Hometown Killer. Carol J. Rothgeb
HOMETOWN KILLER
The big, old house on South Fountain had been empty for about five years when Robert and Molly Warner moved there in 1994. On Saturday, July 8, 1995, Molly decided to participate in a “neighborhood cleanup” by cleaning out the debris-filled, double-car garage. While working in the south bay of the dilapidated garage, she moved an old wooden door and saw part of a tennis shoe stuck in the dirt floor. She reached down to pick it up and realized, to her horror, there was something inside of it.
She quickly ran out of the garage to find her husband. Frantic, she told him about the discovery, “There’s something inside that shoe, Robert! I think it’s a body.”
When the officers and detectives arrived they cordoned off the area with crime scene tape, and began the gruesome job of uncovering the body.
The tennis shoes had torn through the large trash bags that the body had been buried in.
HOMETOWN KILLER
CAROL J. ROTHGEB
PINNACLE BOOKS
Kensington Publishing Corp.
http://www.kensingtonbooks.com
All copyrighted material within is Attributor Protected.
Table of Contents
HOMETOWN KILLER Title Page Dedication ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS FOREWORD AUTHOR’S NOTE Prologue Part 1 - The Murders
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15
16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32
Epilogue Afterthoughts Copyright Page Notes
This book is dedicated to the memory of the victims and their families . . .
. . . and to Sergeant Al Graeber, who died five hours after his retirement, and before the conclusion of this case. He dreamed of writing a book about it and never got the chance.
I hope he would have approved of this one.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I am so grateful to my family and my friends for their incredible support and encouragement (and patience) during the writing of this book—especially my children, Jeanne, David, and Dana, who never seemed to doubt that I could do it.
To my granddaughters—Mallory, Chelsea, Miranda, and Sarah: you can make your dreams come true.
Chief Steve Moody, Sergeant Barry Eggers, Sergeant Michael Haytas, and Captain Rapp became my heroes—and my friends—during this time. They seemed to recognize the sincerity and passion I had to complete this task, and they embraced me and opened their hearts and memories to me.
I deeply regret that I never had the chance to meet Sergeant Al Graeber, but through the eyes of others who were fortunate enough to know him, I can see that he, too, was a hero.
Steve Schumaker is a very interesting man. In fact, one of the most interesting I’ve ever met. He, too, was extremely helpful and forthcoming.
“I will be forever grateful to all of them” sounds like a cliché, but I mean every word of it.
To Rocky: thank you for encouraging me to “go for it.”
To Artie, Lynn, Dave and Shirley, Dick and Dari: I thank you for being “family.” And for being interested. And just for being there.
Thank you, Linda and Tammy, for your flexibility, making it possible for me to attend William Sapp’s trial. And for your understanding and support.
To the “smoking room” at the Springfield News-Sun: I know there must have been times you got tired of listening, but you did anyway—and understood. Thank you for helping me through the “ups and downs.”
And to all “the other people” at the Springfield News-Sun: thank you for your enthusiasm and support.
To Wes: thank you for keeping me informed of hearing and trial dates, etc., especially your phone call the night the jury recommendation came in.
To my agents—Ron and Mary Lee Laitsch of Authentic Creations Literary Agency: a standing ovation . . . you’re the greatest!
To Ann LaFarge, my