PA PA - Karen Wells, 23, Carlisle, 12 April 1994

New Posts

Forgive me if this has been discussed in length in years prior: when I think of a woman driving that far to visit someone who is an exotic dancer, I think of the woman as … likely a dancer, traveling to make money. Lodi, NJ (where Melissa was) is then and now a hotspot for dancing - it’s the home of the Bada Bing, for Sopranos fans. I’m going to guess that she also danced in South Dakota. I think she was on drugs, stopped to score, and met a couple of people who offered her an arrangement, thus the 2-3 hour hotel room and strange driving pattern. They killed her and dumped her body and kept on going. Very sad story.
 
JMT1008 said:
I'd say it's extremely likely the car was taken down one of the dirt roads, or snow mobile trails. Probably not terribly far from a main road. In fact, the snow mobile trails/access roads, have gates several yards into them. So the car may have only been driven that far onto one of the "off-road" roads. The question is, was she carried, or forced to walk from there?

If off road in that forest, that time of year, after dark, it would be very unlikely that anyone would encounter a passerby. So, whomever took her there could be confident that they had the luxury of time.

In my little bit of exploring, I found some places to have soft soil for digging, and other places to be rather rocky. But rocks aplenty if she were to have been covered.- In fact, that would probably be the fastest way to conceal a body out there.

All sorts of wild life could have participated in post-mortem activities.

It's a vast stretch of nothing out there.
Click to expand...
The issue with getting the car off road though is that most of the roads running through Pennsylvania “public” lands have very stout padlocked gates across them, so it is almost impossible to get a vehicle passed them. There are usually very large rocks or boulders positioned outside the gate posts that allow a person or person on horseback to walk around the outside of the gates, but not allow a vehicle or ATV access.

I was trail riding in a PA state gameland one evening when people started running around asking if we had seen a 8-9 year old child, out by himself. He was autistic and had wandered away from his mother and siblings.

They had to wait for the local fire department to arrive with the key to unlock the gate so volunteers on ATVs could access the fire road to search.
 
cutter99 said:
The issue with getting the car off road though is that most of the roads running through Pennsylvania “public” lands have very stout padlocked gates across them, so it is almost impossible to get a vehicle passed them. There are usually very large rocks or boulders positioned outside the gate posts that allow a person or person on horseback to walk around the outside of the gates, but not allow a vehicle or ATV access.

I was trail riding in a PA state gameland one evening when people started running around asking if we had seen a 8-9 year old child, out by himself. He was autistic and had wandered away from his mother and siblings.

They had to wait for the local fire department to arrive with the key to unlock the gate so volunteers on ATVs could access the fire road to search.
Click to expand...
There are several roads running through Big Spring State Park (are car found) that can be accessed year round, such as Hemlock Road, Redline Road, Etc., and they almost all interconnect in one way or the other. Judging by the pictures I posted of her car awhile back, I'd say the car was on gravel roads for awhile at some point. But you are correct that there are some roads on "public land" that are gated by the Game Commission.

I still can't help but to think that there is more of a local connection to her disappearance. The location her car was found is so out of the way and random, that I have a hard time believing very few other scenarios. Also, as I stated earlier, if someone had hitchhiked from the area where the car was found, then someone would have most likely reported this to the police. It tells me someone got out of there on foot, or there was another car following them and picked them up. If the culprits were her NJ connection, why would they worry about taking her car in the opposite direction, and so far in the middle of nowhere? No drugs were found other than paraphernalia, and a small amount of marijuana (I'm guessing probably an empty baggy with crumbs), no money other than that found in her change purse, and a car with a faulty fuel gauge that ran out of fuel.

Sure, I think her NJ connection was shady, but somehow I think she was to pick up drugs through her NJ connection in the Carlisle area, and whomever she was involved with in Carlisle for the transaction, was related to her disappearance, and likely close to the area of her disappearance. The car being where it was is the mind boggler for me. Too random to be random. There was a reason it was going that way, and I just can't come up with a theory other than what I just wrote for it being there.
 
dulldullmike said:
There are several roads running through Big Spring State Park (are car found) that can be accessed year round, such as Hemlock Road, Redline Road, Etc., and they almost all interconnect in one way or the other. Judging by the pictures I posted of her car awhile back, I'd say the car was on gravel roads for awhile at some point. But you are correct that there are some roads on "public land" that are gated by the Game Commission.

I still can't help but to think that there is more of a local connection to her disappearance. The location her car was found is so out of the way and random, that I have a hard time believing very few other scenarios. Also, as I stated earlier, if someone had hitchhiked from the area where the car was found, then someone would have most likely reported this to the police. It tells me someone got out of there on foot, or there was another car following them and picked them up. If the culprits were her NJ connection, why would they worry about taking her car in the opposite direction, and so far in the middle of nowhere? No drugs were found other than paraphernalia, and a small amount of marijuana (I'm guessing probably an empty baggy with crumbs), no money other than that found in her change purse, and a car with a faulty fuel gauge that ran out of fuel.

Sure, I think her NJ connection was shady, but somehow I think she was to pick up drugs through her NJ connection in the Carlisle area, and whomever she was involved with in Carlisle for the transaction, was related to her disappearance, and likely close to the area of her disappearance. The car being where it was is the mind boggler for me. Too random to be random. There was a reason it was going that way, and I just can't come up with a theory other than what I just wrote for it being there.
Click to expand...
I think the Trooper interviewed on CBS 21 said there was also evidence of cocaine. My gut says that there is a Carlisle connection to her disappearence, but also a connection from Carlisle to NJ, given the mysterious phone call hours before. I agree that the car ended up where it did due to a local connection, and that multiple vehicles were involved.
 
Recently heard about this KDW missing persons case. Sad case, especially given that she left a young child behind. Though cases where someone is missing (and presumed deceased, as in this case) are always sad, they're especially unfortunate when family members are left behind - especially kids who will grow up without parent(s).

There has been a lot written up about this case. I honestly don't have any specific ideas of what happened here, just some general thoughts:

1) It's possible that KDW was involved in something shady/sketchy, and her disappearance is linked to this.

2) It's also possible (though this is probably less plausible) that her disappearance had nothing to do with anything she was/wasn't involved in. Maybe she got car-jacked/kidnapped by some random criminals when she was out looking for fast food - who for some reason left her car behind.

Though there didn't appear to be any blood or other evidence in her car that suggested anything violent occurred there, I suspect KDW was taken from the car & is now deceased.

That being said: Since her body has never been found, I guess it's possible she's still alive somewhere. But, obviously this is extremely unlikely.
 
A few thoughts:

The mud and scratches on KDW's rental vehicle appear mainly on the passenger side, the side that's closest to the side of the road.

The amount of mud doesn't appear to be significant so as to indicate an off-road encounter.

That tells me the car drifted closer to the side of the road, in to the shoulder where dirt/mud accumulates and small brush and twigs protrude from plant material that grows alongside.

I would expect to have seen the police photos showing the vehicle doors in an open state but they show all four vehicle doors as closed. It is possible a LEO closed the doors after happening upon the vehicle in the middle of the road, and it is likely the LEO did not know of a then-missing KDW. He may have assumed the driver experienced vehicle trouble or ran out of gas and got a hitch ride with intent to return later for the vehicle.

Remnants of a Hardees (was it really from Hardees, or was that LE dropping false info for an only-a-perp-would-know truth element) fast food meal were found in vehicle (a CBS news report indicated the remnants were found strewn outside the vehicle).

There is a Hardees located approximately 1.2 miles *south* of the Pike Motel, and a McDonalds within 1 mile or so to the west and slightly north from the Hardees.

The rental vehicle was discovered approximately 35 miles from the general fast food services area. Since the food items were found in/around the vehicle we may assume KDW and the meal never made it to the motel after purchase.

KDW's motel door key was found in the motel room, along with a burned cigarette (ashes) but it appeared to have not been smoked. LE assumes KDW had little/no sleep during the long drive so it is not a stretch to assume she forgot about the cigarette and key when she left to "get something to eat."

KDW may have lighted the cigarette, placed it in an ash tray and picked up the phone and dialed to call her friend. I assume she used the landline in the motel room. Most people use two hands: one to hold the handset, the other to dial. Her friend answers, they speak.

What about? KDW tells her friend she is too tired to finish the trip to Bergen *in time* to accomplishe whatever it was to be accomplished. KDW tells her friend to drive to her motel.

The clock is ticking so the friend contacts two male friends involved with the time-sensitive task and proceeds to travel to the motel. Why the two 'friends'? A fun guys-and-girls overnight at the motel?

Or, were the two males teamed 'muscle' to help with a bad situation KDW found herself in at the motel? Or, was it that the two male friends were awaiting KDW's arrival to Bergen with something-something and found it suspicious that KDW was no longer on her way to Bergen?

Was KDW's friend in so much trouble in Bergen that two males were there to do bad to her if KDW's friend didn't repay money/drugs that she asked KDW to do a pick-up and help? Far-fetched.

Or, maybe the two male friends were just driving companions for safety, it was nightime/dark, afterall.

One thing seems logically obvious: KDW told her parents she would return from Jersey in four days. That's a tight schedule for a 1400+ mile trip, so we may assume it was not a vacation/time-to-hang-out visit. It was a transactional visit. What the transaction entailed remains a mystery to us, and likely also to LE ... but not to KDW's friend in Bergen.

Now, for the disappearance. The abandoned vehicle scenario is all too reminiscent of a crime-of-opportunity abduction. But first, let us assume KDW purchased her food and got lost when attempting to return to the motel. Exhausted from hours upon hours of driving, and driving in unfamiliar territory she can't find her way back and ends up on Rt. 274.

KDW eventually realizes she is LOST-lost and has an exhaustion meltdown. She stops her vehicle, idles in place for a bit, has a cry, maybe a toke, maybe a snort and ... a someone approaches her vehicle. Houses are sparse along the route but she may have stopped close enough to a house where an occupant notices the strange scene of a stopped vehicle close to their dwelling. No need to play out that scenario in text, you know the rest.

If a someone who approached KDW's stopped vehicle was driving a vehicle and stopped to help, it is unlikely the stranger would have convinced or forced KDW in to the woods for nefarious reason, because what if another vehicle had come upon the scene? The stranger would not want to be caught at the scene.

What are the odds a bad guy/girl would just happen on the scene at that moment?

Was KDW's friend in trouble? Financial, drugs, combination, whatever. Why did the friend need KDW's physical presence in Bergen? What if the friend didn't need help but wanted to do harm to KDW? Being the nice person KDW was described to be, her friend would have little trouble luring KDW to Bergen under false pretenses.

What if KDW realized something was amiss, especially after having spoken to the friend a few times on the phone then deciding she was not finishing the trip?

The friend panicked at that news and told KDW to stay where she was and that she was goining to drive to the motel. After purchasing and eating some food KDW got to thinking she didn't want to be confronted by her 'friend' and was afraid to return to the motel and decided to just turn tail and drive back to Oklahoma? To heck with her clothes and luggage, after all, she had her purse and money with her in the vehicle.

All of the above is nothing more than speculation, attempts to play out different scenarios. Much of it is far-fetched, born of movie lore, but since we have so little workable information, speculating is the best we can do.

Ending with this:
KDW's friend was in need of some sort of help, and her friend KDW, who lived 1400+ miles away was seemingly the only person who could, or would, help. This is a logical and likely conclusion given the travel distance involved and the four-day time frame in which the round-trip excursion was to occur. Maybe KDW's friend was truly in need of help, or maybe KDW's 'friend' intended harm on KDW. The physical presence thing (1400+ miles? By car? Really?) has me thinking it was bad situation, regardless.

If we assume the truly in need of help scenario, and regardless of the reason, it is possible KDW just happened to end up in the wrong place at the wrong time in Carlisle, entirely seperate from the reason why she made the trip, and some local played bad on her.
 
Last edited:
After following this case for a few years, commenting on here, interacting with you all, and researching, I'm still bothered. The whole last location of the car still bothers me. The "doors" being open bothers me. The purse lying outside the car bothers me. Everything about her (if anything, her car's) last location bothers me. It's just too random. The location isn't somewhere you'd go not knowing the area very well, and the fact that nobody came forward from the area who witnessed a stranger hitchhiking at that time or someone looking to use a landline tells me there was definitely another vehicle involved, OR it's been theorized that there was a possibility that she had gotten lost and was in the midst of a breakdown and ran blindly into the woods. Though the latter of these theories seems unlikely to me.

Upon reading another article displayed on a newly released Podcast that just came out on YT, it was, as I initially theorized, someone local heading to the Letterkenny Army Depot who came upon her car at around 0500 in the morning, and who called the police about an abandoned vehicle. It was also that person who found her purse and put it back into her car before the cops showed up. All good intentions.... But that is a fact.

The more I hear and the more I see, I just can't help but think that her car was in that area for a reason. Referring to one of my first posts, there was a cocaine ring in that rural area back in the 80's and 90's and this was told to me from a pretty good source. I can't help but to come up with the theory of her being a mule (for MS) and running into someone (whether an acquaintance or connection with MS) who saw the drugs or money KDW may have had as an easy crime of opportunity. I'm sorry that I have harped on this for several of my recent posts, but these are the facts that keep coming back to me. It bothers me so bad!

It's no secret that MS lied and was deceptive to police. She showed up in Carlisle, with two men who she knew from working as a dancer in NJ, and literally just a few hours after KDW called her supposedly saying she was going to take a nap and THEN meet her in NJ. Did MS find out that there was an issue with the delivery/purchase and that KDW was in trouble? Or was she directly involved in the scheme? What happened for the five hours from the time KDW was out of gas and assisted in Bernville to her arrival in Carlisle? She could have made it to Jersey and back to Carlisle, and I also theorize this is possibly what happened. Or this could have been KDW transporting something from OK for MS as well. Maybe for a cut of the $$? I just don't know what to think.

If you haven't listened to the recent Trace Evidence Podcast on YT, please do. It has a lot of great information if you're new to the case, and even some good info you may not have known by following the case. Sorry, I know I get repetitive, but this a case that just blows my mind.
 
Who was present in the motel lobby that could have overheard KDW's intention to drive to a McDonald's? A crime of opportunity for a random bad person(s)?

Maybe. But...

• When did MS arrive to the motel?
• Did MS really not meet up with KDW at/in the motel/room?
• How long had MS been there before she contacted the motel clerk?
• Were the two men still with MS when she contacted the motel clerk?

LE believes some of the people they interviewed know more than they disclosed.

• KDW had a prior criminal conviction for forgery in South Dakota.
• KDW was unemployed.
• KDW had a young child.

Was money not an issue? Who funded the trip?
2800+ miles round-trip costs: fuel, food, lodging.

According to KDW's parents, KDW said she'd return in four days.

Four days: 24 hrs x 4 = 96 hours.

Shortest drive time and distance from Haskell, OK to Bergen, NJ:
• 20 hr 42 min (1,382.8 mi) via I-44 E, I-70 E and I-80 E

Shortest drive time and distance from Haskell, OK to Carlisle, PA:
• 17 hr 53 min (1,177.8 mi) via I-44 E and I-70 E

Longest round-trip drive time: ~42 hours = ~2 days.
• 4 days - 2 days = 2 days left for visiting.

Add time for rest stops.
Add time and distance for non-direct routes.

• Likely: KDW planned for 2 days driving, 2 days visiting with MS.

During the phone call between KDW (at the motel) and MS (in Bergen), KDW stated she was tired, would nap at the motel. Did MS first offer to meet KDW at the motel _OR_ did KDW first ask MS to drive to the motel?

That might not be an important distinction because KDW wanted to nap at the motel regardless, but the decision to "nap" at the motel may have been a crucial element in why KDW met with foul play and that her disappearance had nothing to do with the reasons for the trip.

KDW - Charley Project Page
Items of note:
Around Thanksgiving in 1994, the wife of Wells's married boyfriend claimed she had heard from her. Wells allegedly called the woman and said she had gotten married and wouldn't be coming home. This story hasn't been confirmed, and police don't believe Wells actually made the telephone call.

Police have not named any suspects in her case, but stated they believed some of the people they interviewed knew more than they disclosed.
Click to expand...

I could understand if the alleged claim of contact from KDW was her boyfriend's wife's attempt to exonerate her husband (he was under a veil of suspicion, no doubt) but are there other reasons why she would make such a claim? Why doesn't LE believe the contact took place? LE likely believes KDW was deceased by the time of the alleged contact.

LE believes some interviewees know more than they reveal. It is important to know who:
• MS?
• Two males with MS?
• Motel employees, patrons?
• Fast food employees, patrons?
• KDW's parents?
• Carlisle locals, passers-through?
• People who discovered/manipulated KDW's rental vehicle?
• People who discovered KDW's belongings in the ditch?

That KDW's motel key was found in the motel room is an important element. It tells me KDW hadn't yet left the motel room to find food. She likely had her purse (and, therefore, rental vehicle keys) with her when she went to the lobby to ask about food or get snacks from lobby vending machines if they existed.

KDW may have been intercepted after leaving the motel lobby to walk back to her room. If that is the case, I suspect LE believe motel personnel and/or patrons are the persons who might have held back info.
 
Last edited:
No fuel in the vehicle tank.
Dead vehicle battery.

The vehicle was 'abandoned', engine left running and headlights on? We do not know for how long the engine was running, except maybe a minimum approximation guess if the last-known fuel refill and quantity is known. Receipt? Eyewitness?

---

In 2008, LE refocused on the case to run tests on various items.
BUBM

Cold Case of Missing Woman Gets Another Look
“There was a bunch of things in the car we’re going to test in different ways — ways we couldn’t in 1994,” Police Sgt. Bill Goodheart said.

Cigarette butts, paper cups and other items are going through DNA testing, he said Friday.

“Someone who has been arrested and put in the system may have drank from the cups or have DNA on the cigarette butts,” Goodheart said. “There were just no real clues at the time.”
Click to expand...

Since the referenced testing was initiated in 2008, it's now 2023 with no significant updates, we can safely assume testing resulted in a dead-end. That doesn't mean nothing will come of it, as fingerprint and DNA results may take years to determine a match.

---

BUBM

"The damage is strange."
Her rental car was found abandoned on State Route 274 in a remote section of Perry County.

Trooper John Boardman is now investigating the case and says he has many questions about that car.

Why was it left in that location, of all places?

What caused the visible damage to it?

And why was it covered in mud, as if it had been driven off-road?

“The damage to the vehicle is strange,” Boardman said.
Click to expand...

Having driven thouands of miles in Pennsylvania I would not perceive the reported damage (in other articles: "scratches") as "strange", unless there is additional damage not released to the public; maybe engine or transmission, steering, brakes or headlights? I want to locate photos of the front of the vehicle to see if the headlight enclosures are intact.

---

BUBM

Karen Denise Wells - Uncovered PA

April 13, 1994​

5:50 AM : Her rental car is found abandoned
Karen's rental car is found abandoned, with no gas in the tank, the car keys missing, the battery dead, and both front doors ajar. The car is notably muddy and scratched, like it had been taken off road at a certain point. There were also 600-700 miles on the odometer that could not be accounted for. Interestingly, there were remnants of a fast food meal from Hardees, undeveloped film, small amounts of cocaine, marijuana, a pipe, a pair of shoes, and empty soda bottles. Family is adamant that she did not do cocaine, but sometimes smoked marijuana. On the side of the road, next to her car, there was a white plastic bag filled with blood and animal organs. Police attributed the bag to opening fishing season, and claimed that the bag didn't contain human remains, but a fish carcass.
Route 274 Near Tuscarora State Park

Sources of Information​

Click to expand...

One wonders if the "undeveloped film" was used or unused. Was the roll intended for taking photos of a 'vacation' trip or to take/provide photos of a something(s) to provide proof (not "proof" in a photographic quality sense).

No report of a camera found in or near the abandoned vehicle, nor in the motel room. Did a perp(s) take a camera from the vehicle, from KDW"s purse? Photos of the perp? Did KDW know the perp?

A bag of fish guts? There are fishing areas throughout Pennsylvania, so this find isn't unusual, but it is significant in that it was discovered next to the abandoned vehicle. Coincidence or is the vehicle abandoned location a typical 'stop-spot' for local drop-offs, pick-ups, meet-ups?

Other articles report KDW's "cash purse" and wallet were discovered in a "ditch" close to the abandoned vehicle. If there were other people with KDW in the vehicle up to that point and they were simply driving along with an unsuspecting KDW (not knowing they meant her harm), it would make sense that the purse would be found outside the vehicle as they would take it with them upon leaving the vehicle or take it from KDW at that time. Were they locals? Were others following along with another vehicle? To where did they take/leave KDW?

If KDW was not in the vehicle where it was abandoned, then KDW is likely somewhere along the 35 mile stretch between New Germantown, PA and Carlisle, PA.

If this is a human trafficking case, all bets are off as to KDW's current location. Jersey or Jamaica?
 
Last edited:
I haven't seen this tid bit of information shared yet, and it's very interesting and you would probably have no idea about this unless you live locally. There is an "island, per say" that is right outside of Perry County that use to have a TON of strip clubs, adult entertainment, massage places, some still exist but nothing like they did in the 90's.
I am only pointing this old because of the dancer/drug angle, it's what I immediately think of. Any chance she may have stopped in to try to make some money from one of these establishments? I'm kind of ignorant I don't know if you can just drop in and work a shift or....

Does Perry County have a porn problem along Routes 22/322?: The surprising answers

Just past the Duncannon exit amid one of the most heavily traversed stretches of the highway, a different kind of sign starts flashing: "Girls, Girls, Girls," blinks one of the many advertising adult entertainment.
www.pennlive.com www.pennlive.com

I do have to admit I did bartend at a bar in Perry County when I was 18ish, I am biased as I think it is the single weirdest place I've ever been in my whole life, the whole place has a hills have eyes vibe.
 
@adot0902, that is totally Perry county’s reputation in Pennsylvania. The only one that might be weirder is Schuylkill county.
 
cutter99 said:
@adot0902, that is totally Perry county’s reputation in Pennsylvania. The only one that might be weirder is Schuylkill county.
Click to expand...


To be fair, both are earned. They don't say Philadelphia and Pittsburgh with Kentucky in the middle for no reason. It's an odd part of the country for sure which makes missing persons cases a little extra difficult.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

DNASolves

Who is Escambia County John Doe (1989)?

Members online

... and 180 more.
Total: 3,184 (members: 181, guests: 3,003)

Online statistics

Members online
181
Guests online
3,003
Total visitors
3,184
Totals may include hidden visitors.

Forum statistics

Threads
592,794
Messages
17,975,470
Members
228,901
Latest member
FloridaThemisProject
Back
Top