Crime Junkie - MURDERED: Shari Smith and Debra Helmick

Episode Date: August 15, 2022

When 17-year-old Shari Smith is abducted from her driveway in broad daylight, it seems like her family’s nightmare can’t get any worse. But when her abductor starts calling them relentlessly, investigators hope that his recklessness will lead to his downfall... that is, until a second girl goes missing in an eerily similar manner.John Douglas' book When a Killer CallsFor current Fan Club membership options and policies, please visit https://crimejunkieapp.com/library/.Source materials for this episode cannot be listed here due to character limitations. For a full list of sources, please visit: https://crimejunkiepodcast.com/murdered-shari-smith-debra-helmick/

Hi, Crime Junkies, I'm your host, Ashley Flowers. And the story I have for you today is one for the Crime Junkie Records books. Because to help me tell this story, our team got to talk to none other than the motherfucking mindhunter himself, John Douglas. He shared a case with us that has stayed with him over many years. A case of a young woman who was taken from her own front yard just two days before she graduated high school. Her abductor always seemed to be one step ahead of the investigators.

And when another girl was taken from her front yard, they worried they might never catch up. Until one mistake finally brought his reign of terror to an end. This is the story of Sherry Smith and Deborah Helmick. It's 3.38 p.m. on May 31st, 1985, and a man named Robert Smith is working from his home office in Lexington, South Carolina, when he looks out the window to see his daughter, Sherry, pulling into their driveway. He watches his 17-year-old daughter as she stops the car by the mailbox, presumably to

get out and check the mail, since that's her normal routine when she gets home. He doesn't notice anything out of the ordinary, so he gets up to go grab something he needs from another room. He's only gone for a few minutes, but when he gets back and looks out the window again, he stops in his tracks. Sherry's car is still sitting there, right next to the mailbox, and the driver's side door is open, but he doesn't see his daughter. Their house is set about 750 feet back from the road, but even with their long driveway,

he has a pretty clear view of their entire front yard, including the mailbox, so he should still be able to see her. And it's not like she would just leave her car there and walk the mail up to the house, so right away alarm bells start going off in Robert's head, but not like crime-junkie alarm bells. Robert is worried about something else. See, Sherry has a rare form of diabetes that causes her to lose fluids and become dehydrated very quickly.

She even carries medication around in her purse to take throughout the day, but when she doesn't stay on top of her med, she can get really disoriented and eventually pass out. So her dad rushes downstairs, gets in his car, and drives down their driveway to find her, again, thinking that he's going to find her on the ground unconscious. But when he gets there, he sees that her car is still running. The mail that she got out of the mailbox is scattered all over the ground, but he doesn't see Sherry anywhere.

The more he looks around, the bigger the pit in his stomach grows, because in the car, he can still see Sherry's purse right there in the passenger seat, with her medication still inside, which is a huge red flag. He shouts her name a few times, and when he doesn't get a response, he sets off on foot to a wooded area near their house, thinking that she might have maybe wandered in there after becoming disoriented. And it's not like she could have gotten far, I mean, he literally had eyes on her just a few minutes ago.

But despite him calling her name and scouring the woods, he doesn't find any sign of her, so he gets back in his car and heads back to the house to call 911. The assistant sheriff of Lexington County arrives at the Smith house a few minutes later, and right away, he gets the feeling that something is seriously wrong here. So he starts asking Robert some basic questions, like what was she doing that day, what was her home life like, basically trying to figure out if there's any way she could have left on her own before he takes further action. But Robert insists that Sherry is not the type of kid to just run away.

According to an episode of the FBI files titled Cat and Mouse, he tells the assistant sheriff that she had a pretty normal day, she'd been to a pool party, then to a nearby shopping center with some friends and her boyfriend, Richard. And the reason he knows all this is because she called home consistently to keep her family updated on where she was and when she was going to plan to be home. And even if she was thinking about running away, she is set to graduate high school in two days. And after that, she was supposed to go on a cruise with her classmates like the following

week. That is not something that any teenager would miss. This is the kind of thing that you live for at that age. So even if you are going to run away, like you're going to do it after the cruise or hell on the cruise, but it's just not something you intentionally miss. As he's listening to all of this, the assistant sheriff becomes more and more sure that Sherry is in trouble. So he makes the decision to call in for backup and officially opens an investigation into

her disappearance. And I just want to take a second and talk about how huge of a decision this is because Lexington County actually has a law at the time that stated that you had to wait 24 hours before reporting someone missing, even though Sherry is a minor. But this guy knows that the first few hours in a missing person's case are the most important. And so he bypasses protocol and starts treating Sherry like a missing person right away. More officers arrive at the scene a few minutes later and they seal off the driveway and begin meticulously going through the car.

They're looking for hair drops of blood, dusting for fingerprints, any sort of physical evidence that they can gather. They also organize a massive ground search and they pull in all available officers from several surrounding counties. At this point, the news that there's a missing girl has spread across town and by the time the sun sets, there are hundreds of local residents volunteering to help look for Sherry as well. According to an Associated Press article in the Herald Rock, the search spans a 25-mile

radius around the Smith's home. But despite their best efforts, the investigators run into a problem right away. And that's the heat. It is hot outside, we're talking 100 degrees, and even after the sun goes down, the oppressive humidity doesn't go away. And this really cuts down on how long they can safely be out there before having to take a break. Despite this, they do their best to keep the search going throughout the night.

But by the next morning, there is still no sign of Sherry. And they haven't found any evidence in the car that could help them piece together what happened in the brief moment of time after she got out of her car to get the mail. I mean, there's no blood in the car, the hairs and fingerprints inside appear to all belong to either Sherry, her boyfriend or her family. And even though there's no physical evidence of anyone else being there, investigators can only come to one conclusion. Sherry was abducted.

The searches continue over the next few days, and they even contact the FBI, who sends a plane equipped with infrared sensors to help cover more ground. But again, they come up empty. The investigators interview Sherry's family, her friends, anyone they can think of that might have seen something or knows someone who might want to hurt her. But again, just nothing. It is like they're hitting every wall after wall, and they don't know where to go next. That is, until three days after Sherry's abduction, when police get a frantic call from her parents

in the wee hours of the morning. Breathless and afraid, her parents say that they just got a call from a man who says that he has their daughter. They explain that when Robert answered the phone, the man on the other end asked to speak with Sherry's mom Hilda directly. His voice was really deep and sounded a bit warped, but Robert handed the phone over anyway. Hilda got on the line, and this strange man began to apologize. And he said, they're not looking for Sherry in the right places because he has her.

He went on to say that Sherry would be returned to them in a few days and insisted that this was not a ransom call because he doesn't want any money from them. And to prove he's not lying, the man told Hilda that he had sent a letter in the mail that they should keep an eye out for because it will probably be arriving later that day. And then before Hilda could even process what she was hearing, this guy just hangs up. Now even if this man is lying, the investigators don't have time to wait around for this letter to just show up. So they call the Lexington Postmaster to open up the post office and a group of police officers

begins sifting through all of the outgoing mail. And eventually, after about 30 minutes, one of them pulls out an envelope addressed to the Smiths. As soon as they find the letter, the officers seal it up in an evidence bag and take it to the FBI's forensic lab for analysis. Once it arrives and they get it open, their hearts sink. They pull out two pieces of yellow paper taken from a legal pad. And at the top are the words, last will and testament. It's dated June 1st and 3 10 a.m. is written in the upper right hand corner.

And when they actually read the contents of the letter, any hope they had that Sherry is still alive starts to dwindle because what they're looking at is a goodbye letter to her family. She tells them how much she loves them and she leans on her faith, telling them not to worry because she would be with God. Sherry signs her name at the bottom next to one last message, quote, I love y'all with all my heart. Once the investigators have Sherry's family confirmed that the letter is written in her

handwriting, the forensic lab takes the letter, but a full analysis is going to take several weeks. And when you have the missing person, you don't have weeks, especially when she's already been gone for three days. And so desperate for a lead, they can't just generate on their own. The police in Lexington make a call to the FBI's behavioral science unit to request assistance on the case. If the caller is, in fact, the man who took Sherry, they hope that consulting with them

will help them figure out what kind of person they're dealing with. And in turn, it will narrow down their suspect pool. And in the meantime, they also tap the phones at the Smith's home and set up recording devices just in case this man calls again. And sure enough, it is less than a day later before the phone rings. When a call comes in later that afternoon, Sherry's older sister Dawn answers. Here is the actual recording of the call that was provided to us by John Douglas's team. Hello.

Mrs. Phil. Hello. This is Dawn. I need to speak to your mother. Could I ask his calling? No. Okay. Okay.

Hold on just a second, please. Hello. Have you received a mail today? Yes, I have. Do you believe me now? Well, I'm not really sure I believe you because I haven't had any word from Sherry. And I need to know that Sherry is well. You'll know in two or three days.

Why two or three days? Call the search off. Tell me if she is well because of her disease. Are you taking care of her? The man hangs up after that, but not before investigators were able to trace the call to a pay phone at a local shopping center. The same shopping center Sherry and her friends had been at the day that she went missing. By the time they get there though, the man is long gone and they aren't able to lift

any fingerprints from the phone that he used. I don't know if they continued to stake out that phone, but it wouldn't matter if they did because a little after eight that very same evening, the man calls again from a different phone. Dawn picks up again and the man again asked to speak to Hilda. This is Hilda. Did you receive Sherry Ray's letter? Pardon?

I can't hear you. It's not very clear. Speak louder. Did you receive the letter today? Yes, I did. Tell me one thing it said. Tell you one thing it said? Anything.

Sherry. Sher Richard. To what? There was a little heart on the side. Sher Richard written on the side. It said. How many pages? Two pages.

Okay, a yellow legal pad. Yeah. And on one side on the front page it said Jesus is love. No, God is love. Well, God is love. Right. Okay, so you know now that this is not a hoax call. Yes, I know that.

The caller then goes on to say that the search hasn't been called off yet, like he demanded in his last call. Hilda tries to explain that she just couldn't get ahold of Sheriff Metz, who is the sheriff of Lexington County. But of course that isn't true. But really until Sherry is home, they have no intention of stopping the search. Okay. Well, I'm trying to do everything possible to answer some of your prayer.

So please, in the name of God, work with us here. Can you answer me one question, please? You are very kind and you seem to be a compassionate person. And I think you know how I feel being Sherry's mother and how much I love her. Can you tell me, is she all right physically? Without her medicine? Sherry is drinking a little over two gallons of water per hour and using the bathroom right afterwards.

All right. Is she able to eat because she doesn't usually eat? That's what concerns me. No. Listen, I got to hurry now. I know that. Okay. Now, what I'm going to do is have an ambulance.

Now, this is very important. This has gone too far. Please forgive me. I have an ambulance ready at any time that's your house. Have an ambulance ready? Sherry's request. She requests that only immediate family come and Sheriff Metz and the ambulance attendants, she don't want to make a circus out of this.

Right. Okay. Okay. And where she said cast it closed in parentheses. Right. If anything happens to me, she said one of her requests, she did not put in there to put her hands on her stomach like she was praying in the casket. What then?

Cross her hands. Why would anything happen to you? We don't want any harm to you. I promise. We just won't share it well. All right. Okay. The caller then spends some time saying that the sheriff knows he's being serious and Hilda

assures him that everyone knows he's the real deal. He tells Hilda to call off the search for Sherry again because he keeps saying they're looking in the wrong places. And then he gives them their first real clue about where to find her. Okay. Forget Lexington County. Look in Saluta County. Do you understand?

Look in Saluta County. Exactly. The closest to Lexington County within a 15 mile radius, right over the line, is that understood? Yeah. And very, very soon get, please, now Sherry's request, Sherry say a request, please, no strangers hardly. And when we give the location.

No strangers. Absolutely. Now did you understand about the folding of the hands like she was in prayer in case something happens to us? Yes. If something happens to y'all, but nothing. Listen, nobody is going to harm you. I promise you that.

I don't know what the problem is. I told you to forget about looking around your house. Saluta County. Listen. Do you believe me now? I believe you. There are so many people that love Sherry and they just won't give up. Sherry, I want to tell you one other thing.

I want to tell you one other thing. Sherry is now part of me. Physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually. Our souls are one now. Your souls are one now with Sherry? Yes. And we're trying to work this out. So please do what we ask.

You haven't been doing that. I don't understand. And she doesn't. We sit here and watch TV. We see no sheriff. Why doesn't Sherry talk to me? She knows me so well. Come on.

She asked me to communicate with you. Not your husband. Aren't you aware of that? Yes, I know that. I know that she would ask you to talk with me. She does love you all. And like she said, do not let this ruin your life. We're not going to let it ruin our life.

Okay, well, it's not. Listen. You tell Sherry one thing. What is it? There's no way my life could ever have any happiness in it again. If Sherry left this world with me bearing a guilt that I had felt in such a bad way. Because I love her and I want to make her happy. I'll do anything to work it out.

She doesn't have to come home, okay? I'm here. She does not have to come home. Anything. Well, time's up and please now have the ambulance ready at any time. At any time. This will not go any further. And it will be soon.

The ambulance, you're not telling me that something's going to happen to her. And I'm going to have to have an ambulance. I'm telling you her condition. She's getting bad. Is that what you're... You know more about it than I do. I know I do. And that's why I am so worried about it.

Well, here's now the ambulance and I'll give you the location and tell Sherry Smith to get all these damn men and salute her county. Okay, well, God bless all of them. Will you call me soon? I will. Will you call me back tonight? I just need reassurance to know that she's still okay. I have to be careful.

I've got to go now and listen. Please, please, please forgive me for this. It just got out of hand. I know. Listen, do me one thing. What is it? All right. Just tell Sherry.

I know she knows how much I love her. Tell her her daddy loves her and her daddy will work anything out with her under the sun and he admits we've got a lot of problems and we'll work them out and her brother and sister love her. And God bless you for taking care of my baby. Sherry is protected and like you said, she is a part of me now. And God look after all of us. Good night.

Good luck to you too. The comment about the caller being one now with Sherry, physically, spiritually, all of that is a huge red flag. And listen, I feel like if Britt were here, she would literally be saying full body chills right now because that is one of the most ominous, sinister things I have ever heard. Now, since Hilda kept the man talking for long enough, the detectives are able to trace the call again, this time to a pay phone about eight miles away from their house. But just like last time police raced to the scene, by the time they get there, this guy's

long gone. But now that the police have two recorded calls to analyze, they send everything they have to the FBI's behavioral science unit who agree to help with this case. FBI profiler, John Douglas takes the lead and he creates an in-depth profile about who he thinks they're dealing with. Everything from what he probably looks like to his criminal history. And you guys, this is where we got to live every crime junkie's dream and actually sit down with John about his involvement.

And he told us what his first impressions of the caller were when he got that tape. You don't perpetrate a crime like this as your first crime. You definitely, it shows too much planning, control, how he's able to get this victim away from that mailbox and controller. So he has, will have a criminal history. What kind of criminal history? It generally starts off as peeping Tom, obscene telephone caller. And then as he get older, there will be attempted assaults, maybe similar to what we're looking

at here. So what's helpful will be a criminal history will be done. John Douglas also wrote a book titled When a Killer Calls All About This Case. And I highly recommend that you get your hands on it. It is a great read for any crime junkie. But in it, he says that they believe that they're looking for a white male either in his late 20s, maybe early 30s. And since he's called the family multiple times, he has a sadistic, narcissistic personality

and likely has an omnipotent, almost untouchable sense of self, meaning that he doesn't think anyone will be able to catch him. He also has to have a sense of control over his crimes, hence all of the phone calls with the instructions. And they believe that he could exhibit some obsessive compulsive tendencies. Now, since his voice sounds super deep and a little garbled at times, they believe that he's using a voice modulator. John thinks that he probably has some experience in maybe the electric field.

Like he either works as a contractor or he's had some kind of electrical training. But the idea of him being a contractor makes sense because it would give him more flexibility throughout his day to make these calls to Sherry's family. And it could also explain how he's been all over town and made getaways each time. Like he's not stuck in an office. But even with this profile from John, the detectives are getting frustrated. So they decide to try and get the man to call again. And hopefully they can make it to whatever location he's calling from before he leaves.

They want to like play into his need to control the situation. I mean, he's clearly told the Smiths that they'll be getting their daughter back. And so in his mind, they shouldn't still be looking for her. So the detectives think that if they keep the family front and center in the news, he won't be able to resist calling again. So they coordinate an interview with the family that airs on local TV. And then they wait for the man to take the bait. And sure enough, he does.

So that was then Sherry's on handwriting. Yes, I am. All right. Okay, now this is Sherry's own word. Okay. So listen carefully. Say nothing unless you're asked. Okay.

Okay. And it's not necessary. I know these calls are taped and traced, but that's irrelevant now. There's no money demanded. So here's Sherry Faye's last request on the fifth day to put the family at rest. Sherry Faye being freed. Remember, we are one soul now. When you locate, when located, you locate both of us together.

We are one. God has chosen us. Respect all past and present requests. And after the official events and times, jot this down. Hurry. All right, I'm doing it. 328 and afternoon, Friday, 31st of May. What?

1 minute too fast. 328 afternoon. Sherry Faye was kidnapped from your mailbox with a gun. She had the fear of God on her, and she was at the mailbox. That's why she did not return back to her car. She had to fear what? what? Fear God. Fear God. Okay. 458 a.m. No, I'm sorry. Hold on a minute. 310 a.m. Saturday, the 1st of June. She hand wrote what she received. 458 a.m. Saturday, the 1st of June. Okay.

Saturday, the 1st of June. 458 a.m. Became one soul. Became one soul. What does that mean? No questions now. All right. Last between 4 and 7 Wednesday tomorrow. Health ambulance ready. Remember, no service. Wait, 4 and 7 a.m.? 4 and 7 in the afternoon. In the afternoon. Tomorrow. Okay. Health ambulance ready. Remember, her request, no circus. Okay. Prayers and relief coming soon. Please learn to enjoy life, to give. God protects the chosen. Sherry Spade's important request. Rest to north and tomorrow. Good shall come out of this. And please, till sheriff meets, search no more. Blessings are near. Remember, tomorrow Wednesday, 4 in the afternoon to 7 in the evening. Ambulance ready. No service. Okay, no circus. What does that mean? You will receive last instructions for it to find us. Don't. Do not kill my daughter, please. I mean, please. Love and miss y'all. Get good rest tonight.

Wait a minute. He's gone, mom. The man's use of Sherry's middle name stands out to them here because she didn't go by her first and middle name to her friends and family. In his book, John Douglas says that he thinks this is to try and make the man feel closer to Sherry, like they have some sort of special relationship and he's the only one who calls her that. The investigators also make note of his almost mechanical way of speaking, almost like he's written down everything that he wants to say and is reading from a script, like it's just bizarre. The next day, the investigators and the Smiths sit by the phone, tensely waiting for it to ring. Even though the caller said that he would contact them between 4 and 7, they're not so sure that he's going to be able to wait that long. And at 1154 AM, the phone rings. I'm not sure who answers the phone on the 5th, but unlike every other time the man has called the Smiths, this time he gets straight to the point. Listen carefully, take highway 378 West to traffic circle, take prosperity exit, go one and a half miles, turn right at sign, loose large number 103, go one quarter mile, turn left at white frame building, go to backyard, six feet beyond, we're waiting, God chose us.

As soon as the police have those directions, they send a helicopter to the location, and from the air, they spot what looks like a body laying behind a tree line close to the Masonic Lodge. The investigators and the Lexington County Coroner head out to the scene, and even though she's badly decomposed, they can tell that the young woman they're looking at is Sherry Smith. She's still wearing the same clothes that she was abducted in, and based on the level of decomposition, the coroner believes that she likely had been there since shortly after she was abducted. Even though it's only been five days, the heat in South Carolina has sped up decomposition dramatically, to the point where they're not immediately able to tell what her cause of death was. And the crime scene itself doesn't offer many clues. Based on some nearby tire tracks and broken branches, they think that her killer likely pulled up his vehicle to the edge of the woods and dragged her body to the tree line. And unfortunately, back then, there weren't any surveillance cameras at the lodge to help them learn anything about the type of vehicle that Sherry was transported in. Her autopsy is completed later that same day, but the pathologist who performed it isn't able to confirm how she died, or if she was sexually assaulted. According to an article by the Associated Press for the Greenville News, the best that the pathologist can say is that she was probably either smothered or died from severe dehydration due to her diabetes.

They also find bruising around her wrists and duct tape residue on her face, which indicates that she was restrained at some point. Now, even though Sherry has been found, the police are still at a loss for how to track down her killer. Part of how he's been able to avoid getting caught has been pure luck, like getting away from the pay phones that he uses whenever he calls the Smiths. But the other part of it is because he's been so meticulous with everything. I mean, he even knew exactly where to direct her family, which told John something interesting. And it was right down to tenths of a mile, and then right down, we get down to a number of feet off of the road. So what he was doing was like so many of other serial offenders that we've had in the past. They go back to the scenes for different reasons. He definitely was going back. But John, John, I say John like I'm now best friends with John Douglas.

Mr. Mindhunter John Douglas, sir, he and the investigators doubt that the killer will stop calling, especially when news that Sherry was found makes headlines the next day. And sure enough, at 8 57pm, the day after Sherry's body was discovered, the man calls again. But this time he demands to speak with her sister Dawn. On this call, he explains that the whole thing had gotten out of hand and he's planning on turning himself in tomorrow morning because he feels so guilty. But then he changes his tune and says that he might take his own life tomorrow. And that is the last thing that the Smiths and the investigators want, because if he dies, he won't be able to face justice. So Dawn does her very best to keep him on the line and to talk him out of it, despite literally having just lost her sister. And that's when the man says something that catches everyone's attention.

This thing got out of hand and all I wanted to do was make love to Dawn. I've been watching her for a couple of weeks. I'm sorry to Sherry. The man slips up by using Dawn's name instead of Sherry's. And this makes investigators worry that he might be starting to shift his hyper fixation from Sherry to now her older sister. Dawn and Sherry do look very similar. And especially since he asked to speak with her directly during this phone call, they really start to fear for Dawn's safety now too. It's also during this call that the killer offers up a clue about who he is.

Even though he says he's a family friend, John and the investigators aren't sure if that's true. In his book, When a Killer Calls, John Douglas talks a lot about the quote unquote relationship the killer portrayed that he had with Sherry. And he thinks that saying he's a family friend is just another way to try and make him seem closer to Sherry than he actually was. Dawn keeps the man talking for a while after and their conversation goes back and forth between him pitting himself and then obsessing over the timeline of the crime. He does admit to sexually assaulting Sherry, although the way he frames it is like it's consensual, which obviously is absolutely not true. And he also describes her death saying that once he realized she had to die, he gave her three choices. Now investigators highly doubt that he actually gave Sherry any kind of choice considering how much he needs to be in control. The guy hangs up shortly after this and police are able to trace his call to a truck stop, although this time it's 50 miles away.

And by the time they make contact with the closest law enforcement agency and they get officers out there, surprise, surprise, he's gone. Sherry's funeral is held a few days later on Saturday, June 8th. Investigators keep tabs on everyone who comes and goes because they think it's very likely that the killer will show up, but no one stands out to them as being overly suspicious. Though that doesn't mean he wasn't there because later that day, the killer calls again admitting to being at the funeral and offering to answer any questions Dawn may have. She asks him where he killed her sister, hoping that he'll maybe get overconfident and reveal something, but all he says is that it was in Lexington County. But Dawn keeps pressing and she asks again specifically where in Lexington County, the man gets kind of flustered and kind of tries to deflect, but she keeps on pressing. And John Douglas thinks that he's getting so flustered because he's not scripted here, like he wasn't expecting for Dawn to push so much and so he doesn't have like a preset reply ready to go. And eventually he gets so flustered that he hangs up.

And at this point, I am sure you can guess what happens after that. The police trace the call to a gas station 60 miles away, but again, he is gone by the time they get there. Over the following week, John and the investigators work with the Smiths, pouring over any piece of surveillance footage from the surrounding area that they can get their hands on, analyzing everyone they know and don't know in the hopes of finding something, anything. They also do their best to keep Sherry in the news on the off chance that the man will call again. But after that last call to Dawn, he stays suspiciously silent. That is until June 14, when the investigators on Sherry's case get a call about another girl who's been abducted. The call comes from one county over and detectives tell them that earlier that day, just after four o'clock, a little girl had been taken from her own front yard in broad daylight. Her name is Deborah Helmick.

And according to another Associated Press article in the Greenville News, she was playing with her little brother in the front yard of their trailer home when a silver sedan pulled into her driveway. A tall white man got out of the car, walked over to Deborah, and in a matter of seconds grabbed her, pulled her into his vehicle before careening out of the trailer park where she lived. Now, obviously, the major difference between this case and Sherry's is that Deborah is just nine years old. But since both victims have blonde hair and blue eyes and were taken from their front yards in broad daylight, it seems like Sherry's killer might have struck again. Much like with Sherry's abduction, a massive ground search gets underway and they even bring in a helicopter to look for the car that the neighbor described. But as the afternoon turns to evening, there is no sign of Deborah or the man who took her. Now, unlike Sherry's abduction, the man who took Deborah doesn't try to contact the Helmick family in the same way that he did the Smiths. The Helmicks actually don't have a phone, so it's not like he even could call them if he wanted.

But it does make some on the investigative team consider that Deborah's abductor could be an entirely different person. But John doesn't think so. He knows that the person who killed Sherry won't just stop, and since he hasn't been harassing the Smiths over the last week, he's worried that the killer might have shifted his focus to Deborah. John and the investigators decide to officially take on Deborah's case as well in the hopes of finding her alive. But to do so, he thinks he needs to get Sherry's killer on the phone again. If he can, he thinks that maybe, just maybe, they'll be able to lure him out and stop him from killing again. They just need to set a trap. John proposes holding a graveside memorial service for Sherry, and he works with the local media to make sure that the date and time are publicized.

He knows that the killer is keeping an eye on the news, so if he sees her family mourning her publicly, he will not be able to resist calling again. And if they're lucky, he might even show up. Now, in order to really drive it home, he takes a stuffed animal from Sherry's bedroom for her family to leave at her grave. It was a koala, her favorite animal. But this stuffed animal isn't the only bait. Before the memorial service ever happens, John wants to use another piece of bait, if you will, something much more precious to the Smiths. But this was the nervy part, this was the high-risk part. Mr. Smith is looking at me, and he knows I'm thinking of something. And John, I said, well, I'm thinking of doing, I have an idea.

What is it? What do you want to do here? I said, I sense when he was calling, he was fixating on Don. And so I'd like to work with Don so that when he calls, she knows how to keep him on the telephone long enough so that we can do a traps and trace. In the old days, traps and traces, it would be, you have to keep him on about 15 minutes on the phone, which is a long time. So I'll work with her there. But I also want, like using her as a decoy, I'm using her to kind of, you know, lasso in this guy, this guy. And Mr. Smith tells me, is there any chance I'm going to lose my other daughter here? And I said, no, I said, we'll give her the protection. Don't worry about that. Almost as soon as the memorial service is announced in the local paper, the killer calls the Smith household just like John knew he would.

Don answers with John sitting right by her side and right away they can tell that something's different. This guy isn't using a voice modulator anymore. And John thinks this means that he's getting bolder, like he doesn't feel like he has to hide much anymore. It's clear to them that this man hasn't gotten past his obsession with Don. Even though they're pretty sure he's taken Deborah and he confirms this when he says something that sends a chill up the spine of everyone listening in. You know, God wants you to join Cherry Bay. It's just a matter of time. This month, next month, this year, next year, you can't be protected all the time. Even though Don had agreed to help lure this man out, I can't imagine the terror that she must have felt in that moment.

But she barely even has time to process what he's saying when he confirms everyone's worst fears. And you know, have you heard about Deborah May Hammer? The man goes on to give detailed directions just the same way he did with Cherry to where they can locate Deborah. I mean, down to the foot. John is frantically scribbling it all down and writing notes to Don telling her to keep him on the phone, ask him personal questions, anything. But even though she does her best, the killer isn't taking the bait. The police trace the call to a KFC about 50 miles away and, of course, he's gone by the time anyone arrives. Even though he's evaded them again, the police follow the directions that he gave.

And about 10 miles from where Sherry's body was found, lying under a pile of brush in a wooded area, is the body of who they believe to be Deborah. Just like Sherry, it looked like she had been left out in the heat and elements for several days. But her parents are able to confirm that it's her when they see the clothes that she was wearing when she was taken. And speaking of her clothing, the investigators make a chilling discovery when they examine what she's wearing. In addition to the underwear that she was wearing at the time she went missing, she's also wearing a pair of adult-sized underwear. And the reason for this is kind of unclear. But John says in his book that he had been speculating the killer had more victims in addition to Sherry and Deborah. He'd just been too meticulous, too practiced not to have done this before.

And he thinks that this underwear could be evidence in another case. Now that the killer has two victims and he seems to be getting bolder, John and the investigators hope that he's going to make an appearance at Sherry's memorial service, which is held on June 25th. What would have been Sherry's 18th birthday? They're joined by Deborah's family along with news reporters and other members of the community. Dawn stands between her parents holding the stuffed koala and then places it on the ground. She leaves it there and several officers stake out the grave in hopes that the killer is going to come by. He won't be able to resist taking it as a trophy.

But he never does. Never comes by, never takes it. Deborah's funeral is held the next day. And much like with Sherry's, the investigators are there scouring the crowd for anyone who stands out. Even though Deborah's parents haven't been contacted by the man who murdered their daughter, there is no doubt in anyone's minds that the same man is responsible for their loss as well. But by the end of the service, the investigators don't see anyone in the crowd of 300 mourners who fits the profile of their killer. However, even if he wasn't there, the investigators finally, finally have their first tangible lead.

The FBI lab found something on Sherry's letter. They ran it through a machine called the electrostatic detection apparatus or ESDA for short. And basically how this works is they cover the letter in something thin like saran wrap and then the machine runs graphite over it to try and pick up any kind of indentations on the paper that might not be visible to the human eye. And on the pages of Sherry's letter, they find some clues. So they came up with, it looked like a grocery list on there at first, a grocery list. And then there was a telephone number. And the telephone number was missing one digit.

But the area code was Alabama and the prefix was Huntsville, Alabama. Even though they're missing a digit, the investigators are eventually able to narrow down who that phone number could belong to. And they land on one man, a guy named Joe Shepherd. Now, they don't know what role this guy has played in everything. Is he their killer? To me, probably not. Not many people are writing down their own phone numbers, but at a minimum, their killer knows this guy's phone number, right? I.e. this guy knows their killer.

So they get a warrant for Joe's phone records. And there's one number on this list that stands out to them, an incoming call from just outside of Lexington in Lake Murray. So when they go visit this Joe guy, they basically rule him out immediately, just based on his behavior and his voice. But they ask him about this Lake Murray number. And Joe explains that it came from his parents' house, which just so happens to be about two miles from where Deborah's body was found. Now, they cannot get to this guy's parents' house fast enough. On their way, they learn that Joe's dad Ellis worked as an electrician, which if you remember is the profession that the team thought the killer had. And so finally, they're like, this is our guy, we have him, we are on our way to literally arrest the man responsible for two murders.

But as soon as the investigators meet Ellis and his wife Sharon, their hopes fall flat. Because everything about Ellis from his age down to the way he's speaking and behaving tells them that this isn't their guy. The shepherds also say that they were out of town during the time that both murders occurred. So even if they thought Ellis could have done it, he physically was not in the state. It was impossible. But investigators aren't just going to let this lead fizzle out. So they start asking them questions. They start describing the man that they're looking for, asking if they know anyone who fits that description.

And wouldn't you know it, they do. And Mr. and Mrs. Ellis or shepherds, the shepherds, they look at each other in unison. We were told, they said, you're talking about Larry Jean Bell, Larry Jean Bell, he's an electrician. He's an electrician for us. And you know, we let him stay here and take care of the house sitting for six weeks when we were gone. But you know, when we came back, he looked different. He changed his appearance. He lost weight.

He grew a beard. He wasn't like that. On the drive home, all he talked about were these two murders. He was just obsessed with. In fact, when he got to the house, he even had newspaper clippings that he wanted to show us, these newspaper clippings. Crime Junkies, hear me out when I tell you this. Do not discount people's behavior. People will show you time and time again who they are.

And again, be weird, be rude, stay alive. It is okay. We have this sixth sense in us for a reason. And so I can't tell you how many episodes I get into where it's like people, once you realize it's someone you know, it's like, oh yeah, this, this, this, and this didn't make sense. Remember her bowmeister dude was like pulling out cake in his drawer and we're just like watching it degrade and everyone's like, oh, that was really weird. Pay attention. I'll get off my soapbox now, but you guys get what I'm saying, right? Like, again, people will show you who they are.

Pay attention. We have to look out for one another. So with this information, the detectives ask if they can look inside the shepherd's house and they agree. They walk in and at first everything looks just as they left it. But then Ellis checks to see if his gun is where he left it and the gun is gone. Ellis calls Gene that evening to ask where the gun is and Gene tells him that he took it and hid it under the mattress in the guest bedroom where he was staying. So they go in there and lift up the mattress and there it is. They find the gun as well as a pornographic magazine.

And Margaret O'Shea reported for the state that when they lift up the sheets, they find that the mattress pad has been stained with what looks like a mixture of blood, urine, and semen. So they start going through the dresser drawers in this guest bedroom. They find some of Gene's clothes there, which makes sense since he had been house sitting. But underneath his clothes, they find a bag containing multiple pairs of women's underwear, some of which match the style that was found on Deborah's body. Now, aside from this, everything else in the room is suspiciously clean, like it's been vacuumed, all the surfaces have been wiped down. And so there's not much additional physical evidence. So just to be sure, they take a look at the bathroom across the hall and in that bathroom, they find six blonde hairs. Now, none of the shepherds are blonde, but both Sherry and Deborah were.

So these hairs combined with the rest of the physical evidence is enough for them to get an arrest warrant for Gene. Ellis tells them that he's supposed to come over to the house the following day to help out with some electrical wiring. And so the very next morning on June 26, they intercept him on his way into work. Right away, he denies having anything to do with both murders. He even calls the evidence that they have against him flimsy. He and I have different definitions of flimsy, but whatever. They try and push this guy, but they can tell that they're not getting anywhere with him. So John suggests that they set up a special interrogation room.

They put pictures of Deborah and Sherry, maps with literal string connecting all the events together. They even add in a stuffed koala just to really drive it home. It really looks more like a movie set rather than an interrogation room, but they're hoping that if he is surrounded by things that remind him of his victims, he'll eventually crack. But he remains strong and continues to deny his involvement. So you know what makes him finally break, right? I mean, if you're new to true crime, I'll give you a pass, but our gold star crime junkies have already figured out what it's going to take.

Dawn. So I talk to Dawn. I talk to the mother. And I say, as soon as you hear him talk, tell him, I know it's you. I know your voice. I know it's you. They come in there.

They're unbelievable people. They're faith, strength. It's just unbelievable. They sit down there. And then this question is there. I introduce him talking. And I introduce him to the family. And he starts talking.

And then Dawn says, it's you. I know it's you. I recognize your voice. I know it's you. And he said, what he does is he repeats. He says, all I know is that the good Larry Jean Bell couldn't have done this crime, the bad Larry Jean Bell could very well have done that. Saying that the bad Larry Jean Bell could have done it is the closest thing

they'll ever get to a confession. But it's good enough for the investigators. He's eventually put on trial with all that quote unquote flimsy evidence against him. And the following year in 1986, he is convicted of both Sherry and Debra's murders. And he is sentenced to death. But even though Larry was convicted and there's one less violent person off the streets, John strongly believes that he has at least three other victims in other towns that fit his victim profile and his MO.

He had a criminal history, as I mentioned, but he's also suspect in two other homicides. One was an associate's girlfriend who was killed, never found. Another one was a woman who lived like two blocks from where he lived in another town, and he never found her either. So he was a serial killer. He got away with it. Larry was executed in 1996, but his crimes still haunt the families of his victims. And it still haunts the investigators who worked tirelessly to bring him to justice.

Because even though he might not be able to hurt anyone else, the full extent of his crimes may never fully be known. And actually, if you want to learn even more about this story and about John Douglas' work with the BAU, definitely pick up his latest book, When a Killer Calls. It is out right now. We're going to link to it in the show notes. And if you are a crime junkie like me, when you heard that there might be three more victims,

your mind probably started going wild and your little fingers couldn't Google fast enough. Well, no need. I'm on the same page. I already did that for you. And let me tell you, there are some details in those cases that I cannot get past. So if you want to go down those rabbit holes with me, we are releasing an audio extra about this case. It's basically like a full mini-soad that you can listen to right now in the fan club. I'll see you there.

Again, don't forget to pick up John Douglas' book, When a Killer Calls. You can see the rest of our source material for this episode on our website, crimejunkiepodcast.com. Don't forget to follow us on Instagram at crimejunkiepodcast. Don't forget to come see me in the fan club for basically a whole other episode about this guy. You can find it on the website crimejunkiepodcast.com. And I'll be back next week with a brand new episode.

Crimejunkie is an audio chuck production. So, what do you think Chuck? Do you approve?