Crime Junkie Case Files: Missing Persons Cold Cases Vol. 1, True Crime Investigations of People Who Mysteriously Disappeared

By Dexter Gable

Delve into the most perplexing missing persons cases that continue to mystify experts, haunt families, and captivate the public's imagination.

Each chapter unfolds a different story, meticulously researched and vividly retold, exploring the intricate details of these unsolved mysteries. From the disappearance of a promising you

• Language: English
• Publisher: Crime Junkie Case Files
• Release date: Feb 12, 2024
• ISBN: 9798869188137

Book preview

Dexter Gable

Crime Junkie Case Files Missing Persons Cold Cases Vol 1

Copyright © 2024 by Dexter Gable

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise without written permission from the publisher. It is illegal to copy this book, post it to a website, or distribute it by any other means without permission.

First edition

Contents

Beaumont Children

Bianca Piper

Alexis Patterson

Mary Badaracco

Camille Dardanes Dotson

Kelli Cribbs Abad

Ylva Hagner

Alexander Harris

Johnathan Lee Hamilton

Maura Murray

Annie Yassie

Ray Gricar

Patrick Alford

Danny Goldman

Katherine and Sheila Lyon

Luke Joly-Durocher

Jessica Small

About the Author

Beaumont Children

Jim and Nancy’s story began with a whirlwind romance, leading them down the aisle in 1955. Their family quickly grew with the arrival of Jane in 1956, followed by Orna in 1958, and finally, Grant in 1961. They were the picture of a joyful family, nestled in the serene landscapes of southern Australia.

The year 1966 marked a pivotal chapter in their lives. On January 26, a day etched in memory, the three children embarked on an innocent journey to Glenelg Beach. This beach, a gem in the suburb of Adelaide in South Australia, was a magnet for tourists and locals alike. The children, familiar with its sandy shores and playful waves, ventured there in a time when independence was a common gift given to children. The world was different then; it was a time of freer spirits and less guarded lives.

That particular day was sweltering, a typical trait of Australian summers, where January is synonymous with scorching heat. The children, seasoned in their little excursions, had visited the beach just the day before. Their mother, Nancy, confident in Jane’s mature and responsible nature, entrusted her with the care of her younger siblings. She instructed them to return by the afternoon bus, no later than 2:00 PM, while she planned to visit a friend and their father, Jim, was at work.

However, as the clock ticked past the appointed hour, Nancy’s heart began to race with worry. Perhaps they had missed their bus, she thought, trying to remain calm in an era devoid of instant communication like cell phones. Jim, returning from work and finding the house still empty, was gripped by a sense of urgency. He dashed to the beach, hoping to find them frolicking in the sand, but the beach offered no answers. A frantic search ensued, stretching to neighbors and nearby areas, but all in vain.

At 5:00 PM, with heavy hearts, Jim and Nancy contacted the police. The 1960s had different protocols for missing persons, often requiring a waiting period before taking action. But in this case, the police were quick to respond. A search team combed the beach, and within 24 hours, the nation was alerted to the disappearance of Jane, Orna, and Grant.

The case rapidly evolved into the largest search operation in South Australian history. A woman came forward, claiming she had seen the children that morning near the Paddlewheel and Ganga Boat Haven. By January 29th, authorities decided to drain the marina, suspecting a tragic accident. Yet, no trace of the children or their 17 belongings was found, deepening the mystery.

Further testimonies emerged. Another witness recalled seeing the children playing near a grassy area by the beach, under the watchful eye of a man in his thirties. This stranger, initially a mere observer, gradually integrated himself into their activities. Another bystander noticed him assisting the children with their clothing and waiting outside a dressing room. Despite the seemingly comfortable interaction, this detail added a chilling layer to the unfolding narrative.

Nancy and Jim grappled with a bewildering piece of information that came to light. Despite their daughter Jane’s inherent shyness, a witness claimed to have seen the children with a man, suggesting a level of familiarity that was entirely out of character for Jane. This revelation was puzzling and alarming for them, as they couldn’t fathom Jane willingly engaging with a stranger, let alone accompanying one.

Around noon, another thread was added to this tapestry of mystery. A witness reported seeing the children at a bakery, indulging in some pastries and a meat pie—a culinary staple in Australia, akin to a pie but brimming with savory meat. This encounter was peculiar, the baker noted, as the children, regulars at his shop, had never ordered a meat pie before. They mentioned it was for the man with them, further deepening the intrigue for the police, who were piecing together the children’s last known movements.

The timeline of events took another twist when a postman, initially claiming to have seen the children around 3 PM, jovially walking towards their home, later realized his mistake. It was in fact in the morning that he had seen them, thus resetting the last confirmed sighting to 11 AM at the bakery.

As the months slipped by without any substantial leads, the community’s anxiety intensified. Then, out of the blue, a woman stepped forward with a startling claim. She had seen a man leading two girls and a boy into what she believed to be an abandoned house near her own. The delayed revelation was baffling. Why had she waited months to report something so suspicious? The question hung in the air, unanswered, as the police struggled to make sense of this new information.

This case struck a chord with the Australian community, known for its safety and close-knit nature. Such incidents were unheard of in the 60s, especially in a country like Australia. The collective sense of shock and grief was palpable.

In a turn towards the unconventional, on November 8th, a man named Gerard Croiset from the Netherlands, known for his work as a parapsychologist and psychic, was brought in to assist. Parapsychology, often viewed with skepticism in the scientific community, delves into paranormal and psychic phenomena. Croiset had a mixed track record, with some of his insights in previous cases proving accurate, while others were off the mark. Yet, in a situation brimming with uncertainties, the family was willing to explore every possibility.

Croiset expressed his deep empathy and determination to find the children. He identified a warehouse near the children’s home, suggesting they were buried beneath its construction site, specifically under a concrete area near an old brick kiln. This claim was met with understandable hesitation from the warehouse owners, reluctant to allow excavation based solely on a psychic’s vision.

Two years after their disappearance, they received letters that tore at their emotions. One was supposedly penned by Jane, and the other by a mysterious man claiming to be holding the children. The letters, postmarked from Dandenong, Victoria, a significant distance from Glenelg, Australia, brought a glimmer of hope mixed with deep apprehension.

The letter attributed to Jane painted a picture of a relatively content life with the man, a narrative that puzzled and tormented the parents. The police, after comparing the handwriting with Jane’s previous samples, believed in the authenticity of the letters. The man’s letter portrayed himself as a self-appointed guardian, raising the children as his own. He proposed a clandestine meeting with Jim and Nancy to return the children, but under strict conditions.

Driven by a desperate hope, Jim and Nancy, accompanied by a detective, traveled to the designated location. The agonizing wait yielded nothing but the crushing weight of silence. Their hopes were further dashed when a subsequent letter from the man accused them of betrayal for involving a private investigator, declaring his intention to keep the children.

The emotional rollercoaster continued until 1992 when new forensic examinations revealed the letters to be a cruel hoax, orchestrated by a man who was a teenager at the time of the children’s disappearance. Despite the devastating impact of his actions, the lapse of time meant he faced no legal consequences.

As the investigation continued, several suspects emerged. Bevan von Einem, serving a life sentence for a different murder, became a suspect after claims surfaced of him bragging about abducting and conducting grotesque experiments on the children. The police, initially skeptical due to discrepancies in age and modus operandi, began to consider him a serious suspect after finding similarities with police sketches from 1966.

In 2007, a glimmer of hope appeared in the form of old news footage showing a man resembling Bevan at the search site, but this lead, too, fizzled out without any definitive connection.

Another suspect, Alan Monroe, known to have been at the beach during the children’s disappearance and with a history of crimes against children, was interrogated but to no avail. Similarly, James O’Neill, serving a life sentence for the murder of a nine-year-old boy, was rumored to have claimed responsibility for the Beaumont children’s disappearance. However, his alibi of never having been to Adelaide cast doubt on his involvement.

The children’s case entangled yet another individual, Derrick Percy. On April 22nd, 2007, an Australian newspaper published a report suggesting that Percy, who passed away in prison in 2013, might have been involved in the mysterious disappearance. Derrick, who had been incarcerated following a verdict of not guilty by reason of insanity for the 1969 murder of Yvonne Tuohy, became a person of interest in the Beaumont case. However, further investigation into Percy’s background revealed that he was only 17 at the time of the children’s disappearance, rendering his involvement highly unlikely.

The investigation then shifted its focus to Harry Phipps, a businessman with a disturbing family dynamic. Harry’s son, Haydon, was 15 when the Beaumont children vanished. In a shrouded interview, whose contents remain undisclosed, Haydon recalled a chilling memory. He remembered his father interacting with three children and disturbingly, the sound of gunshots as he approached their house. Haydon didn’t find this alarming at the time, as such occurrences were reportedly not uncommon in their household, characterized by his father’s violent and intimidating behavior. Harry’s habit of carrying a gun and Haydon’s sighting of him loading what appeared to be surfboard covers into his truck after the children’s visit added to the suspicion.

Further suspicion was cast on Harry when a man named David came forward with a peculiar account. He recounted how a man resembling Harry paid him and a friend to dig a large hole near a factory. The job seemed innocuous to the young men, who were accustomed to doing odd jobs for extra money. The dimensions of the hole, large enough to potentially conceal three small bodies, only deepened the mystery.

Despite these alarming revelations and the growing public suspicion, Harry Phipps never officially became a suspect. The police maintained that he did not match the descriptions provided by witnesses. Moreover, Harry, as a prominent businessman in the area, was a well-known figure. This raised the question of whether he would risk abducting children in his own town. The police, adhering to the principle of evidence over conjecture, required a more solid case to label him guilty.

As each lead unfolded, the Beaumont case continued to be a labyrinth of speculation and heartache, with the truth eluding grasp. The community, still reeling from the tragedy, watched as potential suspects emerged and faded, each bringing a surge of hope followed by a tide of disappointment.

The mystery surrounding the disappearance of the Beaumont children only deepened with time. In 2004, a new development emerged when Harry Phipps passed away, followed by his son Hayden a decade later. Adding to the complexity, a woman came forward, alleging she might have been sexually assaulted by someone resembling Harry. Years after Harry’s death, his ex-wife permitted the police to search their home. In the midst of this search, in a dark corner of the basement, the police found a white clutch purse. Strikingly, it bore a remarkable resemblance to the one Jane was known to have carried on the day of her disappearance. When questioned, Harry’s ex-wife claimed it was hers, recently purchased. However, her defensive reaction and insistence on the officers leaving raised further questions.

In 2013, driven by ongoing rumors, the authorities dug up an area where it was said that a mysterious man once paid kids to dig a big hole. They hoped to find some clue, but the excavation didn’t reveal anything connected to the Beaumont children. Four years later, in a surprising turn, they realized they had been digging in the wrong place. So, in January 2018, armed with better technology and ground-penetrating radar, detectives dug again, this time in the right spot.

Despite these determined efforts and the use of advanced technology, the second dig also ended in disappointment. They found nothing but animal bones and trash, nothing that brought them any closer to solving the mystery of the Beaumont children. This finding, or lack thereof, was shared with the public in a press conference. It was a testament to how deeply the case had embedded itself in the public consciousness, with numerous theories and endless speculation over the years. The police, doing their duty, promised to keep trying to solve the case, even as they admitted that some mysteries might never be unraveled.

Throughout this long and heartbreaking saga, Jim and Nancy clung to the hope that their children were out there, alive. They couldn’t bear to leave their home, just in case Jane, Anna, and Grant found their way back. But as the years turned into decades with no clear answers, the weight of not knowing, the endless waiting, took its toll on their marriage, and they eventually divorced. Now in their 90s, they are still without the answers they’ve longed for all these years.

The story of the Beaumont children, with its enduring mystery and a long list of potential suspects that ultimately led nowhere, continues to captivate and disturb people far and wide. It’s become one of Australia’s most notorious and unsolved cases, woven deeply into the nation’s narrative. The case continues to be a topic of conversation and speculation, a stark reminder of life’s uncertainties and the lasting impact of mysteries that remain unsolved.

Bianca Piper

Bianca Piper was a young girl, merely 13 years old, living in the quiet town of Foley, Missouri. To the outside world, Bianca, with her youthful charm, seemed like any other teenager, but beneath this facade lay a tumultuous struggle that was largely invisible. Diagnosed with ADHD and bipolar disorder, Bianca grappled with challenges far beyond what one would expect for her age. It was said, in some circles, that her mental capacity aligned more closely with that of a second grader, a stark contrast to her chronological age.

Despite the heavy regimen of medications prescribed to manage the whirlwind of emotions and outbursts brought on by her bipolar disorder, these measures often fell short. Bianca found herself wrestling with her temper, sometimes manifesting in physical outbursts, particularly towards her mother.

On the evening of March 10, 2005, after sharing dinner, Bianca and her mother, Shannon