Yes, "The Michigan Murders" was about Collins.
IN IN - Renee Bruhl, Patricia Blough & Ann Miller, Indiana Dunes SP, 2 July 1966
- Thread starter Richard
- Start date
Yes, "The Michigan Murders" was about Collins.
The book "The Michigan Murders" was written in 1978, five years after the last of the murders took place.
Although the author tried to remain factual in his writing about the case, he did change all of the names - of everybody in the case. So it takes a bit of work to sort out who is who when you are trying to read the book and do any research.
The Michigan State Police headed a task force which included the Ann Arbor City Police, Ypsilanti City Police, Washtenaw County Sheriff Office, and the Campus police of University of Michigan and Eastern Michigan University. The task force was appointed by the Governor of Michigan to look into what seemed to be a series of murders of young women and girls, many of whom were college students.
Back in 1968 and 1969, it was believed that a single individual or possibly more than one killer were responsible for the murders, although at the time the term "serial killer" was not used. And unlike today, these murders did not get much "press" outside of Southern Michigan. In fact, a book by Time which was a review of the year 1969 in national news does not even mention them.
In Michigan they were referred to as "The Co-ed Murders", and the unknown suspect (later identified as Collins) was usually referred to as "The Co-ed Killer"
The term "Michigan Murders" came about because of the title of the aforementioned book.
It should be mentioned that there were generally believed to be seven murders in the series. There were also several other murders of young women and girls (and one still unsolved disappearance) during that time, but they were not considered to be part of the series.
In 2005, another guy was convicted (based upon DNA evidence) of killing one of the seven victims.
At least three other men were convicted of killing young women at and around the time of the "Co-ed Murders". The most recent one was convicted in October 2011 for the murder of a 13-year-old Toledo, Ohio girl.
Cincinnati Kid
Active Member
- Joined
- Sep 24, 2009
- Messages
- 246
- Reaction score
- 103
One report that I recently read indicates the three women first went with one man onto a smaller boat. Following that, the three women were seen back in the beach area. Then, all three women were seen aboard a larger boat and there were at least two men with them.
This seemingly indicates the first man contacted a friend or friends and had them bring the larger boat to pick up the women and himself. It makes you wonder, how much of this "meeting" was planned in advance?
This seemingly indicates the first man contacted a friend or friends and had them bring the larger boat to pick up the women and himself. It makes you wonder, how much of this "meeting" was planned in advance?
A few thoughts on this case...
July 2, 1966 was a Saturday. The three women were known to have parked their car in a parking lot, left their towells and a few personal items on the beach, and then went into the water to swim. It is said that they were seen getting into a small white motor boat operated by one young man.
Quoting from the origional post/case summary:
--------------
Quote:
A couple reported seeing the women leave their belongings on the beach at approximately 12:00 PM and enter the lake together. The witnesses saw them speaking to an unidentified man operating a 14 - 16 foot-long white boat with a blue interior and and outboard motor sometime afterwards. The couple reported their observations to a park ranger around dusk when they noticed that the women's belongings were still sitting unclaimed on the beach. The witnesses stated that the women went aboard the boat and headed west with the driver.
The park rangers soon learned that missing persons' reports had been filed for Blough, Miller and Bruhl over the weekend in Illinois by their families. The rangers began investigating the park and located Miller's Buick in the parking lot. Her car keys had been located with her belongings and some items of the women's clothing and other personal effects were still inside the vehicle.
The park rangers contacted other law enforcement agencies, including the United States Coast Guard. A search for the missing women was initiated on July 5 (a Tuesday), three days after the women disappeared. Additional witnesses came forward with conflicting stories regarding the women's last known movements, but authorities believe that the first witnesses' reports stating that the women were seen boarding a boat were the most reliable.
More witnesses began substantiating the initial reports that the women entered a white boat operated by an unidentified man. Later accounts described the male as in his early twenties with a tanned complexion and dark, wavy hair. He was wearing a beach jacket at the time.
A visitor was filming home movies at the state park on July 2 and offered his reels to investigators. The search was immediately narrowed to two boats once authorities viewed the footage. One was a fiberglass 16 - 18-foot long trimaran runabout with a three-hulled design, which was operated by a man fitting the description of the unidentified driver. Three females matching the missing women were seen aboard the smaller boat in the footage.
(Note: this description is likely a misstatement. A Trimaran is a sailboat with three separate hulls. It is more likely that this was a Tri-hull Runabout, which has only one hull, shaped a certain way to resemble three hulls in front. This was a popular type of speed boat at the time. A tri-hull runabout would ride high on the water and could get in close to shore.)
The second boat identified was a 26 - 28-foot Trojan cabin cruiser with three men aboard along with three women. The cabin cruiser was seen at approximately 3:00 PM, three hours after the women entered the smaller vessel.
(Note: a 26 or 28 foot cabin cruiser would have had a considerably deeper draft than the other boat, meaning that it would have to remain further from the shoreline to keep from running aground).
Investigators believe that the women may have been dropped off on the beach by the driver of the smaller boat while he drove back to retrieve two male friends and the cabin cruiser. Blough, Miller and Bruhl were reportedly seen eating and walking along the sand dunes after this time. They were approached by another unidentified man, who accompanied them on to the cabin cruiser. Witnesses stated that the cabin cruiser was equipped with a radio / telephone antenna, but apparently did not have a name printed on its stern. This final sighting has never been confirmed, but is considered reliable by authorities.
Unquote.
------------
It is stated in the summary that investigators considered the first scenario/sighting of the girls entering the smaller boat to be the most likely. I concur. Stories about them being dropped off, walking around for a few hours, then somehow boarding the cabin cruiser (no one saw them board) do not make any sense when you consider that they left all of their belongings on the beach.
If they had indeed returned to the beach with the intentions of going on a larger boat later, why didn't they change clothes, retrieve their belongings from the beach, and lock them in their car? Note that the origional witnesses knew that there were three girls, that they placed their belongings on the beach, and that they never returned for them.
Although a large cabin cruiser was indeed seen in the area, it is unlikely (in my opinion) that these three girls were on it. More likely that the three men and three women boarded that cabin cruiser from some dock in a marina, and were in the area of the beach/park coincidentally. They were not seen untill three hours after the girls were seen boarding the smaller motor boat.
While there are are a number of interesting possibilities and intriguing connections, I tend to think that this was a chance meeting of a guy with his speed boat and the three swimming girls. I do not think that he ever returned them to the beach. He may have flipped the boat or run into something at high speed, spilling all into Lake Michigan. As mentioned in the first post, some boat wreackage was found later.
It is also possible that the boat man took the girls to a remote location and killed/buried them. But I doubt - if killing the girls was his plan - that he would have needed a larger boat, or would have included two other men in his little scheme.
If this were a planned "hit" by mobsters or shady characters, there certainly would be a more effective way to do it than to drive a motor boat to a beach and hope that the girls would be swimming by at that exact moment - and all in front of many potential witnesses.
July 2, 1966 was a Saturday. The three women were known to have parked their car in a parking lot, left their towells and a few personal items on the beach, and then went into the water to swim. It is said that they were seen getting into a small white motor boat operated by one young man.
Quoting from the origional post/case summary:
--------------
Quote:
A couple reported seeing the women leave their belongings on the beach at approximately 12:00 PM and enter the lake together. The witnesses saw them speaking to an unidentified man operating a 14 - 16 foot-long white boat with a blue interior and and outboard motor sometime afterwards. The couple reported their observations to a park ranger around dusk when they noticed that the women's belongings were still sitting unclaimed on the beach. The witnesses stated that the women went aboard the boat and headed west with the driver.
The park rangers soon learned that missing persons' reports had been filed for Blough, Miller and Bruhl over the weekend in Illinois by their families. The rangers began investigating the park and located Miller's Buick in the parking lot. Her car keys had been located with her belongings and some items of the women's clothing and other personal effects were still inside the vehicle.
The park rangers contacted other law enforcement agencies, including the United States Coast Guard. A search for the missing women was initiated on July 5 (a Tuesday), three days after the women disappeared. Additional witnesses came forward with conflicting stories regarding the women's last known movements, but authorities believe that the first witnesses' reports stating that the women were seen boarding a boat were the most reliable.
More witnesses began substantiating the initial reports that the women entered a white boat operated by an unidentified man. Later accounts described the male as in his early twenties with a tanned complexion and dark, wavy hair. He was wearing a beach jacket at the time.
A visitor was filming home movies at the state park on July 2 and offered his reels to investigators. The search was immediately narrowed to two boats once authorities viewed the footage. One was a fiberglass 16 - 18-foot long trimaran runabout with a three-hulled design, which was operated by a man fitting the description of the unidentified driver. Three females matching the missing women were seen aboard the smaller boat in the footage.
(Note: this description is likely a misstatement. A Trimaran is a sailboat with three separate hulls. It is more likely that this was a Tri-hull Runabout, which has only one hull, shaped a certain way to resemble three hulls in front. This was a popular type of speed boat at the time. A tri-hull runabout would ride high on the water and could get in close to shore.)
The second boat identified was a 26 - 28-foot Trojan cabin cruiser with three men aboard along with three women. The cabin cruiser was seen at approximately 3:00 PM, three hours after the women entered the smaller vessel.
(Note: a 26 or 28 foot cabin cruiser would have had a considerably deeper draft than the other boat, meaning that it would have to remain further from the shoreline to keep from running aground).
Investigators believe that the women may have been dropped off on the beach by the driver of the smaller boat while he drove back to retrieve two male friends and the cabin cruiser. Blough, Miller and Bruhl were reportedly seen eating and walking along the sand dunes after this time. They were approached by another unidentified man, who accompanied them on to the cabin cruiser. Witnesses stated that the cabin cruiser was equipped with a radio / telephone antenna, but apparently did not have a name printed on its stern. This final sighting has never been confirmed, but is considered reliable by authorities.
Unquote.
------------
It is stated in the summary that investigators considered the first scenario/sighting of the girls entering the smaller boat to be the most likely. I concur. Stories about them being dropped off, walking around for a few hours, then somehow boarding the cabin cruiser (no one saw them board) do not make any sense when you consider that they left all of their belongings on the beach.
If they had indeed returned to the beach with the intentions of going on a larger boat later, why didn't they change clothes, retrieve their belongings from the beach, and lock them in their car? Note that the origional witnesses knew that there were three girls, that they placed their belongings on the beach, and that they never returned for them.
Although a large cabin cruiser was indeed seen in the area, it is unlikely (in my opinion) that these three girls were on it. More likely that the three men and three women boarded that cabin cruiser from some dock in a marina, and were in the area of the beach/park coincidentally. They were not seen untill three hours after the girls were seen boarding the smaller motor boat.
While there are are a number of interesting possibilities and intriguing connections, I tend to think that this was a chance meeting of a guy with his speed boat and the three swimming girls. I do not think that he ever returned them to the beach. He may have flipped the boat or run into something at high speed, spilling all into Lake Michigan. As mentioned in the first post, some boat wreackage was found later.
It is also possible that the boat man took the girls to a remote location and killed/buried them. But I doubt - if killing the girls was his plan - that he would have needed a larger boat, or would have included two other men in his little scheme.
If this were a planned "hit" by mobsters or shady characters, there certainly would be a more effective way to do it than to drive a motor boat to a beach and hope that the girls would be swimming by at that exact moment - and all in front of many potential witnesses.
Cincinnati Kid
Active Member
- Joined
- Sep 24, 2009
- Messages
- 246
- Reaction score
- 103
I think if an accident had taken place involving four individuals (the three women and the boatman) out on the lake, one body or more would have eventually been discovered. Admittedly, I'm not familar with the depths of the lake in that area or the drift of the tide, but out of what could have been four people killed, I think something would have been found especially in that summer season.
As I have previously noted, if the women were killed, it would probably have taken more than one individual to carry that out.
As I have previously noted, if the women were killed, it would probably have taken more than one individual to carry that out.
Cincinnati Kid
Active Member
- Joined
- Sep 24, 2009
- Messages
- 246
- Reaction score
- 103
I first learned of this incident by reading an article in a detective magazine back in the 1980's. The story was also contained in a book that came out some years ago about unsolved Chicago area murders and disappearances. I can recall that weekend and remember that July 4th came on a Monday.
Had this disappearance taken place in more recent years, there would be intensive coverage by cable news networks and it would have no doubt been reported on newscasts by the major networks and network morning shows would probably have had family members on to talk about it. I do wonder what kind of coverage it received in such newspapers as the Chicago Tribune and for how long?
Although it took place over 45 years ago, I think there are still some who know what happened to these women and who was responsible.
Had this disappearance taken place in more recent years, there would be intensive coverage by cable news networks and it would have no doubt been reported on newscasts by the major networks and network morning shows would probably have had family members on to talk about it. I do wonder what kind of coverage it received in such newspapers as the Chicago Tribune and for how long?
Although it took place over 45 years ago, I think there are still some who know what happened to these women and who was responsible.
You are right about news coverage in the 1960's. It did tend to be more locally isolated when it came to crime reporting - even the disappearance of three women from a public beach.
Your best bet for researching this story would be to start with newspapers in the Gary, Indiana area because Gary is the closest big city to the Indiana Dunes Park.
Probably the first newspaper to check for stories would be the Post Tribune. It is a local newspaper from Gary, Indiana covering local, regional and national news and events.
Because this is an older story, you might have to do some microfilm searching.
LINK toa listing of Gary, Indiana area newspapers:
http://www.allyoucanread.com/gary-newspaper-in/
Your best bet for researching this story would be to start with newspapers in the Gary, Indiana area because Gary is the closest big city to the Indiana Dunes Park.
Probably the first newspaper to check for stories would be the Post Tribune. It is a local newspaper from Gary, Indiana covering local, regional and national news and events.
Because this is an older story, you might have to do some microfilm searching.
LINK toa listing of Gary, Indiana area newspapers:
http://www.allyoucanread.com/gary-newspaper-in/
Cincinnati Kid
Active Member
- Joined
- Sep 24, 2009
- Messages
- 246
- Reaction score
- 103
There are some articles on the disappearance in the Chicago Tribune that begin right after it took place up into the fall and into 1967. However, there is a cost to do view those on-line from that newspaper.
Cincinnati Kid
Active Member
- Joined
- Sep 24, 2009
- Messages
- 246
- Reaction score
- 103
Nice of you to do that. This particular case continues to be looked at on this website so the interest is there. Just amazing how three young ladies could have vanished like they did. I feel there is someone still around who knows what happened.
MaryLiz
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Sep 25, 2005
- Messages
- 1,630
- Reaction score
- 161
Thanks, I do think of them often, especially around July 2nd. I agree with you 100%. I totally believe there is more than one person still alive who knows what happened to them. I just wish they would come forward.
This is a fascinating case with a lot of information - some pertinent and some probably not.
Of primary interest is the description and motion pictures of the smaller motorboat, its driver, and the three girls in that boat.
Of secondary interest is the information about and photos of the larger cabin cruiser.
While a name on the stern sounds important, the more important information would be the letters and numbers on each side near the bow. These are registration numbers - just like car plates, except that they never change. Retrieving those registration numbers from the film would make boat and owner identification very easy, even today. I was personally able to retrieve historical information relating to the various owners and sales of my own boat dating back to 1971.
The girls were wearing swim suits and probably nothing else, since they swam out to the small boat and since they left their belongings on the beach untouched and in the parked car. This fact, and the fact that they were photographed on board the smaller boat would make it pretty easy to analyze photos of the larger boat to determine whether or not they and the small boat's driver were in fact aboard the larger boat later in the day.
While there is much intrigue and mystery woven into this story, some possibly important (and easy to ascertain) facts are missing. What was the weather like that day? What was the state of the waves? Were there any distress signals copied by the Coast Guard or other ships/boats that day? What specific wreckage was located later during the search? Were any boats reported missing or stolen that day or within a few days of the girls' disappearance. Any other persons reported missing?
Sometimes the most likely solution to the problem is the least interesting. In looking at the available facts (realizing that some important ones are missing) one could conclude that the small boat and its driver and passengers perished during a high speed collision with a wave, or simply flipped in a quick manuever.
A Tri-Hull runabout was a boat built primarily for speed and they sported rather high power outboards for the size of the boat. An 85 Horsepower engine could generate a lot of power and speed, and they require a lot of gasoline on board.
The driver may well have been showing off for his guests after they departed the beach area. A top skimming boat like a tri-hull is not very stable in high winds or heavy seas and a collision with a wave, or buoy, or floating piece of debris would be disastrous. One cannot assume that a body would ever reach the shore if they were a long way out on Lake Michigan.
Of primary interest is the description and motion pictures of the smaller motorboat, its driver, and the three girls in that boat.
Of secondary interest is the information about and photos of the larger cabin cruiser.
While a name on the stern sounds important, the more important information would be the letters and numbers on each side near the bow. These are registration numbers - just like car plates, except that they never change. Retrieving those registration numbers from the film would make boat and owner identification very easy, even today. I was personally able to retrieve historical information relating to the various owners and sales of my own boat dating back to 1971.
The girls were wearing swim suits and probably nothing else, since they swam out to the small boat and since they left their belongings on the beach untouched and in the parked car. This fact, and the fact that they were photographed on board the smaller boat would make it pretty easy to analyze photos of the larger boat to determine whether or not they and the small boat's driver were in fact aboard the larger boat later in the day.
While there is much intrigue and mystery woven into this story, some possibly important (and easy to ascertain) facts are missing. What was the weather like that day? What was the state of the waves? Were there any distress signals copied by the Coast Guard or other ships/boats that day? What specific wreckage was located later during the search? Were any boats reported missing or stolen that day or within a few days of the girls' disappearance. Any other persons reported missing?
Sometimes the most likely solution to the problem is the least interesting. In looking at the available facts (realizing that some important ones are missing) one could conclude that the small boat and its driver and passengers perished during a high speed collision with a wave, or simply flipped in a quick manuever.
A Tri-Hull runabout was a boat built primarily for speed and they sported rather high power outboards for the size of the boat. An 85 Horsepower engine could generate a lot of power and speed, and they require a lot of gasoline on board.
The driver may well have been showing off for his guests after they departed the beach area. A top skimming boat like a tri-hull is not very stable in high winds or heavy seas and a collision with a wave, or buoy, or floating piece of debris would be disastrous. One cannot assume that a body would ever reach the shore if they were a long way out on Lake Michigan.
Cincinnati Kid
Active Member
- Joined
- Sep 24, 2009
- Messages
- 246
- Reaction score
- 103
Richard -
Your post offers quite a bit to consider and you are to be thanked for all that you provided. May I just ask a couple of questions?
In the reports on this story, two boats have been mentioned in connection with the three women. One has been described as a 16-18 foot fiberglass trimaran runabout. The other was a 26-28 foot Trojan cabin cruiser. Some say the three girls first entered the smaller boat that had one man on it. Later, they are reported to have gone aboard the larger craft that had three men on it. There is a belief that they spent some time back on the beach in the time between being on the boats. I assume you mean the driver of the smaller boat may have been showing off at a high speed and flipped it. If that is the case, how could they have later been seen aboard the larger craft? Also, I can understand how one or even two bodies going into Lake Michigan may not be found, but what about six (three women and the reported three men)? I would also think there would be wreckage of some kind seen in the hours and even days after an accident.
The approximate weather in that area could be found by checking microfilm of area newspapers from that weekend. I tend to think it was warm weather (mid-70's up into the 80's) with sunny or partly sunny skies. Good enough for a number of people to be on the beach and in boats on that day.
Your post offers quite a bit to consider and you are to be thanked for all that you provided. May I just ask a couple of questions?
In the reports on this story, two boats have been mentioned in connection with the three women. One has been described as a 16-18 foot fiberglass trimaran runabout. The other was a 26-28 foot Trojan cabin cruiser. Some say the three girls first entered the smaller boat that had one man on it. Later, they are reported to have gone aboard the larger craft that had three men on it. There is a belief that they spent some time back on the beach in the time between being on the boats. I assume you mean the driver of the smaller boat may have been showing off at a high speed and flipped it. If that is the case, how could they have later been seen aboard the larger craft? Also, I can understand how one or even two bodies going into Lake Michigan may not be found, but what about six (three women and the reported three men)? I would also think there would be wreckage of some kind seen in the hours and even days after an accident.
The approximate weather in that area could be found by checking microfilm of area newspapers from that weekend. I tend to think it was warm weather (mid-70's up into the 80's) with sunny or partly sunny skies. Good enough for a number of people to be on the beach and in boats on that day.
STANDREID
A slacker when slacker wasn't cool
- Joined
- Jun 16, 2011
- Messages
- 4,681
- Reaction score
- 728
That is a well traveled area so could that many floating bodies and accompanying debris go unseen for days/weeks? In my estimation, the simplest solution as to their fate is that they were murdered and their weighted bodies were dropped into the lake.
There was a movie, according to case summary information, which showed that there were different two boats which were near the beach at two different time. However, it has never been conclusively proven that the girls were on both boats. It has been Speculated, but not proven.
In my previous post, I suggested that that film footage be analyzed to determine if, in fact, the three girls who boarded the smaller runabout were the same three girls seen on the Cabin Cruiser some hours later. They would probably be wearing the same swim suits on both boats. For that matter, can it be determined that the small boat operator was one of the men filmed on the larger boat?
There is a lot of conflicting information and witness testimony, but as the police indicated, they tended to believe the initial witnesses as most reliable. Those witnesses stated on the day that the girls disappeared that the girls left their stuff on the beach, swam out to and boarded the smaller craft, and NEVER RETURNED for their stuff. These first witnesses did NOT state that they saw the girls on the larger boat.
Several days later, someone else claimed to have seen the three girls ashore between alleged boat rides. Did that witness actually know the women? Did he actually see the same three women? And could he say positively (several days after the fact) that it was at say 2PM instead of 11 AM?
IF these women were murdered, it wouldn't make any sense to cruise around with them for several hours, parading them in front of so many witnesses on the beach. And IF there was some accident in the open water - out of sight of witnesses - it would more likely be in a fast moving surface skimmer than on a larger, more stable platform. If a small boat were to flip or collide with something, it would be more difficult to get out an emergency message than if a larger boat came into distress.
My point about the weather is that while it might be a nice day on the beach, the weather affects boating significantly if the waves are high or if there is rain or lightning. The rougher the weather and water, the more likely chance of a boating accident.
Knowing the weather, winds, currents, etc would have provided the Coast Guard with necessary information to search for possible victims - but they would have to know that there had been a boating accident before they would begin such a search. In fact, I think that any searching was conducted in and around the park itself.
In regard to a possible accident and missing persons, Lake Michigan is not a small body of water. There may have been a lot of boats near shore, but simply heading north away from the beach would quickly take a boat well out of the sight from shore or other boats.
Again, analyzing the film could provide significant clues toward solving this case. Every boat is required to display its registration numbers and letters on both sides of its bow, and knowing those numbers would allow an investigator to determine who owned the boat at the time - and every subsequent owner as well.
Marilynilpa
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Apr 29, 2005
- Messages
- 5,165
- Reaction score
- 1,211
Richard, as always you have stated your point well. I had never thought much about the possibility of a boat accident until your earlier post and then this last post.
If this is what happened then we also have a missing male. I'll do a quick search (if you haven't already) to see if we have a male missing since 7/2/66, or a male UID that might match up.
I think the smaller boat is key to this mystery. It is too bad no identifying numbers could be seen on the smaller boat.
If this is what happened then we also have a missing male. I'll do a quick search (if you haven't already) to see if we have a male missing since 7/2/66, or a male UID that might match up.
I think the smaller boat is key to this mystery. It is too bad no identifying numbers could be seen on the smaller boat.
Marilynilpa
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Apr 29, 2005
- Messages
- 5,165
- Reaction score
- 1,211
A quick check of missing men doesn't seem to have anything related to the time frame of July 1966. Tomorrow I'll check more thoroughly and use a larger time frame.
There are a lot of UIDs, so that might take a while to go through them all.
There are a lot of UIDs, so that might take a while to go through them all.
Bodies are normally buoyant at the time of death. A person who has minimal body fat (more likely a man) might sink. A body put into water, unless there is relatively high body fat, will eventually sink as the lungs fill up with water. Drowning victims are more likely to sink faster than victims of other causes of death because it involves at least partial filling of the lungs with water.
At some point after death, depending on many factors, most bodies will float to the surface because of gases in the abdominal cavity that form as part of the decomposition process cause the body to inflate. Bodies will tend to float for days before they decay sufficiently to sink again. The speed will depend on many variables.
Bodies can drift toward shore and be found there but in areas with relatively high small boat traffic they are usually found by others in small boats. I live near a large lake and virtually every drowning victim is found by another boater within about 5 days. I doubt that anyone could claim with absolute certainty that if 4 people died in a small boat "mishap" on the southern coast of Lake Michigan at the time, at least one body would have been found, but I bet it would have been extremely likely.
Realistically, I give Indiana/Illinois Law enforcement credit to have made the connection had a guy alone in a Tri Hull disappeared on the same day as the three women.
The buoyancy of death bodies is surprising. Anyone who follows true crime might recall cases where bodies that were weighted down with concrete still floated to the surface. (The Oba Chandler case in Tampa comes to mind). If the guy in the Tri hull did it, he was prepared with three very effective weights.
Something that isn't clear is what, if any effort was made to locate either boat or its owner. I would think there would not have been that many of either boat out on the lake that day and, with reasonable publicity, the owners would have come forward if they had nothing to hide.
I can see a sexual predator using a "fun" boat like a Tri Hull to lure one or more women into his boat and out to where he could have his way. It seems far less likely that three men would do it together in a cabin cruiser. Cabin Cruisers are far more distinctive and much more likely to be recognized and realistically, when have three men worked together on a sexual assault? It is usually a solo effort with the rare 2 man team.
At some point after death, depending on many factors, most bodies will float to the surface because of gases in the abdominal cavity that form as part of the decomposition process cause the body to inflate. Bodies will tend to float for days before they decay sufficiently to sink again. The speed will depend on many variables.
Bodies can drift toward shore and be found there but in areas with relatively high small boat traffic they are usually found by others in small boats. I live near a large lake and virtually every drowning victim is found by another boater within about 5 days. I doubt that anyone could claim with absolute certainty that if 4 people died in a small boat "mishap" on the southern coast of Lake Michigan at the time, at least one body would have been found, but I bet it would have been extremely likely.
Realistically, I give Indiana/Illinois Law enforcement credit to have made the connection had a guy alone in a Tri Hull disappeared on the same day as the three women.
The buoyancy of death bodies is surprising. Anyone who follows true crime might recall cases where bodies that were weighted down with concrete still floated to the surface. (The Oba Chandler case in Tampa comes to mind). If the guy in the Tri hull did it, he was prepared with three very effective weights.
Something that isn't clear is what, if any effort was made to locate either boat or its owner. I would think there would not have been that many of either boat out on the lake that day and, with reasonable publicity, the owners would have come forward if they had nothing to hide.
I can see a sexual predator using a "fun" boat like a Tri Hull to lure one or more women into his boat and out to where he could have his way. It seems far less likely that three men would do it together in a cabin cruiser. Cabin Cruisers are far more distinctive and much more likely to be recognized and realistically, when have three men worked together on a sexual assault? It is usually a solo effort with the rare 2 man team.