IL IL - Helen Brach, 65, Chicago, 1977

[ctaylor]

More at the link...
http://abclocal.go.com/wls/story?section=news/iteam&id=8249203

I-Team Report: Sweet Farewell

Wednesday, July 13, 2011
Chuck Goudie

July 13, 2011 (CHICAGO) (WLS) -- Helen Brach, heir to Chicago's Brach candy fortune, vanished in 1977. Now the prime suspect in her disappearance is gone as well.

His name is Jack Matlick. He worked as personal valet and a so-called houseman for Helen Brach, the wealthy widow of Chicago candy baron Frank Brach.

It has been nearly 35 years since Mrs. Brach was seen alive at her estate in north suburban Glenview. Matlick is said to be the last person to see her, and now he is gone forever.

 

[Winward1]

This story is quite different then. I find it weird that they didn't at least go after the houseman for forgery and embezzlement from her estate.

 

[Winward1]

One has to ask, if local law enforcement wasn't involved in Mrs. Brach's disappearance, why didn't they charge her houseman with forgery, fraud and theft?

 

[Winward1]

A new story on this one:

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/ct-met-helen-brach-ruby-ring-20111124,0,5299263.story

 

[Ausgirl]

This article is pretty detailed regarding the Jaynes and the ring of criminals surrounding the show horse circuit.

It illustrates pretty clearly how fear can silence people. But these killers did time, anyway, if not 100th of the time they deserved.

Why Silas Jayne is not listed on any serial killer sites, I just do not know.

 

[Winward1]

Lots of scummy history in the Chicago area with racetracks. One of our four Governors went to prison after being bribed by an area racetrack.

 

[Richard]

Link to Helen's thread in "Missing in the 1970's" topic area:


IL IL - Helen Brach, 65, Chicago, 1977 - Websleuths Crime Sleuthing Community

 

[Richard]

Bumping case up. Helen Brach has been missing for 35 years.

 

[Richard]

Helen Vorhees Brach, 65, Missing since February 17, 1977 from Rochester, MN

Helen Vorhees Brach
Missing since February 17, 1977 from Rochester, Olmsted County, Minnesota.
Classification: Endangered Missing

Vital Statistics
Date of Birth: November 10, 1911
Age at Time of Disappearance: 65 years old
Height and Weight at Time of Disappearance: 5'10"
Distinguishing Characteristics: White female. Red hair; brown eyes. Brach was a bit overweight at the time of her disappearance.

Circumstances of Disappearance

Brach had just finished a checkup at the the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. She paid her bill at the clinic and was walking back to the hotel to catch a flight from Rochester to Chicago when she stopped at a gift shop and bought some sundries. Her last words to the clerk are still the subject of much confusion. "I'm in a hurry," she said. "My houseman is waiting." The clerk swears Brach used the word "houseman" and the present tense, although no one was seen with Brach and it was believed that she traveled to Rochester alone.


In July of 1994, Richard Bailey was convicted of conspiring to murder and soliciting someone to murder Brach. He was sentenced to 30 years in prison and a fine of 1 million dollars.


Brach is heiress to the Brach Candy Company fortune and had an estimated net worth of $17 million when she disappeared. The third wife of the president of the E.J. Brach and Sons Candy Company, Brach lived quietly in suburban Glenview after her husband's death in 1970.

She was declared legally dead in 1984.

Source Information:

Crime Library
Northwest Indiana News
Illinois Police & Sheriff's News
The Doe Network: Case File 1246DFMN

LINK:

http://www.doenetwork.org/cases/1246dfmn.html

 

[Ilivedit]

It is all solved now.

 

[Ilivedit]

Actually it was not Jack Matlick. Turns out is was Joe Plemmons and Curt Hansen

 

[OkieGranny]

NamUs listing: https://www.findthemissing.org/en/cases/25728

 

[ctaylor]

An update on Helen Brach...

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2901077/Cold-case-solved-37-years-Missing-candy-heiress-Helen-Brach-kidnapped-beaten-shot-disposed-steel-furnace-orders-notorious-Chicagoland-horse-dealer.html

Cold case solved after 37 years: Missing candy heiress was kidnapped, beaten, shot and disposed of in a steel furnace on orders from a notorious Chicagoland horse dealer

It is one of the most enduring and baffling crime mysteries of modern times: The disappearance and murder of candy heiress Helen Brach.

The horse-loving Helen, who inherited a multi-million dollar fortune from her husband, Frank, vanished in 1977, following a visit to a clinic in Minnesota, for a routine medical check up.

No-one has ever been convicted in connection with her disappearance.

But now recently revealed documents, and the claims of a former federal investigator, show that there is evidence and testimony that may finally solve the mystery.

Brach, it is alleged in the documents, was kidnapped, beaten, shot and her body disposed of in a steel furnace, on the orders of a notorious Chicagoland horse dealer.

....

 

[STANDREID]

I wouldn't rule out the mob killing her to protect themselves but would they really beat up a 65-year-old woman before shooting her? The mob almost never killed women and in the couple of cases when they did there was never anything like torture involved. I have to say that I have some doubts about this story. She was probably killed by some unsavory character though.

 

[SilverCat]

Hi, I'm new here and one of the reason's I joined was to find out how to submit a possible match of an unidentified remains to Helen Brach. So if Helen's body was incinerated, I don't suppose anyone would be interested in checking DNA. Oh well.
I wonder why she is still listed as missing on the Doe network?

 

[JusticeWillBeServed]

Chicago's most famous missing person case began 40 years ago Friday

http://abc7chicago.com/news/chicagos-most-famous-missing-person-case-began-40-years-ago-friday/1759546/

Helen Brach went missing before the term "went missing" become commonplace and Friday was the day, February 17, 1977.

On this day 40 years ago the ultra-rich widow known as "the Candy Lady" was last seen alive.

It was no sweet farewell.

Mrs. Brach, 65, had been at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota for a routine checkup. After being given a clean bill of health, she stopped at the hospital gift shop.

"I'm in a hurry," she told the cashier. "My houseman is waiting."

Authorities have long suspected that the "houseman" was indeed waiting...to deliver her to death.

The houseman, her trusted butler Jack Matlick, was always considered a prime suspect in helping carry out her murder. Matlick, however, was never charged. In his final and fiery public comments on the case, outside his apartment in Butler, Pennsylvania in 1994, he growled at I-Team questions concerning what he knew. "I don't know who killed Helen Brach" Matlick yelled, "and I have no idea what happened to her."

 

[Gardener1850]

Helen Brach case: Man sentenced in 1977 disappearance of Chicago candy company heiress released from prison

CHICAGO (WLS) -- The only man ever sentenced in the murder conspiracy of Chicago candy company heiress, Helen Brach, has been released from prison.

Multiple sources tell the I-Team that Richard Bailey, 89, was released Thursday from a federal prison in Florida after serving his time.

RELATED: I-Team: Prisoner Richard Bailey claims he was in love with missing heiress Helen Brach

Brach, who vanished more than 40 years ago, remains one of Chicago's greatest unsolved murder mystery. Although her body has never been found, Brach was declared legally dead and investigators suspect her remains were dissolved in a chemical vat or blast furnace in 1977 with help from the Chicago Outfit when she threatened to expose horse traders who had swindled her out of millions of dollars.

Read more: Helen Brach case: Man sentenced in 1977 disappearance of Chicago candy company heiress released from prison

Helen Brach case: Man sentenced in 1977 disappearance of Chicago candy company heiress released from prison

 

[Richard]

Helen Vorhees Brach

Name: Helen Vorhees Brach
Case Classification: Missing
Missing Since: February 17, 1977
Location Last Seen: Rochester, Olmsted County, Minnesota

Physical Description
Date of Birth: November 10, 1911
Age: 65 yrs old
Race: White
Gender: Female
Height: 5'10"
Weight: N/A
Hair Color: Red
Eye Color: Brown
Nickname/Alias: N/A
Distinguishing Marks/Features: Ms. Brach was a bit overweight at the time of her disappearance (according to the physician she just saw).

Identifiers
Dentals:Unknown
Fingerprints: Unknown
DNA: Unknown

Clothing & Personal Items
Clothing: Unknown
Jewelry: Unknown
Additional Personal Items: Unknown

Circumstances of Disappearance
Brach had just finished a checkup at the the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. She paid her bill at the clinic and was walking back to the hotel to catch a flight from Rochester to Chicago when she stopped at a gift shop and bought some sundries. Her last words to the clerk are still the subject of much confusion. "I'm in a hurry," she said. "My houseman is waiting." The clerk swears Brach used the word "houseman" and the present tense, although no one was seen with Brach and it was believed that she traveled to Rochester alone.

In July of 1994, Richard Bailey was convicted of conspiring to murder and soliciting someone to murder Brach. He was sentenced to 30 years in prison and a fine of 1 million dollars.

Brach is heiress to the Brach Candy Company fortune and had an estimated net worth of $17 million when she disappeared. The third wife of the president of the E.J. Brach and Sons Candy Company, Brach lived quietly in suburban Glenview after her husband's death in 1970. She was declared legally dead in 1984.

Information Source(s)
Helen Brach - Wikipedia
Find A Grave
The Doe Network

 

[Richard]

This case is almost 43 years old. Helen has never been found.

 

[Richard]

Bumping thread up...