I have raised the suspicions that the Maples disappeared with the help of the underground railroad. Well, it looks like Faye Yager and her underground railroad are definitely linked to the Maples. Take a look at this!
A REAL FAMILY FEUD - Grandparents hiding 2 kids in custody fight
The Atlanta Journal and The Atlanta Constitution - Monday, July 16, 1990
ROME, Ga. - Debbie Baskin 's eyes well up with tears when she describes a recurring dream that reflects her desperation and frustration: She sees her two missing children and calls to them, but they pay no attention. Mrs. Baskin has lived a nightmare since March 1989, when her parents, who accuse her and her husband of devil worship, disappeared with Bobby, 8, and Christi, 9. The Baskins say they lost their children long before they disappeared 16 months ago, when the grandparents began wea ving a web of spiteful lies. The grandparents, Sandra and Marvin Maple of Murfreesboro, Tenn., had been given temporary custody of the children a year before their disappearance. The Maples told a judge the Baskins were members of a satanic cult and that they sexually abused their children.
ROME, Ga. - Debbie Baskin 's eyes well up with tears when she describes a recurring dream that reflects her desperation and frustration: She sees her two missing children and calls to them, but they pay no attention.
Mrs. Baskin has lived a nightmare since March 1989, when her parents, who accuse her and her husband of devil worship, disappeared with Bobby, 8, and Christi, 9.
"It's a terrible uncertainty that never ends," said Mrs. Baskin, who moved from Kentucky to Rome last October when her husband, Mark, took a job selling insurance. "It would have almost been easier if they were tragically killed. There would have been an end."
The Baskins say they lost their children long before they disappeared 16 months ago, when the grandparents began weaving a web of spiteful lies.
The grandparents, Sandra and Marvin Maple of Murfreesboro, Tenn., had been given temporary custody of the children a year before their disappearance. The Maples told a judge the Baskins were members of a satanic cult and that they sexually abused their children.
A detective who investigated the case said no evidence of abuse was found.
"The children's stories were inconsistent and got increasingly bizarre, like they were repeating something someone told them," said Detective Carolyn McGowen of the Rutherford County Sheriff's Department in Tennessee, where the Maples have been charged with kidnapping.
The Maples fled with the children when a Juvenile Court judge appeared ready to order them returned to the Baskins, Detective McGowen said.
The children's abduction has been traumatic for the Baskins' third child, Michael, 7, who is confused and lonely, Mrs. Baskin said. "We're trying for him to have a normal life," she said. "It's hard."
The case has appeared twice on the TV show "Unsolved Mysteries" and has attracted more than 800 calls. Investigators have confirmed that the Maples and the two children lived in Santa Clara, Calif., last summer. The four are still believed to be on the West Coast, changing identities and locations to thwart the FBI, which is seeking the Maples on charges of interstate flight to avoid prosecution.
Mrs. Baskin thinks activist Faye Yager played a part in her parents' flight and their earlier campaign to destroy the Baskins in court.
"There are records that my parents called Faye Yager two or three times in February [1989]," Mrs. Baskin said. Police confirmed the calls.
Mrs. Yager, whose Atlanta-based underground network hides allegedly abused children, was recently charged with kidnapping and cruelty to children for allegedly intimidating a child to lie about sexual abuse and satanism in an unrelated case. She has denied the allegation.
Mrs. Yager said she talked to the Maples "several different times" before they fled with the Baskin children, "but they are not a part of my underground," she said. "I gave them advice on what I'd do if they were my children. I told them step by step. If they've followed my direction, they've done a good job."
Mrs. Yager said she believes the Maples' allegations about the Baskins but said she has not talked to the elder couple since before their disappearance and does not know where they are.
Mrs. Baskin, who has two sisters, said her mother always dreamed of having a son and thinks that longtime obsession is behind the events.
"It's strange. Mother and I were always close," Mrs. Baskin said. "I really trusted and adored my mother. Maybe too much."
Posted by Solve The Unsolved on Saturday, January 17, 2009 - 5:05 a.m.