This was on Dec. 3, 1969 12 days before Blades was abducted and killed. You can find out more about him on LinkedIn or his website. ", More:Woman, 15 at the time, disputes account that turkey hunters found Ronnie Johnson's body in the woods. I don't want to go to my grave not knowing, she told Dateline. It stated: The problems with the case, according to the story, included: Dave Smith, then a sergeant, said: "We have to find someone with firsthand knowledge that he was out there that night.". 322 S. Main Street, Ste. If you have any possible . Fort Smith jobs have decreased by 1.6%. We all know she was really responsible, and she knew her dad was waiting on the medicine. William Scott Smith Unemployed cook, Salem, Ore. . Any ties went to the larger city. If you have any information regarding the missing persons or homicide victims on this website, please contact the Sheriff's Office Homicide Unit at 727-582-6153 or by email at jsuessiv@pcsonet.com. In 1973, legislation created the White River Monster Refuge. "It took them eight days to find her body. While a murder just blocks or even a couple of towns away from your house would make anyone uneasy, in the long run, most likely, where you live is relatively safe. Vine's disturbing and vicious rape and killing spree is further explored in theOxygenspecial "Snapped Notorious: The River Valley Killer." If you have any information, you can call the River Valley crime stoppers at (479)-78-CRIME. Some, however, have since theorized she was the victim of local serial killer Charles Ray Vine, also known as "The River Valley Killer.". They made this determination based on evidence of a struggle around her car, including blood found in the parking lot, as well as Missy's keys and an earring found nearby. On the voice message recording, a lady called and with a really strong Southern accent could be heard saying, Go ahead and tell them what you found, he said. Donate. If I did, I would certainly honor your most understandable request.. The police looked at the good samaritan very closely before dismissing him as a suspect. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser. According to science fiction writer Richard Shaver, the cave is one of the entrances to a subterranean civilization. IE 11 is not supported. Little Rock with 38. Outdoor enthusiasts can try their hand at fly fishing on the North Central Arkansas Speedway in Yellville. She was 75 years old. . Three years after her murder, Melissa's family, the Parnells' filed a suit against the C N Bowl Corp. FORT SMITH, Ark. The Arkansas, Texas & Oklahoma Bureau of Vital Records were contacted in an attempt to locate a death certificate for Nona Young. Three people died and an officer was stabbed in the neck in an incident in Fort Smith, Arkansas, Sunday. Though the fourth boy, Nils Wilhelm Gustafsson, survived the attack and lead a relatively normal life, he became a suspect in 2004. Of particular interest to Missouri investigators is that Smith raped and stabbed to death anIllinois woman named Jean Bianchi, a 27-year-old housewife. Murder Mystery: The Mickey Mouse Killer Part 1, A retired detective and an Arkansas woman are working to solve Melissa Witt's murder, Murder Mystery: The Mickey Mouse Killer Conclusion, Who Killed Missy Witt? Lifestyle is a possibility that may play a role in his death.". Law enforcement agencies should be contacted without delay. Westark Community College/University Of Arkansas, Afternoon:Melissa has lunch with a friend, She met her friend at Chick-fil-A which was just down the road from the college, Afternoon:Melissa works at the dentist office in the afternoon, She was employed part time as a dental assistant, 5:00 PM:Melissa's car doesn't start after leaving work. In the summer of 1989, she continued to work at the store while figuring out what she wanted to do, Georgia said. Police called the man a "suspect." Kristy said her family was struck with fear for what happened to Dana after that. Smith was also questioned in the 1983 unsolved murder of a 14-year-old girl in Idaho. Her body was found a year later in the Ozark Mountains by trappers. They pointed out that the couple had recently received word they were approved to adopt a child and earlier that day Carol Blades had bought Christmas presents and set up the tree at home. JC Rider, a retired Fort Smith Police Department detective, said investigators believe Witt was struck in the head and then kidnapped. A retired detective and an Arkansas woman are working to solve Melissa Witt's murder Watch on Source: 5NEWS When she was discovered Six weeks after the abduction, two hunters in the Ozark National Forest discovered Missy's body on January 13, 199545 miles from her home in Fort Smith. A 19 year old college student disappears in a parking lot. Her logic is that since Smith admitted other slayings he would have admitted this one, as well, if he did it. Connect with Never Forgotten Melissa is pronounced deceased. Her mother declined to give it to her. Fort Smith shares its status with Greenwood as the county seat of Sebastian County. This can be a post about an unsolved homicide, a missing person, an unidentified person, a wrongful conviction, or forensics. The FBI estimates the national clearance rate for murders is 61 percent. Each of these victims were submitted by families or law enforcement through our submission page. We and our partners use data for Personalised ads and content, ad and content measurement, audience insights and product development. There could easily be a scientific explanation for this one, but do you really want to risk it to find out? Or if youd like more nightmare fuel, read about this haunted Arkansas attraction. Melissa Witt was abducted from a bowling alley parking lot in Fort Smith, Arkansas in 1994. Making it tougher for investigators to gather evidence. Harsent was six months pregnant at the time of her death. "They was just looking for anything to say, they was all upset.". Swearingen denied murdering Missy Witt and was executed on January 27, 2009, for Melissa Trotter's murder. When you click through real estate links on our site, we earn an affiliate commission. The Missing Person Active/Expired Analysis and the Unidentified Person Active/Expired Analysis reports are available upon request. He was active in the area at that time, and he had attacked another teenager in Arkansas. Some of that gas, but not all,could be accounted for by a trip Blades made to Kmart in Springfield to buypresents. The body was discovered by a Conco employee. Soon after the shooting, the suspect went to prison for two years for other burglary convictions. The suspect apparently was spotted soon after the murder. Heultimately raped and murdered two elderly women in the River Valley, Arkansas area: Juanita Wofford in 1993, and Ruth Henderson in 1995. Over a month after she went missing, her body was found in the Ozark National Forest. The two Thackers were sentenced to the Arkansas Department of Correction in August 2011 after pleading guilty in Sebastian County Circuit Court each to a charge of attempted capital murder in. All rights reserved. Specifically, we analyzed the FBI's Uniform Crime Report which summarizes the number of murders that may happen in each city per year. if(typeof ez_ad_units!='undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[300,600],'roadsnacks_net-medrectangle-3','ezslot_0',606,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-roadsnacks_net-medrectangle-3-0');For more reading on the Natural State check out: Population: 10,187Rank Last Year: 8Murders: 11 (4th Most)Murders Per 100k: 108.0 (Most)More on Helena-West Helena: Data|Photos, Population: 198,382Rank Last Year: 1Murders: 38 (Most)Murders Per 100k: 19.2 (6th Most)More on Little Rock: Data|Photos, Population: 13,468Rank Last Year: 6Murders: 10 (5th Most)Murders Per 100k: 74.3 (2nd Most)More on Blytheville: Data|Photos, Population: 66,604Rank Last Year: 23Murders: 12 (3rd Most)Murders Per 100k: 18.0 (7th Most)More on North Little Rock: Data|Photos, Population: 37,263Rank Last Year: 14Murders: 10 (5th Most)Murders Per 100k: 26.8 (5th Most)More on Hot Springs: Data|Photos, Population: 24,442Rank Last Year: 3Murders: 8 (7th Most)Murders Per 100k: 32.7 (4th Most)More on West Memphis: Data|Photos, Population: 78,261Rank Last Year: 22Murders: 13 (2nd Most)Murders Per 100k: 16.6 (10th Most)More on Jonesboro: Data|Photos, Population: 6,653Rank Last Year: 7Murders: 4 (10th Most)Murders Per 100k: 60.1 (3rd Most)More on Osceola: Data|Photos, Population: 23,873Rank Last Year: -Murders: 4 (10th Most)Murders Per 100k: 16.8 (9th Most)More on Searcy: Data|Photos, Population: 17,820Rank Last Year: 4Murders: 3 (13th Most)Murders Per 100k: 16.8 (8th Most)More on El Dorado: Data|Photos. in Library Science. The girl's stepfather found him in the midst of the attack and tried to beat him to death, although a sheriff's deputy arrived and intervened, according to local Fox affiliate station KNWA. Arkansas law requires all missing persons to be entered immediately. Drugs is a possibility. No one noticed the blood splatter on her keys at the time. The IMCA sanctioned 3/8 mile oval and I situated in the Van Buren - Fort Smith area at the unsolved murders in arkansas a fairly temperate climate throughout much of the National Park engulfs the . When she entered the salon, she first saw the corpse of 62-year-old Dorothy Harris. At that time, we didnt have Caller ID in the office; it was a voice recording on the machine we had at our Major Crimes Office. Missy's body was nude and placed near a headstone-shaped rock. Records in the Missing Person File are retained indefinitely or until the individual is located or the record is canceled by the entering agency. Anstuz was a carpenter at Killian Construction in Springfield. Ten months after Blades vanished, Sheriff Lamb told the publiche doubted there was a crime. A mother's 30-year missions to uncover the truth about what happened to her son's in 1987 has led a federal judge to order an urgent review of several tightly guarded government . "We loved him dearly.". Sergeant Jenkins said there are several people of interest in the case, and that it is still being worked as an active investigation. She wouldn't let her dad wait on that.. When her shift ended, her car wouldnt start. "Buff" Lamb was openly hostile in the unsolved abduction and murder of Carol Blades, a 20-year-old Nixa housewife. You Decide. The Colorado Cold Case Database features unsolved homicides, missing person, and unidentified person cases to assist law enforcement agencies in the development of information, which can lead to the identification, and arrest of any person (s) who may have committed any crime described on this page. Pruett would soon confess to prosecutors and the media his guilt . Sort All Cases By: Company Area | Male | Female | County | Year | Last Name Results: 13 Record (s) Found. Melissa drove a white 1995 Mitsubishi Mirage. She said that in 2003 detectives from Missouri went to Illinois to interview Smith, whodenied ever being in Nixa. According to private investigators, it was her second night on the job and her first time working solo. Updated: 6:31 AM CDT October 4, 2021. She always called. For nearly three decades the homicide case of Fort Smith teen Melissa Witt has gone unsolved, but a former detective refuses to give up hope. It had been abandoned on the shoulder of northbound Highway 160. Should Smith, now 73, ever be releasedin Illinoishe would face a life sentence in Arkansas. Melissa is still not home. Therelationship between family and then-Christian County Sheriff L.E. Search dogs were used in the days following Danas disappearance, Sgt. All rights reserved. Arkansas Crime Information Center. When a crime happens, and you dont know who the other party is. Your chance of being a victim of crime in Fort Smith may be as high as 1 in 11 in the northwest neighborhoods, or as low as 1 in 25 in the southeast part of the city. Asking for witnesses who might have seen anything, no matter how small, to speak up. The FBI considers eyewitness identification notoriously unreliable, the story stated. The suspect had an alibiand police could not disprove it; The widow's eyewitness account didn't persuade Greene County prosecutors to file charges. As of now, the Sebastian County Sheriffs Office says they havent received any new leads on this case in quite a long while, but if they do, they will immediately investigate. Dana agreed to run out for her father and left the home to make the four-mile drive in her grey Dodge Omni around 3:00 p.m. Georgia said she got home after work around 4:00 p.m., and Lawrence told her Dana had not yet returned. If you have any updates in any of these cases please contact me. Smith has also confessed to killing several women while a U.S. Marine in West Germanyin the 1960s. Ive always felt that the phone call was tied to what had happened, Rider said. 18 unsolved slayings in this area in five years. An FBI profiler also concluded Vine was not the killer, Rider said, according to Today In Fort Smith. The legend is that a railroad workers head was severed by an oncoming train. 1989 murder of Ronnie Johnson of West Plains, Pokin Around: Inspired by a readers question, an investigation into the 1989 murder of Ronnie Johnson, 'I want justice for my father': An investigation into the 1989 death of Ronnie Johnson, Woman, 15 at the time, disputes account that turkey hunters found Ronnie Johnson's body in the woods, Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. We understand if you have trouble getting to sleep tonight, these unsolved mysteries certainly shook us to the core. If you need a pleasant palate cleanser, try touring this cider mill. Create your free profile and get access to exclusive content. The body was found on Forest Service Road 1551, located off Franklin County 111, also known as Jethro Road. In December 1977 a man was arrested in connection to the death and questioned. I can't stop thinking about this case because it's from my home town. The Possible Police Connection A witness using the name of "Jerry" came forward to say that he saw sitting in a convenience store parking lot the night of August 22-23, 1987 and saw three teenaged boys, one on a motorcycle, hanging out . Over a month after she went missing, her body was found in the Ozark National Forest. Four teenagers were camping on the shores of Lake Bodom in Finland on June 5, 1960, when an unknown group or individual murdered three of them with a knife and blunt instrument. A family is still looking for answers after a Sebastian County womans murder case remains unsolved 42-years later. Morning:Melissa goes to classes at Westark Community College, now the University of Arkansas Fort Smith (UAFS). For some strange reason no one volunteered to climb down to see what pulled the rope. The two masked killers used a handcart to wheel the store safe out of the building and fled in Reese's car. Kelle Ann Workman, 24, was last seen June 30, 1989, while mowing grass at Dogwood Cemetery, outside Pleasant Ridge Southern Baptist Churchat Highways 14 and Z. CBI FOHVAMP . No arrests have been made in connection with her death. Nobody should ever have to lose a child.. The murders remain unsolved. The following persons have active warrants for their arrest. ARKANSAS (KNWA/KFTA) In 2020, Fayetteville has had seven homicides/murders; there were five in 2019, according to the Fayetteville police department (FPD). Her body was found on September 16, 1989 in Benton County, Arkansas. The Little Rock and Fort Smith, the unsolved murders in arkansas near Morrilton, and Arkansas is the North Central Arkansas Speedway in Yellville. 322 South Main Streeet, Suite 615 Little Rock, AR 72201 (501) 682-2222 / Visit Website. We have never come up with anything positive.". An old wives tale is one thing, but once physical evidence gets involved these stories become especially chilling. 1995 Alma, Arkansas girl's disappearance featured in crime show on Hulu. Your anonymous call could lead to a $1,000 reward. His father, Alex Murdaugh, a local attorney and the son of Randolph Murdaugh III, owns the boat.. The Pinellas County Sheriff's Office is requesting your assistance in closing these open cases. They questioned him. It was only her second. Her parents and other family members offered $10,000 for information leading to an arrest. The real mystery is why it took so long for someone to decide "hey maybe we should bury this guy.". Did The River Valley Killer Kidnap A Teenage Girl From A Bowling Alley Parking Lot And Murder Her? There was no one in the store, and there should have been, said Pevehouse. Tara Strozier, a 40-year-old from Fort Smith, Arkansas, was last seen alive about 20 miles away across state lines in Cameron, Oklahoma, on July 17, according to the Fort Smith Police Department . The clothes she brought to the laundromat were in a drier when she was reporting missing that evening. It could not be determined how she was killed. The court determined that the events were not foreseeable and the case was ultimately dismissed. Cold Case Spotlight No answers 29 years after murder of Arkansas teen Dana Stidham Eighteen-year-old Dana Stidham was last seen on July 25, 1989 leaving a grocery store in Bella Visa,. The 25-year-old store clerk child was gunned down in an overnight robbery. One of the bullets severed a major artery and Anstutz died an hour later at Cox Medical Center South. Rose Harsent was stabbed to death on 1 June 1902, in Peasenhall, Suffolk, England by an unknown assailant. We were robbed of her wisdom and just her life in general.. In a May 13, 1990, News-Leader story, Whitney said: I dont think this was a planned-out deal, other than they saw her and made a quick plan, he says. She resides in Western Arkansas' Mountain Frontier but calls NWA home as well. Unsolved Murders. Do you feel thoroughly thrilled and chilled? Smith confessed that he raped Ash and stabbed her to death at theTV repair shop where he worked in Mountain Home, Arkansas. No suspect was ever identified. More:'I want justice for my father': An investigation into the 1989 death of Ronnie Johnson. I've stood in the same parking lot where Melissa went missing. After Vine's arrest, the possibility he killed Witt was considered. FPD Sergeant Tony Murphy said. Timmons already had a kidnapping conviction on his record, having abducted and held an 11-year-old boy in 1976, KYTV reported. Her husband slept thatday because he worked a third shift at Springday, a Springfield manufacturer. 6:30/6:40 pm:Witness reports hearing woman in distress in Bowling World Parking. Home > Crime Info & Support > Crime Information Center > Community Information > Missing Persons Information. The family alleged that the defendant failed to exercise ordinary care to provide for the safety of business. Under the Search tab, select the Card Catalog and look for the title "Fort Smith, Arkansas, Criminal Case Files, 1866-1900." Select "view original image" to be taken to the case file folder. If she was going to be late, she always called.. READ MORE 5. In the weeks that followed, Danas friends and family spent their time searching on foot and by car, and handing out missing flyers of Dana. Georgia was at work at the time, but her husband Lawrence was at home. The Oakland County Child Killer. Lawrence, who had medical issues, was feeling ill that day, so he asked Dana if she could pick up his medicine at Phillips Foods store in Bella Vista. Interactive map produced by Yutao Chen. I dont recall exactly what the male voice said, but it was something like, I cant. And then he hung up the phone., 9:40 am:Melissa's body is found by two trappers in the Ozark National Forest. Next 10 CitiesHow we calculated the murder capitals of ArkansasWhile there are surveys and public polls on what cities in a state are the most dangerous, we didn't want to rely on speculation and opinion. A trail of blood was later found in the parking lot. *This list consists of persons who have been reported missing to the Department of Public Safety under undetermined circumstances. Create a free profile to get unlimited access to exclusive videos, breaking news, sweepstakes, and more! Jenkins added. Known as "The Babysitter", this unidentified serial killer is known to have murdered at least four children, possibly more, between 1976 and 1977.
Where Is Sarah Beeny House Somerset Bruton,
London Nightclubs 1990s,
Articles U