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E278: Alicia Showalter Reynolds
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On March 2, 1996, 25-year-old Alicia Showalter Reynolds set out before breakfast, pointing her white Mercury south from Baltimore toward Charlottesville for a shopping day with her mom. Somewhere along U.S. Route 29 in Central Virginia—near Culpeper—that ordinary drive met an extraordinary danger, the kind that hides in plain sight on the shoulder of a busy highway.
By nightfall, Alicia hadn’t arrived. Her car was found on the roadside; witnesses remembered a clean-cut man in a dark pickup offering “help.” In this episode, we walk the Route 29 corridor minute by minute, piecing together what Alicia saw, what bystanders noticed, and how a roadside “good Samaritan” ruse may have masked a predator.
Anyone with information is asked to call the Virginia State Police Culpeper Division toll-free at 1-800-572-2260, the Bureau of Criminal Investigation toll-free at 1-888-300-0156, or you can also email them at bci-culpeper@vsp.virginia.gov.
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Transcript
Mysterious Encounters on Route 29
00:00:00
Speaker
Today we journey back to the seemingly ordinary landscape of central Virginia in the spring of 1996. Imagine the peaceful stretch of Route 29, a vital artery winding through the picturesque countryside, a route many travelers took for daily commutes, family visits, or leisurely drives.
00:00:16
Speaker
It was on this very road that a sinister pattern began to emerge. a sequence of encounters that would eventually culminate in a nightmare scenario, forever altering the lives of a loving family and casting a long, cold shadow over the quiet towns nearby.
00:00:30
Speaker
a wooden cross, weathered by time and adorned with artificial flowers, still stands along this route in Virginia, a silent memorial to a life brutally cut short. In the weeks leading up to March 1996, an unsettling phenomenon had gripped women traveling this particular highway.
00:00:46
Speaker
Reports started trickling into police stations. A man in a dark pickup truck, flashing his lights, honking his horn, gesturing frantically, claiming there was something wrong with their vehicles. Most women, wary of stopping for a stranger, drove on perhaps with a sense of unease, but some, believing in the good of people, pulled over.
00:01:03
Speaker
This seemingly helpful good Samaritan would then perform a quick inspection, only to declare that some manufactured mechanical fault was there and offered a ride to the nearest phone or gas station.
00:01:14
Speaker
While several women accepted these rides and were dropped off without incident, the true intent behind these kind gestures was far more sinister than anyone initially realized. This was not a sequence of coincidental acts of kindness. It was a perpetrator honing his deadly craft, practicing his deceptive ruse,
00:01:32
Speaker
waiting for the perfect moment and the most vulnerable target. The calm before the storm was palpable, yet unseen. This unknown assailant, dubbed the Route 29 Stalker, was escalating his aggression.
00:01:43
Speaker
Just one week before the tragic disappearance we're discussing today, a woman in Prince William County fell victim to his deception. accepting a ride after being told her car had trouble. Her harrowing escape, which left her with a broken ankle, revealed the true violence simmering beneath this Good Samaritan facade.
00:01:58
Speaker
The stakes were rising, the danger intensifying. The day was March 2nd, 1996, and the victim was Alicia Showalter Reynolds.
Podcast Introduction: Keeping Cold Cases Alive
00:02:39
Speaker
oh Welcome to Coffee and Cases, where we like our coffee hot and our cases cold. My name is Allison Williams. And my name is Maggie Dameron.
00:02:50
Speaker
We will be telling stories each week in the hopes that someone out there with any information concerning the cases will take those tips to law enforcement so justice and closure can be brought to these families. With each case, we encourage you to continue in the conversation on our Facebook page, Coffee and Cases Podcast, because, as we all know, conversation helps to keep the missing person in the public consciousness, helping keep their memories alive.
00:03:13
Speaker
So sit back, sip your coffee, and listen to what's brewing this week. That whole part, the beginning was giving me flashbacks because one time i was driving. Why do you have all these stories?
00:03:28
Speaker
don't know. But I was driving and this semi came up behind me and started flashing its lights. And i was going over the speed limit. And I was like, well, I am not speeding for you, sir. i'm Because I thought maybe they think I'm going too slow.
00:03:43
Speaker
Well, then they pulled up alongside me and they started honking their horn. Wasn't it daytime or not? No, it was daytime. Okay. and That makes a little better. Then they got in front of me and started going slower so that I would pass them. I was terrified. This happened like three times in succession that I would then, i started speeding up and then...
00:04:05
Speaker
I got back over and then they would get up right on my tail and start flashing their lights and then get over and start honking the horn. And then they would get in front of me and go really slow. And I was like, nope, not pulling over.
00:04:16
Speaker
So then I did break the speed limit. i was like getting out of here. happened to me once too when I was going home. It was like a man in a truck and he would get like right up behind me. Is this where your mom was with you?
00:04:27
Speaker
no She was like. But she like remembered this too. Yeah. No, that's when we had a flat tire. Okay. This was I was driving home by myself and he would like get right up behind me really close and then he would go around me and then slow down and when I would pass him like it kept happening and finally I just like went super fast.
00:04:43
Speaker
And it was like, no matter how fast I would go, eventually he would catch I'm curious how many of our women listeners have had an experience yeah like that. Who, when you were talking about that introduction, were like, that has happened to me. That has happened to me. I'm curious. I'm sure it's pretty high, that number. Yeah, yeah.
The Disappearance of Alicia Reynolds
00:05:04
Speaker
So Alicia was a very vibrant young woman. And she, ah feel like, was just someone, not that... I guess everybody is, but I just feel like she had so much promise and purpose in her life because even just at 25 years old, she really had all of these goals already set in place. So she was married to her husband, Mark.
00:05:24
Speaker
They had met in college. and ah how long had they been married? About a year. Okay. and he described when he met her that it was love at first sight. Sweet. Sweet. So they ended up moving east because she was working on her PhD in pharmacology at John Hopkins University. Oh, excellent school. yeah Baltimore. Yes, yes. So they're in Baltimore, Maryland.
00:05:47
Speaker
and she had like a personal drive in with on her academic drive. yeah So she really wanted to be dedicated to this part of research that was for developing vaccines.
00:06:03
Speaker
Okay. Especially in or for areas in lesser developed parts of the world. So she was looking to find a vaccine for like this specific disease. Allison, say it. Look at that word. Look at that word.
00:06:16
Speaker
Eustosomiasis? Sounds great. I Googled how to say it. What is that? It is like this parasite that is prevalent in tropical regions and it affects millions of people.
00:06:28
Speaker
Okay. So she was really determined so to find a vaccine for this. should our lucky stars that we don't know how to say that. Yeah. Parasite. Okay. Because it's not a problem right now for us. She was described by her parents, Harley and Sadie, as being very good at research, that she was committed and focused.
00:06:46
Speaker
And someone who knew what her challenge was and how the steps to take to try to solve that problem, okay basically. Her mother, Sadie, remembered her as always having, quote, a wonderful giggle and a wonderful smile. It's giggle word. It's cute, I think.
00:07:04
Speaker
Friends and family consistently described her as caring, cheerful, hardworking, and outstanding student. Obviously, she's going to jump. Jumping, yeah. Yeah. And she, again, everybody said she had that clear purpose. ah One of her history teachers, Janet Kaufman, even told interviewers that she was one of the most compassionate, responsible, and intelligent people she had ever taught. Wow, that's high praise. Yeah.
00:07:27
Speaker
And as you can probably guess, she graduated high school with a 4.0. She was very active, not just in academics, but extracurricular. She was very well-rounded. so I'm sure admissions councils loved her. Right, the tech were like, whoops, Let's take her. yeah So she had the 4.0. She was the band's drum major. She played the oboe. She participated in track. She did gymnastics. Dang. I mean.
00:07:51
Speaker
Okay. Yeah. she's She's got going on. And she always told everyone she wanted to be a role model for women in science because, you know, that's typically a male-dominated field. And so she wanted young girls to be able to look up to her and be like, oh, I want to be just like her one day.
00:08:07
Speaker
And that's sad because we're talking about her, which means... Right, that um her life tragically ended before I think that dream was fully realized, or at least realized in her lifetime. But she did leave behind a legacy that we're going to also talk about.
00:08:21
Speaker
The morning of Saturday, March 1996 began... ordinarily So all the ordinary intentions of the day. She said goodbye to her husband, Mark, at their home in Baltimore around 730 that morning.
00:08:34
Speaker
And she was leaving early because she was driving about 150 miles south. Do you say route or route? I feel like it's Caribbean and Caribbean. I change it. hu It's like right normally 66.
00:08:47
Speaker
Oh, I say route 66. Or maybe I say route 66. I don't know. Get your kids on route 66. That's right. Yeah. that's right yeah Well, y'all know what we're talking about. Route 29. Tomato, tomato.
00:08:58
Speaker
Yeah. So she was traveling those 150 miles to Charlottesville, Virginia, to meet her mom at a mall. Okay. Which at first was like— 120 miles or 150 miles isn't crazy. like an hour and a half or something, right? Well, if you're going, let's say, 60 on average, then it's two and a half hours. But that's, like, how far it is for me to get home.
00:09:22
Speaker
two hours. Oh, yeah. But I mean, like, but she's going there to, like, go in there and come back. I mean, your mom. That's fine. And drive however far to see your mom. Right. That's a message I have for my daughter if she listens to this episode in the future. Always remember that. That's right.
00:09:38
Speaker
And call your mom right now. That's right. Their plan was to spend the day shopping. They were looking for a dress for Alicia's twin brother, Patrick. I feel like that's one of those things where you're like, my cousin's cousin. Right.
00:09:50
Speaker
He was getting married. she's a twin. Yes. And her brother's getting married. Okay. So that explains the drive then. Yeah, because I'm sure she was needing like... ah Specific things.
00:10:01
Speaker
So Sadie had a much shorter drive than mom. Hers was just about 60 miles from where they lived in Harrisonburg. And she arrived at the mall about 10, 30 in the morning.
00:10:12
Speaker
And she thought that Alicia would already be there. Right. Because again, if she left at 730 and the mom's getting there at 1030, that's three hours. That should be enough time, even if there's traffic to get there. Or she had to stop and get McDonald's, but she wasn't there.
00:10:30
Speaker
So Sadie waited. And of course she grew increasingly worried because the minutes would soon turn into hours. But around 11, she called Mark, the husband, and was like, Hey, this is not like her. Has she left home? Have you heard from her?
00:10:45
Speaker
Like, what's going on? Uh-huh. And Mark initially suggested maybe it was bad weather because it was really foggy and it was drizzling. Early morning hours, those could definitely be a concern. And I feel like drizzle and fog just makes for yucky travel conditions anyway. So maybe that kind of delayed her. It does.
00:11:02
Speaker
But Sadie waited, and as the afternoon wore on, she had no word. And then her and Mark... Began to panic.
00:11:13
Speaker
So she described, Sadie described this agonizing wait as constantly scanning for her daughter's car. She said, quote, how long I've sat there and just, you know, thinking to myself, is that her car?
00:11:24
Speaker
Is that her car? But then by two, she's accepted that. Something has happened. Yeah, something's happened. Something has happened. And so she calls Mark again and Mark contacted the local police. Okay. So i feel like things are.
00:11:38
Speaker
moving pretty quickly. Yeah, they're progressing quickly. ah Later that day, around six, a Virginia state trooper made the discovery of Alicia's car. It was a white 1993 Mercury Tracer, and it was found abandoned along Route 29, about two to three miles south of Culpeper, Virginia. Okay. And I hope I'm saying that right, people of Virginia. And that is a per approximately 50 miles from Charlottesville Mall and about 110 miles from Boston. Oh, so she made almost there. Yeah, she was far away. Less than an hour away.
00:12:12
Speaker
Underneath the windshield wiper blade, the trooper found a white paper napkin, which I guess in that area was commonly understood as a signal for car trouble, I guess. Never heard that. hadn't either. I thought, was there something written on it? That was my first thought. yeah But I guess in this area, if police were passing by and they saw that, they would be like, oh, I bet they ran out gas. They're coming back for it. Yeah, they're coming back. But it's not to it. Okay.
00:12:36
Speaker
However... Upon inspection, it was determined that the car had no mechanical problems and was actually in perfect driving condition. Sadie believed that the napkin was Alicia's attempt to indicate trouble with the car.
00:12:51
Speaker
Inside the car, police also found a piece of paper with Sadie's cell phone number on it. Because remember, again, this is 1996, so things are programmed into the phone. Gotcha. Yeah.
00:13:02
Speaker
Again, I think that just kind of is an indication of her cautious nature, like making sure she has her mom's phone cell phone number written down on a piece of paper. In case she has a pay phone yeah or something like that. Because I remember no one's number now that I have a cell phone.
00:13:15
Speaker
I don't remember any I just click the person's Mm-hmm. Yeah. The following day, police established a roadblock around the route, appealing to motorists for any information. And they did have three witnesses that came forward.
Witness Accounts and Escalating Threats
00:13:28
Speaker
Okay. And they reported that they had seen her talking to a clean-cut white man along the highway's shoulder.
00:13:35
Speaker
And he had the hood of her car raised. Okay. And they appeared to be looking at the engine. So, again, the white napkin of makes sense. Another motorist recalled seeing her get into this man's dark colored pickup truck, which they believed it'd be either a dark blue or green. Okay.
00:13:53
Speaker
The man was described as being in his late early 40s. So, they're thinking like, 35 to 45 range. And he was between 5'10 and 6 feet tall. So I feel like that's pretty, like, good.
00:14:05
Speaker
nobody say sirba yes yeah same he's five two and then i saying For Yeah. passerbys. And somebody's saying, no, he was 5'6. Right. I think it's pretty close. Consistent. And he was consistently described as someone with a medium build and light medium in brown hair.
00:14:21
Speaker
And they thought that maybe possibly the pickup truck was a Nissan. The local news quickly broadcast reports of her disappearance, leading to a flood of new information, which is good. Yes, that's fantastic. They received numerous calls from other women who reported similar encounters along that same stretch the lake. Oh, okay, so now the calls are coming in. They were like, oh, somebody tried to pull me over, too. Okay.
00:14:44
Speaker
These women, and the number was close to 20, claimed a man fitting. Wow, 20. Yes, that's insane to me. Yeah, and then that's what I was saying, like, in the introduction. He seemed to really be, like, trying to hone in. And that's scary. You said he would—some of them he wouldn't hurt, but then other ones— man. Yeah, it was like he was looking the perfect one. Ooh.
00:15:05
Speaker
So, around 20, claimed a man fitting this exact description, so the the medium build, all that. Usually— would claim, try to stop them and usually claim that something was wrong with their vehicles.
00:15:18
Speaker
Like, oh my God, I just saw sparks coming from underneath your car. And so then you're like, okay, even if it was running fine, what if there were? I don't want to explode. Yeah, i don't want to die by a car explosion. Special Agent Thomas Carter with the FBI described the man's purpose as basically...
00:15:35
Speaker
that he would approach the women from behind or alongside in the dark, kind of like the situations we were talking about, in this pickup truck. And he would flash his headlights, honk his horn on the bus. It's like exactly what happened to you.
00:15:48
Speaker
And basically do whatever he could to attract their attention. And if the woman pulled over, he would jump underneath the vehicle, conduct an quote-unquote examination, come out and be like, yeah, there's something wrong. There's some type of like mechanical deficiency.
00:16:04
Speaker
and kind of to engage in small, polite conversation. and then he would be like, you know, I found something. Let me give you a ride to the nearest phone so you can get somebody to pick you Because, don't have cell phones really then. dang, scary.
00:16:21
Speaker
gary And while some women accepted his offer and were driven to their destinations without any other incidents, others found the man's behavior of kind of less courteous. So there were, like, some things off here.
00:16:34
Speaker
And if a woman refused his assistance or, like, declined to pull over, he would essentially throw, like, a tin a temper tantrum. He became agitated. He would pound his fist on the steering wheel. They said but he would murmur under his breath if they were like, no, I'm just going to keep driving like until I get to a gas station or something like that.
00:16:53
Speaker
So he would essentially throw a fit. That's scary, too. Yeah. And Sadie said this, quote, it almost feels like when you look at the whole Route 29 story and a stalker idea, which we'll talk more about later, that he was sort of honing his skills on how to stop women and get them. And Alicia happened to be the one that he took.
00:17:13
Speaker
That's so sad. Rick Jenkins with the Virginia State Police also believed that earlier they were just kind of dry runs. Like he was practicing getting comfortable with how he was stopping people and the conversations that he would have and how to get people into his car. And maybe even saying, okay, well, when I said this, that's when they said, no, thank you. Also, don't say that. Oh, man. yeah And so he's just practicing until he found someone that trusted him enough that he was able to carry out what he intended to do. Yeah.
00:17:45
Speaker
So a stark illustration of this escalating danger occurred just one week. before the case we're talking about today. So, on the 23rd of 1996 in February, another woman was driving along that same stretch of highway in Prince William County. She was about 30 miles southwest of Washington, D.C. Because i remember, it's all right there.
00:18:07
Speaker
And them a man pulled over and was like, or pulled up as beside her, something's wrong with car, something's wrong with your car. They pulled off, he looked at her car, and he was like, yeah, you have a loose belt. And Like, some joints need fixed.
00:18:20
Speaker
And he said, let me take you to the gas station. So this lady's like, yeah, And she said initially he was very polite, but then his behavior shifted. and she said that he would slow down.
00:18:34
Speaker
And he slowed down about three times, and he would make excuses about there being a glare or something like that would cause him to have to slow down, and she became really uneasy. Oh, I can see why. And then he began asking personal questions, and she became frightened and was like, actually, can you just let me out? I'll walk the rest of the way, or I'll go back to my car.
00:18:55
Speaker
And again, he became angry, but this time he attacked this lady with a screwdriver. my goodness. And pushed her out of the car. which caused her to break her ankle as she fell. Which, again, like, is terrifying, but in hindsight, I would be like, it could have been way worse.
00:19:11
Speaker
Yeah. glaru Yeah. And she told investigators that he was initially soft-spoken and seemed trustworthy, and police believed that him slowing down really wasn't due to a glare, but an attempt to find a secluded spot for an attack along that stretch of road. Wow. So she obviously escaped injured but alive, but then seven days later...
00:19:34
Speaker
Here we are. yeah boom Again, the suspect was consistently described as a white male and between 35 and 45 in 1996. He be now.
00:19:45
Speaker
And about six feet tall with the medium build, the light brown hair. Some said maybe reddish brown. And people said he tended to kind of brush it back and would like almost like a nervous habit do that with his left hand. Okay.
00:19:58
Speaker
Which people with longer hair, I feel like, tended do. And he was also described as clean shaven. And what's weird to me, which actually, I guess, in retrospect, now that I'm thinking about it, he was seen to have been wearing a wedding band, which I think would feel make him more trustworthy. Yeah, agree. Like, oh, he's married. Right. Like, it's not weird. He would have stopped and helped his wife. He would want to stop and help someone else.
00:20:21
Speaker
So they did, police, issue a composite sketch, but the one in 1996, they don't think it's as accurate of a depiction okay now.
00:20:32
Speaker
ah especially now. Yeah, well there' and there's more recent ones that show him what they think he would have looked like 96. Okay. And then what he thinks he... they would look like now. Okay. So again, he was noted as driving that dark colored vehicle, a pickup truck, maybe a green Nissan. They feel like darker colors. I wonder if psychologically those are harder to remember the exact color, exact shade versus like red. Well, you know, they always say vehicles get pulled over. and Right. like Yeah. So maybe you just wanted to blend in more. wonder it's like black cats, like they never get adopted. So maybe dark vehicles don't get as out noticed or whatever.
00:21:11
Speaker
um Some people believe that maybe he purchased, sold, or traded vehicles often. oh Oh. Yeah. and all the women that he talked to said that he went by the name Larry Vreden.
00:21:24
Speaker
Huh. So, again, obviously made up. He's not going to tell somebody who he's going to attack. His real name. His real name.
Discovery and Aftermath of Alicia's Murder
00:21:32
Speaker
So the search to find Alicia intensified.
00:21:36
Speaker
So police were in heavy presence and news was heavy. And it yielded at about 2,500 leads in Wow, that's a decent amount. Yeah.
00:21:47
Speaker
I think so too. And billboards featured her photograph. that's good too. Her father taped radio appeals. Her family offered $25,000 reward. It was supplemented with $10,000 more dollars from the Culpeper Board of Supervisors. Her husband, Mark, held on to hope.
00:22:04
Speaker
He said that he would shower and shave daily, just like ready for her to show up. And he would drive countless miles searching country roads, which is heartbreaking. I mean, the family's doing everything that is shown to help get leads in those early stages.
00:22:19
Speaker
And I think also heartbreaking is her mom and dad kept a candle burning at their house in the window as like a symbol of their hope and faith that she would return. Oh, man.
00:22:30
Speaker
And that candle burned for two months. Ugh. And that hope was shattered on May 7th, 1996, a little more than two months after she vanished because her body was discovered in a, you know, I hate that word. Rural.
00:22:42
Speaker
but yeah Field about 15 miles southeast of where her car had been found. Oh, so he lured her into this car and said, I'm taking you somewhere and then took her kind of like he was looking smooted spot. Mm-hmm.
00:23:05
Speaker
A worker for a logging company noticed buzzards circling above a field. And now, like, I always, when I see that, I'm like, what's happening with these buzzards in the distance? But they noticed the buzzards circling. And it was a field that had recently been cleared of trees. So he went out to investigate, and he found a pile of sticks and pine branches.
00:23:25
Speaker
And beneath that was a human body that was basically just bones and covered by clothes. Mm-hmm. So, was she covered by clothes? So, she... ah took it as... so the police have been... Police have been very tight-lipped about, like, her manner of death. Okay. And things like that. But, no, I take it as she still had them on.
00:23:47
Speaker
okay Is how I take it. Okay. Because... They said that she was like missing a parka, which I'll talk about later, but they later find it. but Okay.
00:23:58
Speaker
Just from all the research that made, it seemed like she still had the clothes on. And it was through the clothes her jewelry that they were able to to determine who it was.
00:24:10
Speaker
So again, the state of decomposition was consistent with a period of two months, suggesting that she had probably been murdered the day she disappeared. And as I said, her rings and clothing, with the exception of that parka,
00:24:23
Speaker
Oh, okay. Where they ran on her. They're on her. Okay. Authorities have remained, like I said, tight-lipped about her cause or manner of death, as well as specifics regarding DNA and even other evidence at the scene, which makes me think they probably have something. They're just waiting for, like, maybe one more puzzle piece to kind of click in before they... See, it makes me worry.
00:24:49
Speaker
Why? Because and I feel like if they had DNA, they'd be like, we've got your DNA. Okay. We're just waiting to make the match. I don't know. ah Interestingly, her credit card, ah Citibank MasterCard, had been found hours after she disappeared on a sidewalk in Culpepper.
00:25:07
Speaker
Her black parka, the one she had been wearing that day, turned up later about 15 miles south of her apparent abduction along Route 626 in Madison County.
00:25:19
Speaker
So this person was like taking evidence and like tossing it out the window wherever. That's what think too. Like it just seems like he's just tossing stuff. The remote logging road where her body was dumped close to a home for abused children suggested the killer's familiarity with the area. Interesting.
00:25:34
Speaker
And I read that there had been rain in the days around the time that... she was discovered and that kind of complicated the investigation because it potentially washed away right footprints or whatever. The news of the discovery obviously devastated her family. and Her parents were notified around 3.30 on May 7th and confirmed their worst fears through the jewelry and clothing that were found on the body. and Sadie, though heartbreaking, expressed...
00:26:01
Speaker
a grim sense of relief saying that she had been praying for closure while it wasn't the way that she wanted it. God did answer that prayer and give the family some type of closure.
00:26:13
Speaker
The candle of hope that had burned for nearly two months symbolically went out though. And Mark Reynolds, her husband, recalled that he just got none. And I don't even know how much closure one can get with the killer still on the loose. Like, yes, you know what happened to them, but why? There's no justice.
Ongoing Investigation and Awareness Efforts
00:26:30
Speaker
yeah over For nearly three decades, the Virginia State Police have continued to actively pursue this investigation, and they have stayed on top of looking into everything they can about her disappearance and the homicide.
00:26:45
Speaker
The case has been relentless. State authorities have received more than 10,000 tips over the years. Dang, that's a lot. Yeah, yeah. And Special Agent Richard Hankins, the fifth consecutive special agent to handle this case, has been the lead investigator since 2012. And he was the assistant in 2010. Okay. So he's been with the case for a while. very knowledgeable about details in this case. Because even though I want to say 2012 was yesterday, it really right well it was not. Right. Yeah.
00:27:16
Speaker
And he begins every day with the case and maintains close contact with her family. I'm so happy. He speaks with them at least once a month. I'm so happy about that. Yeah. And he said, quote, you always, what if the situation in your head?
00:27:29
Speaker
I don't want to be the type to go to work and be involved with something and then just shut it off like they don't matter. They do matter. Oh, I know. I wish everybody. Everyone. I wish every family that talked Had police officer. Yes.
00:27:43
Speaker
Yeah. He also finds motivation in knowing Alicia's parents. And Sadie has praised him for meticulously reviewing the files, collecting evidence, keeping them in the loop, basically just being an all-around good person. Well, and especially over the years. I mean, I being in contact at the beginning, but continuing that contact. But all of these years later. Yeah.
00:28:06
Speaker
Despite the passage of time, investigators maintain a high level of confidence that the case is solvable, which I think is good. And Hankins said, quote, we can't give up faith because if there was no hope, there would be no use looking into it. So basically, like.
00:28:21
Speaker
Hope or nothing. Yeah. We have to believe that there is hope. Yeah. A spokeswoman for the Virginia State Police emphasized their belief that, quote, there are people out there who have information that could be helpful who have not called. So again, like that just one, and I feel like that's all of our cases, that one like little piece. Well, and if this same guy stopped or tried to stop more than 20 women, who knows how many more there could be. Right.
00:28:49
Speaker
Right. Right. The case has not only spurred a massive investigation, but it has also raised public awareness, right, about the dangers women face on the roadside. Yes, just we were talking about. yeah Today, a wooden cross adorned with artificial flowers stands along that route in Culpeper, marking the spot where she was last seen. Her parents still visit the site from time to time.
00:29:11
Speaker
Again, just holding on to the hope that someone somewhere knows something that could bring that justice that we talked about. Over the years, several individuals have been considered in connection with Alicia's murder, and recent developments have brought new attention to some in the case. Okay. So, again, we have the Larry man. ah right.
00:29:29
Speaker
The yeah Larry Breeden. Yep. Okay. And he was also known as the Route 29 stalker because, you know, 20 plus women. Mm-hmm. reportedly introduced himself as Larry to at least two women that he gave rides to without incident. And this alias became a significant lead, leading police to hundreds of tips upon its release.
00:29:51
Speaker
Investigators painstakingly searched databases for individuals with this name in Virginia. Because they're probably thinking, well, maybe he didn't just make it up off the top of his head. Maybe he knows somebody with that name, and he's just taking this alias. Right, because I feel like that last name would be— It's interesting. Yeah. yeah And anybody with that name, they spoke to those people.
00:30:14
Speaker
But by November 1996, state police were able to eliminate every Larry from their suspect list. Okay. So this caused distress, obviously, and unwanted attention because— well if my name's Larry Breeden, I'm not going to be here. Right, right.
00:30:31
Speaker
And they would face this look all these suspicious looks and questioning from the public and law enforcement. Police even considered the possibility that the stalker had a grudge, like you said, against somebody Larry. Yes, didn't even think about a grudge. I thought about just somebody who knows him. But yeah, that makes perfect sense. Like a retaliation type thing. Perfect.
00:30:47
Speaker
Then there was the suspect, Daryl Rice, and Daryl emerged as a significant person of interest in her case. Okay. His father reportedly lived near Route 29 and owned a pickup truck similar to those that had been sighted.
00:31:01
Speaker
Crucially in July of 1997, so about a year after her murder. Okay. The woman that we talked about in the beginning that was attacked with a screwdriver and was pushed out. Yeah. um She positively identified Daryl Rice in a photo lineup as her assailant.
00:31:16
Speaker
Okay. So either he looks straightly like. Or it is him. Or it is him. Yeah. Okay. And he was charged with attempted abduction. so I feel like he was successful and she just escaped. Why attempted? I don't understand that.
00:31:31
Speaker
While he pleaded to lesser charges and received 11 months, 11 months for this incident, he was later convicted of a kidnapping and attempted murder of a bicyclist for which he received 11 years in prison.
00:31:45
Speaker
Okay, so even if this man is not the man in Alicia's case, he is still kidnapping and attempting to murder other women. Yes. He was also considered a prime suspect in the Shenandoah murders. So these killings occurred less than a month after Alicia's body was found, sending fresh horrors through central Virginia. This was not a good time to live in central Virginia. On June 1st, 1996, the bodies of 26-year-old Lolly and 24-year-old Julie were discovered in Shenandoah National Park. They had been camping. They had been bound, gagged their throats.
00:32:20
Speaker
slashed almost to the point of decapitation. And Daryl Rice was described as a woman hater, particularly of lesbians, and these two were livers. He was seen on videotape entering the park, and witnesses reported seeing him...
00:32:35
Speaker
In the park on the 24th, the day the women were last photographed. But these were, again, just circumstantial lengths. Forensic evidence couldn't definitively connect Rice to this this crime thing.
00:32:47
Speaker
And the charges against him for the Shenandoah murders were eventually dropped. But we still—evidence lining up. Yes, yes. Circumstantial, though it may be. Yes. Another suspect, Richard Mark Yvontes, had been considered a person of interest in Alicia's murder.
00:33:03
Speaker
he was a Navy veteran and ah serial killer. Oh. Yeah. Well, he's got three. The F. Three names. The Before his death, he was was responsible for the abductions, rapes, and strangulations of three teenage girls in Virginia. Okay. So in September of 1996, six months after Alicia's disappearance, he abducted 16-year-old girl from her front yard, and her body was found a month later. Then eight months after that, he kidnapped, raped, and strangled 15-year-old and 12-year-old.
00:33:33
Speaker
whose bodies were found five days later. His reign of terror ended in 2002 when another 15-year-old escaped his apartment in South Carolina and was able to lead police to him.
00:33:45
Speaker
But when they were trying to arrest him, he committed to this suicide.
00:33:50
Speaker
Yeah. So... Well, with that one, even though he's abducting and murdering these young girls, they're quite a bit younger than Alicia is. And most of them, it sounds like, were from their... area. Yeah, yeah from their yards. Mm-hmm. Versus our Daryl Rice, who is... Larry.
00:34:12
Speaker
Trying to abduct from vehicles or bicycles. Mm-hmm. So a more recent development is the fact that Rex Heuerman could be linked. Gilgo Beach serial murderer. Right. Yes.
00:34:27
Speaker
her brother, her twin, bo of who's now a doctor, and her younger sister have said that... Rex really has a striking resemblance the pictures. can see that. Even that older sketch. Yeah, yeah. I can see think too.
00:34:43
Speaker
They believe that even the old state police composite sketch bears a strong resemblance to Rex if you subtracted the 27 or whatever many years. Math is hard. For the way he looks now. Yes, I can see that. So it was noted the similarities were striking. The eyes, the cheek, the face structure. Their reasoning extends beyond, though, just the physical resemblance.
00:35:04
Speaker
Rex's mother, Dolores, had relocated close to the area in 1994. So she was not too far which is... Right, where the car was taken. Yeah, or where the car was found.
00:35:17
Speaker
and Patrick, the twin, again, speculates that if Rex was traveling, maybe to visit his mother from where he lived in New York, his route would have likely taken him directly through Culpeper on Route 29. The timeline also raises questions. So while Alicia's remains were found in Virginia in 1996, the partial remains of the earliest known victim tied to this serial killer. To the yoga beach. Mm-hmm.
00:35:43
Speaker
were discovered in April of 1996. So around the same time period. And the family is now advocating for a re-examination of DNA. Well, I hope they hope me too. I hope they do too.
00:35:55
Speaker
So they're hoping that all these new genetic databases. Because they have his DNA now. Yeah. So. Yeah, and we have, you know, obviously better technology than we had back in the day. Barbara, the sister, also recalled that one suspect was arrested in her sister's murder, but charges were later dropped.
00:36:12
Speaker
And she feels that, quote, when I've looked at some of the other suspects they've tried to pin it on, there's not really as much similarity as there is between Rex and the sketch.
00:36:24
Speaker
So he was married, had kids. Maybe it really was his wedding ring that he had on. Oh, I didn't even make that connection. That's pretty good.
00:36:35
Speaker
And if he's already, if the earliest murders are also in 1996, I mean, if why not murder in a different area, too? Yeah, i mean, some serial killers have victims all around the country. Right. Right.
00:36:51
Speaker
The murder of Alicia left a mark not only on her family, but also on the community and beyond. Because remember, she's involved in Johns Hopkins University, all of these things.
00:37:02
Speaker
And her mother, Sadie, often reflects on what might have been, particularly, you know, when visiting her daughter's grave. Because she talks about. That Mark and Alicia had plans to have children, to raise a family.
00:37:16
Speaker
and so she wonders, like, what what could have happened if things had been different? And I think that's just the hard part of any loss. And I think it's really hard not to go down that rabbit hole that I think we really need try not to. Right. Because it's just hard. Mm-hmm.
00:37:33
Speaker
And a testament to her dedication and the profound loss felt by even the academic community, she did end up receiving, like, an honorary PhD from Johns Hopkins University. And in her memory, the dean's office of the School of Medicine at Johns Hopkins established a research prize in her name.
00:37:52
Speaker
That was awarded to— Very deserving, and that makes me very happy. Yes. And it was awarded to specifically PhD female students that were outstanding in the areas of science, which And that's what she wanted to do with her life. So in a way, she— She did was a role model for um girls going into science. Yeah, so even though she didn't get to see that legacy in life, it did come true for her.
00:38:17
Speaker
Her colleague and friend, Laura, the first recipient of the award, remembers her, quote, unusual enthusiasm for her work and that she was dedicated. She was optimistic. She was intelligent. All of these things that people want to be. right Patrick, her brother, said, quote, her death doesn't just affect our family or Culpeper. affects millions of people. Because if you think about it, it really does. Because she could have been, didn't research if that vaccine ever came to be. Right. But if it didn't, it could have been through her. Yeah. And think how many people have been affected by it. Exactly.
00:38:53
Speaker
The story of Alicia's show Walter Reynolds is a reminder that sometimes the most dangerous encounters come not just from overt threats, but from a calculated manipulation of trust. It highlights how a simple act of roadside assistance, a gesture we inertly associate with human kindness, can be twisted into a trap by those with malevolent intentions.
00:39:13
Speaker
Alicia's vibrant life dedicated to discovery and helping others through science was extinguished in an act of violence that remains unsolved, leaving her family with an enduring empty space and a constant ache for answers.
00:39:25
Speaker
Their hope alongside that of dedicated investigators continue to burn a quiet vigil for justice that has stretched nearly three decades. As we conclude this episode, we're reminded that true crime is not just about the grim details.
00:39:40
Speaker
but about the lives impacted, the dreams shattered, and the families left behind that are desperately seeking closure. The wooden cross on Route 29 is not just a marker, it's a plea. A silent call for remembrance and for action. It's a testament to a young woman who had so much more to give, whose potential was stolen, and whose killer walks free.
00:40:00
Speaker
If anything you've heard today sparks a memory, or if you possess even the smallest piece of information— no matter how insignificant it may seem to you, please understand its potential to make a difference.
00:40:12
Speaker
The Virginia State Police continue to seek leads into her case, into her abduction, into her murder. You can reach the Virginia State Police Culpeper Division toll-free at 1-800-572-2260 or the Bureau of Criminal Investigations toll-free Thank you.
00:40:31
Speaker
three hundred zero one five six there's also an email address and bci dash coalpipper at v s p dot virginia dot gov it is through our collective memory our vigilance and our courage to speak up that we can bring justice to alicia and finally offer her family the peace and resolution they have long deserved.
00:40:54
Speaker
Every tip matters. Every voice counts in the enduring pursuit of truth. Again, please like and join our Facebook page, Coffee and Cases Podcast, to continue the conversation and see images related to this episode.
00:41:08
Speaker
As always, follow us on Twitter at Cases Coffee, on Instagram at Coffee Cases Podcast, or you can always email us suggestions to coffeeandcasespodcast at gmail.com.
00:41:19
Speaker
Please tell your friends about our podcast so more people can be reached to possibly help bring some closure to these families. Don't forget to rate our show and leave us a comment as well. We hope to hear from you soon. Stay together.
00:41:31
Speaker
stay safe. We'll see you next week.