Crime Junkie Case Files: Missing Persons Cold Cases Vol. 5, True Crime Investigations of People Who Mysteriously Disappeared

By Dexter Gable

Embark on a journey into the haunting abyss of unresolved disappearances, where the line between reality and the unknown blurs into a chilling twilight. Traverse 26 spine-chilling missing persons cases that span decades and continents, unraveling the enigmatic tales of twenty souls who vanished without a trace. Each chapter is a portal into a di

• Language: English
• Publisher: Crime Junkie Case Files
• Release date: Jun 14, 2024
• ISBN: 9798330233397

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Dexter Gable

Crime Junkie Case Files Missing Persons Cold Cases Vol 5

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

Judith Brown

Savannah Hale

Margaret Fox

Julie Earley

Brianne Wolgram

Stuart Isaac

Jamie Fraley

Nieko Lisi

Ana Walshe

Robert Hourihan

Jie Zhao Li

Kadin Black

Sandra Sollie

Leigh Occhi

Syble Brumley

Bryan Hasel

Jodi Huisentruit

Irina Malezhik

Gretchen Fleming

Doren Sanford

Patrick Carnes

Jaryd Atadero

Jennifer Kesse

Brandon Helms

Tara Grinstead

Kyle Fleischmann

About the Author

Judith Brown

Judith Brown, affectionately known as Judy, was born on November 14, 1957, in New York City to Eugene and Vanda Brown. As the third of eight siblings, Judy grew up in a bustling household with five sisters and two brothers. Known for her kindness and reserved nature, she steered clear of trouble and maintained respect for adults. A model student, she graduated from Evander Childs High School in the Bronx, embodying a generally normal upbringing.

However, as Judy entered her teenage years, signs of mental health struggles began to emerge, contrasting sharply with her earlier demeanor. The transformation was gradual yet significant, manifesting symptoms indicative of obsessive-compulsive disorder, anxiety, and depression. While these were not debilitating, they occasionally overwhelmed her, having begun in her early teens.

In 1965, Judy faced a traumatic event when her father was struck by a vehicle driven by an intoxicated driver. He survived but sustained brain damage, an incident that profoundly impacted Judy.

As the older siblings moved out, Judy took on considerable responsibilities at home. Her mother worked incessantly, and her father, despite his injuries, sought employment. Judy helped care for her five younger siblings, maturing quickly under these circumstances.

Facing financial difficulties, the Brown family relocated to a farm in Coldwater, Kansas, inherited from relatives. Preferring the familiarity of her city life, Judy chose to stay in New York, moving in with her maternal aunt in Flushing, Queens, who lived with her husband and their seven children.

During her time at LaGuardia Community College, Judy’s mental health issues intensified, culminating in a severe breakdown during class. On August 3, 1976, her cousin Moren and a professor assisted her to Creedmoor Psychiatric Center in Queens Village for urgent care. She briefly participated in the inpatient program there before transferring to Hillside Hospital in Glen Oak, Queens, for extended treatment. After about two to three months as an inpatient at Hillside, Judy moved into their outpatient program, which included housing in Kew Gardens.

Alongside her therapy, Judy was prescribed several medications, including Valium, an anti-anxiety drug classified as a benzodiazepine. By 1977, at 19 years old, Judy was living independently for the first time. Her life had taken a turn far different from what she had anticipated just a year earlier. She was also in a relationship with a man she had met during her brief stay at Creedmoor Psychiatric Center. Shortly before her disappearance, Judy sent a letter to her family in Kansas announcing her engagement to this man, Richard Reenberg, and their plans to marry soon in a Unitarian Church.

Richard, 11 years Judy’s senior at 30, had a troubling history unknown to Judy. On January 10, 1971, Richard gruesomely murdered his wife Diane and their 17-month-old son Andrew in their home in Glen Oaks. He stabbed Diane multiple times and strangled Andrew with an extension cord. Initially, the police considered it a possible targeted attack or robbery gone wrong, but the discovery of the murder weapons at JFK Airport where Richard worked led to his arrest.

Richard had a history of severe mental health issues, including attempts at suicide during his adolescence and a diagnosis of schizoid personality disorder with possible schizophrenic tendencies. Despite his high IQ, his mental health prevented him from completing his education. His marriage to Diane was fraught with issues, including religious differences and Diane’s progressive blindness. Neighbors reported Richard having multiple affairs, reflecting his lack of empathy and support as a husband and father.

After the murders, Richard was deemed unfit for trial and spent time at the Matteawan State Hospital for the Criminally Insane. By 1973, after another psychiatric evaluation, he was found not guilty by reason of insanity and continued his treatment at Creedmoor. There, despite an open-gate policy that allowed him significant freedom, plans were eventually made to transfer him to a more secure facility due to concerns about his behavior and potential threat to the community.

In late April 1977, Judy left her apartment in Glenn Oaks and Richard left Creedmoor Psychiatric Center, reportedly on April 21st. Judy’s family only became aware of her departure when authorities inquired about her fiancé’s disappearance from Creedmoor. According to research by Lisa and Julian, the last known contact Judy had with her family was a brief phone call to one of her sisters shortly after leaving. Judy assured her she was okay but quickly ended the conversation, expressing a desire to be with Richard. Around the same time, Richard also contacted his family, informing them of his intent to start anew.

The FBI continued to search for Richard until at least 1984, evident from their presence at his father’s funeral, anticipating his possible appearance. He did not show. In the 1990s, Richard reportedly reached out to a lawyer due to health issues and his wish to return to New York for treatment, provided his legal matters could be resolved.

An intriguing incident occurred in 1983, reported by The Daily News. Creedmoor received a call from someone claiming to be Richard Reenberg, who stated he was in California, laughed, and then hung up. The authenticity of this call remains uncertain.

While Richard’s disappearance has been the subject of various articles—often omitting Judy or merely mentioning her as the young girlfriend he fled with—there has been little focus on Judy as the victim. It wasn’t until 2009 that Judy was officially declared a missing person, and the NYPD Cold Case unit didn’t open her case until 2012, about 35 years after her disappearance. Julian, who never met his cousin Judy as he was born after she left, has extensively researched her case. Despite his efforts, he has struggled to engage with the Cold Case detective and remains uncertain about the extent of the investigation.

Julian’s research wasn’t just about her disappearance; he deeply explored her life, personality, and interests to understand her beyond the mystery of her fate. Despite the initial belief that Judy left voluntarily with Richard, the circumstances following their departure are rife with speculation. There are primarily two theories: one suggesting Richard may have ended Judy’s life shortly after they eloped, subsequently living under the radar; the other posits that they might still be together, or at least were for some time. If Judy is still alive and they separated, it seems implausible that she wouldn’t have contacted her family at some point.

Savannah Hale

On May 3rd, 2022, the day began ordinarily for Savannah Hale. That evening, Savannah and her boyfriend visited Fatty Arbuckles, a well-known restaurant and bar in Shreveport’s downtown Riverfront District. Known for its late hours, closing at 6:00 a.m., the couple didn’t stay until close, leaving between 3:00 and 4:00 a.m. to return to his grandmother’s apartment, located approximately 5 and a half miles away.

This is when the situation began to take an unusual turn. Although it’s often easy to suspect the significant other in such scenarios, it’s crucial to avoid jumping to conclusions without clear evidence. Upon returning home, Savannah’s boyfriend quickly fell asleep, reportedly due to heavy drinking to the point of blackout. It is believed that during this time, Savannah checked his phone and discovered something unsettling, leading her to send him several angry text messages.

The details of what exactly Savannah found remain unclear, but it was enough to distress and anger her. Subsequently, she decided to leave the apartment. The following morning, her sister Kirsten realized she had missed a call from Savannah at 6:00 a.m. Concerned, Kirsten attempted to call back but received no response. By 9:30 a.m., after failing to locate Savannah and finding her phone going straight to voicemail, Kirsten drove to the apartment. The boyfriend, upon answering the door, realized Savannah was missing as he had been unconscious and unaware of when or why she had left. With no sign of Savannah and growing concern, her sister contacted the police to report her missing.

A 22-year-old college student, unreachable for about a day, might not typically be a priority for authorities, but they did take the report of her disappearance seriously. Meanwhile, her boyfriend and her family began their own search for Savannah, also looking for any trace of her car as the days passed. The police uncovered some digital forensic evidence, piecing together a timeline of Savannah’s last known activities.

At 6:06 a.m., Savannah was captured on surveillance footage at a store, buying what was believed to be a vape. She appeared alone and normal, paying with her debit card. Shortly after leaving the store at 6:08 a.m., she called her sister Kirsten, who was still asleep and didn’t pick up, but Savannah left a voicemail. According to Kirsten, there was nothing unusual about the voicemail.

After this call, Savannah’s phone stopped tracking its location via Google at 7:03 a.m. She was then seen alone in her car, a 2012 Kia Forte, leaving the LA Tower Parking Garage, captured on the security cameras of the facility located at 333 Travis Street in downtown Shreveport.

At 8:03 a.m., Kirsten woke and listened to the voicemail from Savannah. When she tried to return the call, there was no answer. An hour later, concerned, Kirsten went to the apartment where Savannah had been staying with her boyfriend. By this time, it was almost 10:00 a.m., and Savannah still hadn’t been reached. Upon waking, the boyfriend mentioned he had no knowledge of Savannah’s departure time or destination since he was heavily intoxicated and had passed out that night.

The last sighting of Savannah was at 7:03 a.m., leaving the parking garage. There was no indication of distress when she purchased the vape, and her voicemail sounded typical. However, her phone went offline shortly after leaving the voicemail, and there is no clarity on whether she turned off the phone, it died, or she didn’t have a charger. After departing from the parking garage, there were no further clues or trails. Savannah’s phone never reactivated, and there were no transactions on her bank account or uses of her social security number or driver’s license.

The boyfriend and others in Savannah’s life were thoroughly questioned and eventually cleared as persons of interest. The family has stated that they do not believe the boyfriend was involved in her disappearance. Theories about what happened to her range from foul play by someone else, an accident, or that she might have left of her own accord. Her story received some local media coverage but not extensively.

Shreveport, particularly the area where she went missing, is noted for its many waterways, raising concerns in the search. Both Savannah and her car vanished in the early hours of May 4th, 2022. Police and volunteer search and rescue teams checked the waterways, finding some cars but none that belonged to Savannah. Specialty teams also searched for recent accident sites where a car might have gone into the water, but found nothing. Her license plate was entered into a database to alert any interstate traffic cameras, yet to date, there have been no sightings of Savannah’s car on main highways.

Shreveport is located in the northwestern part of Louisiana, near the Texas border, with a population of just over 180,000 residents. The area where Savannah and her boyfriend spent the night of May 3rd is known as the downtown Riverfront area, home to Fatty Arbuckles and other key locations related to Savannah’s last known movements. That morning, Savannah traveled from the apartment she was staying in, approximately 5 and a half miles from Fatty Arbuckles, to a store on North Market Street, and then to a parking garage on Travis Street. This entire route falls within a 5 and a half mile radius.

After leaving the Travis Street garage, Savannah was not seen again on any security cameras, and her phone became untrackable. The area, known for its proximity to the Red River—which is named for its reddish water tint and is one of the few large saltwater rivers in the U.S.—features numerous waterways, including tributaries, lakes, and ponds, complicating the search for Savannah.

The lack of sightings of her vehicle on highway cameras suggests she might have taken less traveled roads. The parking garage, located just a couple of blocks from Fatty Arbuckles and adjacent to an office building, raises questions about her reasons for being there early in the morning after a night out. Despite the garage’s proximity to the busy downtown area, if a vehicle had gone into the water nearby, there likely would have been some sign of such an event.

The Red River and nearby waterways like the 12mile Bayou were thoroughly searched by the Cajun Navy—an informal group of local boat owners who assist with search and rescue—and other investigators, but no trace of Savannah or her 2012 Kia Forte was found. Additional volunteer search and water rescue teams also found no evidence.

With Savannah’s whereabouts still unknown, questions remain. Why was her license plate never detected on any traffic camera?