GUILTY IN - DARREN DEON VANN, 43, Gary, body count at seven, more expected

[PricklyPear]

I remember when the women were being found deceased in burning abandoned houses. IIRC it started and happened several times then seemed to suddenly stop. Now I am wondering if he was trying to find a new way to dispose of remains at that time? It got a lot of media attention. Wondering if perhaps he (or someone) didn't stop, but maybe just decided that leaving the remains without burning attracted less attention?

This is interesting. When I was combing through unidentified women in Texas, I did see I think three or four women who were found in burned buildings or cars that fit the time period and were in central/southeast Texas. I don't have time to go back through and find the ones in NamUs again right now, but maybe this weekend.

I did see Mikiko Kasahara on the Texas Rangers cold cases, though, who was going to school about an hour's drive from Austin: http://www.txdps.state.tx.us/texasrangers/UnsolvedHomicides/Details.aspx?&id=7

And I just did a search for her, and her autopsy found she was strangled: http://amarillo.com/stories/2003/01/19/tex_autopsy.shtml

EDIT: Turns out I had time for a basic NamUs search after all, but I couldn't find the burned victims again. I was also searching through the Camp Pendleton area's records last night, so maybe I saw them there and got things confused. Not sure it's worth checking again without knowing exactly when he was at Camp Pendleton, though.

 

[colette]

Steelman, thanks for that link. It has good descriptions of the unidentified victims. That is sure to help. Here is one:

Jane Doe #5

Frey said a victim known as Jane Doe #5 wore a silver-colored chain-linked bracelet that said "Best Aunt" when investigators found her. Fray asked for help identifying the 5-foot 3-inch African-American woman, who she said was also wearing a silver-colored ring with scalloped engravings and another silver-colored ring with a heart shape.



Read more: http://www.wdsu.com/national/7-women-victims-of-possible-serial-killer/29269120#ixzz3H00sZPWf

 

[mayqueen]

Kristine Williams

Williams, 36, was a resident of Gary and a mother of four, according to her mother-in-law, Deborah Berry.

Berry told CNN she had not heard from Williams since February but did not file a police report because Williams would often "disappear."

"I've been kind of wondering what happened to Kristine. She kind of disappeared," said Berry. "I haven't talked to her since February. She would call me every couple of months. I was like her mother. Her real family wouldn't have much to do with her."

Williams did not have a job, and according to Berry, she had two children from her marriage with Berry's son Siad, and two more children from different fathers.

All four were put up for adoption, said Berry.



Read more: http://www.wdsu.com/national/7-women-victims-of-possible-serial-killer/29269120#ixzz3GzdGMFIb


Kristine and her Dad

Thank you, steelman! Good summary of the 7 victims we know of so far. (I promise I'm normally better at finding information I'm looking for... thank you all for helping me with this mind-boggling case!)

I feel really sad for Kristine. Estranged from family, all of her children put up for adoption. She's the only named victim we don't have "last seen" info for. Her father said in another article that the coroner told him she had been deceased for 10-12 months by the time she was found, but that's all we know... (right? or am I missing something again?)

ETA: Kristine's mother-in-law last spoke to her in February, but we don't know who saw her last, and when.

 

[steelman]

A Scripps review of FBI computer files found 11 unsolved cases in which women were strangled since 1980 in the Austin area. However all but one of the victims were white in contrast to the recent Indiana killings linked to Vann in which most of the victims identified so far were black.


Authorities also are reviewing unsolved murders in North Carolina, where Vann lived in the early 1990s while serving in the U.S. Marine Corps, according to several press reports. Ehlert said differences in the race of victims in the Indiana and Texas cases wouldn’t rule out reviews.
“As an investigation at this point, I would not exclude victims of any race,” Ehlert said yesterday.


The patterns of unsolved killings around Austin are in stark contrast to those in Indiana. Northern Indiana experienced at least 15 unsolved strangulations, mostly of black women, from 1991 through 2007, according to a 2010 Scripps study of the FBI’s Supplementary Homicide Report. Nine of those killings were in Gary. The report is a computer file that provides the details of 590,118 homicides since 1980.

Scripps contacted the Gary Police Department and the Lake County Coroner’s office four years ago about the pattern, suggesting the possibility of one or more serial killers. Police refused to discuss the cases at the time despite repeated requests for interviews over several months. The department has twice this week delayed scheduled interviews to discuss what, if any, reviews were done at the time.

http://www.turnto23.com/decodedc/au...-for-links-to-suspected-indiana-serial-killer

BBM in red

For some odd reason, police departments hate to use the word "serial killer". They almost always poo-poo the idea. No idea why.

 

[steelman]

Kristine Williams knew how she would die, according to her family.

Last winter, Williams was talking by phone to her mother-in-law and her sister and, in both calls, she mentioned a pimp she feared.

"She said [the pimp] took her to an abandoned house and there was a dead body inside," her mother-in-law, Debra Berry, said. "She told me that she wanted me to know that in case she disappeared. I told her to get the hell out of there and call the police.”

Over the weekend, relatives learned that Williams, 36, had been found strangled in a vacant house in Gary. The bodies of two other women were also found inside. By Sunday night, authorities had discovered seven dead women in Hammond and Gary, all believed to be victims of the suspect in the serial killings, Darren Deon Vann, 43.

The family later moved to Indiana. But by 16, her mother had died and Williams had run away from home with Berry's son, Siad, also 16.They had two children together, and Williams had three more children by other men. In all, she leaves two daughters, 8 and 12, and three sons, ages 20, 17 and 14. She also had a grandchild.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/chi-indiana-killings-story.html

BBM above

Note the part about her being taken to an abandon house with a dead body inside by her pimp. This actually matches the story D. Vann told about doing these murders (at least some of them) for someone else. The event with her took place last winter, a year ago.

This is FAR from over.................

 

[steelman]

Hardy was raised in the Chicago area until she was nine, and then moved to Aurora, Co, where she attended high school. She moved back to Chicago in July to live with relatives in the Garfield neighborhood on the West Side and start a new chapter in her life.

Detectives said Vann arranged to meet Hardy at the motel through an online escort service.

“I believe what the detectives told me,” Townsend said. “I believe that to be the truth . . . I don’t condone that but these girls, they fall into the hands of that, and it doesn’t matter if you come from a million-dollar family or a poverty-stricken family, these girls fall into the hands of that,” Townsend said.

“I had no indication that that was going on . . . I think she was probably ashamed to tell me or what not, but I had no indication until I found out from detectives.”

http://breakingnews.suntimes.com/ch...es-her-daughters-death-helped-catch-a-killer/



Lori Townsend (left) hopes the death of her daughter Afrika Hardy (right) helped bring an end to the killing spree. She called Hardy "my beauty queen." | Family photo

 

[mysteriew]

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/chi-indiana-killings-story.html

BBM above

Note the part about her being taken to an abandon house with a dead body inside by her pimp. This actually matches the story D. Vann told about doing these murders (at least some of them) for someone else. The event with her took place last winter, a year ago.

This is FAR from over.................

When combined the guy who said he had heard that his wife was dead in in one of the abandoned homes in the city, it sounds to me like this info about a killer might have been common knowlege in parts of the city. And considering if he did get paid for killing at least one....... someone had to know who to go to when they wanted the job done.

 

[steelman]

Anith Jones’ life was worth $300 and two eight balls of crack cocaine.

That’s according to her accused killer, Darren Deon Vann, who told authorities that he was promised drugs and cash by an
unnamed person to make Jones “disappear,” Gary Police said in a sworn affidavit filed Wednesday in Lake County court.


Motel surveillance footage led authorities to Vann, who apparently relished “basking” in the “glory” of his work, police said. He told investigators where to find the bodies of Jones and five others, and allegedly admitted to other murders dating back 20 years, police said.

Whether Vann, 43, was a hit man hired to kill Jones, as he allegedly claimed, or a lone operator spinning a yarn for police remains unclear in the affidavit.

http://breakingnews.suntimes.com/ch...-in-indiana-search-for-more-bodies-continues/

So he's a hit man AND a deranged killer.............LOVELY

 

[LRMOM]

She was a beauty. May she rest in peace.

 

[oldwindow]

http://breakingnews.suntimes.com/ch...-in-indiana-search-for-more-bodies-continues/

So he's a hit man AND a deranged killer.............LOVELY

the man telling him to kill was a pimp , so he(vann) killed women who didn't make money. He set them up to die. they should get this guy right now.!!

 

[colette]

Quick video of Kristine Williams' father talking about the pain of his daughter's murder. Even if Vann gets the death penalty her father will still be left in pain.

“My daughter wasn't an angel. She is the victim. He is not. He is not the victim," Williams said

http://www.wsbt.com/news/local/knox...ter-was-victim-of-gary-serial-killer/29286158

 

[PricklyPear]

the man telling him to kill was a pimp , so he(vann) killed women who didn't make money. He set them up to die. they should get this guy right now.!!

So do you think the guy who hired Vann was the same pimp who took Kristine Williams to an abandoned home with a body in it? Did he know Vann was doing this and where his dumping grounds were? This is something the police need to investigate, I'm pretty sure that would make him an accessory at best. Depending on state law, he could even be charged with murder himself for arranging things.

If he's still out there, I doubt Vann being caught will stop him from having women killed, he'll just find someone else to do it.

 

[PricklyPear]

A Scripps review of FBI computer files found 11 unsolved cases in which women were strangled since 1980 in the Austin area. However all but one of the victims were white in contrast to the recent Indiana killings linked to Vann in which most of the victims identified so far were black.

Authorities also are reviewing unsolved murders in North Carolina, where Vann lived in the early 1990s while serving in the U.S. Marine Corps, according to several press reports. Ehlert said differences in the race of victims in the Indiana and Texas cases wouldn’t rule out reviews.

I would hope not, there was at least one and possibly more white victims just among the seven he led police to in Gary (I'm tentatively including the unidentified blond woman), and if the North Carolina police are able to connect him to Camille Whalen, that's three.

Given the demographic differences between Austin and Gary (in 2000, Austin was 70% white while Gary was 85% black), I don't think the race of the potential victims is all that relevant or surprising. If he hadn't crossed racial boundaries or if he had a definite victim profile, it might be a different story, but the women we've seen pictures of so far all look very different and are from various racial backgrounds.

 

[ClaireNC]

So do you think the guy who hired Vann was the same pimp who took Kristine Williams to an abandoned home with a body in it? Did he know Vann was doing this and where his dumping grounds were? This is something the police need to investigate, I'm pretty sure that would make him an accessory at best. Depending on state law, he could even be charged with murder himself for arranging things.

If he's still out there, I doubt Vann being caught will stop him from having women killed, he'll just find someone else to do it.

I certainly hope police are looking into the claim that he was hired to kill Jones. This could be much bigger than "just" a serial killer.

It kind of reminds me of an episode of Law & Order SVU, that I watched a few days ago. http://www.nbc.com/law-and-order-special-victims-unit/episode-guide/season-16/girls-disappeared/1601

 

[ClaireNC]

I would hope not, there was at least one and possibly more white victims just among the seven he led police to in Gary (I'm tentatively including the unidentified blond woman), and if the North Carolina police are able to connect him to Camille Whalen, that's three.

Given the demographic differences between Austin and Gary (in 2000, Austin was 70% white while Gary was 85% black), I don't think the race of the potential victims is all that relevant or surprising. If he hadn't crossed racial boundaries or if he had a definite victim profile, it might be a different story, but the women we've seen pictures of so far all look very different and are from various racial backgrounds.

And a pretty wide age range.

 

[oldwindow]

So do you think the guy who hired Vann was the same pimp who took Kristine Williams to an abandoned home with a body in it? Did he know Vann was doing this and where his dumping grounds were? This is something the police need to investigate, I'm pretty sure that would make him an accessory at best. Depending on state law, he could even be charged with murder himself for arranging things.

If he's still out there, I doubt Vann being caught will stop him from having women killed, he'll just find someone else to do it.

Yes I do agree he worked for this pimp for a short time.. he still need to stand trail for the murders for hire. All these women had to be working for someone, I don't think all of them came from hit made from the pimp just some in that area, At same time 200$ to kill someone is very cheap. very uncommon amount to do such acts. I doubt Vann knew how to take $300 in coke and turn it 900$ in profit from the street by selling. I highly assumed he did that coke.

A pimp need's a enforcer. Vann was his enforcer, people need to understand the street talks and they(criminals) hear a lot of what going on and who does what. This how he made Vann work for him, maybe he(vann) killed one of his women and this pimp talked to him about it to make things right and gave him work. Forced him to work for him

Its very common in the street world to do such acts. He needed a good killer and Vann was his guy because he was already killing up a storm. Its called "loose end", they wont string it to the pimp for the crime done . he'll say it was all hear say, a serial killer trying to get off. He know his past, so he has good defense in court..

This is how Vann can escape the DP for all this killing.. He saved the trump card and played it very well night one, he can do deal with it. This is why he didn't tell in court . he want that deal.

Here the good part !!. He wont tell about all the crimes he did himself for 20 years, even if he does he will use that murder for hire card to get out of Dp. he Knows how to play this. They break the case down and give him a dose of reality

 

[ClaireNC]

Family hopes Sonya Billingsley is not one of Vann's victims: http://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/...cle_f0c0ebda-1a53-5a06-936f-428b69e8ab4d.html

Sims said her niece believed one of the people who took a flier not far from where Billingsley disappeared was Darren Vann.

There is a thread for her here: http://www.websleuths.com/forums/showthread.php?234760-IN-Sonya-Billingsley-52-Gary-7-Feb-2014

 

[ClaireNC]

Gary police chief: Review of unsolved murders planned - Suspect could be linked to deaths as far back as 1991
http://www.newsnet5.com/decodedc/gary-police-chief-review-of-2010-unsolved-murders-planned

Nearly a week after launching an investigation into possible serial killings of women around Gary, Indiana, the city’s police chief says he plans to look into a 2010 report by Scripps News about an unusual number of unsolved strangulations of women in the area between 1991 and 2007.

 

[steelman]

Gary police chief: Review of unsolved murders planned - Suspect could be linked to deaths as far back as 1991
http://www.newsnet5.com/decodedc/gary-police-chief-review-of-2010-unsolved-murders-planned

Chief Larry McKinley took office in July and said he had no idea what happened four years ago when Scripps reporters, as part of a major investigation into unsolved murders across the nation, sent a letter to his department and a list of 15 unsolved strangulations of women, most of whom died in his city. At the time, former Chief Gary Carter and his investigators did not respond to numerous letters, faxes and phone calls over three months requesting interviews to discuss the cases.

http://www.newsnet5.com/decodedc/gary-police-chief-review-of-2010-unsolved-murders-planned


Yeah !! NOW everybody wants to start reviewing things.........4 years later...........blame the other guy.........uh-huh..................

 

[KateB]

http://www.myfoxaustin.com/story/26...s-vann-case-could-give-them-leads-in-her-case
Family of missing Rundberg women hopes Vann case could give them leads
Posted: Oct 21, 2014 4:49 PM CST Updated: Oct 21, 2014 11:12 PM CST

The possibility that suspected serial killer Darren Vann may be responsible for some unsolved crimes in Austin has at least one family feeling a sense of hope.
Patti Swinburne disappeared from the Rundberg area in 2005.
FOX 7 spoke with her daughter on Tuesday.

https://www.findthemissing.org/en/cases/17584/4
http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/s/swinburne_patti.html

Patti didn't have a thread on here so I made one for her - TX-Patti-Gail-Swinburne-48-Austin-2005-November-3