Criminology - The Colonial Parkway Murders

Episode Date: January 21, 2024

The Colonial Parkway Murders is a series of murders & presumed murders of couples that occurred on or near  Virginia's Colonial Parkway from 1986 to 1989. In all, three couples were found murdered, and one couple was never found at all, and they are presumed to have been murdered. Join Mike and Morf as they discuss the Colonial Parkway murders. For years, people wondered if one lone serial killer was responsible for all of these cases. Well, finally, a killer has been identified, but it has only led to more questions. Was he the only killer prowling the Colonial Parkway, or were there multiple predators? You can help support the show at patreon.com/criminology An Emash Digital production Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Criminology is a true crime podcast that may contain discussion about violent or disturbing topics. Listener discretion is advised. Hello everyone and welcome to episode 291 of the criminology podcast. I'm Mike Ferguson. And this is Mike Morford. Mr. Morford, how you doing, buddy? I'm doing good. I'm trying to work through some gremlins with podcast recording, with appliances, with a little bit of everything right now, but trying to get through it. How about you? Yeah, I'm doing pretty good. Yeah, we had a little audio.

issue last week with your microphone, but I think we got to fix. So we're back on track. Yeah. Hopefully when it comes to tech stuff, I'm not too savvy. So hopefully I'm getting everything here worked out. The only thing I know is that it is cold in Ohio. My wife has had a number of days off as a teacher. Like, it's too cold for kids to be standing at the bus stop. It's that cold. Yeah, I could make a joke about how chilly it is here, but I'm not going to out of respect to everybody that's up there north of me. So, you know, hopefully. hopefully everybody makes it through this cold stretch and warms up pretty quickly. Yeah, appreciate that.

Let's go ahead and do our Patreon shoutouts. We had Katie Hooper, Tracy Melendez, Sherilyn Thacker, Brenda Hamaday, Catherine Tanner, and Lily Desiret, Thomas. So a lot of great new support. We really appreciate it. Yeah, thanks to everyone that goes out of their way to support the show. It really helps us out. And if anyone else would like to, you can do so by going to patreon.com slash criminal All right. So we have to dive right into this week's case because it's a big one.

This is a case that we've always wanted to cover on criminology, but we've kind of put it off, hoping that there would be some new development or break in the case. And now that break has finally happened. And it's making headlines in the world of true crime. We're talking about the colonial parkway murders, a series of murders and presume murders of couples that occurred on or near Virginia's colonial. Parkway from 1986 to 1989. In all three couples were found murdered, and one couple was never found at all, and are

presumed to have been murdered. For years, people wondered if one lone serial killer was responsible for all of these cases. Well, finally, a killer has been identified, but it's only led to more questions. Was he the only killer prowling the colonial parkway, or were there multiple predators? To give listeners a sense of what the Colonial Parkway is and better understand its history and geography, I'm going to read directly from the National Parkway Service website. Completed in 1957, Colonial Parkway is a 23-mile scenic roadway stretching from the York River at Yorktown

to the James River at Jamestown. It connects Virginia's historic triangle. This roadway allows motorists to appreciate the surrounding landscape or reducing impact on the resources and providing for traveler safety. passing is only allowed in the marked passing zones and one oncoming traffic is clear. The maximum parkway speed limit is 45 miles per hour. The parkway is situated near Jamestown, Williamsburg, and Yorktown. Several million travelers a year use this route to enjoy the natural and cultural beauty of Virginia. So, Mike, have you ever visited or driven on the colonial parkway?

Not that I know of, not that I remember. If I did, it was as a kid and, you know, driving with my dad, maybe or something like that on a vacation. How about you? Yeah, I was there back in the 90s. I went there with my wife. We went down to check out the Williamsburg area and just see some of the historic sites and historic towns, you know, Yorktown, Jamestown, Williamsburg, all those areas. And we drove that stretch of highway and we went there during the day and it was very quiet and very lonely. It was, I guess, is a good word. You know, there wouldn't be many cars. And we We walked down to a pond and just sort of were looking around and I don't think we saw a car the entire time.

And at night, it's, it's really scary. It's really dark. There's not much light out there. So just a lonely stretch of peaceful, though, highway. So it's clear that the colonial parkway is a very scenic, quiet, and peaceful area. It's an area where couples would often go to at night for privacy. It was dark. as you mentioned more if not many cars traveled it, especially at night.

It was the perfect place for a getaway, but unfortunately it was also the perfect area for a predator or predators to target. And starting in the fall of 1986, that's exactly what happened. On October 9th of that year, Kathleen Marion Thomas called Kathy by those who knew her, and Rebecca Andowski, called Becky by friends and family, became the first known victim of the Colonial Parkway murders. 27-year-old Kathy had graduated from the United States Naval Academy in 1981. Kathy's graduation was a huge accomplishment.

Hers was only the second class with women graduates. After leaving the Navy, she became a stockbroker. Becky, who was 21, was a senior, majoring in business management at the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg. In a time where a lesbian couple couldn't be as open about their relationship, the two valued their time together when they could get away. While Kathy was out and open, Becky was a little bit more guarded and secretive about the relationship.

But the two were definitely happy together. On October 9th, Kathy and Becky were seen leaving the College of William and Mary computer lab together. Neither made it home. For two days, there was no sign of either of them. Sadly, the search came to an end when a jogger discovered their bodies, seven miles east of Williamsburg, Virginia. Kathy's car, a white 1980 Honda Civic, was spotted down an embankment

near the Cheatham-Anix overlook on the Colonial Parkway. It was lucky that the car was seen by the jogger at all. It was hidden from the view of any passing cars and could have gone much longer before being discovered. From an initial view of the scene, it seemed the Civic had lost control, just one mile away from the Cheatham-Anx naval base, driven through the brush,

and stopped short of falling 15 feet down the embankment and landing in the York River and potentially being washed away forever. The jogger assumed that a drunk driver had lost control and a single highway patrol officer responded to the scene, unprepared for what would be found as he made his way down to the car to investigate. Kathy and Becky were both still inside.

Becky was laying in the back seat and Kathy was in the small trunk area of the hatchback. Officers broke the back window in case there was any chance of rescuing the women, but it quickly became clear that this was no accidental car crash. It was obvious that the two women had been brutally murdered. And more if this is something that you and I have talked about many, many times. You have someone,

who just is out doing everyday normal type stuff. And in this case, it's a jogger trying to get in some exercise. They see something. Now, in this case, they assume that, you know, this was an accident, a drunk driver, something along those lines. And I think that's a pretty normal assumption. And then by extension, the police, when they get there, assume that this is some type of accident,

that there may be the possibility to rescue the occupants of the vehicle. Now, obviously that turns out not to be the case. But to me, you know, this is always a fascinating part of these true crime stories. It seems like people are in the right place of the right time or the wrong place of the wrong time, depending on how you look at it, to make these discoveries. But if they wouldn't make these discoveries, who knows how much time would pass, you know, clues could be lost, that kind of thing if they're not discovered when they are, you know. I know some high profile cases, you know, where we've talked about in the past, hunters, joggers,

you know, I went to school with someone that was killed in a motorcycle accident. He disappeared on his motorcycle, and for two weeks nobody knew where he was at. It wasn't until a jogger was running down alongside a ditch and spotted him in the ditch with his motorcycle, and he was dead. So, you know, he might not have been found for a long time. So, you know, it happens often, I guess. And then there's always the question of, you know, what does it do to these individuals, these people who find what turns out to be a grisly scene? It has to affect them.

An examination revealed that someone had cut both of their throats with a knife to the point that they were both nearly decapitated. Rope burns on their necks and wrist proved that they had been held or received. strain before they were killed, which is possibly how the suspect was able to overpower two women at once. Due to the lack of blood in the car, authorities believe that Kathy and Becky were killed somewhere else and then placed into the Civic, which was driven to the parkway and pushed down the embankment. One odd clue was that Kathy's and Becky's bodies, along with the car, had been doused in diesel fuel, but it was never ignited. It seems as though the killer had wanted to cover their tracks, but either change your mind, or quite possibly, didn't know that,

diesel ignited at higher temperature than gasoline and would be hard to catch fire. Another possibility was that the killer got interrupted and chose to leave the scene instead. There were multiple used matches found at the scene, as if someone had tried to start a fire, 150 partial prints were pulled from the vehicle, but none of them matched anyone in any police database. One thing seemed clear to investigators early on, that this was not a robbery gone wrong because both Kathy's and Becky's purses were still inside the car under their seats and Kathy's wallet was on the floor, opened. It was outside of her purse where she normally kept it.

In addition, the car's glove box was open too. This combination of clues fueled a theory that perhaps Kathy and Becky were parked along a secluded spot on the parkway when they were approached by a police officer or someone they thought was a police officer. and that as a result, Kathy took out her wallet to get her driver's license and opened the glove box to retrieve her registration. Another clue that pointed away from a robbery gone wrong was that both Kathy and Becky were each also wearing their jewelry. There was also no sign of sexual assault and both of the women were still wearing all of their clothes when their bodies were discovered. From the evidence collected, it seemed that Kathy had fiercely fought with her attacker, ripping a clump of their hair out. The hair was reportedly still clenched between her fingers.

Police were stumped as to a motive in the murders of Kathy and Becky. Both of them were well-liked and friendly people with no known enemies. Police entertained the possibility that perhaps they were the victims of a hate crime and that someone who didn't approve of the same-sex relationship had followed them out to the parkway and murdered them under the cover of darkness. But that was just a theory, and there was no solid evidence to back it up. up. With no solid leads, the case cooled off. Then, almost a year later, a second set of murders occurred on the parkway. On September 19, 1987, 14-year-old Robin Margaret Edwards snuck out of her home

and met 20-year-old David Lee Knobling. They were seen at an arcade together earlier that evening and obviously planned to meet back up when she could get out of the house. She never made it home from what should have been a quick but secret rendezvous. Two days later on the 21st, David's truck, a black ford ranger, was found at a parking area next to the James River Bridge near the ragged island wildlife management area by an Isle of White County Sheriff's Deputy. The key was still in the ignition and the truck was running with the windshield wipers still on. Music was playing from the radio. Both of the truck. doors had been left unlocked and the driver's window had been rolled halfway down.

Clothing and shoes from both David and Robin had been left inside. This wasn't a robbery, though, because David's wallet was still inside the truck on the dashboard with money inside. There was no sign of either Robin or David. A search in the area started for the missing couple. Volunteers, including family members, comb the area. And sadly on September 23rd, it was David's father who found their bodies in the ragged island wildlife refuge, about 100 feet away from each other on the south shore of the James River. They had been in the water and separately washed up on the beach during high tide. David had been shot twice from behind, once in the shoulder and once in the head. Robin, who was found with her jeans unbuttoned and her brawrapped around her neck, had been shot once,

execution style in the back of the head. Police never disclosed the caliber or type of gun used to kill the couple. Several shell casings from a 22 caliber gun were found in the area, but it's not clear if they were connected to the murders were from someone who was just out target shooting. And we just talked about, you know, a jogger finding a grisly scene or what turned out to be a grisly scene. Here you have a father who's out searching for his son and winds up being the one to find the bodies. You know, bad enough to be notified that, you know, your son or daughter is dead, was murdered, but to actually be the one to find them, that would be excruciating. Yeah, that's no doubt something that was etched in his mind for the rest of his life. And, you know, as a parent,

you never want to think of your child dying before you, but especially in this manner. So, can't imagine what he went through. Authorities believe that, As the suspect forced the pair to walk through the marshland, David ran from their killer, accounting for the one stray shot to the shoulder. They also could not be sure whether or not Robin had been sexually assaulted, but most assumed she had been. Their relationship is convoluted. Most media accounts call them boyfriend and girlfriend, despite their age difference,

and the fact that David had a different girlfriend who was pregnant at the time. Though the medical examiner, when looking at Robin's body, could tell that sexual activity occurred the night she was killed, the technology was not considered advanced enough to tell whether it was consensual or whether it was with David or not. It's still not known how or why David and Robin ended up on Ragged Island alone, but it seems possible they were looking for a secluded spot to be alone together. Though 11 months had gone by, and there was both a 30-minute drive and the James River separating them, the authorities began to suspect that Dave and Robin's murders could very well be connected to Kathy's and Becky's. The similarities were clear, a brutal and senseless double murder on a lover's lane-type area with no sign of robbery. But the methods were different. Someone had pushed Kathy's car into a ravine and tried to burn it, with Kathy and Becky inside,

while David's truck was found out in the open, and he and Robin's bodies were, found outside of the car. Despite the key differences, investigators thought that in all likelihood, the cases were related. David's truck was returned to his family before it was taken in for evidence collection, so some prints or other potential evidence may have been destroyed. Like Kathy and Becky's families, David's and Robbins' families were left waiting for answers. But before any would come, another shocking mystery involving a couple along the Colonial Parkway would unfold. And this seems like a pretty big blunder to me on the part of police to return this truck to the family before, you know, it was taken in for any type of evidence collection.

Yeah, I know it's hindsight. It's 2020, they say, but you would think or expect, I would anyway, that they would keep that truck in evidence someplace, you know, not knowing down the road if they're going to need to examine it or what other technologies might come along, such as DNA. Obviously, DNA was in its infancy at that point, but, you know, you never know in law enforcement what tools will be available down the road. So you want to save as much evidence as possible. So I'm a little surprised that they didn't keep the truck in evidence. Or at the very least, completely, you know, go through it, collect everything, dust it, take all the prints.

I mean, you'd have to say that that was a major mistake. On April 9th, 1988, 20-year-old Richard Keith Call, who everyone called Keith drove from Newport News, Virginia, to Grafton, about seven miles away, to pick up 18-year-old Cassandra Lee Haley for their first date. Keith pulled up to her family's house in his red 1982 Toyota Selica and whisked her off to a movie and then to a party in Newport News near University Square, near Christopher Newport. Port University where they were both students. After around 1.30 a.m. on the 10th, they vanished. Cassandra was never dropped off back at home and Keith never showed back up to tell anyone how his big date, his first date, since breaking up with his girlfriend of four years, when. Both of their families were immediately concerned. At 5 a.m., someone spotted Keith Selica parked at the York River overlook on the colonial parkway.

This area in Yorktown was about 40 minutes away from Christopher Newport University. Two hours later, when the car was still parked there in the same spot, someone called and reported it to the authorities. Officers responded and found the keys to the Selica were on the driver's seat. A pair of glasses and a watch had been placed on the dashboard. Clothes from both Keith and Cassandra, including their underwear, were still in the car. Cassandra's purse was in the back seat with Keith's wallet, which still had $12 in it. but Cassandra's wallet was missing.

There was no sign of the couple. Police brought in dogs to try and track their scent, but it ended at the shoreline. At first, investigators thought the two had decided to skinny dip and ended up drowning, so they turned their search to the York River, but nothing was ever found. It's unlikely that the pair went skinny dipping that night in 40-degree waters,

or that they would have entered the water by climbing down such a high embankment, just one mile from an actual beach. To police, it was more likely that just like, David and Robin, someone had forced them to walk in the dark. Keith and Cassandra have never been found, but due to the location where Keith's car was found, just three miles from where Kathy and Becky were found murdered, and due to the similarities with how Keith's car and David's truck were found, many believe these cases are all linked. And Keith and Cassandra's disappearance wouldn't be the last

tragic event along the parkway. So you can see the similarities in this one with the others that we've talked about. I think one of the differences being that Cassandra's wallet was missing, but you know, you don't know exactly why that was or how that ended up. I do have to agree with the investigators, their ultimate finding that it was very unlikely that these two individuals, you know, walked down an embankment to go skinny dipping in 40 degree water. I just don't know how many people would do that. That's very cold. Yeah, East Coast, April, late at night, you know, those waters are not ideal for skinny dipping. You know, had this been, you know, in August or something like that, and it was really warm, maybe you could buy that theory, but, you know,

I think they were right to dismiss that. And I think it's frustrating here because we talked about in the last search, you know, the victim's father was the one to find him. Here, you've got this big search taking place, but they never find any sign of them. So there's frustration the opposite ways. They'd like to find them, and they never did. In the suburbs of D.C., a woman fails to show up for work and is found brutally murdered. I wonder what's emergency? We just walked in the door and there's blood in the foyer.

For the next two decades, the case remained unsolved until new technology allowed investigators to do what had once been impossible. new series from ABC Audio in 2020. Blood and Water. Listen now wherever you get your podcasts. On September 5th, 1989, 18-year-old Anna Maria Phelps and her boyfriend Clint's brother, 21-year-old Daniel Lauer, were traveling together to Virginia Beach. Anna Maria and Clint had been having a hard time, paying the rent in Virginia Beach. So they invited Daniel to move in with him. thinking the extra money coming in would help with the rent. Daniel and Anna Maria drove from Virginia Beach to Amelia County, where Daniel's parents lived.

Daniel picked up some of his belongings and was paid around $700 in cash by his dad for paint work he had done. After that, Daniel and Anna Maria headed back to Virginia Beach to meet up with Clint, but they never showed up and they were reported missing. Daniel's gold 1972 Chevy Nova was found at the Interstate 64 restop in New Kent County, with the doors unlocked and the key still in the ignition. No one was in the car, which was at the westbound restop, the wrong direction, for an eastbound trip back to Virginia Beach. Anna Maria's purse was still inside the car, along with all of Daniel's stuff,

a blanket was determined to be missing from the truck. A search of the area revealed no other clues. On October 19th, Hunters found an electric blanket in the woods near a logging road off of Interstate 64 between Williamsburg and Richmond, Virginia. This was about a mile away from where Daniel's car had been located. Underneath the blanket, the bodies of Anna Maria and Daniel, both so badly decomposed, their remains were just skeletons. No cause of death could be confirmed, but it's believed that Anna Maria was stabbed due to marks on her bones. Ash that Daniel was known to have on him from the painting job, wasn't found in the car or with his body, so it seemed possible that robbery was a motive in the murders.

Due to the hidden and out-of-the-way location where their bodies were located, some investigators thought that a local had to be responsible for the killings. Complicating the case, in 2010, a note was found in a box that had been taken from Anna Maria's apartment, with the rest of her belongs after the murder. The note had no date on it, but it's assumed that Anna Marie jotted down plans to meet someone in a blue van at a rest stop. Apparently, the note had a name and number along with it. The person identified by the note has not been publicly named by police, and it's not clear if that person was ever questioned. So, you know, we've talked about a series of murders,

and there are a lot of similarities between them. The one thing that kind of does jump out at me here is that in some of these, it seems as though robbery definitely was not the motive because nothing was taken. But in a couple at least, there was money or wallets or something along those lines thought to have been taken by the killers. Yeah, for me, it's hard to get in the mind of a killer, someone that would do these kinds of things. But I would think if they are at a murder scene and dumping bodies and they happen to notice, you know, in this case, Daniel's $700 cash, you know, why wouldn't they take it? You know, they're, they still need money for stuff.

So if they're willing to kill someone, you would think just taking money and taking that is not below them. So to me, it's not a surprise they would do that. But, you know, in the cases where there was clearly stuff left behind, it seems obvious that robbery was not their main motive. And I don't know if it was their main. motive in any of these killings. And maybe it's just, you know, they had more time or felt more comfortable in some of these

situations and others. They were more rushed and therefore weren't thinking about that part, looking for money. I'm not sure, but I do think it's something important to bring up. Well, I think one other thing that's interesting to think about is if all of these attacks were the work of one person, let's say, oftentimes serial killers will take little trinkets or mementos, things they can hold on to to remember what they did. And it seems like in most of these cases, there's not all that much missing. So, you know, I wonder if that shows that there might be more than one person. It's not actually a serial killer or if that particular serial killer. killer just didn't keep mementos.

Yeah, it's a great point. We've seen time and time again killers take trophies that they then keep and use somehow to relive the moment. And I know that sounds sick. It sounds sadistic, but that's what they do. So the cases we've discussed so far are the most commonly linked colonial Parkway murders, but there are a few more in the night. 1980s that many believe could be connected. On August 17th, 1984, 21-year-old Michael Sturgis,

Margaret, and his fiance 18-year-old Donna Lynn Hall told their families about a camping trip. They were leaving on. The two had been dating for four years and had recently gotten engaged. They never returned from their trip. Instead, four days later, on the 21st, a retired dentist out walking his found Mike's Jeep backed into an alcoe. On a trail in Henrico, Virginia, he noticed that the passenger door was open and there was a red bandana hanging from the rearview mirror. Looking inside the car, the keys were still in the ignition and the ashtray was open and another red bandana had been tied to the clutch. Mike's Jeep had a canvas top. Despite the rainy weekend, it was rolled back and open. There was a suitcase and a paper bag, both full of clothes and the back of the Jeep.

The dentist who found the Jeep also noticed that there was a trail of blood leading away from the car. About 20 feet from the Jeep, a red and blue checkered picnic blanket covered the bodies of Mike and Donna. They had both been stabbed and had their throat slid. Donna wasn't wearing shoes and was still clutching nearby pine needles in her hands. There were no defensive wounds on her body. An autopsy found they had large amounts of demoral, a sedative in their system. Mike more so than Donna. Mike did have defensive wounds, showing he tried to fight off their killer.

Many people think that Mike and Donna could have been their earliest victims of the Colonial Parkway killer. It's unknown why Demerol was in their system. They could have been drugged by their killer to make it easier for them to attack, or they could have been involved in drugs and gotten into some sort of dispute. Their case is still unsolved. And you know, one of the things that I always think about when we're talking about a series of murders and whether or not they all fit the same pattern is that, you know, how likely is it that a killer, if this is just one killer or, you know, a set of killers could change up their pattern somewhat.

You know, I do think killers go through in some instances an experimentation process where, you know, early on, let's say when they first decide, to kill. They might try something and find out that it didn't work the way that they thought it would. So they changed things up. I think that's entirely possible. Yeah. And then sometimes out of necessity, they have to add lib and change something on the fly or maybe they're interrupted so they don't have a chance to do things the way they normally would. So a lot of times when cases are very similar, but there's one or two things that are a little bit different. It's important just to not dismiss them out of hand. There are two murders that don't fit the general circumstances of the Colonial Parkway

murders, but they do have an odd connection to them. On December 4th, 1987, 25-year-old Brian Craig Pettinger was out at a dance club in Hampton. He was last seen around 1130 p.m. On February 3rd, 1988, his body was found floating in the James River in Suffolk, Virginia. His wrists and ankles, had been bound and there was a rope around his neck. An autopsy found that he had been bludgeoned on the head and then thrown into the water alive, though he was not with anyone else and this was not on the colonial parkway. There is a strange connection here. Brian worked as a lost prevention officer for the same security company that Bonnie Edwards,

Robin Edwards' mother, worked for as a receptionist. Another case with the same odd connection is from March 1988. On March 8th of that year, 18-year-old Lori Ann Powell and her boyfriend got into a fight. At around 11.30 p.m., he let her out of the car on Route 614 in the unincorporated white marsh area of Gloucester County. No one noticed she was missing until the 10th after she didn't show up to work, and her stepfather called authorities to file a report. Her nude body was found floating in the James River near Ragged Island on April 2nd. she had been stabbed in the back more than once.

The connection here is once again, the security company. Lori Powell, Brian Pettinger, and Robin Edwards' mother all worked there. So many have wondered that the security company played some role in the Colonial Parkway murders, or at least these other murders that are not firmly connected to the Colonial Parkway murders. Could a worker there be responsible? And that could be a coincidence,

but I'll tell you what, that would be a heck of a coincidence. So to have two people that work there murdered and the mom of the third person that was murdered working there, that just seems like incredible odds. Yeah, that's what I was thinking as well. There is one more case that many find very similar to the murders of Kathy Thomas and Becky Dowski, but there are a couple of key differences. They are separated by 13 years and almost 200 miles. on May 19th, 1996, 24-year-old Julianne Marie Williams and her girlfriend, 26-year-old Laura Salsbury, Wynans, set off on a camping trip to Shenandoah National Park in Virginia. They were reported missing by their families on May 31st after they didn't return from camping.

They had last been seen in the park on May 24th, just one week earlier. On June 1st, Laura's golden retriever, Todge, was found walking alone near the White Oak Canyon Trail. Soon after this, their bodies were discovered at a campsite, about a quarter of a mile off the Appalachian Trail. Their tent was still set up, but only Laura was inside. Julianne's body was in her sleeping bag, down in an embankment, about 40 feet from the tent. Both of the women had been partially undressed, but neither had been sexually assaulted. They had been bound, gagged, and had their throats slit by their killer. As we mentioned, this double murder happened 200 miles away from Kathy's and Becky's murders,

but Shenandoah National Park is connected to Colonial Parkway by Interstate 64. The similarities here are very striking. A lesbian couple found with their throat slit in a state park. But besides the similar MO, there is no solid evidence that they are connected. Due to Julianne's and Laura's murders happening in a national park, and because the colonial parkway is on federal property, the FBI took over all the cases that fell within federal jurisdiction, and local and state police worked on the rest of the cases that weren't on federal land.

Despite the multiple resources and jurisdictions work in these cases, they went on salt for years. In 2009, it was discovered that crime scene photos from the Colonial Parkway murders were being used as part of training material by a retired FBI photographer and had been leaked to the public. 78 crime scene photos, some in color and some in black and white, were leaked, including photos of the victim's wounds. Outrage from the families was met with a renewed promise to investigate the cases.

Despite the assurances from authorities, the victim's families would have to wait for over a 10th, decade before they got any kind of answers. Finally, in early January, 2004, authorities announced that Alan Wade Wilmer, Senior, had been linked to the murders of David Knobling and Robin

Edwards by forensic evidence, namely DNA. He had also been linked to a murder that was not related to the Colonial Parkway murders, that of Teresa Lynn Spa Howell. Her murder happened only two months before Anna Marie Phelps

and Daniel Lauer had been killed. On July 1st, 1989, 29-year-old Teresa Lynn Spaw-Hall vanished after a night at the Zodiac Club. On East Mercury Boulevard in Hampton, Virginia, which no longer exists, she was last seen at the club around 2.30 in the morning. At 10.10 a.m., the same day,

her body was found by construction workers on Butler Farm Road, as they cleared land in the woods. First, her clothing was found, then her body. She had been sexually assaulted and strangled. She was not identified until July 4th, after she was reported missing in York County. A statement to the press read by Teresa's family noted, We would like to express our gratitude to all investigators involved in the investigation of Terry's death.

Their dedication, relentless efforts, and evolving technology has brought us closure that we sought over the last 34 years. Apparently, investigators over the years had submitted a DNA profile from the Nobling Edwards' murder and Teresa's murder to Codas, but they didn't match anyone who was on file. But they could see that DNA in both cases matched each other, and that DNA belonged to Alan Wade, Wilmer Sr. Yeah, one thing I find interesting is that it seems that investigators for some time have known that Teresa Hal's murderer was also responsible for the murders of David Knobling and Robin Edwards. knew that by the DNA link, even though they didn't have a name for the suspect. But they never released that until they announced Wilmer's name recently. So I thought that was interesting that they wouldn't come out sooner and say, hey, you know, we have a lead that the person that killed this couple in the Colonial Parkway murders also killed Teresa Howell.

Well, I think it's one of the things that we see in a lot of these cases where police have a ton of information, much of which is never released to the public, right? They have to go through that process of making the decision of what to release, what to hold back, and maybe they thought that they would scare away this individual if that connection was made. Because you have to think that this killer was in some way feeling pretty good about their chances of getting away with all of this. You know, a number of years have passed.

But as we've seen, DNA is amazing. And as the technology advances, they've been able to do so much more with it. And it's helping to solve cases. And it could be they didn't want that link made because they didn't want the killer known that they connected these cases because there's investigative leads they can do to see if there's any links, that kind of thing. So they don't want to tip their hand that they had another murder. connected to this person. So that could be why they never went public with that link. Yeah, I think there's always a reason, whether or not people think it's a valid reason. That's something that is often debated.

I think one more interesting thing is that although he was responsible for the murders of David Knobling and Robin Edwards in the Colonial Parkway murders and of Teresa Lindspaugh, Hal, her case is a lot different. You know, she was at a nightclub, the last place she was known to be they were parked out in a secluded area on the colonial parkway. So one killer, but the crime seemed a lot different from each other. So who was this accused killer, Wilmer? Alan Wade Wilmer Sr., who went by the nickname Poki, died on December 15, 2017, at his home in Northern Neck. He was 63 years old. A new review of the cases has led to the rediscovery of information and witness statements that helped narrow down a potential suspect list.

Wilmer was one of the few that could not be ruled out. Authorities were able to obtain a DNA sample, even though he had been dead for years. They still haven't quite said how, but a DNA match was confirmed in June 2023 by the Virginia Department of Forensic Science. According to one article on WAVY.com news, Wilmer died alone. and was not found for some time. Apparently, DNA testing was needed to positively identify Wilmer's body after his death due to the state of decomposition when he was eventually found about a month after he died from unknown causes.

Fresh air, longer days, a chance to reset. This season let therapy be part of your spring cleaning. Clearing mental clutter, shaking off stuckness and building something better. Grow therapy helps you get there. Whether it's your first time in therapy or your 15th, Grow makes it easier to find a therapist who fits you, not the other way around. They connect you with thousands of independent licensed therapists across the U.S., offering both virtual and in-person sessions nights and weekends.

You can search by what matters, like insurance, specialty, identity, or availability, and get started in as little as two days. And if something comes up, you can cancel up to 24 hours in advance at no cost. There are no subscriptions, no long-term commitments. You just pay per session. Grow helps you find therapy on your time. Whatever challenges you're facing, Grow Therapy is here to help. accepts over 100 insurance plans, including Medicaid in some states.

Sessions average about $21 with insurance and some pay as little as $0 $0 depending on their plan. Visit growtherapy.com slash book now to get started. That's growtherapy.com slash book now. Growtherapy.com slash book now. Availability and coverage vary by state and insurance plan. Corrine Geller, a spokeswoman for the Virginia State Police said at a news conference, if Alan Wilmer Sr. was alive today, he would be charged in all three of these homicides.

The murders were linked definitively through a DNA match years before authorities were able to put a name to the sample. Because Wilmer had never been convicted of any felonies, there was no DNA on file for him, so no match could be obtained via any law enforcement database. At the time of the murders, Alan Wilmer worked as a fisherman. He had his own small wooden commercial boat named Denny Wade, which he lived on at the time of the murders. He was known to Doc in Gloucester and Middle Six counties, as well as around the northern neck of Virginia. Virginia. Wilmer also had his own landscaping company called Better Tree Service. It's also known that Wilmer liked to hunt. He was a member of hunting club somewhere in the Middle Peninsula region.

His truck, which had been called distinctive, was a blue 1966 Dodge Fargo with a custom Virginia license plate reading EM-R-A-W. But he was known to drive multiple vehicles, including a van, a white pickup truck, and a silver 1989 Ford F-150. According to author Blaine Pardo at blainepardot. at blainepardot.wordpress.com Wilmer was known at the time to be something of a peeping time to couples parked on lovers lanes along the colonial parkway. Of the men usually causing trouble on the parkway, Wilmer was described as more aggressive. He would actually go right up to couples and confront them.

One couple, a man and a woman. recall that Wilmer knocked on the window of their car and yelled, Are you girls having fun? Only to flee when the man who had long hair turned around to face him. It's unknown exactly how he got his victims out of the car, but many believe Wilmer could have impersonated a police officer, something we talked about in this episode. Retired Milwaukee homicide detective Steven Spengola,

who volunteered to reinvestigated, the case told the Smithfield Times. Everybody sort of had an idea that it might have been somebody with military or law enforcement experience. The window on the driver's side was rolled down a little bit like there was a traffic stop involved, like they were going to pass out a wallet or something. While one set of the Colonial Parkway murders have been solved, there are many questions left. The first big question is Wilmer responsible for the rest of the group of killings. According to WAVY.com news, state police spokesperson Corrine Geller said, although the similarities in these series of double homicides that span a three-year period

cannot be ignored, at this time, there is no forensic nor physical evidence to link the Isle of White County homicides to those other double murders. And Brian Dugan, the special agent in charge at the FBI's Norfolk office, told the New York Times, while he may or may not be connected to these cases. We're still pursuing justice for these victims, and we'll investigate all options. Kathy Thomas's brother, our friend Bill Thomas, told the Daily Beast back in 2021, I don't know which is more frightening. The idea that there was a serial killer in the peninsula area of Virginia from 1986 to 1989, or that these double homicides are not related, and we have multiple murders wandering around killing people at random. It's likely news will come of a confirmed

connection between Wilmer and at least one more of the cases, the murders of Cassandra Haley and Keith Call. According to author Blaine Pardot, who interviewed Irv Wells, who was the FBI special agent in charge of the Haley Call case. He remembered seeing the blue truck with the EM Raw license plate. Wilmer was even briefly placed under surveillance and seen vacuuming the inside of his truck and spray painting its bed. just four days after Cassandra and Keith disappeared.

Authorities quickly got a warrant to search his truck and trailer, but found nothing linking him to the Haley Call case. They did find a gun, a stash of pornography, and at least one pair of handcuffs. Even a search of the contents of his vacuum cleaner found nothing. Wilmer was given a polygraph test regarding those murders, but he passed and authorities moved on. Blaine Pardot wrote on his website,

website, what we can take away from this right now is the FBI engaged this person on a different colonial parkway murder case and he was their prime suspect in the beginning. And according to Pardo, FBI spokesperson Crystal Calabata who did confirm that Wilmer was an early suspect in the case said at this time, we do not have enough DNA evidence to forensically link Wilmer Sr. to the call Haley case. One thing that popped out to me was that he was questioned and even took a polygraph test early on and passed it. And we know that polygraph test are not admissible in court.

And some people say there are ways to beat him. But I still find it odd that he didn't show deception. And it might be even stranger if they question him like Blaine Pardot thinks about one specific case in the series and not any of the others. You know, you think one question on that test would be, did you have anything to do with any of the murders on the Colonial Parkway? But Blaine Pardo seems to think they questioned him only about one specific case. Yeah, I just don't know how much stock to put in the passing of a polygraph, but it is very

interesting that they had this guy on their radar. According to Pardot, you know, he was like their main suspect. They just didn't have enough evidence to Lincoln. I think all this information and the fact that Wilmer was on police radar early on, while not exactly surprising, still feels shockingly sad. If all these murders are related, justice could have come sooner for many while Wilmer was still alive. And potentially there are a few victims who would have never been attacked if he was arrested early on. It's likely that Wilmer isn't responsible for all the murders we've discussed in this episode.

In fact, in 2004, DNA from the murders of Julie and Laura in the Shenandoah National Park got a hit. The DNA from hair found it in the duct tape on their bodies was a likely mitochondrial match to serial killer Richard Mark Yvonitz. We discussed him in two episodes, the disappearance of Caitlin Aikens and the murder of Jennifer Odom. Richard Mark Yvonitz abducted and killed three young girls, including two sisters who got off of separate school buses on the same day. in Spotsylvania County, Virginia in 1996 and 1997. These murders remained unsolved until 2002, when he abducted yet another girl in Columbia, South Carolina. She was held captive in his apartment,

but escaped when he fell asleep. Amazingly, she was able to take investigators back to the apartment. He had already woken up, found her missing, and fled. Evidence at the apartment, fibers from handcuffs and bath mats matched fibers found in the Spassylvania cases. Yvonitz was found in Florida after he called his sister begging her to meet him. She immediately called the police and gave them his location. After a pursuit, he took his own life with his gun.

There was a handprint from one of the girls killed in Spasylvania County on the inside of the trunk of the car. He was founded. If his DNA is a match in the double murder of Julie and Laura in the Shenandoah National Park, it makes sense that he could be responsible for the murders of Kathy and Becky. If Alan Wilmer Sr. is responsible for the murders of Robin and David and was a suspect in the disappearance of Cassandra and Keith, it makes sense that he could be responsible for their murders too. It would also make sense that he could be responsible for the killing of Anna Maria and Daniel and Mike Sturgis. and Donna Lynn Hall.

The murder of Teresa Howell makes it seem possible that Wilmer could be responsible for Lori Ann Powell's murder, the female victim who worked at the security company. If you recall, we mentioned a few connections between the Colonial Parkway murders and that security company, although it's not clear what if any connection Wilmer had to it. More questions about Wilmer remain, namely, does he have other victims out there? The revelation that Wilmer was a killer who owned his own boat. leads many to wonder whether there are unsolved murders in other areas he may be responsible for. There could even be a few missing persons cases out there where the victim was dumped in the water,

somewhere along one of his rounds. Also, some people wonder, did Wilmer act alone? His brother, Keith Wilmer, was once a suspect in a murder, too. 24-year-old Mary Kaiser Harding was reported missing from Lancaster County, on August 23rd, 1985. On the 27th, her body was found in the Rappahannock River, just off the coast of Belle Isle. She was nude and had been weighed down by a brick tied to a rope,

which was tied around her neck. A thick chain was wrapped around her leg and then secured to the same rope. Keith Wilmer, the husband of one of Mary's coworkers at the Bank of Lancaster, took a polygraph, just like Alan Wilmer. senior did, the results were inconclusive. Also like his brother, a search by authorities found nothing linking him to

the murder, not in his house, his truck, or his boat. Keith Wilmer was a waterman, just like Alan. A different man, fisherman Emerson Stevens, was eventually convicted of Mary's murder, but he was pardoned in 2021. And

officially, her murder is still unsolved. So to many people, it seems like it's way too big of a coincidence for both brothers to have ended up suspects in separate murders and both actually innocent and completely uninvolved. And to me, this is kind of fascinating. You know, you have two brothers linked to different murders. Obviously, Alan much more so linked to murders than his brother, but you have to wonder if Keith Wilmer was a murderer too. Were they acting alone?

Did they talk about it? Did they partner up on some of these murders? It's just really strange stuff. Yeah, and I think in the overwhelming majority of cases, there's only one person that's the killer, but we know that there are teams of more than one person, and it makes sense that if you're going to trust anybody in a crime like this to keep their members. mouth shut, your brother seems like a likely candidate. So, you know, I don't think it's, it's crazy to consider the possibility. But we also have to point out that his, his brother was

never charged in connection to any of these crimes. As far as Alan Wilmer Sr.'s family, news that he was an accused killer came as a shock. His family released a statement, reading in part, the news of Alan Wilmer Sr.'s crimes has come as a complete and horrific shock to our family. We are learning about this news nearly the same time as everyone else. The man who committed these crimes was not someone we knew. The revelation of what he's done has deeply impacted her family, and we were forced to reconcile who we believed him to be with the unimaginable things he has done.

His family is reportedly fully cooperating with law enforcement. And I know this is something that we've talked about before. When a killer is linked to these cases many years on, often, you know, they have families. They have kids who are, you know, maybe even now grown, who all of a sudden find out that most likely their husband, their dad, you know, whoever is a killer. I mean, how do you deal with that revelation? And I think they're saying they're having a hard time with it.

Who wouldn't? Yeah, at the same time, though, I don't see in their statement. any doubt or, you know, a lot of times you'll hear somebody say, we can't believe it, we don't accept it. But from this release, it sounds like they are, you know, even though they're having a hard time accepting it, it seems like they pretty much believe it to be true. Yeah, I got that as well. And like we said, you know, Alan died. So there was no way for him to receive justice. He was technically never convicted in a court of law. But, you know, as authority said, if he was alive, he would have been charged.

And you would think with that amount of evidence, you never know, but it sounds like he most likely would have been convicted. Virginia State Police and the FBI are still seeking more information on Alan Wade, Wilmer, Sr. Anyone who may have worked with him, hunted with him, docked next to him at Marina's Inn, the Northern Neck, Hampton Roads, or Middle Peninsula areas or otherwise Newham is encouraged to contact the FBI by calling 1,800 call FBI or by submitting a tip online at www.w.w.tips.fbi.gov. Anyone with information can also reach out to the Virginia State Police by email at questions at vsp.orgia.gov or the peninsula crime line. You can remain anonymous. So morph as we wrap up this episode, there's no doubt that the colonial parkway murders

has been for many years, a pretty infamous set of unsolved murders. You know, this is a series that is often talked about, debated online. And the fact that information has come in recently, kind of shedding some light is just absolutely amazing. Yeah, I think it just goes to show that, you know, with passage of time and as technology evolves and DNA evolves, that old cases aren't lost causes, you know, things that have been dormant for 20, 30 years, all of a sudden, you know, with a new technology or new DNA link can become hot cases and identities of killers can be learned after. even after they're dead.

We've seen it time and time again. And like I've always thought, you know, if you're a killer out there who has thought that you've gotten away with a murder or multiple murders for many, many years, at this point in time, you can't be sleeping all that easily, reading about how this new technology is solving crimes. You have to be looking over your shoulder. fearing that knock on the door, fearing that the authorities are going to eventually learn your identity and they're going to

come for you. Now, a lot of these cases are so old that the perpetrators may be deceased, just like Owl and Wilmers, but for those that are still alive, they can't be resting all that easy. And I think this is, you know,

as good as it is to be able to identify these, these killers, it's welcome news by the families of these victims because for for these victims that were linked through DNA to Wilmer, they have some answers now, but I feel for the other families that still don't know for sure if he's connected to their cases or not. You know, if there's not evidence to link them, that question might ever, might always be there. Is he responsible? Or is there another part of her out there that's gotten away with it up to this point? And I think, one of the really scary things is that it does seem as though there were multiple predators operating in and around this area, around the same time frame. That's just a scary thought

that you can have so many bad individuals intent on doing others harm, just kind of roaming around the area. Yeah. And as we mentioned, Bill Thomas said it in one of the quotes that he didn't know what was scarier if there was one lone person causing all this carnage or there were multiple people. Either way, it's a frightening scenario. We mentioned Kathy Thomas's brother Bill in this episode. He's been a longtime friend of ours as well as a wonderful advocate for the Colonial Parkway Murders case and their families. If you want to learn more about this case from Bill, be sure to check out his website, Colonialparkwaymurters.com. or listen to his podcast, Mind Over Murder.

Yeah, we've met Bill a number of times. I've always been extremely impressed with him. He is an impressive guy. Yeah, and he really knows this case inside and out, and he's done a wonderful job getting that information out there. So I hope, you know, for his family and for the rest of these families, they all get some of the answers that a couple of these families have gotten so far. That's it for our episode on the,

Colonial Parkway murders. I think this is another one more for where we're still going to have to keep an eye on it. There's going to be more information that comes out. But if you love the show, please make sure, go out if you haven't already and give us a five-star rating. You can leave a review. Also, keep telling your friends, word of mouth about the criminology podcast is huge. If you want to find us on social media, we're on X with the handle at Criminology Pod. You can also find us on Facebook at facebook.com slash criminology podcast.

And you can join our Facebook discussion group, criminology podcast, discussion and fans. So that's it for another episode of criminology. But Morph and I will be back with all of you next Saturday night with a brand new episode. So until then, for Mike and Morph. We'll talk to you next week. Take care, everyone.