OH OH - Amy Mihaljevic, 10, Bay Village, 27 Oct 1989

[MissLaura]

What did you think of either the podcast or the Lake Erie Murders program?

I thought both were very good and informative. I'm glad Falling Down recommended the Lake Erie Murders program (thank you!). It just drives me crazy that there has been no justice in this case and they haven't figured out who the guy was. I hope they get a major breakthrough with some of the DNA evidence.

 

[SAMS]

.

 

[Richard]

Is ID Thief Robert Nichols Connected to the 1989 Ohio Murder of 10-Year-Old?
June 25, 2018

BAY VILLAGE, OH — Last Friday, authorities revealed the real identity of an Ohio resident who had been known for decades as Joseph Newton Chandler III.

The mystery man turned out to be Robert Ivan Nichols, a decorated World War II veteran who stole the identity of a young boy who died in 1958....

... Amy Mihaljevic disappeared on October 27, 1989. She said she was going with a friend to the Bay Square Shopping Center.

Two witnesses said they saw Amy that day with a man who would now be in his mid-50s or early ’60s.

Searchers discovered Amy’s body on February 9, 1990. She had been stabbed twice in the neck and hit in the head with a blunt object.

Police will now look into Nichols’ whereabouts at the time of Amy’s abduction. If the timelines match up, further investigations are expected to involve DNA tests...

LINK:

https://www.investigationdiscovery....nected-to-the-1989-ohio-murder-of-10-year-old

 

[mothwings]

Just finished the 3-part special on this from the Lake Erie Murders doc. This was an epic look into this frustrating case, filmed very well and I also found it quite scary especially with the sketches and how calm, collective and meticulous this monster was.

The man who did this to this innocent child is pure evil. To stab a little girl in the neck and let her bleed to death after raping her—he doesn't deserve to be breathe the same air we do. It is a sickening feeling to know this case as not been solved and this animal is still walking among us!

My heart was breaking for Amy's mom. I can't imagine the torture this monster put Amy's family through. It's time he be caught and punished.

The calls around the area to girls enticing them to come buy a secret gift for their mom is very similar to the MO that was used in the MARGARET ELLEN FOX case. While this killer lured girls with phone calls under the pretense of a surprise gift for their mother, this monster lured girls around the area by calling them offering babysitting jobs. NJ - NJ - Margaret Fox, 14, Burlington, 24 June 1974 Burlington, New Jersey isn't too far from Bay Village, Ohio. I wonder if there is any connection.

I really hope this case is solved. I think the journalist may possibly be on the right track but I guess the police need more evidence.

 

[mothwings]

Are there any other documentaries on this? I am haunted by the Lake Erie documentary last night.

 

[Richard]

Who was Robert Nichols?

LINK:

 

[mothwings]

Amy and her mom have a resting place in New Berlin, WI about an hour away from me. I may go visit it sometime.

I have watched the Lake Erie documentary on this case and would like to say, I think changing the composite three times was not a good idea. First, the witnesses described wavy hair yet on the second composite done by the FBI, they didn't incorporate any wavy hair into it. I think the first sketch was the best and should have not been replaced. I don't think there should have been a sketch without glasses because the person who remembers glasses wouldn't remember them unless her abductor had glasses. Overall, I just think they should have stuck with the first composite. It was the best with more detail. The first sketch and then the FBI composite, it looks like two different people. Then the third one was way-off in my opinion. I will always believe the first composite looks more like the killer than any.

Does anyone have any footage that was shown on this documentary or a link to it? Margaret's first plea? The birthday press conference? Or maybe that interview she did where she said "I knew there was something wrong"? Or the Oprah appearance? Or the Sally Jessy Raphael show appearance? If anyone has any links to these, please let me know!

When Margaret said "Whatever is wrong, whatever is wrong, please let her come home", was she trying to emphasize with the abductor to get him to let her go? Maybe the FBI told her people usually people don't do these things unless they have a bump in the road and maybe told Margaret to reach out to the abductor's feelings to maybe get him to think she understands in hopes he would let Amy go? That had to be a hard thing to do. I don't know why she would say "Whatever is wrong" other than for the reason above. This poor woman.

When she said, "Do whatever you can to contact an officer of the law or call us at home", the FBI had set-up some tracking device on their phone line to make sure if Amy could reach a phone, they'd be able to trace it and she said it separating her words clearly in case Amy could hear a television from wherever she was being held.

I wonder why the abductor let her call her mom? Any theories? Do you think Amy knew she was in trouble or was she trying to buy some time shopping?

 

[Betty P]

I wonder why the abductor let her call her mom? Any theories? Do you think Amy knew she was in trouble or was she trying to buy some time shopping?

I've also wondered about this. Allowing a victim to call a parent in the midst of a child abduction/murder is extremely rare. IIRC, LE said perhaps he did this to keep Amy calm and cooperative as they traveled to the final destination. Maybe he was beginning to have trouble controlling her.

I hope there are answers soon. Prayers for her family.

 

[Warwick1991]

Just finished the 3-part special on this from the Lake Erie Murders doc. This was an epic look into this frustrating case, filmed very well and I also found it quite scary especially with the sketches and how calm, collective and meticulous this monster was.

The man who did this to this innocent child is pure evil. To stab a little girl in the neck and let her bleed to death after raping her—he doesn't deserve to be breathe the same air we do. It is a sickening feeling to know this case as not been solved and this animal is still walking among us!

My heart was breaking for Amy's mom. I can't imagine the torture this monster put Amy's family through. It's time he be caught and punished.

The calls around the area to girls enticing them to come buy a secret gift for their mom is very similar to the MO that was used in the MARGARET ELLEN FOX case. While this killer lured girls with phone calls under the pretense of a surprise gift for their mother, this monster lured girls around the area by calling them offering babysitting jobs. NJ - NJ - Margaret Fox, 14, Burlington, 24 June 1974 Burlington, New Jersey isn't too far from Bay Village, Ohio. I wonder if there is any connection.

I really hope this case is solved. I think the journalist may possibly be on the right track but I guess the police need more evidence.

Ohio isn’t close to New Jersey at all. It would be a 7 hour ride without bathroom or meal breaks, heavy traffic not considered... Killers can certainly be mobile, but adjacency wouldn’t be a factor for the NJ case.

 

[Betty P]

Ohio isn’t close to New Jersey at all. It would be a 7 hour ride without bathroom or meal breaks, heavy traffic not considered... Killers can certainly be mobile, but adjacency wouldn’t be a factor for the NJ case.

Correct, its a long distance. Evidence also indicates someone familiar with the area, particularly the area where Amy's body was found.

Sadly, there are many evil people out there who invest a lot of time coming up with tricks to trap innocent kids.

 

[mothwings]

Ohio isn’t close to New Jersey at all. It would be a 7 hour ride without bathroom or meal breaks, heavy traffic not considered... Killers can certainly be mobile, but adjacency wouldn’t be a factor for the NJ case.

That depends on how one defines "close" with respect to national locations. You may see it as not close at all but I'm sure it wouldn't be too far away for LE to check-out and they probably have already because of the similar MO.

In fact, many cases LE mentioned in the documentary were states away from Bay Village. It certainly factors in where someone is abducted from and many other girls in Margaret Fox's case were located in Burlington and receiving manipulative calls from the same abductor.

I'm not even saying they are related just that the MO was similar. Other than that, the case is pretty different. Just keeping an open mind.

Correct, its a long distance. Evidence also indicates someone familiar with the area, particularly the area where Amy's body was found.

Sadly, there are many evil people out there who invest a lot of time coming up with tricks to trap innocent kids.

It can be described as a long distance but it certainly isn't as long of a distance as Ohio to California. It's not as long of distance as Ohio to Colorado. It's fairly close when you look at how much the United States encompasses. It's not as long of distance for LE not to check-out. I'm sure they would if they haven't already as they have said many times they look for other cases with similar MOs.

 

[mothwings]

I've also wondered about this. Allowing a victim to call a parent in the midst of a child abduction/murder is extremely rare. IIRC, LE said perhaps he did this to keep Amy calm and cooperative as they traveled to the final destination. Maybe he was beginning to have trouble controlling her.

I hope there are answers soon. Prayers for her family.

I also wonder how the abductor got her away from the shopping center. Many local people said they could have just gotten her mom a gift from there (if this had been the plan). I'd imagine that's what Amy was assuming—that he would buy the gift at the shopping center. Maybe the abductor said they would go to Westgate Mall for a better selection to lead her away and into his car. Lots of unanswered questions but generally I think she wanted to do something sweet for her mom and her killer took advantage of her love for her mom. So sad! I believe this case will be solved! Hopefully soon. I wish it would be profiled on 48 Hours, Dateline, etc to get some more attention.

 

[Betty P]

I also wonder how the abductor got her away from the shopping center. Many local people said they could have just gotten her mom a gift from there (if this had been the plan). I'd imagine that's what Amy was assuming—that he would buy the gift at the shopping center. Maybe the abductor said they would go to Westgate Mall for a better selection to lead her away and into his car. Lots of unanswered questions but generally I think she wanted to do something sweet for her mom and her killer took advantage of her love for her mom. So sad! I believe this case will be solved! Hopefully soon. I wish it would be profiled on 48 Hours, Dateline, etc to get some more attention.

I'm guessing the killer suggested going to Westgate or someplace similar. IIRC, there weren't a lot of places to shop for a gift in the Bay Plaza back then. Baskin Robbins, shoe repair, barber shop, bowling alley/video game arcade, drug store, hardware store, bank, maybe a pizza place.

There was, however, a really nice gift shop several blocks south. Not too far away, but far enough it would have been too long to walk. There's a Malley' Chocolates there now, but back then it was a very nice gift shop that had a fairly large selection of things.

خرائط ‪Google

‬‏‏https://www.google.com/maps/dir/Bay+Village+Square+Shopping+Center,+27239+Wolf+Rd,+Bay+Village,+OH+44140/Malley's+Chocolates,+Dover+Center+Road,+Bay+Village,+OH/@41.4820233,-81.9260998,16z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m13!4m12!1m5!1m1!1s0x88308d0c7f79405d:0xad069c98378e4f7b!2m2!1d-81.9219542!2d41.4845424!1m5!1m1!1s0x88308d887c8137c7:0x681169012613ef8b!2m2!1d-81.921479!2d41.479114

There were also some nice shops in Rocky River then, too. I wonder if he told her in advance where they were going to "shop"?

ETA: Considering she called her mom after they left on their shopping trip, it's possible he told her they were going to Great Northern Mall. That would have been on the way to the area where she was eventually found.

I'm not sure of any locations for shopping west of Bay Village back then. It was still mostly some subdivisions and lots of farms and some vineyards back then.

 

[GoBuckeyes]

I've also wondered about this. Allowing a victim to call a parent in the midst of a child abduction/murder is extremely rare. IIRC, LE said perhaps he did this to keep Amy calm and cooperative as they traveled to the final destination. Maybe he was beginning to have trouble controlling her.

I hope there are answers soon. Prayers for her family.

I guess I grew up with this case, Amy and I would have been 4 years apart. But I see now, I don't know the case at all. This is beyond awful. He let her call her Mom?!? That is twisted beyond what I've ever heard.

 

[GoBuckeyes]

Who was Robert Nichols?

LINK:

Interesting that he is a POI in the Zodiac case.

 

[Betty P]

I guess I grew up with this case, Amy and I would have been 4 years apart. But I see now, I don't know the case at all. This is beyond awful. He let her call her Mom?!? That is twisted beyond what I've ever heard.

Yeah, I think it was shortly after she left with him. She called her mom at work to tell her not to worry. It was Amy's habit to call her mom when she got home from school every day.

Amy Mihaljevic investigation shifts to mother's acquaintances 25 years later

Who killed Amy Mihaljevic? The missing pieces, and a killer on the run

The killer knew where her mom worked and other details about her family. He knew the family routine, he knew what Amy looked like. For that reason, LE has always believed it was someone who knew her mom, their family, etc.

You asked a good question, though, about where the killer told her they were going to shop for the gift. I wonder if Amy mentioned that to her mom when she called?

ETA: In the second link above, Chief Spaetzle mentions that he thinks Amy was out shopping with the killer when she called. So, most likely, she was calling from a pay phone in a shopping mall or someplace similar. Great Northern Mall or Westgate Mall would have been two possible locations. As I mentioned before, I lean towards Great Northern, as it could be a waypoint on the way to Ashland County. There's also Midway Mall in Elyria, but that's not a typical shopping destination for people living in Bay Village and it may have made Amy suspicious.

خرائط ‪Google‬‏‏

 

[mothwings]

America's Most Wanted profiled Amy's case on January 14, 1990 (a few weeks before her body was found).

It is really short and doesn't start until 20:54. I wish they would have shown the suspect sketch on it.

Here is the link:

 

[CastlesBurning]

Amy Mihaljevic Suspects: Who Killed Amy Mihaljevic?

 

[:+:MrTT:+:]

I've also wondered about this. Allowing a victim to call a parent in the midst of a child abduction/murder is extremely rare. IIRC, LE said perhaps he did this to keep Amy calm and cooperative as they traveled to the final destination. Maybe he was beginning to have trouble controlling her.

I hope there are answers soon. Prayers for her family.

To buy time. He gain perhaps an exctra hour or so, simply by letting her call. No amber alert, not poice investgation, possible child aduption, be on the lok out. all that. He avoided all that simply by letting her call mom, because he was running out of time. That was a smart move on the monsters part. But I want to know, did she know3 her mothers nujmber or did he call for her. Forgive the misspell i am very sick these days.

 

[j_in_c]

Interesting that he is a POI in the Zodiac case.

I think it is much more likely he left for a completely mundane reason. Just like the "Lori Ruff" case - she left a life behind for no discernible reason at all.