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December 27, 2007

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Family of Joshua Szostak Desperate to Find Missing Son

Hudson Valley Community College student Joshua Szostak, 21, has been missing for over a week and police remain stumped by his sudden and mysterious disappearance.

On December 22, 2007, Josh went bar hopping with friends in downtown Albany, New York. They eventually wound up at the Bayou Café on North Pearl Street, where the group stayed until midnight, when they decided to head out to another local bar. Before leaving Josh excused himself to use the restroom, but never returned. His friends searched the bathroom and sent numerous text messages, to no avail. After waiting another 45 minutes his friends left, assuming he had left without saying goodbye.

According to his profile at MySpace.com, Josh is a radio DJ at QUAKE 93.9FM. In the "About Me" section of his profile he wrote:

"I am Josh and a pretty laid back, get-along-with-everyone type guy, love sports, music, cooking, driving, etc. well rounded in most things in life ... feel free to ask anything, I'm a journalism major and a DJ."

In regard to his interests he wrote:

"My life is based on simple things. I write and love to read Poetry. My life revolves around Music. I'm interested in learning about Crime/War (psyche of killers and warriors and why/how they do what they do), the lost art of Romance, and Sports…"

His last login is listed as December 19, 2007.

When Josh failed to contact his family they became concerned for his safety and reported him missing to local authorities. An investigation was launched and police retraced Josh's steps on the night of his disappearance.

"Through the surveillance video at the Bayou we could see that Josh bypassed [his friends], went outside, used the cell, looked up and down the street and couldn't see anybody, decided his friends left, and started hoofin' it towards where his car was," Josh's father, Bill Szostak, said in an interview with capitalnews9.com.

Unfortunately, Josh never made it back to his car. Police later found it parked in the lot of a local bar and video surveillance of the area shows he never returned to the vehicle after he went bar hopping.

Police K9's picked up Josh's scent outside of the Bayou Café and led their handlers in the opposite direction of Josh's car, towards Lincoln Park and the Martin Luther King Monument, but were unable to lend any further clues to his disappearance.

Two days after Josh disappeared, Albany Police discovered a wrecked Department of Environmental Conservation car abandoned on South Pearl Street. Investigators quickly learned the vehicle had been stolen from a DEC parking garage on Broadway. When police went to the garage to investigate, they found Josh's cellphone near the spot where the car was stolen. Police initially suspected Josh had stolen the car. However, Albany police spokesman Detective James Miller later said there was no evidence connecting him to the theft.

On December 26, 2007, over 150 people gathered in Albany to help search for Josh.

"The goal here is to bring my son home," Bill told the crowd before the search began. "I can't tell you how much I appreciate this."

Police, firefighters, and sheriff's deputies canvassed the areas around Pearl Street and the Port of Albany, but despite their best efforts they found no new clues to Josh's whereabouts. Afterwards, Bill spoke briefly with timesunion.com and expressed his concern that his son may have been attacked by a mugger on the night he disappeared.

"He was intoxicated. He had a very expensive jacket on. He had a lot of cash on him," Bill said. "I think when he got into the South End, I feel as though something bad happened to him."

Joshua Szostak is described as 5-foot-11 and weighing 200 pounds.  He was last seen wearing baggy jeans, a black, hooded sweatshirt with skulls and crossbones, a white T-shirt, and tan sneakers.  Anyone with information about his disappearance is asked to contact the Albany Police Department at (518) 438-4000.

UPDATE: Josh has been found. For more information, please visit: www.joshuaszostak.com.

Photo Credit: Contributed

Investigation Discovery (ID): Coming Soon!

December 20, 2007

Discover the real truth.  The new authority in real investigation.  Witness the new network January 27.  Discovery's new network, Investigation Discovery (ID), promises to deliver remarkable insight into the real life world of investigation, exploration of the latest forensic analysis and dramatic true stories that piece together puzzles of human nature.  The network will continue to target viewers that crave moments of surprising discovery that make their minds race while following the twists and turns of multi-faceted investigations and intriguing world events.

AND, don't forget to add Investigation Discovery to your list of must-click sites for the New Year!  Check out dynamic, interactive content for the crime buff, super sleuth and investigation junkie!  Ever wondered how to clean up a crime scene?  Investigation Discovery has the answer!  Want to check out the ultimate guide to espionage?  You can find it on Investigation Discovery!  Think you can crack a criminal case?  Try your hand at Investigation Discovery's trivia game!  You'll find the latest content, games, quizzes, puzzles and more - all at Investigation Discovery's site beginning January 27, 2008. 

Can't wait?  Get an exciting preview of what's to come NOW!

Travis Lee Baker: Teen's Sudden Disappearance Baffles Police

It has been nearly a year since anyone has seen 19-year-old Travis Lee Baker and his family remains convinced foul play was involved in his sudden and mysterious disappearance.

Travis, a resident of Taylorsville, North Carolina, vanished without a trace on the morning of April 14, 2007.  According to family members, Travis had gone to visit a friend in Catawba that morning, and at 11:09 a.m., he called his fiancée, Haley, to tell her he was leaving to visit another friend.  During their brief conversation, they agreed to have lunch together later that day.

Less than twenty minutes later, Travis sent a text message to Haley that read: “Baby, I will see you in a few minutes.”  That would prove to be the last time his fiancée would hear from him.  Ensuing text messages from Haley were unanswered and calls to Travis’s cellphone went straight to voice mail.  He never showed up for the lunch date, and later that day, he failed to show up for his job at a major food distribution company.  Concerned for their son’s safety, Travis’s parents notified the Catawba County Sheriff’s Office and reported him missing.

Investigators conducted aerial searches the following day in an attempt to locate Travis’s car – a 1998 candy-apple-red Chevrolet Camaro, license plate number WRP8627 – but they were unable to find any trace of it.  Police also interviewed the friend with whom Travis was last seen.  What he told investigators remains unknown; however, a source close to the investigation alleges that he failed a polygraph test.

About a month after Travis’s disappearance, this friend allegedly called Travis’s parents and offered to share some trout that the two of them had caught while fishing together before Travis went missing.  During the phone call, Travis’s father, Dwayne Travis, asked the man to cooperate with police and tell them everything he knew.  The man agreed and said that he would call them the next day, but he never did, and shortly thereafter, he obtained legal representation. 

As time progressed, fly-over searches encompassed Florida, Georgia and South Carolina, but none resulted in the discovery of Travis or his car.

“We have no new concrete evidence,” Lt. Roy Brown of the Catawba County Sheriff’s Department recently stated in an interview with Observernewsonline.com, adding, “We don’t stop looking.  We don’t make presumptions.  We have had people that have been missing for 12 to 15 years show up alive.”

In addition to local and state authorities, the Kristen Foundation is also assisting the Baker family, by helping to raise funds to erect a highway billboard with Travis’s photo and information.

Police have received hundreds of tips in Travis’s case, but unfortunately, his parents still have no closure and no answers.  For them, not knowing is the hardest part.  His mother, Patricia Baker, has not had a good night sleep in months.  Her nerves make her sick with migraines and nausea, and his father says the fear and anxiety is almost too much to bear.

Travis’s family has distributed and posted hundreds of flyers, and they have started a MySpace page in the hope that it might result in a tip from someone who is too afraid to contact the police.  That profile reads in part:

“Hi, my name is Travis Lee Baker. I am an endangered missing person.  I was 19 years old before I disappeared but have since had a birthday on July 10, 2007, so now I'm 20 years old.  I am a great athlete; I played football my whole life and received so many trophies that you can't count them all.  I graduated from Bunker Hill High and went to work with my mom at MDI.  I've never missed even ONE day of work and am a homebody.  I like to fish, hunt and do anything outdoors with my dad… My car, personal belongings, cell phone, wallet, etc. have not been seen since April 16, 2007.”

Travis’s aunt Tonya also keeps a flyer taped to the front of her purse as she carries it around town, vowing not to remove it until he is found.  His family members, as they go about their daily business, are constantly on the lookout for any signs of Travis’s missing red Camaro. 

In the meantime, the family continues to hope, worry and wait.

Travis is described as 6 feet tall, 160 pounds, with short brown hair and blue eyes.  He has four tattoos: red and black tribal bands on his left and right upper arms, the name “Haley” on his chest and his last name “BAKER” in capital Old English letters on his back.

According to Kristenfoundation.org, an $11,000 Reward is being offered for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person(s) responsible for the disappearance of Travis Baker.  Anyone with information should contact the Catawba County Sheriff’s Office at 465-8301.  Anyone interested in donating space for a billboard should call (704) 846-7408.

Photo of Travis Lee Baker courtesy of his family

Jasmine Richardson: The Youngest Person Ever Charged with Multiple Counts of Murder in Canada

In April 2006, 12-year-old Jasmine Richardson became the youngest person ever charged with multiple counts of murder in Canada for her part in the cold-blooded murder of her parents and little brother.  The crime sent shockwaves throughout the country and made headlines around the world.  Both Richardson and her boyfriend, 23-year-old Jeremy Steinke, were active on the Internet. In the aftermath of their arrests, investigators uncovered several accounts that begged closer investigation.

On April 23, 2006, a 6-year-old boy in Medicine Hat told his parents he saw a body lying on the floor of their neighbor’s house.  Concerned, the young boy’s parents notified police and a unit was quickly dispatched to 304 Cameron Road. 

When officers entered the two-story home, they discovered the bodies of Marc Richardson, 42, and his wife Debra, 48, sprawled out on the home’s first floor.  In an upstairs bedroom they discovered the lifeless body of the Richardson’s son, 8-year-old Jacob, lying on a bed.

The key question among investigators was, who?  And why? 

After questioning neighbors, detectives realized the Richardson’s daughter, 12-year-old Jasmine Richardson, was missing, and possibly the victim of a kidnapping.  However, as the investigation progressed, evidence quickly pointed to her involvement in the murders. 

On April 24, 2006, police located Richardson and Steinke, 100 miles away in the town of Leader.  Both suspects were arrested at the scene and later charged with three counts of first-degree murder.

Police alleged that Richardson and Steinke’s secret relationship was the motive behind the murders.  Marc and Debra had recently forbid the two from having contact with each other, a move that had angered both young lovers.

As the investigation continued, detectives soon learned that Richardson had Internet profiles on MySpace, VampireFreaks.com and Zorpia.com. 

Richardson's MySpace profile contained little information, other than her personal "heroes," including notorious serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer and death metal musician Marilyn Manson.

A profile Richardson maintained at Zorpia.com listed her last login as Saturday, Feb. 25, 2006.  Richardson had uploaded three photos to the Web site that were somewhat deceptive, because her clothing and makeup made her look well beyond her 12 years.

Richardson also had a profile at VampireFreaks.com, an "industrial music and gothic culture" Web site, where users can post information and photos and communicate with others.  In her profile, Richardson described herself as "bisexual, Wiccan, nocturnal, awkward, loud, a deep thinker and insane."  She listed her interests as "unnatural hair colors, dark poetry, criminal psychology, blood, human anatomy and kinky s--t."

More telling were the profiles maintained by Steinke.

In a profile at Bolt.com, he described himself as a "gothic individual" who believed in "Blood, Destruction, Guts, Gore & Greed."  He wrote: "Am I God's champion or Satan's angel?  Roses are red, Roses have thorns, Hell hath no fury, like a little girl scorned!  Here's a quote that I think has alot [sic] to say, 'Never regret something that once made you happy!'"

Like Richardson, Steinke also had a profile at VampireFreaks.com.  He listed his interests as "freestyle BMX, skateboarding, snowboarding, gothic beings, my '81 Firebird, mosh pits, loud Music, peircings [sic], tattoos, scarification, pain, kinky fetishes, heavy metal, blood, razorblades, the dark, the moon, Mindfreaks Criss Angel, The Stars, eyeliner, gothic individuals, poetry, dark clothing, aggressiveness, biting, nails, Lycan's & My Girlfriend!"

Of his three online profiles, the most interesting proved to be one he kept at Windows Live Spaces.  In an April 3, 2006 posting he allegedly wrote:

"Payment!  My Lover's rents are totally unfair; they say that they really care; they don't know what is going on the [sic] just assume.  As their greed continues to consume, she is slowly going insane. She continues to thank that I came, into her life to help her out, and to stop what they keep trying to shout.  It's all total bullshit.  Their throats I want to slit.  They will regret the shit they have done.  Especially when I see to it that they are gone.  They shall pay for their insulince [sic].  Finally there shall be silence.  Their blood shall be payment!"

Unfortunately, less than four weeks later, those promises became a reality.

Because of Canada's Youth Criminal Justice Act, Richardson’s name went widely unreported in Canada and police were hesitant to release information on the case.  However, by the start of her trial, in the summer of 2007, many U.S. outlets had already published many pertinent facts about the case.

On June 4, 2007, Jasmine Richardson, now 14, stood before Court of Queen's Bench Judge Scott Brooker and pled not guilty to three counts of first-degree murder.

During the proceedings, prosecutor Stephanie Cleary told the courtroom that the murders were premeditated and that Richardson was an active participant. 

Two of the prosecution's key witnesses, neither of whom has been identified, told the court that prior to the murders Richardson had made her intent to kill her parents clear; however neither thought she was serious.

"I didn't think she meant it," one of the witnesses testified. "I thought she was saying it out of anger."

Cleary also entered into evidence a stack of jailhouse letters exchanged between Richardson and Steinke after their arrest.  In one of those letters, marked Exhibit 68, Richardson wrote:

"Never has a person affected me so much. Always will there be something missing without you with me.  My lawyer tells me we're ledgends, ha, closer to imortality it would seem." [sic throughout].

In his reply, Crown Exhibit 69, Steinke asked Richardson for her hand in marriage.  That letter read in part:

"I love you more than life its self, I've added you to my visitors lists so once your released please visit often.  Never forget how much I care or that I love you.  We can keep writing each other till we can be together again.  Without you this life isn’t worth living… U said you want to get engaged?  Then here's a Q...Will U marry me?  If so then it is a verbal agreement!" [sic throughout].

Richardson's reply, marked Exhibit 70, read in part:

"Ahahaha! I never thought I'd find myself hystericaly laughing in a holding cell in these kinds of circumstances...or ever really.  But still! ahaha you make me so happy!  Yes!  Yes!  I will, I would love to… Interesting information I came across.  Anything you can say to anyone, including a phycistrist, unless issued by a lawyer can be used against you!  For f--ks sake.  Rawr.  The world really is against us." [sic throughout].

In their letters, neither Richardson nor Steinke mentioned any guilt or remorse over the crimes, instead focusing on their relationship and their own predicament, which they seemed to view as only a temporary setback.  The letters also stood in contrast to statements Richardson made to the court when she took the stand on July 3, 2007.

When asked if she had discussed killing her parents prior to the murders, Richardson admitted having conversations about killing her parents, but claimed she was not serious.

"In my group of friends, it was just the way we talked," Richardson testified.  "It was just stupid talk.  Every time I said that, I never meant it.  I was angry.  I didn't mean it.  Everybody else knew I didn't mean it."

Confronted by the letters and asked why she had written that they were "legends" and "immortal," Richardson replied:

"I was told the media were going crazy over this," she said.  "That's our five minutes of fame.  Immortality means people will remember you."

The prosecution focused the remainder of its case on the day the murders took place. Thinking back, Richardson said she was not with Steinke when he attacked her mother and father and that she was upstairs with her brother, trying to cover his ears so he would not hear their cries for help.   

"It was horrible, I didn't want him to hear it," she testified.

Richardson said that when he was finished, Steinke came upstairs and told her to kill her little brother.

"He yells at me, 'Stab him, just stab him! Slit his throat!'  I said, 'I can't, I can't,’ and he said, 'You have to. I did this for you.'"

Richardson testified that her brother began to cry and pleaded for his life.  "I'm scared. I'm too young to die," Richardson recounted as her brother's last words, before stabbing him in the chest.

"Not very hard," Richardson said. "It was somewhere in his upper body.  It went to the side."

Richardson said that Steinke then took the knife from her and cut the boy's throat.

"He was gurgling," she testified.

When Richardson stepped down from the stand, the prosecution wrapped up its case and closing arguments began. The prosecution cited the case as premeditated murder, while Richardson’s lawyer, Tim Foster, contended that Steinke was the real perpetrator and his client was a victim of circumstance.

After a three-hour deliberation, on July 10, 2007, a jury found Richardson guilty of three counts of first-degree murder.  Afterward, Judge Brooker ordered a psychological assessment of Richardson.  According to that report, submitted to the court in October 2007, Richardson suffered from "conduct disorder" and "oppositional defiance disorder."

On Nov. 8, 2007, Judge Brooker sentenced Jasmine Richardson to the maximum 10-year sentence allowed by the Youth Criminal Justice Act.

"The circumstances surrounding these murders are horrific," Brooker said.  "It is difficult to imagine a more horrific crime than this.

"You can never undo what you did to your mom, dad and brother," Brooker said.  "However, what you can do is honor their memory by dedicating your life to becoming the woman your parents and brother would be proud of."

Richardson will serve four years of her sentence in a psychiatric hospital, at which time she will be released back into the public for 4½ years of court-ordered supervision.

As of this writing Jeremy Steinke has yet to go to trial.  A change of venue hearing in his case is scheduled for Feb. 2008.

Next post >>

Patricia Krenwinkel: From Manson Groupie to Model Prisoner

The Tate-LaBianca murders and subsequent trials captivated a nation at a time when peace and love was supposed to be at the forefront of everyone’s mind.  People wanted answers.  They wanted to know what kind of “monsters” could commit such inhuman acts and if it were even conceivable that those same monsters could be rehabilitated. 

The young men and women who got involved with Manson were mesmerized by his lifestyle and drawn to his character.  One of these individuals was Patricia Krenwinkel, who was later renamed “Katie” by Manson.

Patricia Krenwinkel was born December 3, 1947, in Los Angeles, California.  Her father was an insurance salesman, and her mother was a homemaker.  Her half-sister, Charlene, from her mother’s previous marriage, was six-and-a-half years older.  Patricia attended University High School and later Westchester High School.  She was very unpopular due to a weight issue and an endocrine disorder that caused excessive hair growth on her body.  These issues resulted in very low self-esteem, which, coupled with her parents’ divorce when she was seventeen, served only to lower her outlook on life.

After high school, Patricia moved to Alabama to attend a Catholic college.  She entertained the thought of becoming a nun but dropped out of college after her first semester and returned to California.  When she returned, she took a secretarial job and moved in with her half-sister. 

One night in 1967, when returning from work, she found the Manhattan Beach apartment full of her sister’s acquaintances.  Among them was a shabby, stoop-shouldered man with a guitar named Charles Manson.  The two struck up a conversation and later that night, Patricia made love to Manson.  He told her she was beautiful and, having not heard that from a man before, she was drawn to him.  Manson, using her vulnerability, quickly had her mesmerized and willing to follow him anywhere.

Patricia headed north with Manson and spent the next 18 months on a sex-and-drug-filled tour of the American West in an old bus.  Along the way, the number of Manson’s followers grew, and they eventually convinced George Spahn to let them live on his Spahn Movie Ranch.  Patricia quickly became the surrogate mother for the many illegitimate children in the group.  She was a very devoted follower of Manson, and this led to her involvement in the murders that led to her death sentence.

When Manson was ready to begin his Helter Skelter (an idea formed after listening to the Beatles’ song of the same name), he directed Patricia and others to go to 10050 Cielo Drive, home of actress Sharon Tate and director Roman Polaski.  Charles “Tex” Watson started the killing spree in the driveway when he shot and killed, 18-year-old Steven Parent.  The group then entered the home and, in the ensuing mayhem, Patricia struggled with and stabbed coffee heiress Abigail Folger.  When Folger fled, Patricia followed her into the yard, stabbing her continuously, some say as many as 70 times.  Folger’s white dress appeared red to police investigators the next day. 

Manson ordered the group out the next night to the home of wealthy grocer Leno LaBianca.  Manson went into the home and tied up Leno and his wife Rosemary, and then ordered the group to kill them and leave “witchy” messages on the walls.  After the couple had been stabbed multiple times, the group showered, ate, and played with the couple’s dogs before hitchhiking back to Spahn Ranch.  All tallied, the group had murdered seven people in a two-night killing spree. 

The heat began to pick up after the murders, due to unrelated investigations, and Manson ordered Patricia to leave.  When Susan Atkins later bragged about the murders in prison, Patricia was nabbed near her aunt’s home in Mobil, Alabama.  She claimed she had gone to Alabama out of fear that Manson would find her and kill her.  Patricia initially fought extradition, but in February of 1970, she waived her rights to extradition and returned willingly to face charges in California with Manson, Van Houten, and Atkins.  Her attorney offered a weak defense and in 1971, she was sentenced to death.  Her sentence was commuted to life in prison when the State of California eliminated the death penalty. 

Since the beginning of her incarceration, Patricia Krenwinkel has been a model prisoner at the California Institution for Women.  She quickly severed her ties with Manson and other members of the Family and as early as 1979, she enrolled in prison college classes and took on a job as a janitor inside the prison.  Patricia’s studies eventually paid off, and she received a degree in human services.  She then became involved with drug and alcohol counseling programs in the prison.  She helped many fellow inmates work through their addictions and took a stand against illiteracy by helping many of the incoming women learn how to read and write. 

Unlike many of Manson’s followers, Patricia has shown remorse for her actions.  During a 1994 interview with Dianne Sawyer, she said, “I wake up every day knowing that I'm a destroyer of the most precious thing, which is life; and I do that because that's what I deserve, to wake up every morning and know that.”

Patricia has also been involved in the Prison Pups program since its beginning in August 2002.  The program helps train puppies to be service dogs for people with disabilities.  The program stipulates that inmates stay out of trouble and dedicate their time to the dogs.  Patricia says the program gives her a sense of worth and a feeling she is giving something back.  She has personally trained seven dogs, and the program has produced over 100 service dogs to date.   

The dog-training program was also the focus of a special report that aired on KABC Channel 7 in Los Angeles in November of 2007.  The focus of the show was on Patricia’s success in the program and the intense commitment it required.

While not claiming to be a born again Christian and even shunning the generally accepted view of God, Patricia does feel compelled to help others.  She continues her work with inmates with addictions and those who need help learning to read.  She is also continuing her education and is studying graphic arts to complement her human services degree.  She hopes all of this may someday lead to the parole board agreeing that she has reformed, although she has admitted that she will understand if they do not. 

Patricia has been denied parole 11 times and will be going in front of the board for the 12th time in January 2008.

Photo credit: AP

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Lisa Marie Kimmell: DNA Helps Solve Fifteen-Year-Old “Lil Miss” Case

In the spring of 1988, Lisa Marie Kimmell's future was full of promise, and at only 18 years old, she had her whole life ahead of her.  Friends and family knew Lisa as "Lil Miss," a nickname she received when her grandmother began calling her Little Miss Marie years before.

After graduating from Billings Senior High, Lisa Marie moved to Denver where she worked as manager of an Arby's Restaurant. Life was great for Lisa, but it was all about to change on a fateful spring day in 1988.

On the morning of March 25, 1988, Lisa Marie Kimmell got into her new black Honda CRX with a personalized license plate that read "LILMISS" and started out on a trip from Denver to Billings, Montana, to visit family.  She planned to stop in Cody, Wyoming, along the way to pick up her boyfriend, Ed Jaroch.  Lisa was excited at the prospect of introducing Ed to her family.  Unfortunately, Lisa never made it that far.

After leaving Denver, the last verified account of Lisa's whereabouts would come from Wyoming State Highway Patrolman Al Lesco, who stopped her for speeding near Douglas.  Though unverified, some witnesses reported seeing her later that evening, near Casper.

Panicked by the uncharacteristic disappearance of their oldest child, Lisa Marie's parents, Ron and Sheila Kimmell, began a relentless search to discover what had happened to her.  Lisa's father chartered a plane to search for any signs of his daughter's black car from the air and, at one point, drove the route from Denver to Billings himself in hopes of spotting her.  The family also created posters with Lisa's picture and distributed them widely in hopes of getting a lead on her whereabouts.  Unfortunately, there was no sign of Lisa.  She had seemingly vanished into thin air.

On April 2. 1988, William Greg Bradford was with a friend on the North Platte River when they happened upon the partially clothed body of a young woman, just downstream from Government Bridge.  The body was later identified as that Lisa Marie Kimmell.  The teenager had been found, but there was no trace of her black Honda CRX with the unique license plate.  The mysterious case would soon become known as the "Lil Miss murder," and investigators asked for the public's help in locating her black sports car.

In the following weeks, police received several tips from people who thought they'd spotted Lisa's car, though none of them resulted in any solid leads.

Despite the fact that Lisa had been missing for eight days, the autopsy revealed that she had only been dead a short time.  Lisa had apparently been kept captive for several days before she was murdered and, until years later, only investigators would know the horrible details of Lisa's murder and how she likely spent her last days.

The ensuing investigation would bring out several possible suspects, including the highway patrolman who stopped her for speeding and the sheriff of Natrona County, although all the initial suspects were eventually cleared.  A year after Lisa disappeared, someone placed a mysterious note on her grave that said Lisa would be missed and that she'd "always live in me."  The note was signed as the fictional character Stringfellow Hawke from the 1980s TV series "Airwolf."  The clues led nowhere, and as the months and years sped by, the "Lil Miss" case went cold.

It would be more than fourteen years before police would finally get a break in the case. This happened when investigators ran a random DNA test and came up with a match to a federal prisoner incarcerated in Colorado.

The DNA taken from the crime scene matched that of Dale Wayne Eaton.  When investigators questioned one of Eaton's former neighbors, she told investigators that she had witnessed Eaton digging a large hole on his property around the time that Lisa Marie disappeared.  After taking the woman's statement, investigators quickly obtained a warrant.  Heavy equipment and backhoes were brought in to excavate the ground and, before long, searchers discovered Lisa's car buried over six feet below ground near an old trailer.

In April of 2003, Dale Wayne Eaton was formally charged with first-degree premeditated murder, aggravated kidnapping, aggravated robbery, first-degree sexual assault, and second-degree sexual assault, as well as three counts of first-degree felony murder.

Despite claims by Eaton that he had found Lisa Marie on his property and believed she was there to rob him, it is their belief that she was driving down a deserted stretch of freeway in Wyoming when she detoured to a rest stop, where she made her first contact with Dale Wayne Eaton.

It is speculated that, at this point, Eaton forced his way into Lisa's car and made her to drive to his property.  There, in a desolate area of Wyoming, he kept Lisa Marie prisoner for several days and raped her.

At some point, Eaton took Lisa to the North Platte River where he hit her on the head, fracturing her skull.  He then stabbed her six times before throwing her off the Government Bridge into the icy water of the river, where her body was later found.   

In March 2004, Dale Wayne Eaton was convicted of first-degree premeditated murder, aggravated kidnapping, and aggravated robbery, as well as first-degree sexual assault.  Eaton was given the death penalty for his hideous crimes.

Although Lisa Marie's murderer was convicted and justice finally served, the story doesn't stop there.  Some believe that Dale Wayne Eaton could be the infamous Great Basin Killer.

Though no evidence has turned up to link Eaton to the Great Basin Murders, he has become a person of interest in several homicides that took place in the '80s and '90s within the region.  Investigators believe Eaton fits the profile of a serial killer, and it may be more than just coincidence that the Great Basin Murders stopped after 1997 when he was incarcerated.

Next post >>

Investigation Discovery: Coming Soon!

Discover the real truth.  The new authority in real investigation.  Witness the new network January 27.  Discovery's new network, Investigation Discovery (ID), promises to deliver remarkable insight into the real life world of investigation, exploration of the latest forensic analysis and dramatic true stories that piece together puzzles of human nature.  The network will continue to target viewers that crave moments of surprising discovery that make their minds race while following the twists and turns of multi-faceted investigations and intriguing world events.

AND, don't forget to add Investigation Discovery to your list of must-click sites for the New Year!  Check out dynamic, interactive content for the crime buff, super sleuth and investigation junkie!  Ever wondered how to clean up a crime scene?  Investigation Discovery has the answer!  Want to check out the ultimate guide to espionage?  You can find it on Investigation Discovery!  Think you can crack a criminal case?  Try your hand at Investigation Discovery's trivia game!  You'll find the latest content, games, quizzes, puzzles and more - all at Investigation Discovery's site beginning January 27, 2008. 

Can't wait?  Get an exciting preview of what's to come NOW!