Found Deceased OR - Karissa Alyn Fretwell, 25, William "Billy" Fretwell, Toddler, Salem, 13 May 2019 *ARREST*

[csellards79]

Yamhill County District Attorney Brad Berry discusses the case against Michael Wolfe, who’s accused of murdering and kidnapping Karissa Fretwell and their son William.

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=615452415627826

I've watched this video of the interview with the DA several times. I am in no way a body language expert. (but I manage bad debt collections) This is all just my opinion, but the DA seems to raise his eyebrows and open his eyes when he believes something to be completely truthful. It looks to me like they do have evidence, it may not be blood evidence. I don't think they know exactly what is in the trash bag yet. I do think they believe that other(s) are involved. Whatever was in the text message from Karissa's phone seems to make him angry or disgust him and that might be a very strong piece of evidence. All MOO.

P.S. This is my first post and I signed up on this forum just to follow this thread. I have two little blonde toddler boys and this story has absolutely shattered my heart. I too am praying that little Billy is still alive somehow. Thanks everyone for all of the info and updates you are posting!

 

[Oregonmama]

I've watched this video of the interview with the DA several times. I am in no way a body language expert. (but I manage bad debt collections) This is all just my opinion, but the DA seems to raise his eyebrows and open his eyes when he believes something to be completely truthful. It looks to me like they do have evidence, it may not be blood evidence. I don't think they know exactly what is in the trash bag yet. I do think they believe that other(s) are involved. Whatever was in the text message from Karissa's phone seems to make him angry or disgust him and that might be a very strong piece of evidence. All MOO.

P.S. This is my first post and I signed up on this forum just to follow this thread. I have two little blonde toddler boys and this story has absolutely shattered my heart. I too am praying that little Billy is still alive somehow. Thanks everyone for all of the info and updates you are posting!

Welcome to WS and good observations!

 

[Yamhill]

I've watched this video of the interview with the DA several times. I am in no way a body language expert. (but I manage bad debt collections) This is all just my opinion, but the DA seems to raise his eyebrows and open his eyes when he believes something to be completely truthful. It looks to me like they do have evidence, it may not be blood evidence. I don't think they know exactly what is in the trash bag yet. I do think they believe that other(s) are involved. Whatever was in the text message from Karissa's phone seems to make him angry or disgust him and that might be a very strong piece of evidence. All MOO.

P.S. This is my first post and I signed up on this forum just to follow this thread. I have two little blonde toddler boys and this story has absolutely shattered my heart. I too am praying that little Billy is still alive somehow. Thanks everyone for all of the info and updates you are posting!

Billy Fretwell is adorable but all little kids are adorable.
God made little kids to be adorsble to ensure that sane adults will care for them.

As a result, a murder case involving children or young mothers has more emotional impact on the public. It is perceived as being far more evil than some dirt bag drug dealer getting shot by a fellow dirt bag drug dealer.

A similar psychological dynamic applies with young mothers. Far to many bodies of murdered mothers have been dumped in Yamhill County and nearby areas in recent years.

 

[Yamhill]

Keep in mind that the judge decreed that MW should pay $900 per month child support. That is over $10,000 per year. Multiply by 15 years equals $150,000+. Then maybe college?

This judgement is not unfair but it is financially ruinous for the Wolfe famiy. They view Karissa and William as their enemy rather than the victims.

 

[Hexe7]

Does anyone know if his wife was in court today? I guess he wasn’t physically there - but just curious...
any of the locals know if she was there “supporting” him?

<modsnip: referenced post was removed>

 

[LotsaLatte]

She didnt find out re him being married untill later on. He had a double life for quite some time. Wolfe stated in the docs that were released today that he had an intimate relationship with Karissa for 4 years. His wife discovered Billy when he was a year old. Wolfe paid for move in fees for her apt and other things. It was a game changer when the child support petition was filed. Who knows what Wolfe is honest about. He lied to his wife and Karissa. I wonder if he drank heavily because that's a boat load of deception to hide on an every day basis.

I think I read in the docs that he said He had an intimate relationship about 4 years ago rather than for 4 years. I will double check. I wonder WTH he was thinking having a double life - like that would go on forever? He isn't quite a intelligent as he thinks he is. smh

 

[PommyMommy]

'Sufficient evidence' to confirm missing Salem mother, 3-year-old son were killed, Yamhill Co. DA says
The Yamhill County District Attorney says there is "sufficient evidence" to confirm that a missing Salem mother and her 3-year-old son were killed.

[...]

"There is a lot of other evidence that leads to the conclusion that they have been murdered," said Yamhill County District Attorney Brad Berry.

[...]

Court documents say detectives met with William's babysitter, who said Karissa confided in her that Wolfe and his wife had previously threatened Karissa and told her they were going to take William and get custody of him.

[...]

"Since we don’t have victims’ bodies it's being built on an ever-growing mountain of circumstantial evidence," Berry said after Wolfe's court appearance. "At some point you have so much evidence you can’t explain it away as happenstance."

[...]

Authorities interviewed Michael Wolfe twice, on May 18 and May 20, and Wolfe told detectives he’d had no recent contact with Karissa since their April court appearance, according to court documents.

Cellphone records, however, showed Karissa’s phone sent a text message using a cell tower 1.4 miles southeast of Gaston, Ore. on May 14, documents said. The area includes Wolfe’s property at 2700 NW Phillips Rd., where authorities focused their search last week.

[...]

Detectives also obtained location information that placed Karissa’s phone near Cascade Steel, Michael’s place of work, in McMinnville on May 14.

Surveillance video from Cascade Steel showed Wolfe leaving the area where he works on a golf cart around 8:45 p.m. on May 13 and returning around 2:35 a.m. on May 14 holding a white trash bag, according to Yamhill County court records.

Detectives tracked Wolfe’s cellphone using cell tower data and found that his phone began using towers indicating he was moving south, away from Cascade Steel, around 8:55 p.m. on May 13. A few minutes later, his phone used a tower covering parts of Salem, including the area where Karissa lives, court documents said.

His phone remained in the Salem area until around 1:38 a.m on May 14, when cell tower data indicated Wolfe began moving north. Around 2:12 a.m., his phone used a tower near Cascade Steel, where he was seen on surveillance video returning to his work area about 20 minutes later.

Records showed Wolfe’s phone was using a tower near his home around 4:34 a.m.

According to court documents, detectives believe Karissa’s cellphone and Wolfe’s cellphone were in the same approximate places during the night of May 13 and the early morning of May 14.

 

[PommyMommy]

Cole Miller on Twitter
We made a stop by Cascade Steel in McMinnville where Michael Wolfe last worked. A worker here told me he was shocked by his arrest, “that’s totally out of character.” He says Wolfe was an EMT at the mill and was always friendly #KOIN6News

6:17 PM - 28 May 2019

 

[Oregonmama]

Does anyone know if his wife was in court today? I guess he wasn’t physically there - but just curious...
any of the locals know if she was there “supporting” him?
<modsnip: referenced post was removed>

I did not see her. It was mostly ppl from the community and ppl that knew Karissa

 

[PommyMommy]

Mike John Wolfe Probable Cause Affidavit - Karissa and William Fretwell case

 

[PommyMommy]

Update #2

KF is originally from Northwood, ND per her FB, received her AAOT at Chemeketa Community College, attended Dallas High School, formerly employed by Jimmy Johns and McDonalds, currently employed as an overnight security guard at Cascade Steel Rolling Mills and studying education at Western Oregon University.

Feb 18, 2016 BF is born

2017 KF graduated Chemeketa Community College

Early 2018 KF was living at the apts per neighbor, AR, Google Maps

June 21, 2018 Case 18DR13448 Filed (Filiation), State of OR and KF Petitioners, MW Respondent

Sept 25, 2018 Case 18DR13448 Judgement establishing paternity

Dec 21, 2018 Case 18DR13448 Motion to set Child Support

Feb 6, 2019 Case 18DR13448 Show Cause paperwork mailed to MW; court records list his address 2700 NW Phillips Road

Mid-March, 2019 (reported as approx 2 months ago) Neighbor RA heard an argument in KF's apt
"We heard a man and woman arguing incredibly loud," Allen said. "The man was swearing a lot and there was a kid crying in the background, and the woman was yelling at him to get out of her apartment."

Mon, Apr 15, 2019

• Case 18DR13448 Hearing and Motion to set Child Support
• MW was ordered to pay $900 per month

Fri, May 3, 2019 KF’s vehicle was reported stolen (see May 8)

Wed, May 8, 2019 KF receives parking ticket 19PK98356 notated 5/11 as pending dismissal because vehicle was reported stolen 5/3, recovered 5/10

Fri, May 10, 2019 KF cited for two more parking tickets 19PK100534 and 19PK101147 on the day her vehicle was recovered

Sat, May 11, 2019 Friend MH last spoke with KF, KF asked about installing a Ring camera

Mon, May 13, 2019

• 4:00 p.m. KF was last seen by her babysitter after she watched BF and met KF to return him. KF was driving the Mercury Mountaineer. [1]
• 8:45 p.m. Cascade Steel video shows MW leaving his work area in a golf cart to a carpenter shop, then walking to a tree line that has access to the business parking lot. [1]
• 8:55 p.m. MW was moving south away from his place of work [1]
• 9:00 p.m. MW’s phone is connected to a cell tower in downtown Salem that would cover KF’s address [1]
• 9:42 p.m. MW’s phone is still using the Salem tower [1]

Tues, May 14, 2019

• 1:38 a.m. Cell tower info indicates MW’s phone is moving north [1]
• 1:43 a.m. MW’s phone is using a tower in Keizer; still moving north [1]
• 2:12 a.m. MW’s phone is using a tower near his place of work, consistent with the surveillance video [1]
• 2:35 a.m. MW returns out of the same bushes and is seen driving the golf cart back to his area of work carrying a white trash bag containing unknown items, per surveillance video. [1]
• 2:52 a.m. MW leaves the main building from a different door wearing his work shirt. He does not have his backpack but is carrying the white trash bag. Per surveillance video. [1]
• Time (?) Location information placed KF's phone in the area of MW's work at 3200 Oregon Hwy 99 West, McMinnville OR. [1]
• 4:34 a.m. MW’s phone is using a tower near his home [1]
• 2:27 p.m. KF's phone sent a text message using the cell tower approx 1.4 miles SE of Gaston. The tower includes MW's property. [1]

Fri, May 17, 2019

• Friend MH was supposed to babysit BF
• Family members found KF’s front door unlocked, the TV on, and her bank card and eyeglasses left behind. KF had missed three shifts at work.
• Family members reported KF and BF missing
• KF’s Grand Am is parked in front of the apt w/child seat in the back. A green Mercury Mountaineer is parked in front of it and a signed college financial aid application is found on the passenger seat.
• Per Missing Persons Cases Network, the condition of the apt. was “suspicious,” and KF’s family fears a possible abduction but were instructed by the police not to disclose further details.
• Neighbor RA and KF’s back doors face each other. He said, "I have noticed that the television screen, it's been on the same screen for about a week, so obviously there's no one in the apartment."

Sat, May 18, 2019

• LE responded to KF’s residence and interviewed several of KF’s friends
• MW was interviewed by LE at his home in Gaston and admitted to an intimate relationship with KF 4 years ago.
• MW said he had not been in Salem in over a year and did not have a direct way to communicate with KF. [1]
• MW said he worked 6:30 p.m. to 6:30 a.m. at Cascade Steel from 5/10 through 5/13, and had the following week off. [1]

Sun, May 19, 2019

• Salem Police Dept. issued a Media Release
• Neighbor RR noticed the police command center at MW’s property on Sunday about 9 p.m.

Mon, May 20, 2019

• Detectives were at KF's apt
• KF's babysitter was interviewed by LE and said KF told her that MW and his wife threatened to take BF and get custody of him. [1]
• Neighbor RR noticed a fleet of police vehicles – OSP, FBI, county sheriff and local police. He said there were about 14 police cars lining the road near MW's property, and the driveway was packed with more.
• MW was interviewed at the SPD after being mirandized. He maintained he had no recent contact with KF and BF and did not know where they were. He stated he worked his whole shift on the 13th and got off around 6:00 a.m. on the 14th. [1]
• MW took a polygraph test and was released, according to one of his family members.

Tues, May 21, 2019

• A search warrant listing MW as a suspect was signed May 21 by a Polk County judge
• LE viewed video surveillance at Cascade Steel [1]

Thu, May 23, 2019

• Salem Police, Yamhill County Sheriffs, Oregon State Police and the FBI searched two rural properties in Yamhill County; a home near Gaston on NW Phillips Road and a field about 1/4-mile in radius on Hopewell Road northwest of Salem just across the Polk County line.
• Michael John Wolfe is named a POI and is sought for questioning

Fri, May 24, 2019

• Farm fields and ponds were being searched and the Clackamas Co Dive Team was called to Stephens Reservoir in Yamhill Co to assist. MAP: Stephens Reservoir
• MW was arrested by Salem Police in Portland at Blue Star Donuts, SW 12th and Morrison, just before 2 p.m.
• He was booked into the Yamhill County jail on 2 counts of aggravated murder and 2 counts of kidnapping. Booking Number 190025319
• Salem PD held a press conference about 5:15 p.m.

Sat, May 25, 2019

• KF's best friend, BB, said MW didn't want anything to do with KF and BF, didn't want his wife finding out about the affair, and when his wife did find out, that's when everything went sour. BB said MW told KF, "Don't ruin my marriage," and "I can't afford this $1,100 in child support."
• BB said MW co-signed on an apt, helped KF with move-in costs, and had a second key made. There were multiple occasions that MW was in the apt when KF got home and she didn't like that. KF then moved to Salem.

Mon, May 27, 2019 A candlelight vigil for KF and BF is held at Maud Williamson State Park

Tues, May 28, 2019

• Probable Cause Affidavit is released
• An Amity farmer says that LE has been searching his property for several days based on a cell phone ping
• MW made an initial appearance (by video) in Yamhill County court
• The Yamhill Co DA says evidence shows KF and BF are dead

[1] Michael Wolfe Probable Cause

 

[Paulette]

'Sufficient evidence' to confirm missing Salem mother, 3-year-old son were killed, Yamhill Co. DA says
The Yamhill County District Attorney says there is "sufficient evidence" to confirm that a missing Salem mother and her 3-year-old son were killed.

[...]

"There is a lot of other evidence that leads to the conclusion that they have been murdered," said Yamhill County District Attorney Brad Berry.

[...]

Court documents say detectives met with William's babysitter, who said Karissa confided in her that Wolfe and his wife had previously threatened Karissa and told her they were going to take William and get custody of him.

[...]

"Since we don’t have victims’ bodies it's being built on an ever-growing mountain of circumstantial evidence," Berry said after Wolfe's court appearance. "At some point you have so much evidence you can’t explain it away as happenstance."

[...]

Authorities interviewed Michael Wolfe twice, on May 18 and May 20, and Wolfe told detectives he’d had no recent contact with Karissa since their April court appearance, according to court documents.

Cellphone records, however, showed Karissa’s phone sent a text message using a cell tower 1.4 miles southeast of Gaston, Ore. on May 14, documents said. The area includes Wolfe’s property at 2700 NW Phillips Rd., where authorities focused their search last week.

[...]

Detectives also obtained location information that placed Karissa’s phone near Cascade Steel, Michael’s place of work, in McMinnville on May 14.

Surveillance video from Cascade Steel showed Wolfe leaving the area where he works on a golf cart around 8:45 p.m. on May 13 and returning around 2:35 a.m. on May 14 holding a white trash bag, according to Yamhill County court records.

Detectives tracked Wolfe’s cellphone using cell tower data and found that his phone began using towers indicating he was moving south, away from Cascade Steel, around 8:55 p.m. on May 13. A few minutes later, his phone used a tower covering parts of Salem, including the area where Karissa lives, court documents said.

His phone remained in the Salem area until around 1:38 a.m on May 14, when cell tower data indicated Wolfe began moving north. Around 2:12 a.m., his phone used a tower near Cascade Steel, where he was seen on surveillance video returning to his work area about 20 minutes later.

Records showed Wolfe’s phone was using a tower near his home around 4:34 a.m.

According to court documents, detectives believe Karissa’s cellphone and Wolfe’s cellphone were in the same approximate places during the night of May 13 and the early morning of May 14.

Who drove him to Salem from the business parking lot & brought him back? He didn't rent a car - did he plan ahead and borrow one?

 

[Lilibet]

Who drove him to Salem from the business parking lot & brought him back? He didn't rent a car - did he plan ahead and borrow one?

I think the court document and timeline posted upthread indicates that he drove the golf cart from his work area at Cascade Steel to a spot close to the employee parking lot and walked through bushes/trees to the parking area. I’m assuming he accessed his car at that point. Or perhaps I missed something?

 

[PommyMommy]

Who drove him to Salem from the business parking lot & brought him back? He didn't rent a car - did he plan ahead and borrow one?

I think he drove his own vehicle; he just went through the woods to the parking area to avoid detection while leaving and returning to work. MOO

 

[Niner]

Thank you PommyMommy & freefallzzzz for the articles & tweets!

 

[Elliot_Alderson]

I've watched this video of the interview with the DA several times. I am in no way a body language expert. (but I manage bad debt collections) This is all just my opinion, but the DA seems to raise his eyebrows and open his eyes when he believes something to be completely truthful. It looks to me like they do have evidence, it may not be blood evidence. I don't think they know exactly what is in the trash bag yet. I do think they believe that other(s) are involved. Whatever was in the text message from Karissa's phone seems to make him angry or disgust him and that might be a very strong piece of evidence. All MOO.

P.S. This is my first post and I signed up on this forum just to follow this thread. I have two little blonde toddler boys and this story has absolutely shattered my heart. I too am praying that little Billy is still alive somehow. Thanks everyone for all of the info and updates you are posting!

Great first post and welcome to WS!

 

[Elliot_Alderson]

Keep in mind that the judge decreed that MW should pay $900 per month child support. That is over $10,000 per year. Multiply by 15 years equals $150,000+. Then maybe college?

This judgement is not unfair but it is financially ruinous for the Wolfe famiy. They view Karissa and William as their enemy rather than the victims.

Well that's his fault. Karissa originally requested $300 a month and he had to go and turn that down.

 

[Elliot_Alderson]

Just out of curiosity --- do you guys think MW had anything to do with her car being stolen in early May or is that a completely unrelated coincidence?

 

[Yamhill]

Did MW steal KF's car? If he had an extra key to her apartment made he might have had an extra key made for her car. Stealing her car would have been a means to harass and intimidate her. Might have also been a ploy to cost her money.

 

[Yamhill]

Well that's his fault. Karissa originally requested $300 a month and he had to go and turn that down.

I know that it is Wolfe's fault.

It is his fault for cheating on his wife.

You might even say that it is his fault for not getting a vasectomy or an orchiectomy, or at least using a condom, but of course that is far from 100% reliable which brings us back to it being his fault for cheating on his wife.

My point is that in the twisted minds of MW and may be MW's wife and daughter, everything is Ms Frettwell's fault. Imagine MW explaining to his wife that KF is a succubus who seduced him and that he "just couldn't resist." MF probably blamed KF for not being on the pill or missing doses.

I would imagine that the prospect of MW having to pay over $900 per month in child support might have inspired MW's wife and daughter to believe all of this Bovine Scatology. Mrs Wolfe joining MW in threatening to take custody demonstrates extreme hostility. MW's daughter getting into an argument with KF demonstrates extreme hostility. Once MW's wife and daughter ally themselves eith him against KF, they become potential accomplices in the abductions and murders.

If I was LE, I would be closely examining their cell tower ping logs, especially on the night of the abduction. Did they, or someone else, meet up with MF to take KF and WF, may be swapping cars, so that he could return to work while they consumated the homicides or disposed of the bodies?

BTW, I believe that KF and WF were alive when they left the apartment in Salem. If MW had killed them there, carrying a deceased KF out to his vehicle would have been to risky. Leaving them would have been less risky. Just carrying WF, may be while threatening him with a weapon, would have been suffecient threat to KF to get her to get into the car.