Timothy Sharp is in the Sevier County Jail on a first degree murder charge. The primary focus is on victims Rebekah Gould, Karen Johnson Swift, and Amanda Tusing. She left behind two college-age sons and two grade-school age daughters.. New book investigates unsolved murders across Northeast Arkansas New book investigates unsolved murders across Northeast Arkansas. In his book, Jared interviewed investigators and detectives who have worked on the case over many years. The real Wick claimed she didn't know the victim. After the body was initially found, it was sent to the state crime lab where positive identification was later made on May 11. Those with information can call or text the ISB Tip Line at (888) 653-0009; leave tips online by visiting http://www.nps.gov/ISB and clicking "Submit a Tip;" or by email at nps_isb@nps.gov. West Texans Are Learning What It Means to Live in Bear Country, How Florence ButtNot Her SonLaunched the H-E-B Empire, H-E-Bs True Texas BBQ Restaurant Is Slipping, Jimmy Carters Peanut-and-Egg Taco Made Quite the Impression on San Antonians. Golden was released on May 25, 2007, also his 21st birthday, after spending nine years in prison. Public Domain/Wikimedia. Horton and Ardis ODell Reed, the notary who witnessed Roberts signatures, were subsequently indicted for their roles. Why these two cities were chosen among some of the more exotic locations, which include Seattle, New Orleans, London, Tokyo, and Paris, is unclear. At the time of her death, Ted Hercutt told the News Sentinel in 2009, father anddaughter were embroiled in litigation over a piece of property. Lavinia and her husband were sentenced to death in October 1845. Little is known about the puzzle's creator(s). Rector then shot himself in the head in a suicide attempt. At around 10:30 p.m., Morgan asked her mother if she could catch lightning bugs with her friends. Investigators have exhausted nearly every lead in the case, yet Morgan's current whereabouts and condition remain unknown. When Harding College Associate Professor Ruby Stapleton was kidnapped from a Searcy laundromat in October 1963, her anxious students, colleagues and family had to wait an excruciating 11 days to learn her fate. "And I think that sometimes it takes years and years to solve a case. However, this neat package overlooks one minor detail: a flawless emerald-cut canary diamond that was worth $365,000 when it disappeared from its case in the museum eight years ago. 48-year-old Timothy Sharp is in the Sevier County Jail charged in the shooting death of his wife Crystal Sharp. Name: Date: Victims: Location : B: Charles Jason BALDWIN: May 5, 1993: 3 ? Other than Horton himself, no one except Ardis ODell Reed may know for certain where Tex Roberts is, but after he was released on $15,000 bond, Ardis ODell Reed vanished for over two years. Her case received assistance from the FBI, was the subject of several television specials, and inspired her mother to establish the Morgan Nick Foundation. Address: 137 W. Robinson Road De Queen, AR 71832 Administrative Office Hours: Monday - Friday 8am - 4:30pm Unsolved Cases We will post information regarding unsolved cases in Sevier County. The inquiry was hampered from the start when Horton was assaulted in the courthouse parking garage; his briefcase, containing important documents including the original power of attorney, was stolen. A spokesman for the U.S. Attorney's office confirmed Thursday there was nothing new in the case to report and the investigation is ongoing. The 2013 murder of Patricia Collins, the 2009 murder of Terry Sullivan, the 2006 murder of Hosea "Junior" Prince, the 1977 murder of Stanley Smith, and the 1996 murder of Lela Mae Adcock can also be found listed under a separate category of Tennessee murders, unsolved central Tennessee murders. No evidence exists of sexual assault in any of the cases, an unusual factor, Jared said. Bergeron looked at the familiar signature again and decided it didnt look quite right. Usually, its a quiet whisper because you dont want anyone to know you committed this horrible heinous crime.. 2. Crystal Sharp's body has been sent to Little Rock, Arkansas for an autopsy. "Yes the son called and told us that their dad had shot their mama," said Stringfellow. Email Map. Bergeronwho knew he was a major beneficiary under his friends willdidnt quite know what to think about Hortons assurances that Tex was getting the money. [ Feb 15, 2023 ] Two severe crashes in Greene County Crime [ Feb 15 , 2023 . There's just something that comes together at some point, and I truly believe that it will here, too. According to Project: Cold Case, from 1965 to 2019 there were around 9,951 murders in Arkansas alone. We believe the more resources we can provide to digital volunteers and citizen solvers mean more citizen detective communities. Blood samples taken from the bathroom were later lost by WMPD investigators before the WM3 went to trial. He found the usually locked front door ajar but no one home. Does a killer still roam free in Arkansas? However, a local witness claims that he saw two police officers beating two boys senseless in a store parking lot before tossing them into a truck and driving away. Detectives meet regularly with prosecutors to go over the case, McCarter said, and DNA evidence was recently resubmitted to the state crime labfor testing. You'll receive your first newsletter soon! On June 9, 1995, Morgan Nick and her mother, Colleen Nick, went to a Little League baseball game in their town of Alma, Arkansas. This date marked the first woman executed in Arkansas since 1845. The exact cause of death in Frazier's case has not been released. Investigators said the case remains under investigation. A local business owner was hit with check fraud, her report to police said, after a check from her account for several thousand dollars was cashed in North Little Rock. Most of these recent Little Rock murders have not been solved, and law enforcement continues to investigate their homicides. Finally, some unsolved central Arkansas murders include the 2011 murder of Kimberly Steele, the 2002 murder of Jane Murdaugh, the 1987 murder of Sandra Lynn Williams, and the 1995 murder of Robin Lynn Farnsworth, among others. Arkansas was no different. 9.Arkansas' role in a global internet enigma. Hercutt's father, Ted, was strong-willed, too. James Hendricks and Kimberlin Mills (known as Jimmy and Kim respectively) are American murder victims who were discovered on June 17, 1978. Police were able to track down the man responsible, James Roy McAlphin, and he's now in prison. Once confident of solving the case, they have lost their optimism with the years. Texarkana Siblings Charged in Burned Bodies Case. However, this neat package overlooks one minor. "I know you have paid someone to kill Shannon," Penny Stephens told Ted Hercutt, his mouth agape. But only nine months after Clinton won the White House, Parks was gunned down in West Little Rock. When a case goes cold its especially haunting to remember that there are actual people out there either waiting for their stories to be told or desperately trying to hide a secret from the world. With the first season of the Hell and Gone podcast bringing new attention and life to the case of Rebekah Goulds murder, Jared plans a very comprehensive break-down of all the new findings in the needless murder. The following day, he was sentenced to life in prison without parole. Shortly after India received its independence from Great Britain, the ruling maharajah decided to convert his jewelry into foreign currency. According to investigators, the man killed his wife in front of his children. Ted Hercutt was never charged, and he died in 2017. Without a doubt, the most famous murders in Arkansas, as well as the most controversial and infamous Arkansas murders case, is the 1993 triple homicide of 8 year olds Steve Branch, Michael Moore, and Christopher Byers, more commonly known as the West Memphis Three case. As for the police, they too have changed. In June of 2000, Amanda Tusing was found dead in the Big Bay Ditch in Craighead County, Arkansas, 14 miles from where her car was discovered three days earlier. Once Hazel Frome and her daughter Nancy had decided to drive from San Francisco to Parris Island, South Carolina, they might have chosen the northern transcontinental route instead of the southern road through El Pasobut they didnt. Forrest Wilder writes about politics and the outdoors. Remnants of a sunken ship? Investigators never found any evidence that he was involved in the killing, McCarter said. The case reached a new level of prominence in 2015 when Shannon Hercutt's sisterwent on the Dr. Phil show to accuse theirfatherof orchestrating her murder. On . Authorities in Arkansas are seeking information in a double homicide that has remained unsolved for 21 years. He made impossible, Topkapi-like entrances through seemingly inaccessible windows and slipped away unobserved on all but one occasion. At first, her mother was uncertain, but eventually let her go. In old interviews, Ted Hercutt openly acknowledged his status as a suspect but consistently denied any involvement. Or their Packard might not have developed a noise in the motor just before they reached the Texas border citybut it did. Miller county sheriff's deputies have charged a brother and sister with the murders of two Texarkana men who's bodies were found inside a charred car. These cases that involve Arkansas have yet to be solved and victims have yet to see justice. In Buddhism, the willow branch represents compassion. Police were summoned to the scene, but officers took the report via the drive-thru window and never entered the building to interview the suspect. This Cold Case remains unsolved. Boredom is the eternal curse of the fisherman. Police had noted in earlier posts Frazier had not been in contact with his family since Feb. 3 and had missed scheduled medical appointments and not reported to work. As of June, a $50,000 reward is being offered for information leading to the conviction of whoever killed Mathis. The case was solved in 2019, however the prime suspect, Rory Allen Gregory, died in prison before the case could go to trial. The two had a tumultuous relationship characterized by bouts of estrangement and reconciliation. The Springtime Jonquil Festival In Arkansas Thats Unlike Any Other, Spend A Magical Evening Savoring This Wine And Fondue Experience In Arkansas, Arkansas Oldest Drive-In Theater Is Hiding In A Small Town And Youll Want To Visit, Dine At The Historic Spot In Arkansas Where The Legendary Gangster Al Capone Drank Whiskey, 15 Movies You Probably Didnt Know Were Filmed In Arkansas, The Story Of The Serial Killer Who Terrorized This Small Arkansas Town Is Truly Frightening, History Has Forgotten This Bizarre Arkansas Event From 50 Years Ago, Not Many Folks Remember The Dark Tale Of The Arkansas Assassin. Susie m. Isaac Piner. More than 200,000 unsolved cases have gone cold since 1980, and murder clearance rates continue to drop. ", Texarkana Siblings Charged in Burned Bodies Case, La. He would not elaborate onShannon Hercutt's cause of death, nor would he say what deputiesfound when they went to her home. Unsolved Mysteries Wiki. The list of his victims read like the Dallas social register: James Ling, Clint Murchison, Sr., P. E. Haggerty (then president of Texas Instruments), and at least a dozen others. January 2023 Reader Quiz: What Did You Learn? All three were murdered. Texas Lege Watch: A House Republican Fights for Chicken Freedom, Texas Monthly Recognized by ASME in the 2023 National Magazine Awards. Huckabee's staff obliged, wiping the memory of more than 100 computers before smashing their hard drives beyond repair. Where is the diamond? If youre interested in learning about the statistics surrounding the number of murders in Arkansas by year, multiple law enforcement agencies offer reports and statistics on their websites. Volume 1. . Here are 10 more mysteries to explore. She had an Arkansas ID with the name "Cheryl Ann Wick," a Bible with various names scribbled inside, and a litany of items from a handful of restaurants in Virginia Beach. Since her disappearance, Colleen Nick has founded the Morgan Nick Foundation, which helps parents cope with the disappearances of children. Roberts ample fortune has disappeared toothough less mysteriouslyand so have two other people, and an attorney has served a prison term, making the Roberts affair one of the most bizarre missing persons cases on record. Authorities ask anyone with information in the case to call the Sevier County Sheriff's Office at 865-453-4668 or 865-428-1899. Inexplicably, though, Banks' case file was destroyed in 1992. They were partially undressed but had not been raped. Since the case against the men depended on his testimony, charges had to be dismissed after his death. Love Arkansas? Murder Mystery: Most Likely To Be Murdered Part 2. One of the survivors, Henry Greenbaum, describes watching five of his siblings die at the hands of the Nazis. But in 1897, two Arkansas lawmen allegedly had a face-to-face encounter with a UFO and its pilot. Family members said he was all but cut out of her will. Robert L. Tex Roberts wasperhaps still isan aging, eccentric, cigar-smoking millionaire. A successful businesswoman,Shannon Hercutt founded her company,Auntie Belham's Realty and Nightly Rentals, as the demand for vacation rental properties in the Great Smoky Mountains skyrocketed in the 1990s. "As long as they don't give up, I think there's hope.". A few examples of Arkansas cold cases which have been solved by DNA in recent years include the 2000 murder of Tawana Blunt and the 1985 murder of Mildred Lee Matheny, as well as many others. "I'll be seeing and hearing gunshots over there," said Arbor. "She was a well-kept lady.". She and her husband were getting divorced and she vanished a few weeks after filing. According to Project: Cold Case, from 1965 to 2019 there were 9,951 murders in Arkansas. The Sevier County Sheriff's Office, he insisted, has not forgotten about the killing. The Sevier County medical examiner did not respond to a request that he release the autopsy report. He lived withand perhaps still lives withan older female companion, Jessie Forsyth. None of his relatives would claim the body, and he was buried in a pauper's grave. On November 11, 2009, Vance was convicted of capital murder, residential burglary, rape, and theft of property. Another man at the scene was initially taken into custody on an unrelated charge and questioned about the incident, but was later released. That autopsy found Hercutt suffered headinjuries she couldn't possibly have sustained in the crash. It may be that last trait that can most be closely identified with the author. They may have information. If you enjoy coverage like this, consider a digital subscription that will allow you access to all of it. The search centered for a while on a young gigolo, but the police could prove nothing. Get more stories delivered right to your email. (The independent Roberts kept no servants.) At the sound of the alarm, the exit from the room containing the diamond was blocked by a gate descending from the ceilingbut the thief left the lawn chair in the doorway to keep the gate from dropping all the way to the floor. "I can take it." But he would like to. It was not unusual for the 85-year-old Roberts to leave the house suddenly, but it was virtually unprecedented for 89-year-old, infirm Jessie Forsyth to accompany him. He finally sat down with the lead investigator on the case over a year ago and Jared said they hashed it out. Even Rudolf Nureyev would have difficulty performing such a feat. Penny Stephens said she went to her sister's house after the killing and sawa baseball bat, blood on the outside refrigerator and two busted bottles of alcohol onthe floor. Four days after they finally left El Paso, a county sheriff found them, dead and mutilated, in the desolate wasteland six miles east of Van Horn and half a mile south of U.S. 80. The decision remains controversial as the families of the three victims are divided in their opinions as to the guilt or innocence of the West Memphis Three. Approaching with their guns drawn, a bearded man emerged from the forest and told them that he and his crew were travelling the country in an "airship". Cicada 3301 is the name of a group that has annually for the past three years at least created what's essentially an online scavenger hunt for the technologically savvy. His large, 300-pound frame had been set on fire and burned beyond recognition. The lawmen at the scene, he said,did not go down the embankment to view his daughter's body. The attempt effectively resulted in a lobotomy. As of this writing, however, the latest mention of this story dates back to late 2011. By the late 1940s, he had amassed a small fortune. You'll receive your first newsletter soon! So what's all this got to do with Arkansas? Sheriff Stringfellow adds, "Oh yes, we've had several restraining orders, but the couple would somehow makeup.". The property had been sold to a management company created and owned by Horton. Friday Sept. 8, Bausdell and Stewart Ownby two huntsmen came upon a skeleton of a human being about a mile and a half from the . AR man allegedly kills wife in front of sons, La. Print Headline: Work on unsolved Hot Springs killings goes on in '22. Adding another twist in the case, Gary was recently charged with the murder of his mother's new husband, David Millstein. Thank you! The pair were believed to have been seen together at a truck stop in Missouri, which is where the murders are presumed to have taken place.Hendricks was left at the crime scene, while Mills was found in Mississippi County, Arkansas. Rumors swirled. "We've always kept this case open. Whether you agree or disagree with the amount of justice served in the courts decisions, theres no doubt that these terrible murders or even the punishments served by the perpetrators will be erased from the minds of Natural State natives anytime soon. Clues have been hidden in digital images, spread physically across the globe, and often reference the work of famous philosophers and complex mathematical theorems. The transaction, according to the indictment, was to have taken place in a Houston motel room, but just as the exchange was about to begin, the group was held up and robbed by a menaced man brandishing a shotgun. In most of the cases, authorities have made appeals to the public for help. You may find yourself wondering, Why is Arkansas crime rate so high? Although there is not a single, nor a simple, answer to this complex question, it can be assumed that Little Rocks crime rate is higher than smaller towns in Arkansas due majorly to its size and population. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. It worked. HOT SPRINGS -- The new year began with some homicides still unsolved. Travis Dorman covers crime, breaking news and law enforcement. Ford shot at the creature and it briefly fell to the ground before disappearing into the night. However, due to an ever-expanding Pulaski County, the once rural highway is slowly being overrun by suburbia. Each time the thief knew exactly what he was doing. HOT SPRINGS -- The new year began with some homicides still unsolved. A-State Announces 2017 Spring Graduation List, JPD: One arrested after downtown crowd gets out of hand, Two teens arrested in Jonesboro shootings, Sheriff investigating raw sewage dumped in Izard County, Suspect breaks into home and refuses to come out: JPD, Report: Male assaulted, shot at in Jonesboro. Four days after Mathis was found, on Dec. 29, around 1:30 p.m., the bodies of Shaquilla Watts, 21, and her son, Zay'vion Watts, 5, were found inside their residence at Pebble Creek Apartments, 201 Wynn St. "It was determined both had been shot to death," Cpl. Example video title will go here for this video. No one knows precisely what he is doing today because Tex Roberts and Jessie Forsyth vanished mysteriously from his suburban Dallas mansion six years ago and havent been seen since. Rector survived the surgery and was put on trial, his defense arguing that Rector was intellectually impaired and not competent to stand trial. Some of the biggest unsolved murders in Arkansas include the 1994 murder of Melissa Missy Witt, the 1995 murder of Marlo Taylor, and the 1987 double murder of Don Henry and Kevin Ives, among countless others which receive much less media attention. The Cadillac Escalade was towed to an impound lot, andthe 40-year-old businesswoman's body was sent to a funeral home to be preparedfor burial. Occasionally the monotony is broken by a piece of flotsam floating far out. [], JONESBORO, Ark. Jared takes a deep personal interest in these cases and others he covers, often becoming close with the family of the victims. After trekking through the woods, they eventually found the source of the light. Barnett may have been the same John Barnett who, at the time of the 1900 census, was living in Independence Township (Lee County). Some of the biggest unsolved murders in Arkansas include the 1994 murder of. The telling of the story varies wildly. All rights reserved. Unsolved Murder in Sevier County. A crowd of several hundred in the downtown Jonesboro area was dispersed early Saturday by Jonesboro authorities but not before one man was arrested for allegedly refusing to follow the officers orders. National Park Service special agents are working with the other agencies "to find out more about the days leading up to White's death," the statement said, and seeking tips from the public to determine the circumstances related to her homicide. When the Sevier County officers arrived, appellant admitted to being in his parents' home to get the keys to a family vehicle, a Chrysler Conquest, on the night of the murders. The Sevier County officials told appellant that they had a subpoena issued by the Sevier County Prosecuting Attorney and that they wanted to question him further in . All rights reserved. Her possessions gave investigators little to work with. The siblings are being held without bond.Captain Toby Giles of the Miller County Sheriff's Department says interviews and good police work led them to the suspects. The victim was a young blonde, and she had been savagely beaten before being shot in the. One caller even told the Jefferson County sheriff's department that he saw a mushroom cloud-like explosion in the vicinity of the fire.