unsolved murders in del rio, texas

They relied on a good Samaritan to take them about 30 miles up the lonely road to Sonora to get that tire repaired and return them to their car. It's a new season for cotton farmers in the Rio Grande Valley, but its already not looking good. I dont understand why anyone would want to kill an 18 month old babymuch less shoot 2 other young children, said Volkmann. The longer it gets, the colder it gets.. It is unknown if the girl had actually been conventionally raped, although she had been viciously sexually assaulted with a large foreign object. On January 19, 2022, at about 6:00 pm, Victor Garcia was taken into custody at the Del Rio Police Department. NEWS County Constable Pct. The investigation has taken Long all over the country and to Mexico, where he found Manuel Jr. Fifty-two-years-old, suspects are leaving us, he said. It was all kinds of people saying, we think this is who it is, but nothing ever came of it, said Letsinger. Her hair was black and curly, approximately twenty inches long. By 1982, the investigation had turned cold after producing thousands of pages of documentation, Long said. Among them is one that occurred only two months after the Arellano family slayings in 1968, when a vacationing family of six was killed in a Michigan cabin. The killings are among more than 900 mass slayings in the 20th century, and several remain unsolved, according to Grant Duwe, a senior research analyst with the Minnesota Department of Corrections who has studied the subject. Olguin was arrested on an unrelated charge, but officials are questioning him about the murder of 27-year-old Sandra De la Cruz. She was estimated to be between 19 and 21 years old, was between 4 feet 9 inches and 5 feet 2 inches tall, and weighed between 95 and 105 pounds. A mile-long stretch of U.S. Highway 277 became a killing field, with family members shot, stabbed, raped and robbed. That year, a serial killer named Tommy Lynn Sells, who had been arrested after cutting the throats of two girls near Del Rio, Texas, began confessing to other An alleged suspect identified as Robert Evans Jr was arrested and remains in custody on a murder charge with a $500,000 bond. Resndiz apparently killed seventeen others. Get the day's top news with our Today's Headlines newsletter, sent every weekday morning. A total of 30 detectives worked full-time on the case, interviewing 100 people but nothing proved to be helpful. Three alarm fire forces elders from their four-story apartment building, Wear the Gown: Avoiding dehydration which can have devastating effects, Near 90 Wednesday, chance for severe weather later in the week | FORECAST, 'I was devastated': Portland woman who abandoned car during snowstorm shocked by $787 bill from tow company. was involved but did not participate in the fatal shooting of the child. A ranch hand discovered the carnage -- Arellanos body was found near a water trough, inside a barbed wire fence line not far from Highway 277. [4][5][6] This decedent was between 5 feet 2 and 5 feet 7 inches tall, had dark brown hair, approximately seven inches in length,[7] and is believed to have worn multicolored, striped swim trunks, boots, and a shirt displaying a peace symbol. The most promising lead came in 2000, when serial killer Tommy Lynn Sells was arrested for cutting the throats of Kaylene Harris, 13, and Krystal Surles, 10 near Del Rio, Texas. [51] One or more of the female's limbs were not found with the body, as they were likely carried away by animals. Her remains were exhumed in 2006 for analysis, however the maxilla and jaw bone were not found in the grave. Someone from Elaines past, her stalker, or someone she refused had killed their family. Rangers tracked down the ranchhand, an illegal immigrant, who found the bodies, but he had nothing new to add. They were convinced that this individual was part of it, said Letsinger. Based on information from a Sonora service station attendant who repaired the tire for the family, police distributed a sketch of a possible suspect _ a tall, sandy-haired man in his 30s, wearing a straw cowboy hat, who was accompanying them. However, Joeann Dardeen, Keiths mother told the police that her son was so frugal that he raised his young sons college fund by reselling 50-cent cans of soda at work for a small profit. "But I can tell you this: In 1998, law enforcement wasn't even in the ball park. By daybreak, though, the family was dead. She was also found wearing a white blouse with a black and white checkered trim and "Classic Wear" printed on the left pocket, a pair of blue jeans, a pair of white tube socks, a pair of white 'Aerobixx-Traxx' brand hi-top sneakers, and a white 'Sergio Valente Quartz' brand watch with a blue plastic band. Several people were brought in for questioning. Initially he was skeptical. A few days after the body was recovered, a skull was discovered in the same area. Arellano fixed the flat, but had another one a few miles farther north. Determining the motive behind the murder was difficult in the case, the back door was unlocked; there was no evidence of forced entry and a VCR and portable camera were in plain sight in the living room. He was estimated to be between 25 and 40 years old, was approximately 6 feet 1 inch tall, and weighed between 140 and 150 pounds. [43]. I think you have a robbery that kind of gets out of hand that leads to murder and sexual assault.. Long, who is about Manual Jr.'s age, has authorities did collect some physical evidence years ago, like pieces of the victims' clothing. His wife's body was in a ditch about a mile south. He had a tattoo on his arm of the letters "RYA" inside a heart with an arrow through it, possibly representing a significant other or a family member. Keiths mother suggested that marijuana belonged to the killer or killers. The bags which contained the man's body parts came from two stores, "Carnival Food Store" and "Fiesta Food Store". That's how it stayed until 1999, when a caller told the Texas Department of Public Safety he knew the identity of the killer. WebThe Great Flatonia Train Robbery by Murray Montgomery 1-14-22; In and Out of the Old Gillespie County Jail by Michael Barr 4-1-21; Chipita's Ghost by Murray Montgomery 12-14-20; Casner Cold Case by Clay Coppedge 7-11-20; How Tascosa Got Boot Hill by Mike Cox 4-8-20; The Great Greyhound Hijacking on Route 66 in 1931 by Mike Cox 1-17-20 Volkmann said witnesses reported seeing Manuel Sr., and his son Manuel Jr., in Sonora at a tire shop and local restaurant. Autopsies of the bodies were not enough to conclude who was killed first, it was determined that they were all killed within an hour or two. She was only found with a yellow metal ring on her left hand. [9] DNA testing conducted in 2008 did not match any missing person report. And today were on third base.. arrested at his residence located at the Villas De Val Verde, also for the offense of Capital Murder, ", Family's slaying remains Texas' longest unsolved mass killing, Castillo game-winner sends Floydada to regional semi-finals, Rare endangered animal seen running across Texas road. Investigators suspect he may have resided in the nearby caravan park or was possibly employed as a handyman. He was estimated to be between 35 and 45 years old, was approximately 5 feet 6 inches tall and weighed between 150 and 165 pounds. So was her brother, Manuel Jr., also shot in the head and stabbed. Were hopeful of a chance.. Keiths mother Joeann said that someone wanted him to sell drugs and Keith refused them and he or they may have killed his family. Del Rio, TX - On Friday evening, Del Rio Police Department officers responded to an emergency call at the Val Verde Regional Medical Center in reference to a woman that had been shot in the face. She had died of blunt force trauma to the head, and had been dead for anywhere between a few months to five years. Use tab to navigate through the menu items. Under HB 8, crime labs must test kits within 90 days, and agencies are prohibited from destroying rape kits related to a case that has sat unsolved for up to 40 years. Keith had been shot three times, on his skull, the right side of his face, and his left cheek. We came to realize this is a case that needs to be looked at again. On December 10, 1980, a young African American female was found lying under a mattress, under Interstate 45, about six miles north of downtown Houston, Texas. We had to go look, start digging things up, find reports and start piecing things together, Long said. He did, however, lift his shirt and show Long the five or six scars from stab wounds he suffered, Long said. Crime Person of interest in murder of Del Rio mother now in custody, authorities say The Val Verde County Sheriff's office says 23-year-old Ernesto Alejandro She was estimated to be between the ages of 14 and 18 years old with brown hair and brown or hazel eyes. Back in 68, I think with the information they had, probably they looked at a hate crime as the motive. Amazingly, Leticia, shot twice between the eyes, was alive. "And if it was just a one-time event in some individual's life, that's questionable how somebody rational could do something like this and just carry on with his normal routine in life.". The area in which her body was found was a spot typically used for tractor-trailers to park. They relied on a Good Samaritan to take them another 30 miles up the lonely road to Sonora to get that tire repaired. Residual pink/red nail polish was found on her hands, and there was evidence that she was a nail-biter. Based on information from a Sonora service station attendant who repaired the tire for the family, police distributed a sketch of a possible suspect -- a tall, sandy-haired man in his 30s, wearing a straw cowboy hat and driving a pickup truck. Theres always something to follow.. So was her brother, Manuel Jr., also shot in the head and stabbed. Investigators could not find any extramarital affairs involving either Keith or Elaine, which could have resulted in a jealous rage, nor they could find any grudge or debt troubles. Deformities were also present on the feet. The waitress who spoke to her claimed the girl told her she was from the Aransas Pass/Rockport area but no missing persons were reported in that area around the time of her death. He is a person of interest in the murder of Sandra De la Cruz. Former Edwards County Sheriff Don Letsinger was just beginning his career in law enforcement, and remembers the fear that clenched three counties after the murders. Un presunto sospechoso identificado como Robert Evans Jr fue arrestado y permanece bajo custodia por un cargo de asesinato con una fianza de $ 500,000. When asked how Elaines body was positioned, he answered that incorrectly, before finally guessing the position correctly. 9 of the Most Bizarre Unsolved Mysteries in Texas - Wide Open And then decades later, Volkmann thought he had another strong lead. [40] A piece of paper was found at the scene that was written by hand containing some sort of schedule. Im not able to sleep at night, sometimes I walk the floor, and I keep playing these photographs in the back of my mind, said Volkmann. Othram Inc. was contacted in June 2021, to help identify the infant. He was driving a pickup truck. On November 18, 2001, a newborn female infant of indeterminate race was found by a man picking up cans in Johnson County, Texas. An organization in South Padre Island will hold Wednesday, March 1, 2023: Hot and breezy, temps in the 90s, Fire weather watch to go into effect Thursday. Marez told police another man, Joe Bazan, thought Salmon had gotten his girlfriend hooked on drugs, Caples said. Investigators believe that the skull belonged to the unidentified woman, however when DNA testing was done on the skull in 2015, it was determined that it belonged to a different person. The man was estimated to be between 20 and 39 years old, was approximately 5 feet 5 inches tall, and weighed between 120 and 140 pounds. The oldest unsolved cold case on the Texas Department of Public Safety website is the brutal beating and shooting murder of a 17-year-old in Sonora, Texas. In 2013, his body was exhumed for DNA analysis. Her body was discovered alongside that of a man who was identified as Thomas Rodriguez, and her death had occurred hours prior to her discovery. [22][23] The DNA Doe Project was asked to assist with identifying the body in January, 2020. I couldnt give you a numerical value on our chances of solving it, said Sgt. However, three decades later, the murder of the Dardeen family is still unsolved and looks like it will remain the same way. Please contact the Del Rio Police Department at (830) 309-8770 and (830) 313-1593. The Del Rio Police Department is asking the public for assistance in the arrest of Victor Garcia. Ive never seen anything like this in the 33 years Ive been doing this job, said Volkmann. There had been 15 homicides in Jefferson County in the previous two years. [45], On December 12, 2002, a survey crew discovered seven garbage bags full of various body parts in a construction site in Irving, Texas. Investigators said Salmon was stabbed to death in his front yard in 2001, adding that the defendant in the case, Luis Carlos Marez, is currently serving a sentence in the Texas Department of Corrections. It appeared the man had been dragged outside of the club, possibly by a worker who had been cleaning up for the night. "You can only imagine what went through this gentleman's mind," Long said. Login; Del The show, however, was unable to generate any new leads. A murder mystery that's baffled Texas lawmen for over 50 years She was found wearing pink bikini panties, a ring with a replica 20-dollar American gold piece, and a white towel. And the Duwe, the research analyst, said that among the other notable unsolved killings in the last century were the ax killings of eight people in Villisca, Iowa, in 1912; the deaths of 39 people in a bombing on Wall Street in New York City in 1920; and the gunning down of seven mobsters in Chicago in the St. Valentines Day massacre in 1929. 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