Lawson’s indictment alleges that he “agreed to aid one or more persons in the planning or commission of the crime or an attempt or solicitation to commit the crime when he, and/or, a co-conspirator intentionally caused the death of another.” Such acts, the document says, occurred in Nelson County on July 3 and/or July 4, 2015.

The indictment also accuses Lawson of tampering, saying he “destroyed, mutilates, concealed, removed or alters physical evidence.”

Lawson’s bond was set at $500,000 on the conspiracy charge and $50,000 on the tampering count. His next court appearance is scheduled for Oct. 26.

This isn’t Lawson’s first brush with the law. ABC affiliate WHAS11 reported on a history of criminal charges including for the possession of methamphetamine, burglary, trespassing, and assault.

Several law enforcement agencies tackled the Rogers case, including the Nelson County Sheriff’s Office and Kentucky State Police, before the FBI stepped in.

In August 2020, the feds announced they were taking over the search for the Bardstown mom, and that a swarm of state and federal law enforcement officers were busy executing a slew of search warrants related to the probe.

Among the properties searched were the home of 41-year-old Houck, along with the residence belonging to his brother, Nick, a former cop who was terminated for allegedly interfering in the Rogers investigation.

According to Louisville CBS affiliate WLKY, IRS agents spent about 10 hours at Houck’s house and left with boxes, hard drives, and firearms. All the while, reporters were stationed outside the home snapping images of the scene. Houck declined to comment.

The following day, the FBI returned to the Houck farm, and took Rogers’ maroon 2007 Chevy Impala, which was discovered on the Bluegrass Parkway on July 5, 2015 with a flat tire and the keys in the ignition, from her mother’s storage unit.

In another 2021 search, agents with FBI Louisville announced they’d uncovered “multiple items of interest” at one of Houck’s properties that would be sent to the agency’s Quantico, Virginia, laboratory. And last October, the feds conducted yet another five-day search at Houck’s sprawling farm.

A real estate agent and onetime candidate for sheriff, Houck told cops that he and Rogers visited the farm on Friday, July 3, 2015 to feed cattle. They got home past midnight. When he went to bed, Rogers allegedly stayed up playing games on her phone.

But Rogers was gone, he claimed, when he woke up the next morning. He said their son was in bed next to him. He told a detective that he called Rogers a few times, but ultimately decided to attend his uncle’s July Fourth celebration that day without her. He hinted the couple had had a fight. “I know sometimes in the past, if I’ve called her and blown her phone up, it made it worse,” Brooks told the investigator.

Sherry reported her daughter missing July 5, after her vehicle was discovered near mile marker 14 of the Bluegrass Parkway.

Days after the 2020 search warrants, the FBI task force released two surveillance photos of vehicles and asked for the public’s help in identifying the drivers.

One showed a red SUV and white SUV about to pass each other at 1064 Loretto Road (the site of Heaven Hill Distilleries) and close to the My Old Kentucky Home Campground. The other is a grainy, black-and-white photo from July 4, 2015 at 3:45 a.m. and shows a vehicle traveling close to the Houck farm. In the image, the vehicle has its headlights on and is at the intersection of Balltown Road and Paschal Ballard Road.

The case has resulted in several podcasts and TV episodes and series, especially in light of two other unsolved crimes in Bardstown: the execution of police officer Jason Ellis, who was gunned down while clearing a branch from a roadway, and the brutal murders of special education teacher Kathy Netherland and her teenage daughter, Samantha.

The Daily Beast previously reported on these unsolved killings in the sleepy Kentucky town of 13,000 people, which has routinely been covered with signs, including Prayers for Crystal’s Safe Return and Solve These Murders. Someone posted a more pointed sign close to Houck’s farm: Brooks Houck where is Crystal Rogers?

Rogers’ parents never gave up their search for their daughter—especially her father, Tommy, who scoured field and forest in inclement weather to find her. Along with his wife, Sherry, he organized volunteer search parties and prayer vigils, and distributed missing-persons fliers. He became a gumshoe of sorts, collecting clues on his own.

Tommy, a licensed contractor who was on the quieter side, became a public face for the search for Rogers. “We just want justice for Crystal, and we want all these other murders solved. All these people have rights, too,” Tommy told the Standard in 2015.

One year after Rogers vanished, Tommy was shot in the chest and killed while hunting with his 12-year-old grandson. Sherry believes Tommy, 54, was targeted because he was close to a breakthrough in the hunt for Rogers. “My husband is dead because he looked for my daughter,” Sherry told The Daily Beast in 2018.

entucky State Police said they were investigating Tommy’s death, which appeared to be an ambush by a shooter hidden in the treeline near the Bluegrass Parkway. The agency has released few details on the case, though one state trooper previously told The Daily Beast: “You got Crystal Rogers missing, then her father ends up dead. We definitely are looking at it like it could possibly be connected. I think common sense will tell you that.”

Since the apparent murders of both her husband and daughter, Sherry has been on a one-woman crusade for justice. She appeared on the Dr. Phil Show to drum up awareness about the unsolved crimes. She’s also worked on TV shows for Oxygen, NBC and Investigation Discovery to keep their names alive.

“I will not let this rest until I find justice for my daughter and my husband,” Sherry told The Daily Beast in 2018. “If you think she’s gonna be a pile of paper on a desk, that’s not happening.”

In 2020 Sherry shared her grief in a Facebook post:

“I’m ready to bring my daughter home and to find justice for my husband. Five years is WAY [TOO] LONG for me to have to wait for this,” Sherry wrote. “To her murderer, enjoy your time walking free because i promise you it’s limited. I pray no other family has to live through what i have been. I miss my husband and my daughter!!! I will find justice for both of them!!!!”

In July of this year, Sherry said the mystery of what happened has “been like torture.”

“I just have to be patient,” Sherry told WDRB of the years she’s waited to find her daughter. “And, gosh, pray to God that I don’t have to wait very many more.”

Sherry has also been outspoken about her suspicions of Houck. She told the TV station that Rogers, who worked for Houck’s rental properties, wanted to leave him.

“She looked at me out of the blue—just out of the blue, we were not talking about that—and she’s like, ‘Mom, he thinks I’m an idiot,’” Ballard recalled to the outlet. “She said, ‘But I have everything.’ She said, ‘I have all of his rentals. I have his tax papers, I have everything.’

And she said, ‘And I hid that.’ And to this day … if I have one big, huge regret is because I did not ask her where she put that.”

www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=4245767838810660&set=pb.100064467829085.-2207520000
Sherry told the station she believed the FBI was doing everything to solve the case.

As part of its effort, the FBI created a website called crystalrogerstaskforce.com where it plans to “share developing information, photos, and maps with the community,” according to a press release. “Communication from this site paired with the release of previously withheld, new, and unique details will lead us to the last piece of the puzzle.”

The website also includes information about Ellis and the Netherlands: “As a result of the overwhelming number of tips received relating to​ not just Crystal’s disappearance, but also the unsolved murders of Tommy Ballard (Crystal’s father), Jason Ellis, and Kathy and Samantha Netherland, it is necessary to include their cases on this page as well.

“As a small community we remain vigilant in seeking justice for all of the families who deserve answers,” the taskforce website states.

Meanwhile, Houck stayed in the press not only because of the Rogers probe, but also because of other news related to his role as landlord. Last November, WDRB reported Houck was trying to open a daycare across from Sherry’s storage business—leading to a petition aimed at trying to stop him. Sherry said she believed Houck was “taunting” her.

In August 2019, one of his partially-built homes was torched in a suspected arson. Bardstown’s fire chief told the Associated Press the two-story home was likely set on fire because it was a frame with no gas or electricity yet. The official said disgruntled employees of Houck might be to blame.

Houck also faced criminal charges after he was accused of stealing roofing shingles from a Lowe’s store in April 2018. He was acquitted at trial—which Sherry Ballard attended, hoping for a conviction—of four counts of felony theft one year later.

“I was very hopeful,” Sherry told the Standard after the verdict. “Am I shocked? I shouldn’t be shocked. He squirms his way out of everything.”