keddie murders survivors
Immediately, the two lead suspects were Justin Smartts father and the Sharps neighbors, Martin Smartt and his houseguest, ex-convict John Bo Boudebe who was known to have connections to organized crime in the area. How could murder with so much evidence remain unsolved? I became their mother, and its hard for me to step back and be a sister, cause thats what I am Im their sister, Im not their mother, and they need to make their own choices.. It also provides an explanation as to why the two lead suspects were seemingly given a free pass and told to leave town by Sheriff Thomas. Three years after the slayings occurred, part of a skull was found 29 miles away near Camp Eighteen in neighboring Butte County. The fragments were eventually determined to belong to the missing girl Tina. Blood was everywhere. In 2016, a man sweeping around with a metal detector found a hammer in a dried-up pond near Keddies entrance. What else do you want? Gamberg thinks that at the same time, Sue was counseling Marilyn to leave Marty. Justin said he saw one of the men stab Sue Sharp. Keddie Resort Murder. New Evidence Revives Plumas County Quadruple Murder Case. The Sacramento Bee, May 7, 2016.Metcalf, Victoria. The Keddie Murders is an unsolved 1981 American quadruple murder that took place in Keddie, a former resort town in the foothills of California's Sierra Nevada. Beyond the living room was the kitchen and two bedrooms. Forty years after the incident, the quadruple murder in the woods still baffles the nation. On Saturday, April 11, 1981, Sheila Sharp spent the night with neighbors, as she planned to attend church with them the following morning. The Keddie murders are an unsolved quadruple homicide which took place over the night of April 1112, 1981, in Keddie, California, United States. This was a couple years ago. In 2016, Gamberg located a hammer believed to be one of the murder weapons in a dried-up pond in Keddie. [19] John's throat was slashed. It has been 40 years since the tragedy took place in rural Plumas County. Surely, no one expected it to be one of the most famous unsolved murder cases in history. Everyone called her Sue. Authorities interviewed neighbors and the boys who were inside the house when the attack occurred, but there were no eyewitnesses. The bodies of Sue, John, and Dana were found on the morning of April 12 by Sue's 14-year-old daughter, Sheila, who had been sleeping at a friend's house. There were four victims: Sue Sharp, her son John, her daughter Tina, and John's friend Dana. [21] Carla McMullen, a family acquaintance, later told detectives that Dana Wingate had recently stolen an unknown quantity of LSD from local drug dealers, though she was unable to provide proof of this claim. While he was supposedly collecting cans, a human skull and mandible turned up. The crime scene of the quadruple murder. First, they approached the site of Cabin 28, which at this point had been torn down. The mystery surrounding the unsolved Keddie Cabin Murders. It's a case that involves a triple-slaying and a missing child whose remains. Gamberg and the owner ofKeddie28.com,who goes by the name DMAC, believe that Sue Sharp and Marty Smartt were having an affair. Sheila Sharp who discovered the victims of the Keddie Cabin 28 murders in 1981, when she was 14 hopes the cold case finally will be resolved By Jeff Truesdell Published on November 25, 2016. It's my strong sense that there's something about Tina that did not allow for her to be left there.". On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. At least one other person was killed that night: her teenage brothers friend, whose body also was found by then 14-year-old Sheila on the living room floor of Cabin 28 in Keddie, California, on the morning of April 12, 1981. His friend Dana was on the floor beside him on his stomach. Her brother, who would help her and the children start a new life, lived in Quincy, California, about 150 miles north of Sacramento. 5 Topics 16 Posts Last post Portola Reporter April 12, 20 . Electrical cording and medical tape bound their wrists and ankles. Although both Martin Smartt and Bo Boudebe are now deceased, new DNA evidence has pointed investigators to other suspects who may have had a hand in these murders, and who are still alive. True Crime story of the Tiede family cabin murders. city of adrian, mi treasurer . "Keddie murders", Wikipedia "The Martin Smartt 'love letters'", kmik, The Great Zodiac Killer Hoax of 1986 . A fourth victim, a 12-year-old daughter, vanished in the night-her remains found years later and miles away. More confounding is that the three youngest boys were not only untouched but allegedly unaware of the event, even though a woman and her boyfriend in the cabin next door awoke around 1:30 a.m. to what they described were muffled screams. The Keddie Murders On the morning of April 11th, 1981, 14-year-old Sheila Sharp was returning from a neighbor's house following a sleepover. Its my belief that there were more than two people who were involved in the totality of the crimethe disposal of the evidence and the abduction of the little girl, Hagwood said. When the DOJ was alerted to this confession in 1981, they dismissed it as hearsay.. There, they visited their friends and watched TV. until 2013 when the case was reopened with new investigators Plumas Sheriff Greg Hagwood and Special Investigator Mike Gamberg. Geography [ edit] According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 0.6 square miles (1.6 km 2 ), all of it land. At least one other person was killed that night: her teenage brother's friend, whose body also was found by then 14-year-old Sheila on the living room floor of Cabin 28 in Keddie, California, on the morning of April 12, 1981. He weaves magnificent soap-opera stories from threads of shredded documents and deems these stories the truth. Blood was all over the victims, the floors, walls, ceiling, both bedroom doors, and on the railing of the outside stairs. Keddie murders revisited part 1: New evidence discovered links living suspect to grisly scene - Plumas News The Sharp family's home shortly after the infamous murders took place in 1981. [27], On April 22, 1984, three years and eleven days after the murders, a bottle collector discovered the cranium portion of a human skull and part of a mandible at Camp Eighteen[17] near Feather Falls in neighboring Butte County,[28] roughly 100 miles (160km) from Keddie. Although the cabin Sharp rented from Mollath was run down, it provided her and her family with more room. Four people were killed in a small California resort town, including Sue Sharp, her son John, daughter Tina, and John's friend Dana. The Keddie Cabin Murders: Inside The Grisly Quadruple Homicide That Still Haunts California. A mom, son, and son's best friend were found murdered. [6][10], Around 7:00 am[6][12] on the morning of April 12, Sheila returned to #28 and discovered the dead bodies of Sue, John, and Dana in the house's living room. Although the therapist alerted authorities, nothing was reportedly done. 28 of the Keddie Resort. Plumas County Sheriff's Office Cabin 28 at Keddie Resort, 1981. Although Marilyn gave it to authorities, Historic Mysteries reports there is no record that the jacket was entered into evidence. As she opened the door, she screamed as she discovered the bodies of her mother, Glenna "Sue" Sharp, older brother John Sharp . Keddie Cabin 28 Murders Welcome David Craig McNarie! Missing from the cabin was Sue's twelve-year-old daughter, Tina. They had died . 5 Things to Know about the Keddie Cabin Murders and the New Hunt for the Killers. In 1981 in Cabin 28 of the Keddie Resort, California, three members of the Sharp family, as well as one of their family friends, were bludgeoned to death with hammers, with one repeatedly stabbed. It would take the police hours to realize that a fourth victim, Tina, was missing. Because she was a minor, the initial search for her involved the FBI, but, for some unknown reason, they quit investigating after about a month. Why were the remains of Tina found so far away from Cabin 28? Mysteriously, the recording was at the bottom of an unopened evidence box. Determined to find more survivors, Jamie crept up the back stairs. A person matching the description Justin gave became a primary suspect in the investigation Justins stepfather, Martin Smartt, also known as Marty. Marty, his wife Marilyn, and Marilyns two sons lived in Cabin 26 near the Sharps house just across the lane. Justin also claimed that Tina came out shortly after, and one of the men abducted her out the back door. Multiple leads and suspects were examined in the intervening years, though no charges were filed. Who Killed Biggie Smalls? [6] Sheila departed house #28 shortly after 8:00 pm to sleep over at the Seabolts, which she had never before done. In one of the bedrooms, authorities found Rick, Greg, and their friend Justin Eason Smartt, unharmed. It was later confirmed that Martin was close with this Sheriff. However, he did not have any involvement in the case at the time. Although the Sharps cabin did not indicate forced entry, detectives were able to recover an unidentified fingerprint from a handrail that led to the cabins back door. The clues suggested that the perpetrators abducted her. covered it up, is the way it sounds. He alleges that Bo and Martin fit into a larger drug-smuggling scheme that involved the federal government. [12] Tina's jacket, shoes and a toolbox containing various tools were missing from the house,[6] which showed no indication of forced entry. Gamberg also stated that at that time, six potential suspects were being examined. He began hearing noises out in the living room and claimed to have seen Sue with two men. To put it bluntly, dmac is a fabulist. Around 1:30 pm, Sue and her oldest daughter Sheila went to pick up John and Dana in Quincy. All That's Interesting is a Brooklyn-based digital publisher that seeks out stories that illuminate the past, present, and future. When she opened the door, Sheila found the scene of a massacre. The three boys who survived said they slept through the incident. What is known is that this 37-year-old crime is far from a cold case, as new evidence sheds light on what may have occurred at Cabin 28 in Keddie, California. He is the author of a series of published mystery novels and holds a degree in criminal psychology. Sue and John had suffered similar types of wounds. April 12, 1981, the bodies of 36-year-old Sue Sharp, her 15-year-old son John and his 17-year-old friend Dana Wingate were found in Cabin 28 at the Keddie Resort, north of Quincy. [24] Investigating these sounds, he saw Sue with two men: one with a mustache and short hair, the other clean-shaven with long hair; both wore glasses. In April of 1981, a violent crime would tear apart a quiet town in northern California. Accept Read More, The Disappearance of the Five Sodder Children, Brutal Murders on Germanys Hinterkaifeck Farm, Burke and Hare: Merchants in the Cadaver Market, John Paul Gettys Ransom: When Money Trumps Family. They lived in a trailer park for a short time, but then Sue decided to move just five miles from Quincy into the mountains to a place known as the Keddie Resort. Composite sketch of the Keddie murder suspects. Near her bones in the woods, detectives also discovered a pair of jeans with a missing back pocket, a blue jacket, a blanket, and an empty surgical tape dispenser. While under hypnosis, he described the killers as a tall man with blond hair and a mustache and a short man, who was clean-shaven with dark hair. However, when this failed, the Keddie Resort owner Gary Mollath turned a series of cabins into low-income rental housing. The Keddie Murders, October 27, 2019. A man discovered a human skull in the adjoining Butte County, about 30 miles from Keddie, in Plumas County. Oddly, John and Dana did not have any defensive wounds or blood under their bindings. Martys counselor at the Veterans Administration in Reno told police that Marty confessed to killing Sue and Tina but not the two boys. I killed the woman and her daughter, but I didnt have anything to do with the [boys], he purportedly told the counselor. Oct 15, 2021. Once a busy railroad terminal in the Sierra Nevada mountains, Keddie had lost much of its population after the railroad closed down. More evidence uncovered in Keddie murders case. The Mystery Behind The Keddie Cabin Murders Explained. He also exaggerated about how long he had lived in Keddie. He lives in the West Midlands, UK with his wife and son. Stabbed. When Sheila returned home early the next morning to find her mother, brother, and his friend bloodied on the living room floor, she bolted back to her neighbors house. Some evidence, such as a second bloody knife, turned up in a trash bin behind the Keddie general store. The three boys in the house, Rick, Greg, and their friend, Justin, were all safe in the bedroom. They were still asleep and seemingly unaware of what happened. [10] Around this time, the two were seen in the city's downtown area. Sue Sharps surviving children left California to live with an aunt. In his dreams, he saw two men in the front room of the cabin. Thats the way my mom raised us, she says. Working together the result was both fascinating and spooky. Most descriptions of Marty say that he was an unsavory individual with a criminal record and a mean demeanor. Deputy Hank Klement was the first to arrive on the scene and he reported blood everywhere on the walls, the bottoms of the victims shoes, Sues bare feet, the bedding in Tinas room, the furniture, the ceiling, the doors, and on the back steps. Her fate remained unknown until her skeletal remains turned up in the woods three years later, as recounted Monday night in an episode of PEOPLEs new true-crime series on Investigation Discovery, People Magazine Investigates. Blog. 'People Magazine Investigates' Features Man's 24-Year Wrongful Prison Sentence: 'Never Thought It Could Happen', People Magazine Investigates Offers New Clues on Keddie Cabin Murders, Giving Survivor 'A Little More Hope', 'People Magazine Investigates After Show' : How Solving Keddie Murders Is 'Personal' for Investigators, Inside the Keddie Cabin Murders: Daughter Remembers Finding Mom and Brother Dead at Age 14, A Daughter's 35-Year Fight For Justice: Sheila Sharp Longs to Know Who Murdered Her Family in Their Cabin, Horror in the Woods: 'People Magazine Investigates' Looks at the Keddie Cabin Murders Cold Case, Inside the Search for the Keddie Cabin Killers 35 Years After a Family Was Slaughtered, WATCH: Heartbreak Leads to Hollywood Horror in Exclusive 'People Magazine Investigates' Clip, Behind the Murder of JonBent Ramsey, Featured on 'People Magazine Investigates'. Tina remained a missing person until April 1984, when her skull and several other bones were recovered at Camp Eighteen, California, near Feather Falls in Butte County. Sitting down with PEOPLE Senior Editor Alicia Dennis for the People Magazine Investigates After Show that followed the broadcast, Sheila talks about the additional burdens she carries because of the grisly discovery and the uncertainty of who was responsible. Unsolved murders have a way of weighing on a community, the place forever haunted and the neighbors always left wondering. The strangest thing is that there is no apparent motive. Published October 18, 2021 Updated November 1, 2021 Between April 11 and April 12, 1981, Glenna "Sue" Sharp and three others were brutally killed in the resort town of Keddie, California. The next morning at around 7 am, Sheila returned home from her sleepover next door. Investigators Allude to a Break in the Keddie Cabin Murders The 1981 murder of Sue, Johnny, Tina Sharp and Dana Wingate remains a mystery, but we may be seeing an arrest soon. [19] She had been stabbed in the chest,[20] her throat was stabbed horizontally, the wound going through her larynx and nicking her spine, and on the side of her head was an imprint matching the butt of a Daisy 880 Powerline BB/pellet rifle. In 1979, Glenna "Sue" Sharp left her abusive husband and moved herself and her five children from Connecticut to Quincy, California. Local investigators wrote it off as an upturned burial skull of a native american, but two months later, they got an anonymous call claiming that the skull belonged to Tina Sharp. If they suffered any injuries during the event, it wasnt serious, although they did leave some DNA on a piece of tape. Marilyn moved out of Cabin 26 the day after the murders. There, she resided with her 15-year-old son, John (born November 16, 1965);[3] 14-year-old daughter Sheila; 12-year-old daughter Tina (born July 22, 1968);[7] and two younger sons, Rick (age 10) and Greg (age 5). They had apparently slept through the entire massacre which had unfolded mere feet from their beds. Some sources claim that Boubede had a crush on Sue, who supposedly rejected him twice. In December 1983, detectives ruled out serial killers Henry Lee Lucas and Ottis Toole as potential suspects. To read the full article about the Keddie Cabin Murders please log in or join Stangeoutdoors by clicking here: The shocking unsolved Keddie Cabin murders Exclusive Members Only Area $15.99 One time Exclusive content for Members His head was badly damaged as though bashed in with a blunt object and lay partially on a pillow. John and his 17-year-old friend Dana had hitchhiked to a nearby town of Quincy for a party and returned sometime later that evening. Go to PEOPLE.com/PEN, or download the PEN app on Apple TV, Roku Players, Amazon Fire TV, Xumo, Chromecast, iOS and Android devices. Cabin 28 and others in the small Keddie community were allowed to deteriorate in the years following the Keddie murders. Furthermore, it suggests an answer as to why this case was handled so sloppily, remains unsolved, and is seemingly not a priority to the Sacramento DOJ. However, many of the residents left, and the town fell into disrepair when the railroad terminal was closed. Moreover, it appears that Marty had actually confessed to the murders to two different people. A GRAPHIC Look Back at the Keddie Murders On the morning of April 11, 1981, 14-year-old Sheila Sharp returned from a neighbor's house after a sleepover and stumbled upon the most disturbing and gruesome scene that she and the rest of Keddie, California, had ever seen. On April 12th, 1981, 14-year-old Sheila Sharp returned to her family cabin, Cabin 28 of the Keddie Resort Keddie, California after a sleep-over with a friend who lived in the same resort as her own families cabin. Amid the attack, Tina came out of her room and was carried out of the house by one of the men, who came back inside the house without her. It's been forty years since the Kebbie Cabin Murders happened in a rural area of Plumas County. 27 min listen. The murders had been notably violent. However, this turned out to be untrue. It was evident that Sue had put up a fight during the attack, as she had defensive wounds on her arms. 35 Years Later, New Clues May Solve Keddie Murder Mystery. Marilyn also provided a letter she received from Marty, in which she said he confessed to the Keddie cabin murders. Tina was missing from the scene. [19] Autopsies[21] determined that Sue and John died from the knife wounds and blunt-force trauma, and Dana died by asphyxiation. After she saw the gruesome scene, Sheila ran back to the next-door cabin to get help. Sharp's neighbors described her as a "loner," who only made one close friend in the community. There were some bloodstains on her bedding, which suggested that she might have been kidnapped from her bed after the murders. "I believe there are two individuals that are alive and accessories after the fact,"Detective Mike Gamberg saidin an April 2021 interview with ABC10. He admitted that he had a problem with his temper, and Marilyn had claimed that he tried to run her and her son over. Episode Info When Martin discovered this, he enlisted Bo, his friend, and known mob enforcer who had lived with the Smartts a mere 10 days before the Keddie murders, to take Sue out of the picture. A butcher knife and claw hammer, both also bloodied, were side-by-side on a small wooden table near the entry into the kitchen. [24], Based on Justin's descriptions, composite sketches of the two unknown men were produced by Harlan Embry, a man with no artistic ability and no training in forensic sketching. Watch our new 10-part true crime show, People Magazine Investigates, which airs Mondays (9 p.m. The discussion suddenly erupted into a violent attack. The artist won the Doug Moran in 2011 for his portrait of Baz Luhrmann, and he has won the Archibald people's choice four times - once, in 2013, for another portrait of Keddie. The night before the murders, Sheila had slept over a friends house down the street. Sue's two younger sons, Rick and Greg, as well as their friend Justin Smartt, were also in the house but were unharmed. Former Plumas County Sheriff Greg Hagwood said he believes Tina is "central to why" the family was killed. True Crime April 12, 1981. Afterward, she provided Plumas Country Sheriffs Dept. Although Dana also suffered trauma to the head, she was strangled to death. However, Historic Mysteries reports he was never arrested or charged in the murders. [24][11] It was never explained why, with access to the Justice Department's and the Federal Bureau of Investigation's (FBI) top forensic artists, law enforcement chose to use an amateur who sometimes volunteered to help local police. Circleville, Ohio - The Unsolved Mystery of the Circleville Letters by Every . [24] According to Justin, John and Dana then entered the home and began heatedly arguing with the men. As reported by Timber Creek Talon, Marty also purportedly confessed to the murders during a therapy session. One of them was tall with blonde hair and a mustache, while the other was shorter, dark-haired, and clean-shaven. Unable to discern from where they were coming, they went back to bed. Gamberg sent the tape to other law enforcement agencies for analysis and possible leads. Investigators believe he was cooperating with the Department of Justice as an informant. The murders took place in house No. Somehow, this erupted into a bout of violence between them, which resulted in the murders. As reported by Historic Mysteries, Smartt was Justin's stepfather. Authorities also interviewed Marty's close friend, John "Bo" Boubede, who lived with Marty and his wife, and was out with Marty on the night the murders occurred. Great! Between them lies the forgotten tape of the anonymous phone tip left in 1984, rediscovered in 2013. The town tried to reinvent itself by becoming a recreational camping and hiking resort area.