CANADA Canada - Marianne Schuett, 10, Kilbride, Ont, 27 April 1967

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Hi Doeologist,

It was so awful that the plate number the witness took down was never followed up til years later. Someone was very quick thinking to note it down. What happened to his car after the abduction? Did he get rid of it, do you know? I wonder if his wife ever suspected him at the time.
 
Mr. "X" would have known the Dundas Conversation Area (where the sighting occurred of someone cleaning out a vehicle a day or so after the abduction - anyone can correct me if this is incorrect) just outside of Hamilton well, as he had been employed just 2 miles away at the John Bertrams foundry on Hatt Street (as per a 1966 directory). As per this directory, his home - at that time in 1966 - was only a 12 minute drive eastbound. The factory included a huge machine shop, a foundry, and a number of outbuildings. The John Bertram and Sons plant, which produced large scale machinery and custom machine tools for various projects including mining, changed hands multiple times and went under different names at times. It closed down around 1986 and was demolished in 1996/97. Note: Edited to include the word "plant', previously omitted.
 

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It was so awful that the plate number the witness took down was never followed up til years later. Someone was very quick thinking to note it down. What happened to his car after the abduction? Did he get rid of it, do you know? I wonder if his wife ever suspected him at the time.
I really have nothing to add, nova. But I am now beginning to realize that the real reason he got away with it was because, as you said, the license plate number was not followed up on. It was not because he was in any way "connected", (It's not impossible for a machinist/metal grinder to have friends in high places, it just that status or connections or money don't seem to have been factors.)

I guess the witness was simply disregarded, even though he was corroborated by the prime witnesses to the abduction, with a matching car and driver description, for whatever reason. Maybe it was the distance from the abduction -- about 18 miles -- in the opposite direction of travel from the abduction. But long distance travel is usually no problem for "spectacle killers" and they're generally not "locals", relatively speaking.
 
The Facebook group has an article about two witnesses, supposedly "near" where the shoe was found, who said respectively that their dog barked at 11 pm that night, and a dark station wagon was parked near there the next morning. It would be interesting to find out exactly where they lived and to triangulate the approximate area. Newpapers said it was "yards" from the shoe but I put the witnesses about 7 km away near Acton. One mentions "Black Creek" and that's up by Acton. It's also close to where an inmate gave a tip about being shown a body and police dug in a crevasse. I went to that spot but this other place is supposed to be swampy and I wonder how well it was searched.

https://www.facebook.com/photo?fbid=2620572511290760&set=g.103018283119493
 
The Facebook group has an article about two witnesses, supposedly "near" where the shoe was found, who said respectively that their dog barked at 11 pm that night, and a dark station wagon was parked near there the next morning. It would be interesting to find out exactly where they lived and to triangulate the approximate area. Newpapers said it was "yards" from the shoe but I put the witnesses about 7 km away near Acton. One mentions "Black Creek" and that's up by Acton. It's also close to where an inmate gave a tip about being shown a body and police dug in a crevasse. I went to that spot but this other place is supposed to be swampy and I wonder how well it was searched.

https://www.facebook.com/photo?fbid=2620572511290760&set=g.103018283119493
I'll see if I can find anything (or anyone else here can, too). I had wondered where he lived prior to 1966; Vernon Hamilton Directory did not a listing for him between 1960 to 1965. I checked some of the Toronto listings but not there either. He may have been in a rural book for one of the smaller areas or other city and it would have depended when he immigrated and via what port. Thank you very much for having gone to the spot and taking a look at it. Edited to include: Hamilton Directory
 
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Thanks. The two witnesses were Merwood (James Murwood) Steele and Mrs. Gilbert Barber. They'd be in the Acton/Wellington area.
I found a 1970 obituary for James Murwood Steele from Acton who passed away at the age of 78. It listed him as living at a property at 79 Lake Avenue in the town of Acton. With a difference of 3 years in time it would probably be the same property although a title check for 1967 would be able to confirm it. Behind the property is Prospect Park and behind that, a smaller lake.
 
Thanks, nova. Steele was a retired dairy farmer so he could live in town. But the newspapers actually reported that he was yards from the shoe. The other witness was "2 miles away". That would put Steele in Speyside if that's where the shoe was. However, Hwy 25 where the shoe was found is also Main Street in Acton.

I'm not sure if there was some misinformation but, if not and they are two areas over 2 miles apart, I don't understand why the police searched the 3rd Line/Black Creek area where the driver was seen in the morning and not in the Speyside area, if that's where the shoe was, and where the dog barked, at a possible stranger parked nearby at 11pm. Did they think the abductor just stopped there at 11pm to drop the shoe and then moved to the next location with Marianne?
 
Thanks, nova. Steele was a retired dairy farmer so he could live in town. But the newspapers actually reported that he was yards from the shoe. The other witness was "2 miles away". That would put Steele in Speyside if that's where the shoe was. However, Hwy 25 where the shoe was found is also Main Street in Acton.

I'm not sure if there was some misinformation but, if not and they are two areas over 2 miles apart, I don't understand why the police searched the 3rd Line/Black Creek area where the driver was seen in the morning and not in the Speyside area, if that's where the shoe was, and where the dog barked, at a possible stranger parked nearby at 11pm. Did they think the abductor just stopped there at 11pm to drop the shoe and then moved to the next location with Marianne?

There is probably some inaccuracies in newspaper accounts unfortunately. Today I read one in which it said Marianne left the school at 4:30PM. I was also reading up on her case on the Please Bring Me Home website, and they wrote that he was seen cleaning out a vehicle at the Rattlesnake Point area, but in other accounts it was the Dundas Conservation area. There seems to be confusion even with that.

As for the Speyside area where the shoe was found (apparently by a Constable from the Milton OPP named Jerry Terryberry) there were extensive searches, including in the Brookside area. I was reading about the Brookside searches in this article here: https://images.ourontario.ca/Partners/HHPL/HHPL000091897p0001f.pdf

There were similar tips all over I guess. One article said they'd dug holes in several places including Lake Eerie and acted on hundreds of tips, but never found her.
 

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This article (linked below) says the shoe was found on Hwy 25 at 17 Side Road (not 15). Steele must have been living at that intersection on a farm property.

17 Side Road deadends in the green space where the Bruce Trail goes through. I'm confident that's the intersection where the shoe was, and the dog was barking at someone on or off Hwy 17 at 11 pm.

http://images.ourontario.ca/Partners/MPL/MPL002496071pf_0310.pdf
 
I was able to find one more article from the Acton Free Press, dated May 3. It gives a lot of details about the searches at the time. It mentions a broken down car that appeared to have been towed from 17 Road (and was located near the highway) at one point and that a 'foreign' car was seen there Thursday afternoon. This article also mentions the shoe being found on Highway 25 near 17 Sideroad (this one says 1/2 mile down the highway from 17 Sideroad). I've never seen the broken down car mentioned again and it could have been completely unrelated. https://images.ourontario.ca/Partners/HHPL/HHPL000088989p0003f.pdf
 
I am attaching a map of possible vehicle sightings and the approximate shoe location that afternoon on April 27th. I suspect that he had already selected or had in mind a very private area to take Marianne to considering he did not have a van and did not take her back to his home. He had even parked his car on the side of the road near the school in the direction of the Rattlesnake Conservation area. As well, he would likely have left the area as soon as possible as he would have had to assume that as soon as Marianne did not return home, alarm bells would be raised and he knew that he and his car were seen by several people. He could not have assumed when they would go searching or when police would be arriving. It would have taken approximately ten minutes for Mr. X to get to Bell Line Road where the vehicle was apparently seen parked. Wherever they went in that location - if that was indeed them - could be where she was left, possibly above ground but heavily concealed somehow; it would have been a risk to come out carrying a body exiting the area or if encountering a hiker or to have one in his vehicle to transport to a second location (although he may have taken such a risk). There are apparently small caves in this area as well. He appeared to have already been quite planned in this abduction, so it might fall in line that he took one of her shoes to place up further up on the side of the highway, in full view of motorists in order to cause a distraction for searchers so that she would not be found so quickly therefore putting more time between him and the discovery of any remains. If he indeed put the shoe on the side of the highway she was probably deceased and concealed by that time. Bear in mind, this theory just assumes he had to be in and out of the area very quickly and did not return to the area the next day to place it. I think, barring no incidents with his car, he then got out of the area and headed back home possibly on rural routes with the potential for limited sightings of him. The sighting of him cleaning out his car may not have meant - as I had first imagined - that he'd been out all night, but that instead, news of the car's description had hit the news and police were searching for it; he was cleaning it the best he could to make it appear 'new-like' or in pristine condition and no one had been in it except for himself.
 

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If he broke down off 17 Side Road, or got stuck, and had to be towed out, I don't think he'd leave the body in that area. He could have gone back to retrieve it and then found a new spot the next day off of 3rd Line where someone in a station wagon was seen.

I looked up the inmate who said an associate showed him a body on the Bruce Trail where 3rd Line ends. He was named as Robert Turner 40 in 1969, and there was a Robert Turner born in Hamilton in 1929. If that's the same person, it's possible he knew the suspect who was living in Dundas in Hamilton.
 
In June of 1990, something brought Halton's tactical rescue unit to a quarter-mile area between Borer's Falls and the Niagara escarpment to do a search related to Marianne but they found nothing. This was according to a 1991 Hamilton newspaper article. Unfortunately the article did not say what brought the police to that area.
 
Borer's Falls would be in Dundas right on the way to Dundas Conservation. The police would have been investigating the Dundas suspect in 1990. Maybe the ex-wife (?) co-operated and gave them this lead. I can see a suspect like this keeping Marianne in the car all the way there, closer to home.
 
Actually, now I think that the police may have said, in 1991, that the witness put the suspect at Dundas Conservation when actually it was at Borer’s Falls. It makes sense as misinformation. Otherwise why search Borer’s Falls in 1990 and not Dundas Conservation?
 
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Marianne Schuett, age 10, Missing since 27 April 1967
 
I am attaching a map of possible vehicle sightings and the approximate shoe location that afternoon on April 27th. I suspect that he had already selected or had in mind a very private area to take Marianne to considering he did not have a van and did not take her back to his home. He had even parked his car on the side of the road near the school in the direction of the Rattlesnake Conservation area. As well, he would likely have left the area as soon as possible as he would have had to assume that as soon as Marianne did not return home, alarm bells would be raised and he knew that he and his car were seen by several people. He could not have assumed when they would go searching or when police would be arriving. It would have taken approximately ten minutes for Mr. X to get to Bell Line Road where the vehicle was apparently seen parked. Wherever they went in that location - if that was indeed them - could be where she was left, possibly above ground but heavily concealed somehow; it would have been a risk to come out carrying a body exiting the area or if encountering a hiker or to have one in his vehicle to transport to a second location (although he may have taken such a risk). There are apparently small caves in this area as well. He appeared to have already been quite planned in this abduction, so it might fall in line that he took one of her shoes to place up further up on the side of the highway, in full view of motorists in order to cause a distraction for searchers so that she would not be found so quickly therefore putting more time between him and the discovery of any remains. If he indeed put the shoe on the side of the highway she was probably deceased and concealed by that time. Bear in mind, this theory just assumes he had to be in and out of the area very quickly and did not return to the area the next day to place it. I think, barring no incidents with his car, he then got out of the area and headed back home possibly on rural routes with the potential for limited sightings of him. The sighting of him cleaning out his car may not have meant - as I had first imagined - that he'd been out all night, but that instead, news of the car's description had hit the news and police were searching for it; he was cleaning it the best he could to make it appear 'new-like' or in pristine condition and no one had been in it except for himself.

in the direction of the Rattlesnake Conservation area.

I grew up in this area and attended Kilbride School from K - grade 5 (in 1970 I did not go to school with Marianne). If the car was facing in the direction to go to Rattlesnake point then he would have been on the opposite side of the road - I do not believe that Marianne crossed the road to speak to him and get in the car. Her home is adjacent to the school property, she had to walk to the end of the school driveway turn to her right and her driveway was the 1st only a few yards/feet away on her right.

Kilbride school was considered rural back in 1967, all the roads are considered back roads in this area during this time period, you only started seeing traffic lights once you made it to Derry Road and Trafalgar Rd. area, otherwise it was only stop signs.

When school was out for the day hundreds of kids would leave and walk home or get on school busses or have a parent pick them up FROM the side of the main road - parents did not want to pull in the long driveway, it took a long time to get in and out so you met your ride on the street. You could have 10 or 20 cars lined up after school. You often knew other kids grabbed rides home from friends' families/neighbors too.

I doubt that many even took notice of someone stopping at the side of the road to pick up a child. I know 2 people did notice for some reason, thankfully, but most other parents were "seeking out" their child and would not pay attention. Perfect place to grab a child. Just incredible that the child he stole lived in the house beside the school. Rumor was that the perp must have told her he was to pick her up on behalf of her family, otherwise, she had no reason to "take a ride".
 
Interesting to note that the Bruce trail is repeatedly mentioned. It makes me think of Cameron March who went missing in 1975 from Blind Line (just over the valley from Kilbride) his home is very close to the Bruce Trail as well.

My home was in between these two locations, I know this is a very young male 4 yrs old and not a female but these two disappearances really freaked us out, especially for me was Cameron, detectives were visiting and interviewing many of us children, I included, it was really scary for a 10 yr old to understand and go through the experience of being questioned by detectives.

Driving or walking along Cedar Springs Road or Guelph Line, Twiss Road or as far as Derry Rd (by Kilbride School) and all the side roads around here (1, 2, 8 side roads, McNiven Rd etc) was scary because we knew the person abducting children in our area must have driven on these roads. We wondered if he lived in the area and was watching us. As kids we blamed one of the farmers off 8 side road (close to the area of abduction) because we would use his cornfield as a shortcut to get to the Kilbride store and would scare us off with his salt riffle. Yes, he did shoot at us.

I wish we had answers but the area has so much rough terrain it could be years or never that remains are be found.

Bobbi Pearl
 

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