Going West: True Crime - Bumble Bee Road Murders // 216

Episode Date: July 9, 2022

In 2003, a young couple was camping in their pick-up truck in a remote part of the Arizona desert to celebrate their anniversary. But before they could return home, they were murdered in the back of the truck. With few clues left behind, could the photos on their disposable camera help piece together the truth? This is the story of Brandon Rumbaugh and Lisa Gurrieri, otherwise known as the Bumble Bee Road Murders. BONUS EPISODES patreon.com/goingwestpodcast CASE SOURCES 1. ABC: https://www.abc15.com/news/state/arizona-camping-trip-cold-case-remains-unsolved 2. ABC: https://www.abc15.com/news/state/mother-hopes-for-answers-nearly-two-decades-after-murder-of-lisa-gurrieri-brandon-rumbaugh 3. Arizona Republic: https://www.newspapers.com/image/361287432/?terms=lisa%20gurrieri&match=1 4. East Valley Tribune: https://www.eastvalleytribune.com/news/argument-may-have-preceded-couples-death/article_7872e9dc-6a7c-54fb-a593-2cf3c14a77d7.html 5. Find A Grave: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/22764900/lisa-marie-gurrieri/photo 6. AZ Central: https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/scottsdale/2017/10/28/slain-while-camping-2003-scottsdale-couples-killing-still-mystery/809850001/ 7. Find A Grave: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/205289317/brandon-keith-rumbaugh 8. Legacy: https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/azcentral/name/john-gurrieri-obituary?id=32565854 9. True Crime Arizona: https://www.azfamily.com/originals/podcasts/true-crime-arizona/ 10. Arizona Republic: https://www.newspapers.com/image/125490223/?terms=lisa%20gurrieri&match=1 11. Arizona Republic: https://www.newspapers.com/image/125512144 12. Arizona Republic: https://www.newspapers.com/image/125583182/?terms=william%20middaugh%20omer%20casey&match=1 13. Biography: https://www.biography.com/crime-figure/israel-keyes 14. Atlanta Journal Constitution: https://www.ajc.com/news/national/kill-them-out-spite-man-gets-life-2004-murders-couple-sleeping-beach/3tZrgroIakoYfYAy0FN56H/ 15. Oregon Live: https://www.oregonlive.com/pacific-northwest-news/2015/07/families_mark_10th_anniversary.html 16. King 5: https://www.king5.com/article/news/crime/mary-cooper-susanna-stodden-unsolved-snohomish-county-murder/281-cf04d027-bb9e-4332-8572-f528fdff87b3 17. The Daily Courier: https://www.dcourier.com/news/2020/nov/07/cold-case-double-murder-couple-bumble-bee-still-un/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

What is going on True Crime fans, I'm your host Teeve. And I'm your host Daphne. And you're listening to Going West. Hello everybody, thank you for joining us for yet another episode of Going West. Hello everybody. Thank you for joining us for yet another episode of Going West. Today's case was recommended by Lee in an email. So thank you so much, I think in an email. Thank you so much, Lee. Yes, thank you, Lee. First, setting this one in, we really appreciate it. And for anybody else who wants to send a case in, I know we get a lot of questions on social media about how to recommend a case. So I like to say it here as much as possible.

The absolute best way to do so is by emailing us. So just email us at going westpodcast at gmail.com. That is the easiest way for us to see it. Also, for everybody that suggested a case that we have not gotten to yet, I'm so sorry, we have so many case suggestions. We're trying to kind of filter through all of them, but we really do our best to get to yet. I'm so sorry we have so many case suggestions. We're trying to kind of filter through all of them, but we really do do our best to get to those.

Yeah, we legit have hundreds. So it's going to take us a while. Exactly, but thank you, Lee, for giving us today's episode and are you ready to go? I'm ready. All right, guys, this is episode 216 of Going West. so let's get into it. In 2003, a young couple was camping in their pickup truck in a remote part of the Arizona desert to celebrate their anniversary. But before they could return home, they were murdered in the back of the truck. With few clues left behind, could the photos on their disposable camera help piece together the truth? This is the story of Brandon Rumbaw and Lisa Guerrere, otherwise known as the Bumblebee

Road Murders. Lisa Marie Guerrere was born on July 14th, 1984 to Paula and John Guerrere in Mesa, Arizona. Now a little bit about Mesa in the surrounding areas. So Mesa is a city, a little south of the center of of the state in a string of populous cities that surround Arizona's capital city of Phoenix. So Scottsdale, Tempe, Gilbert, Chandler, and Mesa are all kind of clumped outside of Phoenix less than an hour's drive away. So we're going to be talking about a few of those cities. Just want everybody to know this is in the same area. So Lisa had two brothers, Danny and Neal, and was known as the Princess of the Family. Her family was very close and described Lisa as the Light of their Lives.

Lisa attended Mesa High School, and she was known for, you know, being able to brighten anyone's day, and it was this running joke among her friends and family that she would say good morning to anyone she came across, which I love when people do that. So it's clear that she was an incredibly beloved daughter, sister, and friend, and here is something that her mom Paula had to say about her, quote, she was beautiful both inside and out. Everybody that met her loved her.

Absolutely loved her. She didn't know an enemy. Lisa was passionate about music, singing, and dancing. She loved and sing, and according to her mom, she was obsessed with Justin Timberlake. She performed in choir all through middle and high school, and also volunteered her singing talents with the band at her local church, where her family were regular attendees. She even sang at family wedding, so singing was definitely a big passion of hers. Paula later said about Lisa, quote, her voice was absolutely amazing. I know she's singing with the angels.

On May 29, 2002, tragedy struck the family when John, Lisa's father, passed away after a struggle with cancer, and at this time Lisa was 18 years old. He had been in hospice care and just before he passed, he asked his daughter to sing to him. As she did, he slipped into a coma and he never woke up. So this was kind of a, you know, a very beautiful, yet undeniably devastating moment for their entire family. But they're thankful for the peaceful way that he was able to pass. John had been working as a driver for Rock Solid Construction Company in Arizona and was just 48 years old. So after graduating from high school in Mesa, Lisa stayed local and began attending

Mesa Community College, focusing on business management. Her ultimate dream was to become a wedding planner, a dream that she'd realized after she saw the wedding planner with Jennifer Lopez and Matthew McConaughey, such a great movie. A classic. So when she wasn't in school or studying, Lisa was working as a secretary for SRP, which stands for the Salt River Project, which is the agency of the state of Arizona that provides water and power to the Phoenix metropolitan area. In October of 2002, so a few months after her father passed, Lisa met fellow college

student Brandon Rumbaw while out one night in a club in Mesa and they started dating. Her mother Paula dubbed him Lisa's Romeo saying quote, the sun set and rose on Brandon. They would play a lot and tickle each other and he constantly had his arm around her or was holding her hand. And it's funny because Brandon kind of has this like 90s heartthrob look, which is kind of Lisa style anyways Yeah, exactly like in his license photo. He has very like 1990s Justin Timberlake hair that's either blonde or he had frosted tips like I can't really tell So I can see why Lisa liked him so much. He was very much her type and that was definitely the style for the time

It really was so Branden Keithumbaw was born in Phoenix, Arizona, again, right next to Mesa where Lisa grew up, on May 7, 1983, to parents Desiree and Robert Rumbaw, and alongside his sister, Jessica. So Brandon was almost a year older than Lisa. Brandon attended Coronado High School in Scottsdale, Arizona and graduated in 2001. Upon his graduation, he actually entered the United States Marine Reserves and after his time as a Marine, which was very short, he began studying at Arizona State University and the neighboring city of Tempe. Brandon was passionate about fitness and he worked as a personal trainer at fitness

works gym in Mesa. He had reportedly been tall and lanky as a kid and then just kind of built himself up to like a muscular man after finding so much joy in his fitness journey. He also had a myriad of hobbies and interests outside of his busy work life. So like Lisa, he loved the arts and performing, and who's a very creative soul, like he played the drums in a local band, he danced in multiple stage productions, he painted and he even sculpted. He had an infectious smile and sense of humor, and they really both did, like looking at photos of both of them, even just for example their license photos or any other photo of them, they're smiling big smiles and they just look like really happy, wonderful people.

So Brandon also had a very good sense of humor reportedly and he was described by his parents as goofy, fun loving, and a joy to be around. He was known for being a dreamer and an eternal optimist, regardless of the circumstance, and was thrilled at the prospects that lay ahead of him. And during his time as a personal trainer at the gym, he dreamed of opening his own gym. So that was his goal for the future was to have his own gym and just continue, you know, his love of fitness.

In August of 2003, after they had been dating for about 10 months, Lisa and Brandon moved into an apartment together in Scottsdale. Now Lisa's mom later told reporters that they were engaged in planning their life together, but there hadn't been a ring yet, probably because they wanted to save a bit more money first. But the commitment was there. That was the same reason why, after initially planning on spending their one-year anniversary at Disneyland in California, but deciding that it was too expensive, they settled on camping

in the nearby Arizona desert instead. Because for those who don't know, this area of Arizona is just surrounded by vast desert landscape, so it would have been easy and convenient for them to do some desert camping nearby. The couple had the romantic notion to recreate their first date, and go stargazing in the desert just north of Phoenix. Paula said of Brandon, quote, he treated her like a queen. He really did. Interstate 17 is a highway that runs about 150 miles or 250 kilometers

between its origin and Phoenix and its end in Flagstaff. Just north of Phoenix and about an hour north of where the couple was coming from in Scottsdale is a census designated place called Black Canyon City. It's a small community that hosted about 2,600 people at the time and sits atop Yavapai native land. The area is surrounded by sprawling desert and mountains known for ATVing, camping, hiking, and a lot of outdoor activities. Bumblebee Road is an offshoot of Interstate 17, a narrow two-lane road that snakes through Bumblebee, Arizona, which was once a stagecoach town and now mostly a ghost town, with just a handful of residents.

And this was the area they were planning on camping at, so again, just about an hour away from their shared home. On October 17, 2003, 19-year-old Lisa and 20-year-old Brandon set out for their quick overnight John outside the city. Aside from the roster of wholesome activities available, it's also had a reputation for kind of being a party destination. Lisa's uncle Mike, so her father, John's brother, said he knew the area and that he used to party there himself. He also said that he thought of Lisa like a daughter, and he was very protective of her,

especially since his own brother's death. Lisa had purposefully told the rest of her family what she was doing that night and where she was going, but had not told her uncle because she knew that he wouldn't have let her go. Wanting a remote area free from light pollution for stargazing, they pulled into a dirt parking lot off of Bumblebee Road to sleep under the stars in the better-the-pick-up truck that they had borrowed from Lisa's mom. Lisa had never gone camping before, and and so initially Paula was hesitant about the two

of them going out there on their own, but eventually they wore Paula down and she loaned them her white 2004 to F-150. And this is quite different from camping, camping because they were going to sleep under the stars. It's not like camping in an easily unzipable tent is necessarily safer, but they were in a bit of an isolated spot on the side of the road, not in some designated campground. So they weren't right around other people, like they were in a dirt parking lot,

probably by themselves. So Lisa and Brandon planned to sleep in sleeping bags in the bed of the truck and then head home early the next day, meaning it would be a very quick one night camping trip for their anniversary. They needed to be back to Scottsdale by 9am because Brandon had an appointment with a personal training client at his gym. Paula said that she hugged them both, made sure they had enough blankets, and told them

to call if they needed anything. Before reaching their destination, Lisa called Paula to check in, knowing her mom was nervous, and this is what her mom said, quote, I asked her if she was there yet. She said, no, we're not there yet, mom. We still got so many miles to go. I said, okay, just be careful. That was the last conversation I had. Paula later said that she had a bad feeling about the situation and was on edge all night. Before arriving at 19-year-old Lisa and 20-year-old Brandon pulled off near Sunset Point, a well-known scenic lookout just north of Black Canyon City to take in the vast views. So this was the area that they would eventually pull over and camp at.

And again by camp I mean, in the bed of their truck. The next morning, October 18th, when the two didn't return as planned, Paula called Mesa police. Now Lisa was known for being responsible and extremely punctual, so her mom knew immediately that something was wrong. And like Daphne just said, she had already been on edge, so knowing that they didn't arrive on time, and she hadn't heard from either of them, was a very bad sign to her. With that, Brandon's dad, Lisa's brothers, and several of Brandon's dad, Lisa's brothers and several of Brandon's friends headed north to Yavapai

County to search a few popular camping spots along Bumblebee Road in hopes of finding the couple. And at about 3.30 pm, all three of Brandon's friends came upon Lisa and Brandon. Still in their sleeping bags in the bed of the truck. But as the friends approached the truck, they realized something horrible had happened. Brandon and Lisa weren't sleeping. They both had been fatally shot multiple times in the head and abdomen. Horrified and confused at what they were seeing, they called police to get them to their location immediately.

When they arrived to the scene, investigators searched the area and talked to other people who had camped overnight nearby because there were campsites in this general area, but this turned up very little evidence, because over a thousand people were believed to have stayed in the area on the night of October 17th. Because even though it was October considering this is the Arizona desert, even the nights were very warm, and particularly this evening was around 80 degrees Fahrenheit at night, and around 26 degrees Celsius. So basically this is an area where you can pretty much camp any time of

year because it's going to be warm. Yeah, and with this though, you know, since they weren't camp again to tent, they didn't go to a designated campground whether it would pay for a spot and set up camp. They were just, they just kind of pulled over somewhere they could stargaze in a dirt, a little dirt lot. And so that's why I said earlier that they were probably by themselves. Obviously we don't know that for sure, but we can assume probably so because this was just a random lot on the side of the road essentially.

What's really interesting to me is how many people they claim camped there that night. I know that's a lot of people. Over a thousand people within, and I'm sure it's a very large area that they're speaking of. But still, that's a lot of people to be out camping during this time. It really is.

And the strange conclusion, especially considering that heath, the strange conclusion that police had reached after questioning a ton of people who had been there that evening was that no one had even heard gunshots, despite there being multiple in both Lisa and Brandon. Obviously, murder suicide was originally pondered, but police quickly ruled that out as there was no weapon found nearby. The only items recovered from the scene were bullet casings, later determined to be from a 25 caliber gun, which is a small pistol, and explained by Yavapai County

Lieutenant Frank Barbaro to be fairly unpopular among gun owners. So I guess not a very common gun. Yeah, not that I would know, but that is what the lieutenant said. Now, according to police, there was no evidence that this was a robbery gun wrong. Either or wrong wrong either and no trace of alcohol drugs or sexual assault on the scene so this just appeared like somebody murdered them and just a random killing yeah there's no clear motive present you know it just appeared that Lisa and Brandon were maybe sleeping under the

stars together after a nice, relaxing night when they were murdered. Though there didn't appear to be a mode of originally, as investigators dug deeper, suspects emerged and friends and family had hunches as well. Which we're going to talk about here in a second. While the investigation was getting underway, Lisa's friends hosted a car wash to raise money for her funeral, and S.R.P. locations, where Lisa had worked, began taking donations in her name too.

A devastated Paula tried to get her bearings after her second loss in a year and a half, first her husband and now her only daughter. Lisa's funeral was held at the same church where she used to relish singing at. And in Brandon's memory, a scholarship fund was established by his friends at fitness works gym. As investigators got to work, they talked to a man whose truck was reported to have been parked nearby on the night of the killings, but they found no connection. And this makes me wonder because if his car was parked there, that means was he in the area, was he in that dirt lot, but investigators have not released this information to the

public. Yeah, they haven't said how close his vehicle was to theirs. Right. I just know that in a lot of other cases, we cover, you know, police will overlook somebody because they don't have enough evidence. And then it turns out that they are the culprit. So I mean, I have, I have absolutely nothing to go off here. I'm just saying I wonder who this guy was. Yeah, definitely. So they looked into the possibility that an argument between Brandon and

another man had broken out at Lisa and Brandon's apartment complex shortly before their deaths. And that maybe they were followed out to that camping spot. Apparently, other residents at the Scottsdale Green's apartment complex, where the couple resided, observed an argument between Brandon and another man, although the catalyst was unclear. This supposedly happened around 10 pm a day or so before the pair left for their camping trip, so the man was described as tall, white, husky, around 40 years old, and dressed in a white t-shirt in blue jeans. So this means that police

don't know who this guy is because I know that even years later, they even put this description out again wondering who this guy is. So did he not live in this apartment complex? Again, I'm pondering this because police have released very little information. So we're just going off of what we know. And this is just kind of weird to me that this happened at the apartment complex and nobody knows who this dude is. And to be honest, it's not a very detailed description. I mean, you've got not at all a white husky guy in his 40s with a white t-shirt and blue jeans. There's nothing really distinguishable here.

Not at all. So, Yavapai County Sheriff's Office spokesperson Susan Quail said, quote, there was an argument that took place. I don't know if they're looking for them as a suspect or an investigative lead. However, no suspect was ever publicly reported from that lead. Now, according to Lisa's uncle Mike, one of Brandon's friends, the very friends who discovered the bodies on the morning of October 18th, had a crush on Lisa and supposedly wanted Brandon out of the way. But then why kill Lisa too?

The guerraries are convinced that these boys were involved, in particular the one that liked Lisa, and that this was a confrontation gone wrong that wound up killing both of them. This man was questioned by police and even given a polygraph test which he passed, but after moved away from the area and has never come back. Before the break, we were discussing a potentially crucial person of interest in the murders of Lisa and Brandon, one of Brandon's friends who was interested in Lisa. I know we say this all the time, but if you move away after a murder and you are thought to be involved, that is so suspicious. It definitely is.

And again, I'll just say this for the record. People move all the time. Yeah, not that you can't move away. You are totally free to do whatever the hell you want. But in the eyes of many people, the public, maybe even investigators it does seem suspicious. Yeah, I mean, maybe this guy was trying to move before this happened.

I don't know. Sure. But the fact that Lisa's family feels like he was involved. I don't know if they are just not hoping he is, but just want closure and they're saying, oh, well, maybe it was that or if they have like an actual reason to believe that he was involved. Again, we just don't know. So the most eerie piece of evidence from this case

was found on the couple's disposable camera. It was recovered from the scene with the last two known photos of Lisa and Brandon on it, both by themselves in the back of the truck, which makes it look like they took turns photographing each other, and we posted these on our socials for anyone who wants to take a look. But upon seeing these pictures, Paula said that there was something wrong. She stated, quote, it wasn't her smile.

It was like she was scared and she was smiling. So looking at the picture, to me, someone who did not know Lisa, I don't see the scared but smiling angle. And I totally understand why her mom would try to speculate on this photo because she's trying to figure out what happened to her daughter and I fully respect that. But when I cover her mouth, like her eyes don't look scared to me, but she's also not smiling as big or necessarily genuinely as she is in all the other photos that I've seen of her. But one

thing I will note about this photo is that she's not looking directly into the lens. She's looking just off to the side. And she has pants on just to describe the photo a little better. So she's sitting in the bed of the truck. She has pants on with a belt and a black tank top and she's barefoot. She's sitting up against the back of the truck's bed with a sleeping bag next to her. The tailgate. Yes, the tailgate. Yes, exactly. And then the photo of Brandon is actually in the very same spot. And he's in the same sitting position that she is in. They both have like their legs open, but he's folding his arms and he isn't smiling at all. So if any of them look weird in any way, it's more so branding because he just, but he also looks like he's just making a straight face.

He doesn't look scared or angry necessarily. No, not necessarily. I think he just looks like kind of stern, I would say, a little bit. Yes, but something we have to remember too is they are in this, I mean, it is probably absolutely pitch black around them, the only light coming from the moon and the stars. Yeah, and you can see behind Lisa, it's just blackness. Right.

It's complete blackness. And these were taken with flash, but still, it was probably absolute darkness behind her anyway. so maybe they are having this uneasiness because they are outside at night in the dark because I know I would feel that way but I don't necessarily see her looking scared to me. Yeah I don't really see that either I think it's more of just like hey we're in the bed of a truck in the middle of nowhere and it's pitch blackout, right? Right. But you guys let us know what you think.

So along with those two photos, was another photo, which looks like it's of a compact fluorescent light bulb in a hanging light fixture. So a light fixture hanging from the ceiling. But the photo looks grainy and shadowy, like if it was taken from the inside of a closet or a hiding space. And it also kind of looks like it maybe wasn't purposefully taken. Right, it does look like it could have been an accident for sure, but this is a disposable camera, so I don't know. It's a really weird photo to look at and think of how this photo was taken, and if even means anything because it's kind of like a vertical photo too and it's cut off.

Like there's only a sliver of the photo being shown. But basically it is a black and white photo and we don't know and the police don't know what this picture is of when it was taken or who it was taken by and The camera itself was found broken in half and tossed from the truck about a hundred feet away So that's really bizarre to me the camera was completely broken, but they were able to salvage the film and Then this photo was found on it. That they can't explain. Exactly, because they know that it's not a photo from inside Brandon and Lisa's apartment. And they just can't figure out where it came from.

But the weird thing to me is the fact that it was found so far away from the truck. Me too, like that means that did somebody, I'm sure that Lisa and Brandon didn't chuck the camera that far, like a hundred feet. So how did it get so far outside the truck and why? Yeah, that's, I just don't understand that really. Why, why it's there. Right. And again, it is just like a sliver of a photo. So part of me was wondering if police only released a portion of the photo for whatever reason, but that wouldn't really make sense

because they're hoping that the public has information regarding where this photo was taken in case it's relevant. But yeah, it's just a sliver of an image. And the only clear thing that's visible is that hanging light fixture and what looks like maybe a plant under it? Yeah, I noticed that too.

It looks kind of like a plant. Yeah, but it seems like this photo maybe wasn't the last image to have been taken on the camera because I think the time this photo was taken is pretty relevant and important. But people online are saying other things. Some people say, oh, this was the last photo and some people say they don't know.

So we couldn't find any kind of evidence that this was the last photo on the camera roll, but that also wouldn't make sense because that would mean that someone would have had to have left the scene that night accidentally or purposely taken a photo maybe in their house and then returned to the scene and placed it 100 feet from the truck. My only thought is that if police are focusing on this photo, then maybe it has relevance. As if like maybe every other photo was purposefully taken, but this one somehow looked, you know, like an accident.

Right, which could maybe mean that, I don't know. I was gonna say that could maybe mean the killer took it, but where did they take it? If they did take it, why was the camera returned to the scene? Yeah, to me that wouldn't make any sense. If the killer took the camera, like, took it to his house and then accidentally took a picture

of his light fixture and then brought it back. Like, that makes no sense. And I think the reason that police are so confused about this photo or they're kind of weighing on it a little bit is because nobody in either family is knows where this photo was taken. Nobody recognizes that lamp fixture or the light fixture, sorry. And so that kind of is making police say, well, then where was this photo taken and could it have something to do with their

murderers? Sure. And if you're a person who's ever used one of those like disposable cameras, you know that sometimes you accidentally get a shot that you didn't mean to get. But you would have to wind the film up. Absolutely, yeah, you would. So that's why it's weird to me. I mean, it doesn't mean you can't accidentally take a photo on a disposable camera or a film camera,

but I don't know, it's a little odd. Yeah, it's definitely an interesting aspect of this case. So regarding these photos and the investigation as a whole, law enforcement pleaded with the public for help, and tips did come in, but the information was so sparse that they weren't even able to confidently name an official suspect in this case. Please tried to simultaneously alleviate fears from locals and tours to the area, but they just didn't have any concrete clues

as to who had committed these senseless murders. Especially if it was a random person that could have just driven up to their truck and shot at them. So I wonder something that I wasn't able to find was whether or not there were tire tracks right behind them or near them or if because it's a dirt parking lot,

there were a ton of tire tracks. Yeah, I mean, the strangest thing is that there doesn't appear to be any motive. There's no, there's absolutely no, no reason, no sexual assault, no robbery, nothing that would indicate why a person would want to do something like this. Right. So one Phoenix woman who frequented sunset point said, quote, I knew it felt creepy here. Residents of the small surrounding community began locking their doors, and one local man started open carrying his gun for fears that the assailant would return to the area to strike again.

Because this is a very small town, so... Rand a murder? Is this guy here still? Yeah, true. One investigator with the Yavapai County Sheriff's Office said, quote, do we believe that it was a random act and that there is a crazy person out there, not necessarily, but can we rule it out? Not necessarily. After the couple's funerals, Paula asked police if she could have her daughter's personal effects from the truck that were taken into custody for the investigation. But they told her that she couldn't have them back until the case was solved.

Or 25 years had passed, whichever came first. Paula said that she disregarded this at the time, assuming that there was, quote, no way it could go unsolved for so long. But we are now just 6 years away from the 25-year mark. Since there are very few persons of interest and very little evidence in this case, let's talk theories. There has been a lot of speculation that this is connected to a much larger string of seemingly senseless murders in nature. It particularly kind of sounds similar to the Malbu Creek State Park murder, which we covered

in episode 193 of Going West. But one possible perpetrator in Lisa and Brandon's case that a lot of people think is kind of outlandish, but we're just going to mention anyway, was actually Israel keys. Israel was a serial killer from Utah, believed to have had as many as 11 plus victims, many of whom are still not being attributed to him for lack of evidence. Israel was born into a large Mormon family

of 10 children, and after his father moved the family to a remote plot of land in the state of Washington, and his parents began homeschooling them, their belief shifted to white supremacist Christian identity ideology, and Israel already a self-proclaimed anti-social loner was even further radicalized. His crimes began with sexual assault in 1998 when he was just 20 years old. While he had no apparent ties to Arizona, he committed crimes in at least five different states. And really quickly, I wanted to add that we did a Patreon episode on Maddie Scott and

some people actually believe that he was a possible suspect in that case as well. It's actually crazy how many people think, but we've actually, we've covered a few cases where people believe that there is a potential connection. So again, this is kind of more of an out there one since there is no proof whatsoever, but we wanted to mention it, especially because we've gotten a lot of suggestions

to cover Israel keys. So it just, you know, thought we'd throw that in there. But strangulation, what's his M.O. though though he had been known to shoot because he was a gunner for the U.S. Army and he had been a gun enthusiast since he was a child. So there's that I guess. One potentially linked case is that of Omer Casey and William Middow, two men who were found dead in the U.S. Forest campground in Crown King, Arizona, just 30 miles or 48 kilometers from where Lisa and Brandon were found.

On May 3rd, 2004, so about seven months after Lisa and Brandon were killed, forest service workers discovered the bodies of Omer and William, and the following day, police had identified 21-year-old Rusty Rankin, who was from Phoenix as their main suspect. But unfortunately, before they could talk to him about his potential involvement in Lisa and Brandon's murders, he barricaded himself in a Colorado Springs, Colorado hotel room and killed himself. So police would not release Omer and Williams' cause of death, but they did report that after all they did not believe that their case was linked to this one.

In mid-August 2004, so 10 months after Lisa and Brandon's murders, another young couple was shot and killed while camping, but this time in California, so the neighboring state. Lindsay Cushill and Herfiance Jason Allen were found dead from shotgun wounds after camping on the beach in Jenner, California, which is just north of San Francisco. So not close to Arizona, per se, but we're just going to mention it anyway. So their deaths occurred sometime between the late evening of August 14th and the early morning of August 15th.

They had both been asleep at the time of the shooting, which appears to be the case for Lisa and Brandon, either that or they were recently awoken. A connection between the deaths of the two engaged couples seemed plausible with the similarities in circumstances, and the case went unsolved for 13 years until a man named Sean Michael Gallen a self-proclaimed survivalist from California shot and killed his brother and was then linked to the deaths of Lindsay and Jason as well. So police don't necessarily think these were involved it's just ones that they have looked into just in case because because there's similarities. Yeah, but it's just hard because there's no evidence in Lisa and Brandon's murder case. So how can you ever really link these but you know good on them for for searching. Haugan and Jeanette Bauman, a couple who, along with their dog, were found shot to death

at a remote Oregon campsite on July 1, 2005, and this case is still unsolved. In nearby Washington on July 11, 2006, 56-year-old Mary Cooper and her daughter, 27-year-old Susanna Cooper Staudin, were shot to death while hiking through a moat, pinnacle-lake trail in Snahobish County. There have been no answers in that case either, and there are probably many more stories like this, this is just a sampling that have, you know, distinct similarities to Lisa and Brandon's case. But despite all of these potential connections, we seem to be no closer to answers. But since 2016, there has been renewed hope for the case getting solved. This is partially because of Deb West, who brings with her a background in politics and education

and is now a cold case volunteer for the Yavapai County Sheriff's Office. The cold case investigators program has been very beneficial to the Sheriff's Office's efforts. Yavapai's silent witness director Chris Wilson said, quote, �In our cold case unit, our volunteers have way more expertise than you would expect a volunteer to have. That's why our cold case unit is so successful, is because they dig up things that are years and years old that actually lead to more leads and keep

these cases active. They have life experience that really lends towards their ability to sometimes look at angles that detectives don't. In fact, police had been holding on to the specifics about the murder weapon, but on Deb's recommendation, they released it, hoping to get a tip from someone who knew the owner of the 25 caliber pistol. He says the goal of the program is simple, to bring resolution to the families who are suffering and left without answers. Both Deb and Yavapay County Sheriff's Office salute tenant who was leading the investigation

at the time, Frank Barbaro, now believed that this was likely to be a random attack, or perhaps even a burglary gone awry, which they had initially ruled out. To me, it just doesn't make sense why one of Brandon's friends who liked Lisa would kill them both, and I don't know if a neighbor or a person who he had a brief dispute with would know they were going car camping, follow them all that way without being seen, even to the lookout spot they stopped at, and then murder them hours later.

So I do agree more so with this random attack theory, but who and why? Yeah, it seems like one of those cases, it's kind of like the zodiac. Like there's really no, it doesn't seem like there's a lot of motive going on here. It just seems so random. That's true actually, yeah.

You know what I mean? The zodiac. Yeah, like there was no reason for those murders either. It was just like, hey, I'm just... To murder. I just want to shoot some people. Well, and with them just knowing that they were in this more isolated spot on this dirt lot

on Bumblebee Road, somebody could have easily gotten off the highway for whatever reason, pass their truck, and seen this young couple because they were out in the open in the bed of the truck. So somebody could have easily come upon them and just decided that this was their opportunity to murder somebody again for whatever reason, but that's not completely out of left field. And like we mentioned earlier, it doesn't seem like they were trying to defend themselves. They were most likely asleep in their sleeping bags when they were shot. So, you know, it's not like the killer came along and was trying to sexually assault Lisa or something and Brandon stood up and then, you know, they's not like the killer came along and was trying to sexually assault Lisa or something and Brandon stood up and then you know

They both got murdered because it just didn't look like that Right and the thing about the robbery or how they don't think robbery was the motive here is interesting to me Just knowing that the camera was so far away from the truck because that would make me believe that maybe somebody Rommaged through their things unless their camera happened to be sitting out But why would you take their camera? What is going to be on there that you care about? So that aspect is interesting to me if they had it taken something that the police and family didn't notice. And there was a motive in that direction. But yeah, I don't know. It's really hard to say. And is

it also possible that, you know, maybe one of them was going to the bathroom and they accidentally dropped the camera on their way out, you know, right? That there's there's all sorts of possibilities here with that. Obviously in my true crime brain, I'm thinking there's a reason why that camera is so far from the truck. Yeah. But you know, that may not be what happened here. Right. So, Lisa's mother, Paula, said that she was flooded with support both financially and emotionally from her community after this happened. She was able to raise money for both Lisa's funeral and the reward for information leading to an arrest in the case.

It has now been almost 19 years with very little movement forward. Paula has since moved to Washington to be closer to her son and took a brighting poetry to process her grief. She stated, quote, �I just want this solved. Knowing this person is walking the streets and my daughter isn't, it's difficult. There's no reason why these two kids that were so loved by so many should be where they are.

These kids are no longer breathing. They're in the ground somewhere. And the person that did this is out there breathing every single day. It's not fair, it's just not fair. Paula and her other friends and family still leave tributes to Lisa on a memorialized Facebook page, and the Garri family is offering a reward of $10,000 for information on the case. Again, the Yavapai County Sheriff's Office is seeking information regarding a man who in 2003 could be described as tall, husky, white, possibly 40 years old, meaning around 60 years old now, who was wearing a white

t-shirt and blue jeans in October of 2003. Of course, this is not a descriptive profile at all, but if you or anyone you know has information on this person or the person who is responsible for murdering Lisa and Brandon, please call the Yavapai County Sheriff's Office at 928-771-3260 or submit a tip at YavapaiSW.com. That's Y-A-V-A-P-A-I-S-W.com. Those wishing to remain anonymous can call silent witness at 1-800-932-3232. Thank you so much everybody for listening to this episode of Going West. Yes, thank you guys so much for listening to this episode, and on Tuesday we'll have an all-new case for you guys to dive into. These cases frustrate me so much when there is just so little evidence to go off of.

Just knowing that these two beautiful, amazing people who were so in love were murdered and there's just absolutely no answers, and there's not even enough of an answer for us to speculate, or even the police to speculate. And that's just problematic. And that's why we need your guys' help, so please, if you have any information or you know anybody who is living in that area at the time, just uh... Think about it, contact. Yeah, contact somebody, because you never know, people talk, and these things get solved all the time, years years and even decades later.

So please, share this episode, tell your friends and family. As the phrase goes, somebody knows something. So thank you guys so much for listening. Thank you for sharing our cases and our show or our cases. They're not our cases, our episodes and our show. It means a lot to Heath and I and we love you all. And remember, if you want to see photos from this case head on over to our cases, our episodes and our show. It means a lot to Heath and I and we love you all. And remember, if you want to see photos from this case head on over to our Instagram, which is at Going West Podcast, we're also on Twitter at Going West

Pod and we have a Facebook discussion group. So go check those out. Indeed. Alright guys, so for everybody out there in the world, don't be a stranger. Thank you. you