4 distinct works. She didn't do anything.". Modus Operandi One of which began talking: Morris Joseph Warren, who had begun to grow fearful that another member of the gang would turncoat before he did. That ended up being 13 years later, in 1952, when he was re-indicted and convicted of the murder charges. A witness apparently saw her getting into a blue Volkswagen, and although investigated, the lead led nowhere.[5]. The Freeway Phantom targeted female children and teens ranging from 12-17 years of age. Among those individuals considered suspects were members of a gang known as the Green Vega Rapists. All suspects are charged with state drug offenses and were cited and released with future dates to appear in the Criminal Division of Vermont Superior Courts across the state. Well, I'm him.". episode Paradise . This inmate - Morris Warren - began feeding investigators information about the Freeway Phantom crimes, which he alleged were perpetrated by a member of the Green Vega's. He would receive a life sentence, and ended up spending several decades inside a penitentiary. However, he traces the killer's origins to the neighborhood of Congress Heights, where, as Trainum states: "He felt safe there, he felt he could do his dirt and get away with it.". The service, which comes 25 years to the month after Diane Williams's slaying, will be held at 2 p.m. at the Howard University School of Divinity. The Freeway Phantom is an unidentified pedophilic and ephebophilic serial killer, rapist, and abductor active in Washington, D.C. from April 1971 through September 1972. Despite being just seven years old at the time, she continues to describe the day she learned of Brenda's death as the "most devastating" day of her life. However, despite there being no sign of sexual assault, police would find semen on Diane's clothing. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. The police later recovered one of the .38 caliber pistols reported stolen by the two police officers. Unlike the rest of the Freeway Phantom victims, she had been shot in the head, but her case was linked to the others in the immediate aftermath. If those girls had been white, they would have put more manpower on it, there's no doubt about that.". [22] [23] Authorities later determined that Barnes was not a victim of the Freeway Phantom and resumed their investigation on the murders. Likely, it had been dictated to her by the killer. By that time, FBI agents had been distracted and called off to assist with the ongoing Watergate scandal, and the attention of almost everyone was diverted elsewhere. As he later recalled: "I shined my flashlights into her eyes to see if there was life. Both would eventually be convicted for the crime, and sentenced to lengthy stays in prison. The Green Vega Gang members were individually interviewed by MPDC Homicide Detectives Fickling, Irving, and Richardson, at Lorton Prison in Virginia, where the gang members were serving sentences in conjunction with the successful prosecutions of those crimes in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. Barnes, 14, was at one point thought to be a victim of the serial killings. Approximately six hours later, a police officer discovered her body, which had been stabbed multiple times and strangled, in a grassy area near Prince George's County Hospital, along an access ramp to Route 202 from the BaltimoreWashington Parkway. [21] Barnes, 14, was at one point thought to be a victim of the serial killings. Neno's stepmother had actually just given birth, so the girl's father ended up juggling his time between being at the hospital (to be with his wife and newborn baby) and being at home (to take care of Neno). In the case of the third victim, Brenda Crockett, the Phantom forced her to call her family twice, likely as a way to both taunt them and throw the Police of the trail, very similar to the way The Gilgo Beach Killer taunted his victim's families with phone calls. 2023 Cinemaholic Inc. All rights reserved. The body was recovered, and was eventually identified as Darlenia Denise Johnson - a missing 16-year old that had disappeared from the neighborhood earlier that month. So he began scouring for anything that fit the bill and, surprisingly, found something. Ph: (781) 272-0050 The details of this confession were leaked to the press by P.G. Upon this third - and final - submission, the custody of this evidence became a matter-of-debate. He was also a former patient, that had been sent to the hospital in lieu of a prison. Carol was allowed to continue her small grocery run on this Sunday evening. Alias This was also supported by the contents of her stomach, which included some kind of citrus fruit. Both Ms. Johnson and Ms. Crockett were victims of the so-called Freeway Phantom homicides.". A vote in favor is a vote to end debate and move to a vote on the issue itself, while a vote against is a vote to prolong debate or to filibuster. The next morning police found the 17-year-old's lifeless body in blue jeans and a gold sweater. A reward exists for information that will lead to the arrest and conviction of people or persons responsible, totaling $150,000 as of this year. Near the access ramp to Route 202, from the Baltimore-Washington Parkway, Officer Norman would discover the body of Brenda Woodard. That signature information was correct. The cause-of-death, though, appeared to be strangulation. However, later that night, an employee of Safeway would state that they found those same items outside of the store, scattered along the street. It was just destroyed.". "From that moment on, our lives were never the same," said Williams, 40, who is a police officer. She told her mom that she was going to be staying the night at the rec center, as they were hosting a sleepover event for kids that would stretch into the following morning. insensititivity [sic] to people All the nation's press and media, when reporting upon the story, began referring to the killer as such. She hopped on the next bus, and that is when her trail went cold. Edward Simmons in North Carolina We found 46 records for Edward Simmons in Charlotte, Tarboro and 29 other cities in North Carolina. In addition, he owned many photos of unknown girls and young women, and police even found a knife that had been used in another crime. [11] Unlike the other victims, she was still wearing her shoes, and a coat had been placed over her chest. Organized [7], On July 27, 1971, 10-year-old Crockett from Northwest failed to return home after having been sent to the store by her mother. Despite police attempting to link several other cases to the Freeway Phantom, they were unsuccessful in doing so. Brenda got off to catch a transfer, and said goodbye to her classmate. Brenda then told her younger sister that she was in Virginia, before the call came to an abrupt end. The Freeway Phantom is a self imposed nickname for an unidentified serial killer who was active in Washington, D.C. from April 1971 through September 1972. If the killer fit this profile, and was in his 20's or 30's, it is possible that he is still alive. All were black. [5], On July 8, 1971, Johnson, 16, from Congress Heights was abducted while on route to her summer job at Oxon Hill Recreation Center. The same coroner would state that she had been sexually assaulted before her death. Early 1970's newspaper reports hint at a perceived hatred of those names by the killer, but police have not stated that this was a belief of theirs. Angelas body was also wearing her shoes which did not fit the bill of the victims of the concerned serial killer. Occupation Described as both shy and petite, Carol had just cracked five feet tall, and was near the end of her seventh grade year at Johnson Junior High School. Speaking to the Post, Williams stated: "If it was a white girl, the police would have found the person. Infuriated, this caller called their boss and let them know about the police inactivity. At 5:50 am the next day, a hitchhiker discovered Crockett's shoeless body in a conspicuous location on U.S. Route 50, near the Baltimore-Washington Parkway in Prince George's County, Maryland. A couple of beat cops would be sent out to investigate the scene, but made very little attempt to locate the body. Investigators analyzed the notes handwriting to determine that Brenda herself wrote the message, and the writing showed no signs of distress. insensititivity [sic] to people As you can imagine, she never made it home. Like whoever had been carrying them had disappeared into thin air. Edward Sullivan and Tommie Simmons. One such suspect was the rookie police officers duo Edward Sullivan and Tommie Simmons. The remains of this young victim were brought in for an evaluation and autopsy. The usage of the word 'tantamount' had often stood out to investigators, and here was a prime suspect that seemed to use the word regularly - as verified by his coworkers, who said as much. rancho bernardo country club membership cost; About. She read the case notes and offered insight whenever possible, but that was really all she could do. The inmate who provided the information said he was not involved in the homicide, and provided an alibi which was found to be verifiable. On December 30, only two days later, he stabbed to death another prostitute, 26-year-old Elizabeth Johnson, at the same location. Her body was discovered behind St. Elizabeths Hospital on a grassy embankment next to the northbound lanes of I-295, about 1,500 feet south of Suitland Parkway. He seemed to be an amiable man, who was known for his propensity to use the word "tantamount" - seemingly at random - but a further look at Askins revealed a bit of a sketchy past. Their boss then decided to make a call to a friend of theirs - Charles Baden, a police sergeant in Washington D.C. Baden, was wasn't even on-duty that day, was able to make his way to the scene, where he finally got the police involved. But he began working his way backwards, hoping to recreated the investigation that had long since remained inactive. [5] Her body was found within three hours of her abduction, just off the shoulder of Pennsylvania Avenue in Prince George's County, Maryland. During these interviews, one gang member initially implicated another gang member, who he said told him he was involved and gave information as to one of the beltway homicides. In addition to all of these violent details, it was also discovered during this autopsy that the victim, Carol, had likely been kept alive after her disappearance (which police were now ruling an abduction). This semen sample would remain untested for several decades, but needless to say that would come up much later. It was just about half-a-mile away from home across the state border, in Maryland's Prince George's County (also known as "PG County" to locals). However, along the way, she encountered her mother, who just-so-happened to be returning home. Death Notices and Obituaries in the Buffalo News 2010 by Name They started a task force, which included more than 100 detectives and federal agents and had involvement from the following law enforcement agencies: the MPDC Homicide Division and Sex Squads, detectives from Maryland's P.G. After all, Washington D.C. would not establish home rule until 1973, meaning that the local residents had no real representation of their own at the time of the Freeway Phantom murders. So, Trainum took back the evidence, and submitted it to the FBI forensic database where the same thing happened. The prior decade had seen some major pieces federal legislation - such as the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965 - and the racial divide was still fresh in everyone's mind. It's even possible to imply that Brenda's last words in the phone call - the reflexive "I'll see you" comment - were indicative of her being close to home. Mr .. Tommie Simmons in Connecticut 34 people named Tommie Simmons found in Hartford, New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island and 2 . Read More: Are Green Vega Rapists Freeway Phantom? He may have begun with a series of attacks dubbed the "Green Vega Rapes" which occurred from 1968 to 1970. Edward Sullivan and Tommie Simmons Sullivan and Simmons, two ex-cops, were arrested for the murder of Angela Denise Barnes. One of the cases often pointed to as an example of this very behavior is the disappearance of Sheila and Katherine Lyon - two sisters that disappeared from the Washington D.C./Maryland region in 1975. On Saturday, May 1st, 1971 - six days after the disappearance of Carol Spinks - a group of kids were playing in a grassy area behind St. Elizabeths Hospital. She, however, had been 18 years old, and likely much more aware of what was happening to her. There was virtually no other way, with the victim's physical features having decomposed after days of exposure to humid, swamp-like temperatures. Homicide detective Lloyd Davis proceeded to question Askins and learned that he had been charged with murder on several previous occasions. Allenteen spotted her defiant 13-year old daughter, and let her know that her punishment would be waiting for her at home. He replaced Joel Dabney Courtney, who portrayed Nathaniel Malick in the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. All of the known members of this gang had been locked up on charges relating to sexual violence at around the time that the Freeway Phantom crime spree came to an end, and had been incarcerated inside Virginia's Lorton Prison. Bryant, of Maryland, was the only victim not from the District. [1][2] Diane Denise Williams was a 17-year old was known for her impeccable fashion sense. This was just a stone's throw away from the first two abduction scenes - those of Carol Spinks and Darlenia Johnson - from more than a year beforehand. After the 1978 rape charge, Askins' home was searched by police in connection with the Freeway Phantom murders. In the coming years, detectives would theorize that this implies some connection to the neighborhood Brenda Crockett lived in. The "Freeway Phantom" was a nickname given by a regional tabloid, but the name seemed to stick. One of the few pieces of evidence that police would find, during a thorough examination of Carol Spinks' remains, were small green fibers that were found on her clothing. This lead seemed to be going places which is why it pains me to say that it eventually fell off the rails. Some leads were easily proven not to be viable, while others required substantial investigation. "These were probably the first serial cases in the District of Columbia that one can recall," said Romaine Jenkins, a retired D.C. police homicide detective who helped investigate the killings. Among those individuals considered suspects were members of a gang known as the Green Vega Rapists. Police had openly speculated that the Freeway Phantom was a black man, and James Groom was white. Following this alleged sexual assault, the man had then driven the victim away from the scene, telling her at one point: "Have you ever heard of the Baltimore-Washington Expressway Phantom? He ultimately let the victim go without harming her any further, and the incident was reported to police. This, at least, provided investigators with some kind of a lead, but finding the driver of a blue Volkswagon - in 1971 - was like finding a needle in a haystack. A number of these grisly cases were heartbreaking, consuming much of Jenkins' time with tragedy. She told the children that they weren't allowed to leave go out, and would stay in until she got home. No physical evidence was obtained and Askins was not charged in connection with the Freeway Phantom killings. While most of the family was out-and-about, looking for the missing 10-year old, trouble began brewing at home. In her teenage years, as a result of her sister and best friend's tragic death, she ended up turning to drugs as an escape - a rabbit hole she would struggle to escape over several years of her life. Their resignation came following an incident after their guns went missing after Tommie, 26, claimed they were burglarized from his Temple Hills home in Maryland. It wasn't until 2001 that the case was officially re-opened, when Detective James Trainum took it on as a personal challenge. In 1971, a town hall was arranged in Congress Heights by a local antipoverty agency. Unknown West Point. This particular inmate was also serving a sentence at Lorton Prison for the Green Vega convictions. The most notable thing about the discovery was that the body was dressed except for the missing shoes. The Sullivans: With Paul Cronin, Steven Tandy, Reg Gorman, Vikki Hammond. He denied any role in them, adding that he did not have "the depravity of mind required to commit any of the crimes."[28]. County's State's Attorney Arthur A. Marshall, who was running for reelection at the time. Romaine Jenkins, the retired homicide detective that I detailed in this episode's introduction, has maintained a lifelong obsession with the case. [4] Examination revealed she had been both physically and sexually assaulted and strangled, was dressed but missing her shoes, and had only been killed a few days previously.