WEBVTT
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Every story has a beginning, but not everyone has an ending.
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In the shadows of headlines and buried police reports lay
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the voices of the missing, the murdered, and the forgotten,
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waiting to be heard and have their stories told. This
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is The Book of the Dead, a true crime podcast
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where we remember forgotten victims of heinous crimes, reopen cold cases,
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re visit haunting disappearances, and uncover the truths buried beneath
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the years of silence. I'm your host, Courtney Liso, and
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every week we turn to another chapter, one victim, one mystery,
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one step closer to justice. Brought to you by Darkast
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Network INDEP Podcasts with the Twist. Hello, Hello, Welcome to
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the next chapter in the Book of the Dead. In
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the summer of nineteen seventy five, a twenty six year
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old woman was trying to start over. A teacher described
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as intelligent, caring, and deeply devoted to her students, she
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had recently filed for divorce from her husband after years
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of marital problems. Friends believed she was ready to move
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forward with her life, but just six months after filing
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for divorce, she vanished from Iowa City, Iowa, without a trace.
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At first, there was hope that she had simply left
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town for a few days, but as hours turned into
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days and days into weeks, that hope began to fade.
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She never contacted her family, she never returned to work,
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and she never picked up the pieces of the life
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she had been fighting to rebuild. What followed was a
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case filled with unanswered questions, suspicion, and silence. Those closest
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to her were forced to confront a terrifying possibility that
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someone knew exactly what happened to her and had managed
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to keep that secret hidden for decades. Nearly fifty years later,
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the disappearance of a young woman who was just beginning
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to start over again remains unsolved. No arrests, no definitive answers,
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just a young teacher who vanished and a police force
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baffled by the questions left in her wake. This is
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the disappearance of Jane Wakefield. Jane Ellen Halberg was born
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on November nineteenth, nineteen forty eight, in Luddington, Michigan, to
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Richard and Pauline Halberg. She was the second of three daughters.
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She had an older sister, Susan Jean, and a younger
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sister named Karen. Very little is known about Jane's childhood,
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but she would attend Bloomington High School and did incredibly
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well in her classes when she balanced her studies with
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various extracurricular activities and clubs. She was part of the
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National Honor Society, the School Spanish Club, as well as
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the swim club. While information about her friendships is also scarce,
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she did of a childhood friendnamed Carol, who Jane had
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met in seventh grade, and they remained close throughout elementary
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and high school. While in their senior year, Jane and
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Carroll both had plans to attend Morningside College in Sioux City, Iowa.
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Of course, the two had to be roommates they were
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such good friends, and they entered their freshman year in
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nineteen sixty six. That year, Jane started working at Sue
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City's Public Museum while attending her classes, and that spring,
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according to Iowa coldcases dot Org, she was introduced by
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her co worker to a man named John Wakefield, who
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was a graduate student working towards a PhD in business
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administration at the University of Iowa. Jane and John hit
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it off, and she would go on to move in
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with him after her freshman year concluded in nineteen sixty seven.
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While her relationship was blossoming, that summer was a hard
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one for Jane. On July nineteenth, nineteen sixty seven, Jane
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was involved in a four car collision where one person
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lost their life. According to an article for the Gazette,
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Jane had just pulled out of a service station at
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the highway intersection of Rocky Shore Drive, heading east when
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fifty one year old alan Neale, who was driving west,
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was hit head on. Shortly after, two more cars crashed
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into them as well, driven by twenty year old William
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Mueller and fifty six year old Florence Cochrane. It's possible
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the lack of visibility caused by heavy rain that day
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contributed to the accident. Jane and William Mueller were treated
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for minor injuries at the University Hospital, but alan Neiale
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died shortly after the crash. Florence was not mentioned as
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being injured. That September, Jane and John married, according to
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the Sioux City Journal, at Trinity Lutheran Church. Also according
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to that marriage announcement, it seems like Jane's father might
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not have attended the wedding of his middle daughter. He
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was not mentioned in the announcement, and it states that
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Jane was given away by a man named George Evans.
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It's likely that Jane and her father had a falling
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out or at minimum a very strained relationship due to
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her parents' marital troubles. Richard and Pauline would end up
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divorcing in nineteen sixty eight. According to a blog post
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in another Bundy blog dot com. Richard would later marry
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two more times, and Pauline would go on to marry
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again as well. Also in October of nineteen sixty eight,
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Allan Neil's wife, Yola, filed for fifty thousand dollars in
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damages against Jane and John, as well as Hokee Oldsmobile
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Cadillac Company, alleging that her husband died as a result
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of the injuries suffered after being struck by Jean's car.
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According to an article for The Gazette, the resolution to
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that suit is not known. After marrying, Jane would go
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on to transfer to the University of Iowa to finish
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her studies, graduating with her bachelor's in psychology in nineteen seventy.
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After graduation, Jane became a teacher where working in both
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the Prairie and Waco school districts, teaching math and reading.
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The Waco district, according to a woman who allegedly worked
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with Jane at this time named Wendy Laska, who left
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to comment on the Iowa Cold Case website, was a
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consolidated districts in southern Iowa. Wendy and Jane were the
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same age and the only two teachers who apparently smoked
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at the school, so they spent a lot of time bonding.
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Wendy said that Jane assisted Wendy when she put plays
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on at Old Hills High School, and when Wendy experienced
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complications while giving birth, Jane sek into the Wayland Hospital
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to bring Gibbs and be a source of support for her.
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She claimed to have only met John once, but Jane
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confided in Wendy that her marriage wasn't going well and
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she was very unhappy. According to the Charlie Project, the
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source of their problems stemmed from Jane's desire to have children,
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but John did not. In March of nineteen seventy five,
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Jane filed for divorce and moved out of the apartment
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she and John shared at nine to twenty three Iowa
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Avenue in Iowa City. She moved into the Bonair Mobile
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Home Park in Iowa City and tried to move on
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with her life, taking a new teaching job at Penns
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School in North Liberty that August. However, the divorce process
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was tied up, allegedly due to debates on how she
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and John were supposed to divide the two businesses he
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owned during their marriage. According to a friend of Jane's,
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Hank Reed, he told the Iowa City Press Citizen that
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Jane wanted the tavern called Magoos in the divorce. She
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had worked there when it went up for sale in
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nineteen seventy three and told John about it, leading to
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him purchasing it. Jane went on to manage the bar
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after the sale, and her mother, Pauline, said quote she
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felt that it was her bar. It was very lucrative.
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John disagreed that this was the reason for the delay,
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though he claimed the holdup came from Jane being dissatisfied
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with the five thousand dollars settlement he offered her. She
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apparently wanted seven thousand dollars, and he had allegedly told
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her if she wanted mcgoos she could have it if
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she paid for it. Even though the proceedings were being
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held Upane began finding joy in the chaos, and she
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started dating an un named man. Around the summer of
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nineteen seventy five, things were looking up, and at twenty six,
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Jane should have had the rest of her life to
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look forward to. But everything changed just as things were
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falling into place. On September sixth, nineteen seventy five, Jane
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went on a bike ride with a group of friends,
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mentioning that she had an appointment to attend that she
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needed to get back for later that afternoon, around two thirty,
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according to the Gazette, her neighbor spoke to Jane and
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said that everything seemed normal with her. The next day,
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according to Iowa coldcases dot Org, a friend of Jane's
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went to the mobile home park to visit her, but
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she didn't appear to be home. No one answered the
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door when they knocked, so the friend left. This friend
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likely assumed that Jane was out for the day or
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maybe running errands. However, on September eighth, a Monday, Jane
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failed to turn up for the school day. According to
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another article for the Gazett. The principal of Penn Elementary School,
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Larry Sharp, was concerned when he couldn't reach Jane after
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she failed to turn up her classes. School officials called
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the manager of the Bonair Mobile home park, who in
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turn called Jane's new boyfriend, who were both unable to
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reach her. The manager and the boyfriend both went to
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her home. They noticed her bicycle locked up and her
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carnet's parking space. The police were notified and when they arrived,
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investigators found her belongings in the trailer and evidence that
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she had recently showered, But there was no sign of
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Jane anywhere, nor was there any sign of foul play.
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While there were no obvious signs of a struggle or
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that something had happened to Jane, there was also zero
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evidence to suggest she had run off, as all of
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her belongings were where they should be. Detective William Kidwell
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said quote, there was nothing in her home to indicate violence.
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It would appear that she had just left the trailer
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and was going to come back. Very soon. After Jane
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was reported missing, it was speculated that she had possibly
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and off with a cult referred to as Jesus People.
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As two previously reported missing people from Iowa City had
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been found with them in Coralville. According to the Gazette,
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investigations of the campsite revealed zero connection to Jane, and
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her family and friends said it was highly unlikely she
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would have gone off with them. Investigators confirmed her background
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information that she had no connection to the religious group.
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As a side note, this is not the first time
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I've mentioned the Jesus People movement, so if you want
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more information on that, you can listen to chapter one, fourteen,
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where I cover the disappearance of Jeanette's palma. As police
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candae the area, talking to neighbors and looking for leeds,
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they learned from residents that late Saturday night, yelling or
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screaming had been heard, but no one was positive where
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the sound was coming from. As there was a party
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being thrown at the time that was very noisy. Most
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assumed the yelling had come from the partiers and they
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didn't think much of it. Captain Patrick Carney of the
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Iowa City Police said of this report and report from
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the friend that tried to visit Jane that Sunday quote. Obviously,
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between Saturday night and Sunday morning, she disappeared Two days
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after Jane was reported missing, Iowa City police drained two
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lagoons near the mobile home park, but nothing relating to
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Jane's case was found. Then a month later, in October,
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the Sheriff's office in Lyon County, Kansas called and said
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that they had received a tip from a man in Emporia, Kansas,
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who reportedly heard two males talking in a motel room
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about getting rid of a woman. They allegedly said of
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disposing of the woman, quote the same way we did
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that one back in Iowa City in a sewage lagoon.
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The man that reported this was staying in the room
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next door and could hear a bulk of this conversation,
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but he was unable to give any sort of description
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of the men or their vehicle. Kansas police said that
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the man did not report the information immediately upon hearing it,
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but it was unclear how soon after Jane's disappearance this
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alleged conversation took place. As a side note in a
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nineteen ninety two article for the Gazette, it was stated
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that this conversation was actually overheard in August before Jane
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wit missing. In response to the tip, Iowa City police
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drained two ponds near Jane's home, though admittedly not lagoons,
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over the course of nine and a half hours, but
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nothing was found to aid in the investigation. At the
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possibility of draining other bodies of water, Acting Police Chief
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David Epstein said that it was quote under discussion, and
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they had no other leads at that point. Police had
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administered multiple polygraphs to different individuals connected to Jane by
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this point and all had passed, though one person of
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interest allegedly refused to take one. At a loss as
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to where to look next, the police turned to psychics
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for assistance in the search for Jane. Detective Kidwell said, quote.
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The psychics all said she'd be found in a body
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of water. Some said she'd be as close as one
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and a half miles from her residence, and the farthest
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distance was eight hundred and fifteen miles. Four months after
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Jane Disas disappeared, according to The Gazette, a confidential informant
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approached police and said that a friend of theirs had
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admitted to murdering Jane and cremating her body in an insiderator.
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The informant claimed this individual had driven to the airport
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on September sixth and cedar Rapids to rent a car
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this same make and model as Jane's boyfriend in an
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attempt to incriminate him. This person then drove to Jane's
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home and killed her after an argument via manual strangulation.
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Before transporting her body to the apartment where John Wakefield,
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jane soon to be ex husband, was living. The individual
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placed Jane's body, as well as trash bags and a
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large amount of charcoal in the building's incinerator and started
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the fire. After the fire was out, this person swept
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out the incinerator and the contents were placed into a
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garbage bag, which was then strewn along a ditch somewhere
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on the shoulder of I eighty. This informant was given
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a polygraph test as well, and they passed, though their
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identity and the identity of their friend has never been
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released by police, though we'll talk about that in a moment.
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Days after this information was told to police, Captain kl
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Stock said that there was quote significant new evidence to
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suspect foul play. According to the Daily Iowan, however, quote
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there is no proof that Wakefield is deceased, but when
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foul play is indicated, it usually does mean that the
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person is deceased. Search warrants were then obtained for the
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apartment building, incinerator and Bold businesses owned by John, a
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lounge and billiard parlor. According to the Gazette, the police
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were specifically looking for quote, ashes, bones or particles, or
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any body particles or clothing, any papers describing the commission
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of the burning of a body, or any other physical
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evidence of the death of Jane Wakefield or relating to
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her disappearance. Investigators were joined by agents from the Iowa
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Division of Criminal Investigation to conduct the search, and from
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the Insiderator they collected various pieces of bone debris, a
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very small piece of mesas that was possibly from a
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tooth filling, and very small chips of what could have
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been bone. More than one vacuum owned by John was
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also seized. Protesting tests were conducted on what was found,
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but nothing was conclusively identified as being connected to Jane's disappearance.
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Investigators also literally got on their hands and knees to
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search along miles worth of ditches on I eighty looking
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for any of the debris alleged to have been scattered there,
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but nothing was found relating to Jane's case. Captain Harney said, quote,
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so much time elapsed between the time that she disappeared
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and the time we got information indicating what might have
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happened to her, anybody would have had plenty of time
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to go back and change their mistakes. A one thousand
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dollars reward was offered by Jane's mother and stepfather for
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any information leading to the arrest of the individuals responsible
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for her disappearance. John also claimed to have put up
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a one thousand dollars reward, although it's unclear if he
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offered money with her parents, was claiming to have put
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up that money himself, or if he offered an additional
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one thousand dollars in reward money. To help raise more
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money to encourage witnesses to come forward, the Iowa City
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Education Association launched a fundraiser. While investigators in Jane's family
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was hopeful someone would come forward, no one ever did,
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and Jane's case quickly went cold, being declared in active
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after the summer of nineteen seventy six. The money collected
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by the Education Association as it went unclaimed, went into
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a scholarship fund for Iowa City graduates who were in
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teacher training programs. While John was pretty quiet regarding his
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estranged wife's disappearance initially a decade later, he was a
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bit more vocal. Ten years after her disappearance, John told
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the Gazette quote, it seems to me if she decided
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to drop out and take a new identity somewhere along
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the way, she would have given me a call. She's
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either decided to never resurface or she's dead. He was
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also insistent that he couldn't understand why he was ever
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considered a suspect in Jane's disay appearance. John admitted that
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the confidential informant had told police he was the one
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to have killed Jane, but he said that the informant
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was pressured into giving a statement to make robbery charges
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go away. The police did say that this accusation was false.
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John claimed, according to the Iowa City Press Citizen, that
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he had an alibi for Jane's disappearance. He was allegedly
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drag racing with friends until ten pm that Saturday, and
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on Sunday he was with another friend until twelve thirty
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in the morning. However, Captain Harney said they were never
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able to verify the alibi of the theory that he
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had killed and cremated Jane. John said, quote, it sounds
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like total bullshit to me. At one point, they're digging
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up sewage lagoons. At one point, they're digging up my lot.
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As far as I'm concerned, it was just one in
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a string of several events. They sniffed into every orifice
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in my psyche and body. As far as I'm concerned,
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John claimed that he had no reason to want Jane
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to disappear. Quote, it's a lot more expensive to me
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to have disappear than to have borrowed seven thousand dollars
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or five thousand dollars from family members or the bank
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and pay her. Not only did I lose a friend
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and somebody I hoped to get back together with, it
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was incredibly expensive in terms of my life. John would
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go on to claim that he was relentlessly harassed and
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threatened by members of the public who believed him to
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be responsible for Jane's disappearance for years. He alleged that
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he was let go from his position as manager of
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the apartment building he lived in due to the constant attention.
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He had been held at knifepoint, and his car and
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billiard parlor were vandalized even a decade later. He believed
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that publicly speaking about Jane would lead to more harassment
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and threats. Jane was never declared legally dead, though the
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police presume her to be, and foul play is suspected,
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though a suspect has never been publicly announced. Jane's final
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paycheck and her belongings from her estate totaling ten thousand dollars,
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was placed in a conservatorship by court order, with her
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stepfather being given charge of it. At the time of
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her disappearance, Jane Wakefield was twenty six years old, five
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to two and one hundred and twelve pounds. She had
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blonde hair and green eyes, and she wore gold wire
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rimmed glasses. She's also missing her fourteenth tooth, which is
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the third tooth from the molar on the upper right side.
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Anyone with information regarding her disappearance or a possible murder
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is asked to call the Iowa City Police Department at
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three one nine three five six five four five to one.
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The case number to reference is J one six dashed
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seventy five. Jane's case is one that likely will not
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be solved unless someone comes forward or strong evidence is found.
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Though fifty years after the fact, it's hard to imagine
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that that could happen, especially if the informance information is accurate.
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John Wakefield, my knowledge is still alive. He moved around
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quite a bit in the years after Jane's disappearance, and
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he appears to be living in South Dakota. But again,
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he has never been named as a suspect by the
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police in any official capacity, and any potential evidence found
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during the searches of his apartment and the incinerator and
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his businesses we're tested at the time, but nothing conclusive
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is found, and it's very likely that any evidence still
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available to test is either too degraded or the samples
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are just too small. But hopefully, with advancements in technology,
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if they were to retest, maybe they get some answers.
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As always, I thank you so much for listening, and
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I hope you have a wonderful week and I will
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see you in the next chapter of the Book of
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the Dead. Bye, guys. Another page closed. But the story
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isn't over for the families left behind. The pain doesn't
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end when the headline's fade, And for the victims, we
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owe them more than silence for our unsolved cases. If
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you have any information, please reach out to local authority
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or visit our show notes for links and resources. Someone
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out there knows something, maybe it's you. Thank you for
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listening to the Book of the Dead. If this story
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moved or spoke to you in some way, talk about it,
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share it, keep their names alive. Until next time, I'm
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Courtney Liso. Stay safe, stay curious, and stay vigilant. And
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remember the dead may be gone, but their stories will
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not be forgotten.
