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E198: The Connecticut River Valley Killer (Part 2)
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Beginning in the late 1970s and continuing through the early 1980s, Americans (particularly women in the New England area) grew more and more concerned about the serial killer on the loose— the man who was both calculated and unimaginably brutal. His victims’ bodies were all recovered in a fifty-mile radius in the Connecticut River Valley along the New Hampshire/Vermont border near Route 91, giving him his name— The Connecticut River Valley Killer.
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Transcript
Introduction & Case Recap
00:00:00
Speaker
Welcome to part two of Maggie's coverage of the Connecticut River Valley Killer. If you have not listened to part one, please take a moment now to do so or re-listen if you need to refresh your memory on the details of the case before we discuss theories in this episode. We also want to take a moment to give special thanks to the information obtained from Kristen Seavey's podcast Murder, She Told.
00:00:25
Speaker
Her interview with Jane Borosky posted on September 13th, 2022 was instrumental in information provided here on our podcast in part two, as you'll hear in just a moment. And if you'd like to learn even more about Jane's survival, as well as the lives of the victims discussed last week, consider checking out Jane's own podcast, Invisible Tears, and season one of the Dark Valley podcast.
00:00:53
Speaker
If you enjoy those podcasts, which we know you will, give them five star reviews. Now let's dive into part two of the Connecticut River Valley Killer Case.
00:01:39
Speaker
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. 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.
00:01:58
Speaker
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. So sit back, sip your coffee, and listen to what's brewing this week.
Jane Borosky's Survival Story
00:02:16
Speaker
Late in the evening of August the 6th, 1988, 22-year-old Jane, who was seven months pregnant at the time, was returning from a county fair,
00:02:27
Speaker
in Swansea, New Hampshire. That's probably my redneck way of saying a very beautiful city name. When she stopped at a closed convenience store to get a soda from the vending machine. So she gets her soda, she returns to the car, soda pop in hand, opens up the soda pop, and she notices that a Jeep Wagoneer is parked next to her. So from here,
00:02:53
Speaker
I'm going to let Jane tell the rest of her story as according to murder, she told. So this is going to be like a pretty long quote from Jane, but we are going to interject throughout. Okay. And this is obviously going to be first person from Jane. Okay.
00:03:14
Speaker
So she says, I pulled in, went to the vending machine, got my soda, and noticed this vehicle pulled in and parked right next to me on my passenger side of the car. I didn't think anything of it. I had no reason to think anything of it. As I was sitting in my car drinking my soda, getting ready to pull out, he walked around the backside of my car. Asked me to pay phone work and opened my car door and tried to get me out of the car. OK, right then I'd be freaking out. Yeah.
00:03:39
Speaker
If somebody even touches my car door, I'm going to be like, why are they touching that? Yeah, I walk my car as soon as I get in it. Yeah. As soon as he opened the door and tried to grab me out of the car, I screamed. I screamed so loud. I broke blood vessels in my eyes. Wow. I was just shocked. It was so fast. I didn't have time to respond as he was trying to pull me out of the car. I somehow got my feet up and I was kicking him and I ended up kicking and smashing in my windshield. The next thing I know he takes a knife out and says calmly,
00:04:09
Speaker
Maybe this will persuade you to get out of the car. Did I got out of the car? Oh my gosh. And the fact that he did it calmly. Yeah. After her. Wow.
00:04:24
Speaker
I was like, what do you want? And he told me I beat up his girlfriend. Then I was really confused. I was thinking, oh my God, this guy's a nutcase. He doesn't even know what he's talking about. So I was like, no, I don't know your girlfriend. And he said, isn't this a Massachusetts car? I have a New Hampshire car. So he kind of walked around to the back of my car like he was going to look at the license plate.
00:04:46
Speaker
Oh my goodness. Parents there will be one curse word in this to quote her so just know if your child's with you. At the time I didn't feel threatened because I thought maybe he was just confused and thought I was somebody else. The next thing I know he starts walking to his vehicle
00:05:04
Speaker
And I said these words that I regret the rest of my life. I said, hey asshole, what about my windshield? Because he was walking away and I'd smashed the windshield. Oh my goodness. At the same time, I didn't feel threatened. I thought he just made a mistake. And that's when he came back around to my side of the car where I was standing. Oh no. Oh no.
00:05:24
Speaker
Yeah, this is intense. This is why I avoid confrontation. Yeah. Yeah. I would just be like, have a great day. Thank you so much for the confusion. My insurance replaces this once a year. It's fine. Oh my goodness. He then put the knife up to my cheek and that's when I knew I was scared again. I didn't know what he was capable of doing.
00:05:48
Speaker
This next part, I was, my jaw dropped. I saw a vehicle drop by on the main road and I knew I had to run and scream for help. That was the only way I was going to get out of this situation. So I did. I dashed and dashed for the road, screamed, yelled, tried to get their attention.
00:06:03
Speaker
They drove right by. Oh my goodness. The next thing I know, he tackled me down like a football player. I was on my back on the pavement and he was on top of me. And before I could even realize what was happening, he was stabbing me. It was almost like an out of body experience. I couldn't believe this was happening to me. She said, goes on to say, I was pregnant and I knew I had to protect my baby. So as he's stabbing me, I'm trying to protect my baby and he just continued to stab me for what felt like forever.
00:06:32
Speaker
all of a sudden it just stopped and I'm lying there. I just couldn't believe that he just stabbed me like that. Then he calmly got up and walked away. I could hear him calmly walking. Then I heard his vehicle start and I said to myself, oh my god, I gotta get up. I gotta try and get up. I rolled over on my hands and knees and started getting up. I
00:06:59
Speaker
He just drove so slowly right by my head and looked right down at me and I looked right up at him and he drove away. He didn't speed off. Just drove away. End quote. Oh my goodness. I think what is so terrifying to me about what happened to her is his calmness throughout each part. Yeah.
00:07:30
Speaker
Cause it's like he's calm when he puts the knife up to her cheek and I can just see her saying like, Hey, what about my windshield? And then he just slowly turns around just, but it's still calm about the whole thing. And then not even caring that she's not dead. There's such a disconnect between that calmness and the, this like vicious side when he's stabbing her. Mm-hmm.
00:07:59
Speaker
Yeah. That's what's perplexing to me. Amazingly though, Jane and the baby both managed to survive the attack. Wow. Jane was stabbed 27 times. Oh my goodness. And survived. Yeah. And her baby was unharmed. She said, quote, I had two collapsed lungs. He cut the tendon in my hand and in my knee.
00:08:26
Speaker
He sloshed my jugular and lacerated my liver. I had a piece of my liver removed, but my baby was unharmed. There were no stabs or anything to my baby whatsoever. She was perfectly fine. Oh, oh my goodness. If there can be a silver lining, yeah, that is what it is. Yep. So on top of the miraculousness that is Jane and her baby surviving. Yes.
00:08:56
Speaker
She was also able to provide a description of her attacker to the police. And I posted it down below for you, Allison. But she went on to say, quote, I didn't know about the serial killer until after my attack. I ended up reading it in the newspaper that I was possibly a victim of the Connecticut River Valley serial killer, which was crazy to me. After I was better and able to really speak with detectives, they interviewed me quite a few times.
00:09:23
Speaker
I gave them a description of the vehicle, which was an early eighties Jeep Wagoneer with a grain side and did a composite of him. They took fingerprints and everything off my car. They scraped underneath my fingernails while I was in the hospital because they thought maybe I'd scratched him. So they had all this evidence, but 34 years later, there's no arrest. Unfortunately, as of today, the Connecticut River Valley killings are still unsolved. Nobody's ever been arrested or charged." End quote.
00:09:49
Speaker
Man, that has to be terrifying for her, number one, to have been attacked and to know that that person has never been arrested.
00:09:58
Speaker
Number two, as terrifying as her encounter was, she's right in that they were finally able to gather some evidence because he grabbed her car door handle to open it. I mean, there were there were many, I guess, quote unquote mistakes that he made where we can get some details. But third, this picture that you're showing me looks
00:10:23
Speaker
Absolutely nothing like the original picture that i just looked at so i posted. The side by side view on the next page because i hate the same thing so.
00:10:36
Speaker
The one on the left is Jane's sketch. And she said that she estimated him to be between five seven and five eight, about 150 to 160 pounds. So not a big person. He had blonde hair, was clean shaven, and then was driving that Jeep Wagoneer. And we're going to talk a little bit more about that. But Jane just described him as quote unquote normal looking. And so then I was trying to think,
00:11:07
Speaker
what the time difference was between the two sketches and maybe he had gotten older. But I think like the guy on the left looks in his 40s. The one on the right, the first composite sketch. Very young. Yeah.
00:11:24
Speaker
could be 17. I would agree. And to say that he has blonde hair, well, the drawing on the left, the new one from Jane doesn't look like he has blonde hair, first of all. But that would discount those sightings from people who saw the one who
00:11:45
Speaker
was in the subdivision where they said it was, yeah, the dark haired young man. But I get that, I mean, by the 90s, you could have contacts. Those were becoming more popular. So I can get the shift from glasses to contacts. The nose looks a little bit similar, but it's almost as though, so this new sketch, and I have no idea why, but it looks a little bit like Christopher Walken to me, the actor.
00:12:15
Speaker
It does look as though if it were the same person, then he has lost a significant amount of weight because his cheeks are no longer rounded. They're more sunken in. Yeah. It looks like they've applied contoured to his cheekbones because he has a definite cheekbone and then even lines from the nose to the chin. Yeah.
00:12:45
Speaker
And the hairline is different. But again, with age, you could have a receding hairline. So it's hard to say, but they don't look like the same person to me. Agreed. So Jane, you know, is rolling up to get up as he's driving away. And she is actually able to make it to her car.
00:13:11
Speaker
And she makes it to a friend's house. So keep that in mind as we continue talking about what happens next with Jane. Okay. So obviously after Jane survives this attack, the
00:13:28
Speaker
psychologists that they brought in, Philpin, wanted to meet with her to get her description of the killer and then anything she might recall from the night that both she and her baby nearly died. And he thinks it's a good idea to put her under hypnosis and she agrees to do that. And during that she described that tremendous struggle
00:13:53
Speaker
that took place. And she again in this hypnosis session is focused more on protecting her unborn baby over protecting herself. I think that would be a natural instinct. I would have done the same.
00:14:10
Speaker
Yeah, Unsolved Mysteries said, quote, but at some point during the assault, it was as though she had done everything she could do and she couldn't do anymore. She stopped struggling. And it was at that point, the assault stopped. According to Philpin, it seemed as though the greater her resistance, the more determined he was, as soon as her resistance began to wane, the attack ended, end quote. That is very interesting to me. Which I think really points to
00:14:38
Speaker
some of those profile points that we talked about, how he feels like he owns women. It's almost like he didn't have to kill her to feel the same satisfaction. He was able to overpower her and she gave up and that was enough for him. The submission. Yeah. Interesting.
00:15:00
Speaker
Philpon next had Jane try to recall the drive to her friend's house because remember I just said she drives to the friend's house. Right. And she actually remembered coming up behind another car and realizing it's that Wagoneer that's her attacker in that car.
00:15:18
Speaker
How freaking scary would that be? I'd just stop. I'd just stop right there. I'd go in reverse. I'd do something to get away. That is terrifying. Yeah. She's a much stronger person than I could ever dream of being because I don't know. I don't know what I would have done. So then of course she's asked if she could recall his license plate number. She said it had the number 662 in it, but the rest was too dirty to read.
00:15:45
Speaker
And then she also gives that the Wagoneer is between, she thinks, the 1975 and 1985 model. So they have a little bit to go on. And after this description of the attacker's car, police actually do something that I think was really smart. They want to see if they could identify the find, obviously, who's driving this car. And so they actually enlist the help of
00:16:14
Speaker
police in Vermont, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts. And so they say, hey, we have this car. This is the make and model. This is the approximate year range. Let's see if we can find people that own this car. Because we even know that it's like the grained one. We know the color and all of that.
00:16:37
Speaker
So they generate a computer printout of all the Jeep Wagoneers registered at the time in all three of these states that match the description that Jane had given them. And they're able to narrow it down. So I mean, we're talking three states. Yeah, they get it down to 1350 potential people throughout New England.
00:16:58
Speaker
OK, so that's a size, you know, a sizable amount that you could work with. Yeah, I mean, that's still a huge number, but it's not huge when you're comparing the populations of three states. Right. Well, I guess four states, right? Because we have the state she's in. Yeah. And they're enlisting. So, yeah, it's that's a pretty small number. Mm hmm. But they found no leads that pinpointed to a suspect.
00:17:26
Speaker
Well, because I guess it could be the case that, you know, if you're looking and you say, oh, this one's owned by a woman, so we're going to roll that out. But it could be a sister who owns the car or something like somebody borrowed it. Right. Yeah. So now as if there were not enough victims. So those are all of the confirmed victims. We're going to talk about several possible victims. And this is also a pretty big handful.
00:17:57
Speaker
Joanne Dunham was last seen walking from her home in Charleston, New Hampshire on June 11th, 1968. So she would have been even before the first one.
00:18:09
Speaker
She was actually walking to the bus stop on her way to school, but she never made it to school that day. So unlike now, when your kid doesn't show up and you're taking them to the dentist and they call you and say, Hey, did you know Sally's on at school today? And you're like, yeah, she's in the car with me. We're going to the dentist. Right. They didn't do that back then. So they had no way of really knowing that she was missing until she didn't come home that afternoon. Gotcha. Her body was quickly found though at four 15 the following day.
00:18:39
Speaker
on a roped off dirt road on Quaker County or Quaker City Road in Unity, New Hampshire. So that same town. But this time this victim dies of asphyxiation, which is different. On October the 5th, 1982, 76 year old, so way outside of the age.
00:19:09
Speaker
Sylvia Gray was found bludgeoned and stabbed to death in a wooded area just a few hundred yards from her home in Plainfield, New Hampshire The day after she was reported missing. Okay Next is Stephen Hill and this is the only male which I think It goes against the profiler. Mm-hmm
00:19:33
Speaker
He was 38 at the time. He was last seen on June 20th, 1986, getting his paycheck from his employer in Lebanon, New Hampshire. On July 15th, Stephen's body was found with multiple stab wounds and heartland across the Connecticut River from where Sylvia's body had been found four years earlier. So the locations are close. I gotcha. But still it goes against the profile that we have.
00:20:03
Speaker
On May 20th, 1984, 16 year old Hottie Martin went for a jog in Heartland, Vermont on Martinsville Road. The very next day in a swampy area behind an elementary school, her body was found. So like some of the official victims, she had been stabbed to death, but they also confirmed she had been raped. And with the earlier confirmed victim, it was a probable rape.
00:20:33
Speaker
OK. So we don't know for sure. Interestingly, there was a confession to this crime. But was acquitted. This person was acquitted and we'll talk more about him. But per the Boston Globe, he was acquitted and she is still obviously unsolved. But nearly three years later, Barbara's body would be found just a mile from where Heidi was discovered. So we have that proximity and location. OK.
00:21:04
Speaker
Sadly, we're not done with this list. On June 24th, 1989, decomposed body parts consisting of arms and legs belonging to a woman were found dumped along Massachusetts Route 78 in Warwick, Massachusetts, less than one mile from the New Hampshire border. It's believed that the entirety of this body was dismembered
00:21:32
Speaker
Even though the deaths we've talked about are brutal, this one is just a little bit more gruesome with the dismemberment. They were never able to find the head or the torso of this person. They think they were disposed of elsewhere. And obviously this death is ruled a homicide. We don't even know the identity of this woman. We just know that she was white, she had an athletic build, and she was of average height.
00:22:02
Speaker
Okay. On July 25, 1984, 14 year old Carrie Moss, and I think she would be the youngest. Yeah. Of New Boston, New Hampshire, left her parents home to visit friends, and then disappeared.
00:22:20
Speaker
almost exactly to the day, two years later, so on July 24th, 1991, skeletal remains were found in a wooded area in New Boston, and they were hers. So they couldn't determine how she died, but it is believed she was a victim of homicide.
Theories & Suspects
00:22:42
Speaker
So with all of these victims, so that was, she was the last of the possible victims,
00:22:48
Speaker
You know, we have the confirmed victims, the possible victims, the two sketches. There's a lot of speculation that surrounds who the Connecticut River Valley Killer could be. Right. And so we're going to talk about a couple of different possibilities. Okay.
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00:27:18
Speaker
is this man named Michael Niccolo was the serial killer, mainly because he was a known killer and had connections to the area. So let's talk about what I mean by that. Okay. Again, according to murder, she told on December 31st, 2005, so we're into the future now.
00:27:44
Speaker
from these 1980s murders. Near Tampa, Florida, the 56 year old Vietnam veteran, Michael, killed his wife, Eileen, and her 22 year old daughter, Taryn, and then committed suicide. But this wasn't his first incident
00:28:08
Speaker
of violence because he did have a pretty violent past. Okay. In the late eighties, he was common law married to a woman named Michelle and they lived in Massachusetts and they actually had two children, Nick and Joy. And Allison, he was described even by his children at one point as angry. He was possessive. He had severe PTSD symptoms from serving in Vietnam, which, you know, the PTSD part is
00:28:38
Speaker
Definitely understandable, right? The violence not as much so because there are so many which I know Mental health The stigmas were much different in the 80s than they are now but there were still Avenues available for help at the VA hospital for for him if he had chose to do that right but his anger and his
00:29:07
Speaker
possessiveness got out of control. And in August of 1988, Michelle actually left Michael taking the kids with her to an unknown location to Michael. So she just gets up and leaves. Right. Which is probably if she's terrified the best possible scenario. Oh yeah. But he soon found them. Oh no. So she disappears with the kids again in November of 1988. So it didn't even take him that long to find her.
00:29:36
Speaker
Hmm. That's like three months, four months. So they disappear again after Michael finds their location. And since that day, they have never been seen from again. So wherever she went. Well, or he found them and did something to them, or she is thankfully still safe somewhere. Yeah.
00:30:04
Speaker
So around 2000, so that's a pretty big jump from May 8th to 2000, Michelle's family hired a private investigator to try to find out what happens to Michelle. And this private investigator actually got in touch with Jane to talk about her experience with the Connecticut River Valley Killer because they're thinking, could she have been a potential victim as well? Hmm.
00:30:32
Speaker
So around 2006, again, according to murder, she told Jane came forward in the press saying that she thought Michael was the man who tried to kill her in August of 1988. So the potential CRB killer. Well, and especially if she saw an image of him because she saw her attacker face to face.
00:30:59
Speaker
And this connection got national press coverage, obviously. So anytime you search the Connecticut River Valley Killer, Michael's name comes up. When you look up Jane's name, Michael's name comes up in connection to her. So it's just a big circle. But since that confession was made,
00:31:23
Speaker
in 2006. Jane's opinion on Michael has changed. She will now tell you she no longer thinks he is the murderer. Okay. So she says she has this private investigator that contacted her
00:31:38
Speaker
And she said they had a lot of conversations going back and forth for a few years. She said, quote, I never felt positive it was him, but I also took it with an open mind. She spent two years completely convincing me that it was him. But deep down, I never felt truly that way.
00:31:56
Speaker
But she had a lot of credible information and she really tried to make it fit with Michael. Then I started hearing other people say, well, this doesn't fit or this doesn't fit. So I started questioning her about some of the hearsay and circumstantial things. She never wanted to really address the things that didn't fit, only the things that did or the things that she made fit. I ended up severing all ties with her because she got really defensive when I was thinking maybe it wasn't him. Wow.
00:32:25
Speaker
Yeah, so she's in a heightened state too because of the trauma. And so I'm sure if you have an authority figure who's saying, no, this was him. Think about this. Look at this. Look at this. And then you would start to convince yourself because you want so desperately for whoever have an answer. Yes.
00:32:49
Speaker
Yeah. And she actually goes on to talk about that. She worked with an investigative journalist who was also looking into Michael, but she said that the new, I guess eyes or opinions on the Michael situation made her question more. And basically this journalist says he's one that can't be excluded, but not fully included either. Okay.
00:33:14
Speaker
And detectives in Concord also looked in to Michael, but they said that it couldn't conclusively be him or conclusively not be him, basically. Again, he's just a hypothetical. And she felt that this PI that was in touch with her really just wanted the media attention. She doesn't know how, I guess, how true
00:33:45
Speaker
her intentions were, but she said, quote, It took a long time to convince me, and I never really wanted to say to the media that I felt like it was him. But she told me if I didn't say that, nobody would take us seriously. And I didn't want people to take this seriously. I wanted the authorities to investigate him. She felt like they were doing nothing, though they were actually investigating him.
00:34:05
Speaker
Really want them to take me seriously. So I told her okay. I'll say it was him I wish I didn't but I was in a situation where I really wanted this to be solved and I really wanted the authorities to take this seriously and to investigate it So ultimately said I that it was him. I wish I didn't That makes me sad that she felt so pressured Yeah, you say that it was even though she was having her own doubts. I
00:34:32
Speaker
Yeah. And she did make some really good points in this interview with murder. She told because she says, you know, there's a lot that doesn't really fit because he does kill his wife and then her daughter, but it's with a gun, which wasn't his M O typical. Yeah. You know that he would have used a knife if he was going back to things that he did in the past. Right. That makes sense.
00:35:01
Speaker
And she ended this with saying, now was Michael a bad man? He was a very bad man. That guy had a lot of issues, but do I think he's the Connecticut River Valley serial killer? No, I don't. End quote. Okay. So there's a couple more. Another possibility is Delbert Tallman. And this was the one that I said we would come back to because there was the confession. Oh, okay. And he was acquitted. Mm-hmm. Okay.
00:35:29
Speaker
So at the time Hottie was killed in 1984, 21 year old Delbert confessed to committing the rape and stabbing of the teen because she was also the one that had the probable rape. Delbert would later go on to trial, but while he was on trial, he would recant his confession and the trial would end with an acquittal.
00:35:50
Speaker
OK, the main reason that he was suspected was because of his proximity to the area where all of these killings took place and this killer seemed to operate. But they investigators could never get a solid link to connect him to anything. So they never looked into him after he was acquitted. Well, plus you have the fact that
00:36:20
Speaker
if he's confessing, quote unquote, to the killing of Heidi in 1984, if he is the Connecticut River Valley serial killer, then that would mean one of the confirmed, the first confirmed victims is 1978, which was six years prior. So if he's only 21 and 84, he would have been 15. And that seems very into me. I know what could happen.
00:36:50
Speaker
But even that first confirmed victim was very formulaic and calculated. I guess I'm thinking if that were his first one.
00:37:03
Speaker
it seems a little too professional. And then when you got to the theories, the first theory was like 68. He would have been five. So I don't know. I think the age of Tallman for me might knock him out in terms of the theories for me. I hadn't, I hadn't masked all of that, but now that we've, we've worked through that, yeah, I would agree with you.
00:37:29
Speaker
According to Newsbreak, Gary Westover was a 46-year-old paraplegic residing in New Hampshire and in October of 1977,
00:37:42
Speaker
He told him 97. Oh, yeah, what I say 77. Yeah 1997 he told his uncle who was a retired sheriff's deputy that he'd done something terrible Quote he relayed to him a story starting with a night of drinking with three friends at one point They all head to Vermont where they murdered Barbara Agnew and dumped her body Westover's uncle passed his confession along to police But there seems to have never been any follow-up in quotes
00:38:13
Speaker
No follow-up. Which is crazy to me. Okay. So he said he and friends, because I was going to say, how long has he been a paraplegic? Because that would make a difference. Right. But if he's there with friends, then it could have been the friends and he's partaking in it. But she's also now
00:38:40
Speaker
That was the one that took place at the rest area. So, I mean, I guess it would make sense if they were heading back from somewhere. I don't, I don't know. I just don't know about that one because that's almost right smack dab in the, well, I guess it's near the end of the spree.
00:39:10
Speaker
Yeah, and the traveling, if they're out drinking and then they, you know, are traveling and they are at the rest stop like that, poor occupancy makes sense. But obviously I feel like police have to know this theory is not credible because they didn't follow up on it. Well, and we know with Jane that whomever the Connecticut River Valley Killer is walked to her.
00:39:40
Speaker
And so, unless one of this Gary Westover's friends was the serial killer, then, okay, then it would warrant a follow up. I just don't think it's this one.
00:39:57
Speaker
In 2012, this case was profiled on the show Dark Minds. And during that airing, two new suspects were mentioned. And I got this from Unsolved. One was a man named Rodney Stranger, who was convicted of killing his girlfriend Crystal. And he's also suspected in the disappearance and death of Molly Bish. Hmm.
00:40:21
Speaker
But shortly before her death, Crystal called her sister and implied that he was involved in quote unquote murders, including Molly's. But police showed a picture of Rodney to Jane and she said it wasn't him. And like I said, she saw him up close and personal. So I feel like there would be some something recognizable. Yeah.
00:40:51
Speaker
The other suspect that came about as a result of this show wasn't actually identified. His son had came, like he had earlier come forward to police, expecting that his father was involved in those Connecticut River Valley murders. Apparently the mom had told this son that when she saw the composite of Jane's attacker, she thought it was her husband.
00:41:18
Speaker
Oh. And then she later told her son, why would you tell your son this? But you know, you do you that one night his dad came home covered in blood and fearing for her life. Obviously she's not like, why the heck are you covered in blood? Which would be what I would say. And then I'd probably be stabbed, but she just helps him burn all these bloody clothes.
00:41:42
Speaker
And then the next day she saw on the news that a woman had been murdered within a mile of a bar where her husband had often frequented. I wonder what her husband did for a living. I don't know. That would be interesting to know. If he traveled a lot.
00:41:59
Speaker
But even the son said that his father was quote unquote violent and dangerous. Oh. And that he had issues with women in his life. There's the FBI profile. He had rage issues that son would say and would get quote unquote completely out of control. So in one instance in this unsolved article, he actually threw his wife out of a second story window and held her there by her hair.
00:42:29
Speaker
Yeah. And he told her or she told her son that that her dad, his dad was like a sexual deviant. Now that part doesn't make sense to me since there wasn't the sexual aspect to the crimes. I guess unless he gets the satisfaction in two different ways. Oh, like out of the violence. Mm hmm.
00:42:52
Speaker
Hmm. Or maybe he just is not violent in the sexual way, like with sex is involved, but is when he's trying to assert the dominance. Right. Right. And the family did live for several years on a Massachusetts farm. And apparently when he would get mad, he would violently kill pigs and chickens. Oh.
00:43:22
Speaker
He also owned a Jeep Wagoneer. Yeah. And when shown a photo of this man, Jane, according to this article, became so frightened that she said the hairs on the back of her neck stood up in fear. And that she was certain this man was her attacker. Oh, wow. But he actually died in 2008 without ever being investigated, might I add.
00:43:53
Speaker
And I didn't read if he had ever been listed or considered as a suspect in the case, but I'm assuming probably not. Well, I don't know how much connection they would need, but couldn't they, if you have, especially if the sun is still around and is wanting to see
00:44:20
Speaker
if his dad did commit these crimes, because he has also identified his dad as a violent man, could provide DNA that could be compared. Yeah. With Jane. Yeah. I'm wondering, you know, and if they're not investigating it, then they're not going to think to do that. Right.
00:44:46
Speaker
You know, when we're talking about serial killers, it is harder, I think, to pinpoint who we believe the killer may be because, you know, we have more limited information on the victims and then the way they were found and all of that, the background of them, just because there are so many.
00:45:07
Speaker
But what are your final thoughts or anything you would like to add? So in my mind, with the notes that I took as you were talking, obviously this is somebody who is very comfortable being outside in nature. Because even in the park scenario, it's not really a park
00:45:35
Speaker
like Central Park, it's the wetlands, you know, so much more rural and then others near a river. The subdivision one still throws me off. Yeah. But
00:45:54
Speaker
There's a lot with hitchhikers along the road. That's why I asked what this last suspect did for a living. Because I'd be curious to know if he did something right where he had to travel quite a bit. But I do feel like, obviously, he would have needed to be, in my mind, a little bit older, even by at least 78.
00:46:23
Speaker
when that first verified attack happened. But with the act of killing with a knife, it tells me that it is somebody who's very adept with that kind of weapon. And it sounds like this last potential perpetrator was because he would butcher pigs and chicken. So he knows how to use
00:46:53
Speaker
a knife for that purpose. And with the anger against women, it seems like of all the potential people, he's the one that fits the most. And so I just wish that we could have familial DNA to at least rule in or rule out. But the final piece would be Jane's reaction. Oh, yeah. Because I feel like something in her would clue her in.
00:47:23
Speaker
And I wonder if, you know, maybe through sharing this case, we do bring that attention to, hey, we have this possible perpetrator. Can we please see about doing familial DNA? Right.
Conclusion & Community Resilience
00:47:37
Speaker
In the shadow of the Connecticut River Valley, a chilling puzzle persists. The Connecticut River Valley Killer, an elusive presence that has eluded justice for decades.
00:47:47
Speaker
The stories of the victims remain a somber reminder of the darkness that can suddenly descend upon the most idyllic of places. Despite the passage of time, the tireless efforts of investigators, and the unwavering resolve of the community, the perpetrator's identity remains shrouded in mystery. As we close today's case on this haunting tale, we're left with a profound sense of enduring challenges of solving cold cases and the deep scars they often leave.
00:48:13
Speaker
The Connecticut River Valley Killer has left a mark on the region and on the hearts of those who love the victims. While the truth remains elusive, the quest for justice and closure endures. A testament to the resilience of the communities and the unwavering commitment to honor the memories of those who were taken too soon. The Connecticut River Valley Killer may remain a mystery, but the hope for answers remains a beacon of light in the darkest of nights. I hope that one day the shadows will be lifted and the truth will be revealed.
00:48:43
Speaker
Again, please like and join our Facebook page, Coffee and Cases podcast to continue the conversation and see images related to this episode. As always, follow us on Twitter, at casescoffee, on Instagram, at coffee cases podcast, or you can always email us suggestions to coffeeandcasespodcastatgmail.com. 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.
00:49:12
Speaker
Stay together. Stay safe. We'll see you next week.
00:49:35
Speaker
It's Left Notes with Maggie and Allison. Whoop, whoop. I always wait for the whoop, whoop. So we're one week closer, guys, to baby Damon and it's surreal. Oh, excited. Maggie was just telling me that she's nervous about her water breaking in public, though. So it's a real fear. I get it.
00:50:04
Speaker
As long as he gets here, my water can break wherever it's hot. That's what I'll tell myself anyway. That's all right. You won't be embarrassed for long. Then you'll see his face and you'll be happy. So we did just want to remind you guys that Maggie is going to take a couple weeks off from the podcast while she is getting accustomed to motherhood and to eliminate stress and other time commitments so she can just enjoy that sweet baby.
00:50:33
Speaker
So with that in mind, Allison will be doing the show by herself for a few weeks, which she graciously accepted that. But that is a lot of work on her behalf. So just be patient and be gracious with her because it is going to be a lot of work for her. I know I'm going to miss sending love to all of our listeners though.
Listener Engagement & Future Plans
00:50:56
Speaker
And this time we get with each other each week. I know this is my favorite part and I mean that honestly. Yeah.
00:51:04
Speaker
No, no. And speaking of love and sending love out, we do have some love going out to Elise Go 7 on Instagram, who wrote to us, quote, YouTube podcasters are amazing. Thank you for repeatedly stressing how it does not matter what a victim did.
00:51:28
Speaker
He or she was deserving. This is so, so, so important. Love you." End quote. I know. Well, we love you right back. We do. And we also love Kelly, who wrote us to say, quote, I've been listening for a couple of months, and I'm finally all caught up listening to the last episode now. Just wanted to tell you, ladies, this is my favorite podcast. Keep up the great work. You all rock.
00:51:55
Speaker
Kelly. I know. That's so sweet. And I wanted to say really a deep heartfelt thank you for all of you that have actually sent little baby Dameron gifts. There's been so many. Suzanne sent him some things. Alyssa sent him some things. Anna and Suzanne and June from Crime With My Coffee sent him some gifts.
00:52:25
Speaker
I know. We just know some sweet people. I know. And one of them was the cutest little like, cause y'all know I love October, November, and December. Cause no link Thanksgiving and Christmas. And they sent me this cute little like long sleeve onesie that has pumpkins on it, like little Jack-o'-lanterns. Oh my goodness. So cute. And they're all washed. We're sanitized if you sent little TV things and ready to go. So it's exciting.
00:52:56
Speaker
I'm going to get bombarded with pictures and I cannot wait. I cannot wait. I'm going to be like, what's he look like today Maggie? Send me a picture. We also have love going out to Pam who reached out to us on Facebook.
00:53:13
Speaker
to give us insight into her thinking as she was listening to the first half of this case of the Connecticut River Valley Killer. And I love when you guys reach out and you say, I'm thinking for the theories. I love it. So keep those coming.
00:53:31
Speaker
And we also have love going to Tawny who wrote to say, quote, I've been listening to you guys for a few weeks now, mostly at work, end quote, which I mean, that's the perfect place to listen. Then Tawny went on to say, quote, normally I really don't get into podcasts, but it seems like you pair are the only thing that gets me through the night shift. Thank you. End quote. No, Tawny. Thank you.
00:54:00
Speaker
We are so happy that all of you have found us and that you're getting caught up on all the episodes. Binge away. Yeah. Keep on binging. And if you do manage to get caught up and you just can't wait for the next week, you can always join Patreon to get access to additional content and to all of our 12, 15, and $20 a month Patreon supporters.
00:54:26
Speaker
You could also get a quarterly swag box. That's right. And the next box, which will be in November, will be my favorite things. And then the February box is going to be some clothing, some swag. You can't beat that. I know. So if you want bonus content, join our Patreon. The link is in the show notes. And if you want gifts in the mail, join at one of those higher tiers. And that's exactly what you'll get every quarter.
00:54:57
Speaker
You just have to go to patreon.com slash coffee and cases to join. Also, we're coming up on the deadline for voting for the podcast award. So we wanted to just remind you a few more times. That's right. Of this very exciting fact. We are again, a finalist for the podcast awards, best female hosted podcast. So please consider voting for us and Brown two, because we would.
00:55:21
Speaker
Oh, you forever. We really would make sure that you check your email if you voted in round one, including your spam folder to see if you received an email from podcast awards about being chosen to take part in the final round of voting. And if so, like Maggie said, we would so appreciate your vote again. And, you know, maybe bring home the win.
00:55:48
Speaker
Fingers crossed that we can show everyone that an indie podcast just like ours can beat out some of those big name shows. And with that, all of our love is going out to each and every one of you. Until next week, sleuth hounds.
00:56:06
Speaker
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00:56:31
Speaker
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00:57:00
Speaker
Nom nom will refund your first order. No fillers, no nonsense, just nom nom.