Trace Evidence

As Christmas of 1995 drew near, many families in rural Ohio drew closer and felt themselves caught up in the joy and pageantry of the holiday season.  Unfortunately, for one family, the holiday would forever be associated with pain and grief, loss and doubt, a disappearance and the unknown.

John and Shelly Markley were devoted and loving parents to their five children.  During a week already marked by a family tragedy, John and Shelly mysteriously vanished on the morning of Friday, December 15th.  The last sighting of the couple was made by a bank teller who waited on them at...

When thirty-four year old Sherri Holland never arrived at her north Atlanta home after a drive up from Florida, her family knew something was wrong.  More than a week later, her car was found abandoned along the side of I-75, less than thirty miles from her home.  The car was in good shape, but a nail had flattened the front tire.

Days later, Sherri's beloved dogs were found less than three miles from the car but there was no sign of the missing woman.  As investigators dug deeper into the case they found many people unwilling to cooperate and...

Twenty-eight year old Peggy Anne McGuire was last seen dropping her son off for school in Canadian, Oklahoma on the morning of Monday, November 16th, 2015.  Within hours of leaving the school, the single mother would mysterious disappear leaving behind a series of confusing clues which continue to cloud the truth.

The day after her disappearance a local bar captured an unidentified individual on surveillance footage abandoning Peggy's truck in the early morning hours before disappearing into the pre-dawn darkness.  That individual has never been identified nor has anyone been named a person of interest or suspect.

Fo...

Mary "Bobo" Shinn was a well liked, friendly and talented artist and teacher living in her native Magnolia, Arkansas.  Teaching classes out of a small art studio she purchased north of the town square, she made strong connections with many people, both children and adults, as she guided them to find their artistic abilities.

On Thursday, July 20th, 1978, the twenty-five year old was supposed to get together with friends when she received a call from a man interested in purchasing a house she'd recently remodeled.  Bobo agreed to pick the man up, since his car was in the sh...

In this Special Episode, we take a look back at 2024 and answer listener submitted questions about the show, specific cases and anything that you want to know.  Following the Q&A there is a short "state of the podcast" segment in which we discuss plans for 2025, new ideas for the show and different ways to get you, the listener, more involved.  Regular episodes will return next week as we enter our 8th year of Trace Evidence with the release of episode 246.

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In this special Update episode, we look back on six cases previously featured on Trace Evidence which have had major updates.  We begin with the case of Charles and Catherine Romer who disappeared more than forty years ago during a drive from Florida to New York.  

In addition to new discoveries in that case, we'll look into new searches and developments in the disappearance of Asha Degree, the Murder of Justin Turner, the abduction and murder of Jessica Gutierrez, the disappearance of Branson Perry and the murder of Faith Hedgepeth.  

If you would like to submit a q...

On a cold, rainy spring night in April of 1987, seventeen year old Martha Leanne Green mysteriously vanished.  After the car she and her brother were driving ran out of gas, Leanne remained behind in the car while her brother went to get help.  Returning less than fifteen minutes later, the car was empty and Leanne has never been seen again.  

Investigators determined the seventeen year old had been abducted and several suspects were identified.  One, in particular, was thought to have taken Leanne and committed similar crimes throughout the area.  Law enforcement never collected enough evidence to charge the m...

When twenty-nine year old Loy Evitts failed to return to her Kansas City, MO office job after taking a late lunch, her co-workers were concerned.  When they found her car, parked in its assigned spot, but could find no trace of the woman, that concern transformed into worry.  They quickly called her home and spoke to her husband, Don, who immediately knew something had to be wrong.

The next day, Kansas City Police kicked off a massive search for Loy.  They interviewed co-workers and friends, they went around town and established a timeline which showed everywhere and everything the...

When thirty-two year old Shirley McAvoy didn't show up for her youngest daughter's birthday everyone knew something was wrong.  After being unable to reach her, Shirley's estranged husband, Brian, reported her missing to the Pittsfield Police Department in Maine.

Initially, investigators found nothing to indicate a crime had been committed and did little other than issue a statewide bolo for Shirley and her car.  Thirty-four days later, a massive puddle of blood was discovered in Shirley's home.

Friends and neighbors told a strange tale about a man who called himself "Jerry."  Jerry moved into Shirley's home jus...

Twenty-three year old Randy Church was a bright, talented and driven student attending Montana State University.  Majoring in electrical engineering, Randy was excited for what opportunities the future would afford.  Living off campus in Bozeman at the time, Randy picked up a part time job at a local Pizza Hut.  He quickly was promoted to the position of shift supervisor.

On the evening of Saturday, February 9th, 1985, Randy was scheduled on a closing shift.  Locking up just after midnight, he stayed behind with one other employee to clean and prep for the next day's business.  At approximately 3 AM, Randy...

Ten year old Amber Barker was riding her bike home from a friend's house.  It wasn't a long distance, just over half a mile through neighborhood roads she was highly familiar with.  Unfortunately, she never arrived.

Within hours, the Oklahoma City Police Department descended upon the neighborhood and began searching.  The next day they were joined by more than 30 FBI agents.  It was clear that something sinister had occurred.

While investigators maintained optimism in the beginning, the discovery of a disturbing trail of clues suggested the child was in grave danger.  Closing in on a person of in...

Two days after Christmas of 1993, thirty-eight year old nurse and mother of two, Latricia White failed to show up for work.  Hours later, her father went to her home and was devastated to find her lifeless body lying in bed.  It would later be determined she had been shot multiple times in the head as she slept.

Investigators soon learned of Lee Wackerhagen, Latricia's live in boyfriend, who was nowhere to be found.  Not only was Lee missing, but so was his nine year old son, Chance.  Days later, Lee's abandoned truck was found in east Austin, the bed...

On a warm spring night in March of 1975, thirty-two year old John Harden completed an emergency call for a client and returned home.  Less than an hour later, he'd be shot dead in his driveway.

After finishing his shower, John glanced out the window and saw his work truck engulfed in flames.  Running outside to try and snuff out the blaze, his killer got his opening and fired a single blast from his gun.  John fell to the pavement and died from his wounds less than twenty minutes later.
Investigators would later determine that the fire had bee...

On November 13th, 1993, twenty-eight year old Lola Katherine Fry attended a party at a northeastside Indianapolis apartment owned by a friend.  She has never been seen again and more than thirty years later the mystery of her disappearance haunts family and friends.

Reported missing, the Indiana State Police began their investigation by interviewing everyone who had been at the party.  They all told the same story, that Kathy left with her former boyfriend, John Ryker.  Ryker would tell authorities that, the next morning he ran out on a job call and when he returned Kathy and her car wer...

On Friday, September 24th, 1971, sixteen year old Cathy Moulton disappeared while walking home in downtown Portland, Maine. Despite the desperate pleas of her family, local law enforcement treated the case as that of a runaway and did almost no investigation whatsoever.

For more than twenty years, the Moulton family did their best to investigate the case themselves. They followed leads, interviewed witnesses and hired private investigators but could get no closer to the truth. Finally, in 1995, a new detective looked at the case and was determined to find answers.

Detective Kevin Cady would quickly uncover a...

Forty-seven year old Bill Dwayne Shipley was making final preparations for a multi-state trip for work. Operating as a contract painter, Bill would leave his home in Goldsby, Oklahoma, heading east into Arkansas, north into Missouri, west into Kansas and finally back home. It was set to be a fun and lucrative trip, but Bill never made it. In fact, no one can say with any certainty what exactly happened to him after July 19th, 2011.

When Bill failed to contact his family or return calls, his parents decided to stop by his home and check in on him...

In today's special update episode we cover breaking news revolving around two infamous cases.

First we look into the announcement that the Berkeley County Sheriff's Office has officially charged Victor Lee Turner and Megan Turner with the 1989 murder of five year old Justin Turner whose body was found inside of a camper on his father and stepmother's property.

WCBD News 2 Archival Footage

In addition to this, we tackle breaking news regarding the closing of a case which had drawn national interest. Dexter Stefonek was murdered and his car burned at a rest...

Twenty-five year old Sigrid Stevenson left her home in California to attend one of the country's most prestigious and respected music programs at Trenton State College in Ewing Township, New Jersey. Tragically, at the beginning of her second year pursuing her master's degree, she would become the victim of a brutal and violent murder. Nearly fifty years later, and her case remains unsolved.

On the night of Sunday, September 4th, 1977, campus police found Sigrid's body lying in a pool of blood on the stage of Kendall Hall. It was a grisly and bloody scene and ultimately it was...

On the morning of Monday, December 13, 2004, twenty-six year old Stephan Adams mysteriously vanished while driving south from Tahlequah to Keys in eastern Oklahoma. The divorced, father of one, spoke to his girlfriend on the phone and informed her that he was giving an unnamed individual a ride to the area. He has never been heard from again nor has his truck ever been found.

Stephan's disappearance came at a turning point in his life. For the previous four years he had been embroiled in a bitter custody dispute with his ex-wife and had been accused of crimes against...

On December 21st, 1988, in rural Ware County, Georgia, investigators were called to a disturbing scene. Down a dirt road, in a dusty turn around utilized as a makeshift, illegal dump, a truck driver found the remains of an unidentified child. The child, a black female, had been wrapped in a blanket, placed inside a duffle bag and covered over with concrete. That bag was then put inside a footlocker or trunk, which was also then filled with concrete. The trunk was then wrapped in tape, sealed in thick plastic and shoved inside an old, broken television console.

For...

On the morning of May 5th, 1983, a horrified mother entered the home shared by her daughter and son-in-law and came upon a grisly scene. Her son-in-law, twenty year old Paul Jones, lay dead on the bedroom floor the victim of a stabbing. Despite her desperate search she could find no trace of her nineteen year old daughter, Melody.

Investigators with the Pottawatomie County Sheriff's Office and the OSBI theorized that intruders had entered the couples' home during the night, murdered Paul and abducted Melody. Working with a severe lack of evidence, they struggled to put the pieces together...

On Wednesday, December 21st, 1988, a timber truck driver making his way through rural Georgia made a horrifying discovery. Just off US Route 82, down at the end of a long dirt road, in a dusty turn out which doubled as an illegal dumping ground, he found the remains of an unidentified toddler wedged inside of an old television console.

Investigators would later reveal that the child, described as a young black girl, was estimated to be between the ages of 3 and 4 and had likely been dead for thirty to sixty days. Whoever had dumped her in that spot had...

In this special update episode we examine major breaking news that the previously unidentified victim found adjacent to I-40 in Orange County, NC in September of 1990 has finally had her name returned to her.

Twenty year old Lisa Coburn Kesler was identified through genetic geneaology and now investigators want to find anyone who knew her. They also hope, that by unlocking Lisa's past, they can uncover the person behind her murder. Listen to the full, original episode 207 - New Hope Jane Doe.

In addition, we take a look at three cases previously covered on Trace Evidence...

The last time anyone spoke to LaTonya Roberts was the last night she was ever seen alive. Around 11 PM on Friday, December 16th, 1994, she called her sister and asked if she wanted to go to the club. In the end, LaTonya seemed set to head off on her own but when she didn't come home, everyone knew something was terribly wrong.

Her father found her abandoned car two days later, on Sunday. It was parked half a mile from the club she was supposed to attend. The doors were locked and there was no sign of forced entry...

On an unseasonably warm night in Northwest Indianapolis, nineteen year old Trisha Meredith made the two minute walk from her new apartment to the laundry room. Accompanied by her boyfriend, he went back to make a call while Trisha stayed behind. Sometime during the thirty minutes, an unknown killer entered the room and attacked Trisha.

Evidence at the scene showed Trisha had fought, tooth and nail, against her assailant. She sustained multiple defensive wounds before she sought shelter, trying unsuccessfully to squeeze behind a washing machine to avoid the blade of her attacker. When her boyfriend returned, he...

Eighteen year old Colleen Perris had the world at her fingertips and couldn't wait to chase down her dreams whether they led to Hollywood or American Idol, she was game. Then, on a lazy Saturday afternoon her cell phone rang and she quickly left the house. She has never been seen again.

Six days later her car was found in a strip mall parking lot, resting in a space beside an abandoned fast food restaurant. Her purse was inside, though her wallet and phone were missing and bad weather had completely erased any forensic evidence from the exterior...