On the evening of Friday, August 11, 1961, Mattie Catherine Restine (13) and Patty Sue Pritz (14) went missing as they walked home from the "The Beach" area of Carlsbad, New Mexico. 36 hours later, their bodies were found by two rabbit hunters 12 miles northwest of town by Rocky Arroyo which is near Highway 137. The two had been shot in the head and sexually assaulted. A full scale investigation involving the New Mexico State Police, the FBI, the Eddy County Sheriff's Office (ECSO), and the Carlsbad Police Department was launched. No arrests were made and eventually the case went cold.
In January 2003, Investigator Jim Estrada of ECSO reopened the case. The New Mexico Media was reporting in October of that year that the 42 year old murder mystery was about to be solved. But by 2005, Estrada had retired and the case went cold for a second time. Now 48 years later, it still remains unsolved.
Anne Restine Self of Stigler, Oklahoma was 10 years old at the time of her sister's homicide. Almost single-handedly, she has kept the case alive in the Carlsbad and New Mexico public media. She has pressured the ECSO to investigate four suspects (all deceased) which she thinks may be responsible for the crime. Ann would like the DNA which was extracted from the girls clothing to be compared to the suspects (some of whose family members are willing to provide samples).
The Mattie/Patty murders is one of the most troubling cold cases in the nation. It involves the abduction, rape, and murder of two young teenage girls. There are rumors of a cover-up by law enforcement due to the suspects being "connected" to community leaders. One of the deputies, Dan McGrew, investigating the case died suddenly shortly afterwards. It was ruled a suicide, but some information indicates his death was a homicide. Either way, at least three deaths are directly linked.
Original post by Tom Beyer, thread #1, post #1
