Murder: True Crime Stories - UNSOLVED: Irene Izak 1

Episode Date: September 24, 2024

In 1968, Irene Izak drove from Ohio to Canada to interview for a dream job. But she never reached the border. Irene was brutally murdered before she could make her dreams a reality. To this day, her murder is unsolved. For more, follow us on Tiktok and Instagram @crimehouse To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This is Crime House. From the very beginning, people facing persecution have sought refuge in the United States. For so many new immigrants, the American dream is about living in a country where every citizen has a right to peace and safety. That's what Irene Isaac's family was looking for when they traded Bolshevik-occupied Ukraine for Scranton, Pennsylvania. And for a time, their family did find a safe haven. Until a random act of violence changed everything. On June 10th, 1968, Irene was bludgeoned to death. Although her body was found within minutes of her death, the police never made an arrest.

Her family wondered if that was because the only viable suspect was one of their own officers. People's lives are like a story. There's a beginning, a middle, and an end. But you don't always know which part you're on. Sometimes the final chapter arrives far too soon, and we don't always get to know the real ending. I'm Carter Roy, and this is Murder True Crime Stories, a Crime House original. Every Tuesday, I'll explore the story of a notorious

murder or murders. At Crime House, we want to express our gratitude to you, our community, for making this possible. Please support us by rating, reviewing, and following Murder True Crime Stories wherever you get your podcasts. Your feedback truly matters. This is the first of two episodes on the unsolved murder of Irene Isaac, a 25-year-old schoolteacher who was murdered on her way to a job interview. Today, we'll examine Irene's life and what we know about the night of her death. Then next week, we'll delve into the nearly 60-year investigation and discuss why her family suspects the police covered for her killer. All that and more coming up. Hey everyone, it's Carter. I have a favor to ask you. If you are enjoying Murder True Crime Stories, I would be honored if you took a

moment to rate and review us on Apple and Spotify. Your valuable feedback helps us improve and expand our reach so other true crime fans can find us too. Your support means everything. everything Irene Juliana Isaac was born in Nazi occupied Ukraine on July 2nd 1942. her father Boden Isaac was a Ukrainian Greek Catholic priest in this form of Catholicism priests can marry so long as they do so before their ordination, which is what Bowdoin did. After he and his wife Maria tied the knot, they went on to have five children together, with Irene being the youngest. Although the Isaac family often struggled to find food during World War II, they'd managed to hold on to a barn and some livestock. Because of that, they were better off than most of their neighbors. The Isaacs used what little they had to hide Jewish Ukrainians

from the Nazis, risking death in the process. Bowdoin even baptized Jewish people who wanted to avoid persecution by showing proof they'd converted to Catholicism. Bowdoin and Maria swore their children to secrecy, warning that the entire family would be murdered if anyone found out what they'd done. In 1943, when Irene was barely a year old, the Allied forces defeated Germany on the Soviet front, and the Nazis began their withdrawal from the Soviet Union. But the war had devastated Ukraine's infrastructure. Ten million people were left homeless and a famine that would kill another million was just around

the corner. To make matters worse, Joseph Stalin's Red Army took the Nazis' place and moved in to occupy Ukraine. Government planes bombed the remaining German installations in the countryside, often setting fire to civilian homes in the process. The parish house where the Isaacs lived nearly burned down after three bombs were dropped on their village. Boden loved his homeland, but it was clearly time to go. down after three bombs were dropped on their village. Boden loved his homeland, but it was clearly time to go. In July 1944, he gathered what little food and clothing his family had left, along with their last cow. The Isaacs, Boden, Maria, their five children, and the cow, boarded a boxcar bound for the Slovakian border.

From there, they planned to travel to Hungary and finally to a refugee camp in Austria. It was a harrowing journey, and they were repeatedly stopped by Bolsheviks. At one point, Boden was separated from his family while searching for food in a village neighboring the train station. He only managed to catch up to his family by begging some fleeing Nazi soldiers for a ride on the fender of their ambulance. Despite the risky voyage, the Isaacs arrived in Austria in relatively good health. Austria had plenty of Catholic people, and Boden expected a warm welcome. However, he quickly realized that the Austrian Roman Catholic priests didn't consider a married Byzantine clergyman to be one of their own. But maybe it was a good thing the Isaacs didn't find

a community there. In 1945, the Bolsheviks invaded Austria as well, and the family of seven was forced from village after village, at one point living in a horse barn. There was only one option left. Bowdoin had a sister living in the United States. He made contact and begged her to sponsor his family for immigration. Irene's aunt was happy to help her brother and his children, but it took years to raise the money and make a plan. At any time, a chance encounter with Bolshevik soldiers could have put an end to the family's hopes. But their luck held. Finally held finally in 1948 after three years of living as unwelcome refugees in austria the isaac secured a birth on an american military ship the uss

marine jumper five-year-old irene enjoyed the journey across the ocean to new york city Irene enjoyed the journey across the ocean to New York City. She enjoyed it even more when they disembarked in America. The first thing she noticed was that there was food everywhere. Raised in famine-stricken post-war Eastern Europe, Irene probably didn't even know there were people in the world who never skipped a meal. Safety was also a new experience for Irene. She'd never seen her parents live without fear before. The family settled first in Connecticut and then in Scranton, Pennsylvania, where Bowdoin found work as a pastor at St.

Vladimir's Ukrainian Catholic Church. The children learned English and began attending American schools. But Boden and Maria were still traumatized by the hostility they faced as refugees in Austria. Despite the kindness of those around them, they worried their new neighbors would turn on them. So they saw to it that their five children made excellent ambassadors for the Ukrainian community There was no rule-breaking or teenage rebellion in the Isaac home The children were always neatly dressed, well-spoken, polite, pious, and diligent in their studies Their parents constantly reminded them that their behavior reflected on every Ukrainian living in America. And as the youngest, Irene was particularly quick to adapt to American culture.

At school, Irene impressed her teachers with her unique gift for languages. As a toddler in Austria, she learned to speak and read both German and Ukrainian, which are written in different alphabets. English came easily too, but even that wasn't enough for the voracious learner. At an early age, she began studying French. From her very first experiences with the French language and culture, Irene was smitten. She'd found her passion. When she graduated from high school, she decided to major in French at Marywood College, a small women's Catholic college in Scranton. Irene turned 18 in the early 1960s, just as the counterculture era was sweeping campuses across the country.

Studying under the tutelage of the Sisters of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, Irene was cloistered away from the rock and roll protest culture and free love taking hold at secular universities. Even so, Irene found a sense of freedom in her love of French. After graduating from Marywood in 1963, Irene took a job as a French teacher in Binghamton, New York. Her French was so fluent, her students assumed she was French-Canadian. But Irene wasn't entirely satisfied with her own skills or with her life as a New York school teacher. So while her students were on summer break in 1964, Irene went to France to study at the Sorbonne University. The experience left Irene convinced that she wanted to live in a French-speaking country. She applied to a

master's degree program at Laval University in Quebec City, Quebec. Her grades were excellent and her love of French shone through in her application. Irene was quickly accepted and by 1967, Irene packed her bags and moved to Canada. Irene knew she was making a life-changing decision, but she had no idea it would eventually lead to a life-ending one too. Hey there, Carter Roy here. If you're enjoying the chilling tales of murder true crime stories, then you'll love the Crime House original Mind of a Serial Killer. What sets Mind of a Serial Killer apart is its focus on the twisted psychology of the world's most notorious serial killers.

Names like Jeffrey Dahmer, Ted Bundy, the Night Stalker, names like Jeffrey Dahmer, Ted Bundy, The Night Stalker, featuring expert psychological analysis from licensed clinical and forensic psychologist Dr. Tristan Engels. Mind of a Serial Killer will take you into their stories like never before. So get ready to uncover what drives someone to commit the unimaginable. Mind of a Serial Killer is a Crime House original. New episodes drop every Monday. Just search Mind of a Serial Killer and follow wherever you listen to podcasts. If you're fascinated by the darker sides of humanity, Join us every week on our podcast, Serial Killers,

where we go deep into notorious true crime cases. With significant research and careful analysis, we examine the psyche of a killer, their motives and targets, and law enforcement's pursuit to stop their spree. Follow Serial Killers wherever you get your podcasts and get new episodes every Monday. In Quebec, Irene Isaac fell in love with more than just the French language.

Away from the watchful eye of her priest father, she met a boy from Ontario who swept her off her feet. America had given her safety, but France and Quebec gave Irene freedom. It was an all-consuming, magical love. Irene was planning a life with someone outside of her family for the very first time. a life with someone outside of her family for the very first time. She must have dreamed about a wedding in her beloved Quebec and raising French-speaking children of her own. And then, it was over. Out of nowhere, Irene's boyfriend ended things. Then, he immediately started a serious relationship with another woman. Irene wrote about the devastating breakup in a letter to her cousin,

saying it made her feel like not existing. Irene didn't want to go back to an English-speaking country, but if she stayed at Laval, she felt like she'd never be able to move on from her lost love. In the end, she reluctantly returned to the United States, but moving back into her parents' house in Scranton only made her more depressed. Irene decided she needed a change of pace, so she reached out to her aunt and uncle who lived in Cleveland. of pace, so she reached out to her aunt and uncle who lived in Cleveland. They were happy for Irene to stay with them for a while and offered her their guest room. She resigned herself to job hunting in Cleveland, but the quiet life of an unmarried upstate Ohio school teacher didn't

compare to her time as a student in Quebec. Almost as soon as she'd left Canada, Irene realized she wanted to go back, just not back to Laval. Luckily for her, in early June, about a week after arriving in Ohio, Irene got a phone call. It was a friend she'd met in Canada calling about a teaching job in Charlebourg, Quebec. They were already conducting interviews. If Irene wanted to apply, she had no time to waste. Irene was absolutely certain this job was meant for her. She wanted the school to know she was serious about leaving the U.S. and starting a life in Canada. Something this important couldn't be left up to a phone call. So, Irene decided to drive her Volkswagen Beetle

all the way to Quebec alone, and interview in person. On June 8th, she explained herself in another letter to her cousin Marie, saying, I want my freedom back, my old way of living. Some young women would have been scared by the prospect of driving all the way to a different country by themselves. In 1968, road maps were printed on paper, and there were no cell phones to call for help if your car broke down on the side of a remote highway. But Irene's childhood had made her fearless. If she could survive being born a target, growing up a refugee, and representing her culture in a brand new country,

she could get through anything. Besides, as she reassured her relatives, she had friends she could visit along the way. Then, a couple of nights before leaving, Irene had a terrible nightmare. She woke up screaming about someone hitting her in the head. Her relatives rushed into the guest room to comfort her. It seemed that nobody took it seriously, though. Nightmares were likely par for the course in Irene's family,

traumatized as they all were by the war. So, on the afternoon of Sunday, June 9th, 1968, 25-year-old Irene Isaac departed for Canada as planned. She went north on Interstate 81, which goes all the way to Canada. The long drive must have given her plenty of time to fantasize about the new life she was heading towards. Surely the grand gesture of driving across the border for an interview would help her land the job. After that, the world was her oyster. With all the excitement about her upcoming plans, Irene made pretty good time. She stopped in Rochester around 9 p.m. to visit a former roommate. After that, Irene was supposed to spend the night with another friend in Syracuse, New York, and drive the rest of the way to Canada on Monday.

Once she got on the road, though, she couldn't bear to wait that long. What if someone else got to the school before her and got the job? Irene decided to push straight through. Irene decided to push straight through. By 1.50 a.m., she was north of Watertown, New York, about 30 miles from the Canadian border. Once she crossed into Canada, she'd only have about 150 miles left to her destination. Cruising up I-81, Irene passed a dark blue car tucked away on the side of the road. In the pitch black night, she probably didn't even see the vehicle until it pulled out behind her and turned on its flashing red and blue lights.

She'd just been caught in a speed trap. The blue car was an unmarked police vehicle driven by New York State Trooper David Hennigan. Just like Irene, Hennigan was headed north on I-81. His schedule that night included a series of property checks on nearby Wellesley Island, where the U.S. port of entry from Canada is located. In other words, he planned to drive past various houses and businesses to make sure there were no signs of trouble. Before making his way to the island, he pulled over to look for people speeding. That's when Irene's tan Volkswagen Beetle sped by, doing 75 miles per hour in a 65 zone. At least, that's what Hennigan said happened. But that wasn't possible. Later testing would prove that Irene's little Volkswagen wasn't able to go that fast. She'd

have been lucky to hit the speed limit in her 1965 Beetle, much less exceed it by 10 miles per hour. Maybe Hennigan was mistaken when he decided to pull Irene over. Maybe he wanted to see what kind of person was driving to Canada all by herself at that time of night. Or perhaps he had a darker motive. Hennigan checked Irene's license and registration, then let her off with a warning about speeding. The interaction was brief, and Irene was back on the road in no time. Hennigan wasn't far behind, headed to Wellesley Island to make his nightly rounds. Around 2.09 a.m., Irene reached the toll booth on the Thousand Islands Bridge,

which connects the New York mainland to Wellesley Island, which is owned by the U.S. The Thousand Islands is actually a collection of about 2,000 islands shared by the U.S. and Canada. Most are tiny, but Wellesley Island is large enough to host over 400 camping sites, a state park, a few hundred permanent residents, and a country club. As Irene prepared to cross over onto the island, she stopped to speak with a toll collector, Clifford Putnam. According to his later statement, Irene seemed visibly frightened of something, or someone. She immediately asked Clifford, does a state trooper stop all the cars? She was talking to the right person. Clifford was a former police officer himself. He reassured Irene that it was probably just a routine check due to some recent

burglaries in the area. Still shaken, Irene asked Clifford to borrow his lighter. She needed a cigarette to calm her nerves. As Irene and Clifford spoke, Trooper Hennigan passed by in his dark blue, unmarked car. Irene definitely recognized the vehicle because she pointed it out to Clifford. Whatever it was about Hennigan that scared Irene, she wasn't rattled enough to turn back home. With her cigarette between her lips, she continued on towards Canada. As Clifford Putnam waved her on, he had no idea he'd be the last person to see Irene Isaac alive. After paying her toll, 25-year-old Irene Isaac proceeded across the bridge to Wellesley Island. Canada was so close she could just about touch it. Then, for some reason, Irene pulled off at a rest stop littered with old beer cans near DeWolf Point State Park's main entrance. She got out of her car, but only made it as far

as her Volkswagen's rear bumper before a physical altercation with her killer began. Her glasses were knocked off her face and later found in loose gravel just behind the car. Irene's attacker quickly overpowered her. She was dragged over the nearby guardrails that separated the road from the surrounding landscape and ten feet down into a steep rocky ravine near the St. Lawrence River. Whether she was dragged before or after her death, we don't know, but a blow to the head with a blunt object killed her, just like in the nightmare Irene had before her trip. That still wasn't enough for Irene's killer, though. She was dropped face down in a pile of her own blood. Then her assailant repeatedly pummeled her skull with rocks.

The blows were forceful enough to partially bury her face in the dirt. The murder was shockingly violent and brief. The attacker left without even stealing the traveler's checks from Irene's Volkswagen. At 2.35 a.m., just 26 minutes after Irene was seen at the toll booth, David Hennigan used the radio in his unmarked blue car to report that he discovered Irene's body. According to Trooper Hennigan, after passing Irene's car at the toll booth, he began his property checks on Wellesley Island. As he drove around the area, he noticed the Volkswagen he'd pulled over earlier that night sitting at a rest stop with its headlights on. Hennigan stopped to check on the driver and found the vehicle unoccupied.

After spotting Irene's glasses in the loose gravel behind the Volkswagen, Hennigan said he shouted for Irene, but nobody answered. So he scrambled down the steep ravine to look for her. so he scrambled down the steep ravine to look for her. When he found her mangled body, Hennigan claimed he wasn't completely sure Irene was dead. To check her vital signs, he said he lifted Irene's head, the site of her fatal injury.

That's how Hennigan claims he got Irene's blood on his uniform But Irene's skull was crushed It would have been easy to ascertain that her injuries were fatal without touching her body Then, after finding Irene and checking for a pulse Hennigan said he climbed back out of the ravine And made his way back to his car radio by 2.35 a.m. To recap, Hennigan claimed he drove onto the island ahead of Irene, looped around, and ended up behind her, then saw her empty vehicle at the rest stop. After that, he climbed

down a rocky ravine in the dark, found her body, partially picked up her body to check for signs of life, climbed back up, and returned to his vehicle all in less than 26 minutes. Working fast would be an understatement. Once Hennigan called in his grisly discovery, every cop in the area descended on the rest stop. Irene's Volkswagen was impounded. Drivers trying to leave the island were stopped and questioned. Police quickly located the toll booth attendant, who was happy to cooperate after learning what had happened. Irene's body was handed off to Jefferson County, New York medical examiner Richard S. Lee for an autopsy. He confirmed her cause of death was blunt force trauma to the head, not that there was ever any real doubt about that.

Lee also confirmed Irene was not sexually assaulted. She was found fully dressed in a pink sweater, beige slacks, and leather sandals. None of her clothing appeared to have been disturbed, and there was no trauma to her intimate regions. So, if the murder wasn't a sexually motivated crime, and it wasn't a robbery gone wrong, why did someone kill Irene? Bludgeoning a woman to death would require some serious motivation, or a serious amount of rage. Not to mention the strength and effort required to drag her down into the ravine. A crime of passion by someone who knew the victim would fit the evidence, but Irene left on a road trip alone, and the toll booth attendant confirmed she was still alone in her vehicle 26 minutes before Hennigan reported finding her body. If she planned to meet someone on Wellesley Island, 2 a.m. at a roadside rest stop

hardly sounds like the time and place to schedule a rendezvous. The only people confirmed to have interacted with Irene on the night of her death were Clifford Putnam, the toll collector, who spent the whole night in his booth, and state trooper David Hennigan. Within a few days of the June 10th murder, Hennigan was asked to submit to voluntary questioning at New York State Police Headquarters in Oneida, New York. He agreed, but apparently Mrs. Hennigan didn't. But apparently Mrs. Hennigan didn't. According to one of the investigators, David's wife barged in and ended the interview prematurely,

forcing her husband to leave. Later, Hennigan returned for two polygraph tests without his wife. Although one was inconclusive, he passed the other. After the second polygraph, which consisted of only three questions, investigators wanted to keep talking to Trooper Hennigan, but he lawyered up and refused any further interviews. Detectives looked diligently for another suspect. They combed the Thousand Islands for tips. It was prime camping and fishing season, and there were plenty of people to talk to, but none of them would admit

to seeing Irene. The investigation struggled, hamstrung from the very beginning by the proverbial thin blue line. If Hennigan had been anyone else, a tourist, a fisherman, a drifter, an old boyfriend, it's hard to imagine him not becoming the primary suspect. If they arrested Hennigan, detectives would have had more leverage to convince him to cooperate. If prosecutors filed charges, they could have offered a plea deal to coax him into confessing. But after one abortive interview and two polygraph tests, police announced they didn't believe Hennigan was involved. Meanwhile, back in Scranton, Pennsylvania, Irene's parents were beyond devastated to learn of her murder.

They'd protected her through a world war, two Bolshevik invasions, famine, and an international voyage. To lose her now, in the prime of her life, to a seemingly random murder, it was just too much to bear. Like many World War II survivors of their generation, the only way Bowdoin and Maria knew to deal with grief was through stoic silence. So they buried their daughter at St. Vladimir's Cemetery, attached to the church where Bowdoin was pastor. They planned to be buried next to her when the time came, and then they did their best to put the murder behind them. Even thinking about Irene was painful. Anytime someone mentioned her name, Bowdoin and Maria became angry. Their grandchildren, Irene's nieces and nephews, learned not to reminisce about their favorite aunt.

The case ran cold for the next 16 years, but grandchildren grow up eventually. When the younger generation of Isaacs became adults, they decided to stop playing by their grandparents' rules. They weren't just going to talk about their aunt. They were going to solve her murder, even if it meant, quite literally, digging up her grave. digging up her grave. Thanks so much for listening. I'm Carter Roy, and this is Murder True Crime Stories. Come back next week for part two, where I'll tell you how Irene Isaac's murder investigation stalled and the incredible lengths her family went to obtain justice for Irene.

Murder True Crime Stories is a Crime House original powered by Pave Studios. Here at Crime House, we want to thank each and every one of you for your support. If you like what you heard today, reach out on social media at Murder True Crime Pod on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and YouTube. Don't forget to rate, review, and follow Murder True Crime Stories wherever you get your podcasts. Your feedback truly makes a difference. We'll be back next Tuesday. Murder True Crime Stories, a Crime House original, is executive produced by Max Cutler. This episode of Murder True Crime Stories was sound designed by Ron Shapiro,

written by Yelena War, edited by Natalie Partsofsky, fact-checked by Catherine Barner, and included production assistance from Kristen Acevedo and Sarah Carroll. Murder True Crime Stories is hosted by Carter Roy. You may know a serial killer's crimes. Now, uncover the psychology behind them. Mind of a Serial Killer is a Crime House original. New episodes drop every Monday. Just

search Mind of a Serial Killer and follow wherever you listen to podcasts. If you're fascinated by the darker sides of humanity, join us every week on our podcast, Serial Killers, where we go deep into notorious true crime cases. With significant research and careful analysis, we examine the psyche of a killer, their motives and targets, and law enforcement's pursuit to stop their spree. Follow Serial Killers wherever you get your podcasts and get new episodes every Monday.