Most intriguing unsolved non-JtR serial killer cases

[Harry D]

Hello, John.

However, I would have to agree that a triple abduction would be extremely rare as well as risky. It is also odd that an abductor would spend so much time with the children in such a public place, in full view of lots of potential witnesses, especially if he'd been grooming them over a period of time in the same busy location.

Of course, we don't know for certain that the man seen playing with them at the beach was the kidnapper. Heck, he could've been just a genuine guy who befriended the children, the type of person who would rightly or wrongly being viewed with instant suspicion in modern society. Then we get into why didn't this man come forward if he was innocent, but then would you in that scenario?

The postman said he saw the kids walking home from the beach. If he wasn't getting his days mixed up, either the man at the beach wasn't the abductor OR perhaps to avoid this suspicion he waited until the kids left the beach by themselves and then pulled up alongside them in his car and offered them a ride?

[John G]

I wonder if this was your average child murderer. It's quite rare for three children to be abducted at once. Even if he had been grooming them and gained their trust, kids that age are a handful to keep under control at the best of times. There was a witness who came forward several months after the fact and reported that she'd seen a man with two girls and a boy entering an abandoned house. At one point the little boy was seen wandering off by himself only for the man to come out and forcibly retrieve him. Of course we don't know how reliable this eyewitness was.

It could've been that this guy was procuring the children for a paedophile ring. There was apparently a VIP abuse ring going on in Australia around the time the children were kidnapped, although the victims were mainly teenage boys.

Hi Harry,

I agree that this is a very strange case. I do think that the suspect had probably met the children before, and could have been grooming them. What is strange is that their mother described the children as shy and stated that they would never go off with a stranger. However, witnesses describe them as initiating play with the blonde-haired suspect and they even allowed him to help dress them- their mother later stated that she couldn't understand how the older girl would allow that as she was particularly shy.

This argument is also supported by the fact that the man appears to have given the children money to buy cakes, suggesting that he had won their trust and confidence. Moreover, in a chance remark at home one of the children stated that the older girl "got a boyfriend down the beach."

However, I would have to agree that a triple abduction would be extremely rare as well as risky. It is also odd that an abductor would spend so much time with the children in such a public place, in full view of lots of potential witnesses, especially if he'd been grooming them over a period of time in the same busy location. That would surely be the case even if he was acting on behalf of a paedophile gang. Nonetheless, the time period ,1966, should be taken into account: there would be no CCTV cameras and people were perhaps far more trusting, even of strangers, in those days. Children were also mote deferential towards adults, and therefore might be more compliant, even if the man became less friendly, even threatening.

Another problem is the lack of viable suspects, despite the man's distinctive appearance. The witness you refer to seems highly unreliable- she came forward several months after the children went missing, despite the media coverage. She couldn't subsequently explain why it had taken her so long, suggesting to me that she was a publicity seeker.

Other suspects include Derek Percy, but he was only 17 at the time- the blonde man seen by witnesses was estimated to be 35-40. Bevan Von Einem, who I referred to in my previous post, was only 21, so he also seems to be ruled out on age grounds. He also seems to be the wrong demographic as he targeted only boys.

[Harry D]

Where would you rate the Beaumont Children Disappearance? I find this an extremely intriguing mystery- particularly as it took place in broad daylight and the perpetrator may have been "grooming the victims for some time- with no obvious suspects. It may link in with other cases, including the Adelaide Oval abduction. Of course, the child serial killer, Bevan Von Einem, has been referred to as a strong suspect.

I wonder if this was your average child murderer. It's quite rare for three children to be abducted at once. Even if he had been grooming them and gained their trust, kids that age are a handful to keep under control at the best of times. There was a witness who came forward several months after the fact and reported that she'd seen a man with two girls and a boy entering an abandoned house. At one point the little boy was seen wandering off by himself only for the man to come out and forcibly retrieve him. Of course we don't know how reliable this eyewitness was.

It could've been that this guy was procuring the children for a paedophile ring. There was apparently a VIP abuse ring going on in Australia around the time the children were kidnapped, although the victims were mainly teenage boys.

[sdreid]

I have the Beaumont Children Disappearance at #47 John.

[John G]

I have it at #601 on my top 1000 list.

Where would you rate the Beaumont Children Disappearance? I find this an extremely intriguing mystery- particularly as it took place in broad daylight and the perpetrator may have been "grooming the victims for some time- with no obvious suspects. It may link in with other cases, including the Adelaide Oval abduction. Of course, the child serial killer, Bevan Von Einem, has been referred to as a strong suspect.

[sdreid]

I have it at #601 on my top 1000 list.

It's one of those cases where we seem to know about everything except the name of the killer.

[sdreid]

I happened upon the Kingfish Boat Ramp Murders t'other day.

I have it at #601 on my top 1000 list.

[sdreid]

Aye, I just didn't think it merited its own thread.

No problem.

[Harry D]

It wasn't a serial killer though, unless I missed something.

Aye, I just didn't think it merited its own thread.

[sdreid]

It wasn't a serial killer though, unless I missed something.

[sdreid]

Yes, I just recently heard about it as well.

[Harry D]

I happened upon the Kingfish Boat Ramp Murders t'other day. Another fascinating yet obscure case:

The Kingfish Boat Ramp Murders occurred in the City of Holmes Beach, Florida. On August 1, 1980, forty-seven-year-old Dr. Juan Dumois, Eric Dumois, 13, Mark Dumois, 9, and Dumois’s brother-in-law, Raymond Barrows, returned from a fishing trip in the Gulf of Mexico and loaded their boat at the Kingfish Boat Ramp. As they began to drive away, a white male approached them and stated that he had hurt his ankle and needed a ride. Dr. Dumois agreed, and the stranger placed a bicycle he’d been riding in the boat. He climbed into the back seat and asked to be taken to a nearby apartment. About a minute later, gunshots rang out.

Dr. Dumois, Eric, Mark, and Raymond were shot in the head with a .22-caliber revolver. Raymond survived, but the others died. According to a police report, after the shooting, “the vehicle then jackknifed on the north shoulder of Manatee Avenue just west of the boat ramp. The subject then got out of the vehicle and rode westbound on Manatee Avenue on his bicycle. [Robert] Matzke, working in his yard at a nearby condominium, observed what had taken place and pursued the subject to the parking lot of a nearby grocery store. Matzke and the subject exchanged words, and [Matzke] was shot in the head by the subject. Witnesses then observed the subject load his bicycle in a tan colored vehicle at the grocery store and leave eastbound on Manatee Avenue.” Robert Matzke died of his wounds. The motive has never been determined, and the assassin never caught.

Apparently there was a witness who hastily took snaps of the suspect but they came out too blurry to be of any use. I've tried to look online for the snaps but most of the links are dead. At any rate, this sounds very much like a hit and not some random killing. Interestingly, the brother-in-law Raymond Barrows was the first man shot. However, all the focus tends to surround Dr. Dumois and his two boys. It wouldn't surprise me any if Barrows had been the original target and the other victims were merely collateral.

[sdreid]

The others are that it was a coincidence, which is very unlikely, or that he took out many women and only killed the ones he found to be menstruating, unrelated to any pregnancy issue.

[sdreid]

I wonder if he only killed menstruating women because he didn't want to risk killing a woman who was pregnant.

That's one of three possibilities are far are I can determine.

[sdreid]

9-Bible John (1968-69) Scotland

I wonder if he only killed menstruating women because he didn't want to risk killing a woman who was pregnant.