Sheila and Katherine Lyon-sisters missing since 1975 - #1

[Richard]

I am strongly leaning to Welch because 1) his tastes in girls, 2) his anger (still not known to public how bad his anger problem is/was), 3) he was in the area, and 4) there are more idiot criminals than smart criminals....
....

Your list could also apply to just about any of the other potential suspects mentioned on this board.

A ruse like you mention to get the girls to enter a car might very well have been used. However, pulling it off effectively by imparting some sense of believability would be a challenge. Especially so in regard to a moron like Welch.

First, he would have to have a car available. Second, he would have to know how to drive it. (Neither of which have been established) - And Third, he would be relying on these same girls that he supposedly had been "following and bothering" an hour before at the mall failing to recognize him.

 

[steveP120]

I am strongly leaning to Welch because 1) his tastes in girls, 2) his anger (still not known to public how bad his anger problem is/was), 3) he was in the area, and 4) there are more idiot criminals than smart criminals....

Your list could also apply to just about any of the other potential suspects mentioned on this board.
.

Once again, my list is an example of imprecise/unclear writing where "in the area" could be read as two-hours away on the Eastern Shore of Maryland or in Gaithersburg two weeks later.

I should have change "in the area" to "within eyesight on the day of the crime" assuming Welch is Long Hair Man in the police sketch.

I would argue that Welch, being within eyesight of the victims on the day of the crime, would put him at the top of the list. I still think it's only 50:50 it was Welch, but being a sex-criminal hours away and no known connection to the girls would be one of many things that could have happened.

Tape Recorder Man did have some, similar to Welch, connection to the girls on the day of the crime, but at this point we have no idea if Tape Recorder man was a sex criminal or just weird, so I would put him lower down the list, maybe at 10% or 20%.

Unfortunately, odds are not going to help solve or prove the crime.
I do not think Welch would have used the "your parents are in the hospital scam" since he did not have a car or a place/house to take the girls. I think Welch's game was hanging out with girls and seeing how "friendly" he could get ignoring all laws. With an anger management problem things could get out of control, but in fairness to Welch, we don't have the details on how violent he was or is.

 

[amber1]

I thought of Sheila and Katherine Lyon when I read the story of Ann Gotlib. She was a littler girl who went missing while riding her bike by a mall in Kentucky in 1983:

http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/g/gotlib_ann.html

 

[OkieGranny]

http://www.wusa9.com/story/news/local/2014/09/16/bedfor-county-montgomery-county-homicide/15730695/

Investigators from Maryland and Virginia are searching an area of Virginia in relation to homicide investigation open in Montgomery County...

This search may be connected to the mysterious disappearance of the Lyon sisters in Montgomery County that happened more than 30 years ago. In February, Montgomery County Police named Lloyd Lee Welch Junior a person of interest in the Lyon sisters' case.

Residents of the search area tell our CBS affiliate WDBJ7 that Welch grew up on Taylor Mountain Road before moving out of the area. The property authorities are searching once belonged to the Welch's aunt and uncle.

 

[snowblossom2]

Just saw this story on local news (I live in Silver Spring, MD). It seems like they must have gotten a good tip bc there are apparently 5 dogs helping search the Virginia property

 

[beachlvr0810]

They are searching for the Lyon sisters here in our neighborhood. I was there today, spoke to reporters and watched the search and rescue team go in and out of the woods.

 

[Richard]

BEDFORD COUNTY, Va. (WUSA9) -- Detectives from the Montgomery County Police Department are searching parts Virginia for evidence in the 1975 disappearance of the Lyon sisters, police confirmed Tuesday.

In February, Montgomery County Police and the FBI named Lloyd Lee Welch Junior a person of interest in the Lyon sisters' case.

During their investigation detectives determined that Welch had possible connections to Bedford County, Virginia, the Montgomery County Police said. Detectives are searching the area for any evidence that may link Welch to the disappearance of the sisters.

The detectives are working with the Bedford County Sheriff's Office and the Virginia State police while they search the area.

Detectives from the Montgomery County Police Department have been in Bedford County since last week, police said.

 

[dotr]

An older link with info. about the poi..


http://www.wtop.com/41/3560827/Police-call-sex-offender-a-person-of-interest-in-Lyon-case
" Montgomery County police say Welch was at Wheaton Plaza the day the girls went missing. He may have had contact with the girls and was "observed paying attention to the Lyon sisters while at the plaza," says Montgomery County Police Chief Tom Manger.

Welch's sex offenses often involved young girls and includes convictions in Virginia and South Carolina. He has been incarcerated since 1997 in Delaware for a similar offense, Manger says.

Welch worked as a ride operator for a carnival that frequently set up next to shopping centers. He was often accompanied by his girlfriend, Helen Craver. Craver, who was also known as Helon Welcho, also worked for the carnival and has since died.

Police are seeking details about Welch, Craver and any security guards who worked at the mall at the time the girls went missing - specifically a captain who may have had contact with Welch.

No detail is too small, says Steve Vogt, the special agent in charge of the FBI field office in Baltimore.

bbm

Investigators have identified two dozen locations where Welch lived or visited between 1974 and 1997. "

 

[dotr]

Past locations of poi, Lloyd Welch..

http://www.wtop.com/52/3561048/Inve...about-crimes-related-to-Welch-in-other-states

 

[beachlvr0810]

They are searching for the Lyon sisters here in our neighborhood. I was there today, spoke to reporters and watched the search and rescue team go in and out of the woods.

I know his family here on Taylor's Mountain and I think we are distantly related. I took photos of the search today but not sure how to post them.

 

[Aeronomy]

http://www.wset.com/story/26546001/update-cold-case-search-leads-md-investigators-to-bedford-co

"She said one of the uncles owned an acre of land in the area where police are now searching."

 

[beachlvr0810]

http://www.wset.com/story/26546001/update-cold-case-search-leads-md-investigators-to-bedford-co

"She said one of the uncles owned an acre of land in the area where police are now searching."

Somebody has something wrong because Michael is not her uncle, he's her cousin. And what 2 uncles were placed at the scene? Are they saying 3 members of the Welch family were there at the mall that day? Why is there no mention of this in any other article I've read?

 

[Richard]

Quote: Are they saying 3 members of the Welch family were there at the mall that day? Why is there no mention of this in any other article I've read? Unquote.

I don't know who you are referring to as "they", but to clarify about Montgomery County Police, they have to date only held one press conference on Lloyd Lee "Michael" Welch, and that was last February.

There have been a number of statements since that he was positively identified as being at Wheaton Plaza that day (25 March 1975) by reporters and internet posters, but the fact is that information comes second hand from members of Welch's family (his neice and his stepmother) quoting Welch himself as stating that he was there. Welch has since denied any involvement in the case.

There is also information from the stepmother that Welch and his then girlfriend, Helen Craver, called in a "tip" to MCP in an attempt to claim a reward for information. It could be that Welch told them in that tip that he was at the mall that day, but MCP has not released any information in that regard.

It has been speculated by some that Welch might have been part of a "team" involved in the abduction of the Lyon Sisters. This is based on some information given out by MCP indicating that he did not have a car, did not have a drivers license, hitch hiked everywhere he went, and was only 18 years old at the time.

Most abduction scenarios would indicate the need for a motor vehicle and possibly the need for more than one abductor. But to date, MCP has not stated that Welch is a suspect in their disappearance and they have not linked him to any other persons as suspects.

 

[dotr]

New article with lots of pics..

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...tml?ITO=1490&ns_mchannel=rss&ns_campaign=1490


Video, LE search..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KOlcsMv2ha0

 

[Rainstorm]

That would be awesome to solve this.

 

[Motherof5]

Somebody has something wrong because Michael is not her uncle, he's her cousin. And what 2 uncles were placed at the scene? Are they saying 3 members of the Welch family were there at the mall that day? Why is there no mention of this in any other article I've read?

Dollie Estep, from Thaxton, told us investigators from Montgomery Co., MD visited her home months ago. She said they told her two of her uncles had been implicated in the disappearance of two sisters in Maryland in 1975. Katherine Lyon, 10, and Sheila Lyon, 12, were last seen eating pizza at a mall in Wheaton, MD.

In February, Lloyd Welch, a sex offender currently serving time in a Delaware prison, was named a person of interest in the sisters' disappearance by the FBI. Estep said investigators told her Welch placed her two uncles at the scene. Estep said Welch is a cousin. She said one of the uncles owned an acre of land in the area where police are now searching.

http://www.wset.com/story/26546001/heavy-police-on-taylors-mountain-road-in-thaxton

Michael is another name that Welch goes by. Dollie Estep says that Welch is her cousin and that LE told her that 2 of her uncles have also been implicated. LE has not named the uncles as of yet. Hope that helps.

 

[geojeffrey]

Are they still there?? Do you believe they have found any evidence??

 

[OkieGranny]

http://www.wdbj7.com/news/local/lyn...n-taking-place-on-taylors-mountain-r/28083490

According to authorities, the tip that led investigators to Taylor’s Mountain did not come from Lloyd Lee Welch, a person of interest in the case. But they aren't elaborating on who provided the information...

According to authorities, more equipment will be brought in to aid in the search. Investigators will be working throughout the weekend in Bedford County.

“Investigators are confident they are getting closer to report to the Lyon family the truth of what happened,” said Bedford County Commonwealth's Attorney Randy Krantz. "We know who was responsible. Each and every one of them. We are all committed to working as long and as hard as necessary," Krantz said.

 

[geojeffrey]

I'm literally praying that this is a solid lead....

 

[darmela]

I have been following this case for many years, specifically since I was interviewed by John Lyon on his radio show on WMAL back in the late 80's (I was in a local girl band at the time). It wasn't until after this interview that it dawned on me that this was the man whose daughters went missing. Now.... maybe someone can enlighten me about this case. What I don't understand is why Lloyd Lee Welch was not looked at more closely back in 1975. You have the friend of the Lyon sisters that said a man had been following them. She even provided a sketch, which resembled Welch. Evidently, Welch was NOT the infamous Tape Recorder Man, which should have been known at the time. Also, he was seen "talking" to a security guard that day. Shouldn't the police already have all the names of all the security guards at that time? Why are they now seeking out security guards to come forward?

I just think it's so sad that this family has had to wait 40 years for some type of closure when it seems as though they had all the means and reasons to look more closely at Welch at the time, especially since he resembled the sketch. I know the police have worked hard, and I'm not trying to discredit them at all, I just feel that this could have been solved a LONG time ago.

Please remember: MOO!