IA IA - Daughter Alleges Father (Donald Studey) is Serial Killer - Searches Yielded No Evidence - Thurman

[Curiosa20]

This post reminded me of the Ray and Faye Copeland case, from rural Missouri in the 1980s and 1990s. He "sourced" his victims from the Kansas City area. (One wonders if these two ever crossed paths, although AFAIK all of the Copeland's victims were men.)

I’ll try to post later tonight the short list of Missing women from Omaha area from 70’s-90’s.
I checked charlies project and the official state website. There are only 4-5 women so far.
IMO, DDS was a low budget con guy with a very violent streak, petty crimes, probably selling the guns to coke or weed dealers or manufacturers of Meth, maybe?
She also said he would steal from random jobs as a mechanic or truck driver.
How do we find his aliases?
His daughter said he hid guns in hollwed out trees and delivered them while riding with his kids in the truck for cover for when he was stopped by authorities.
Are there AG control inspection stations going into Nebraska or any of those bordering states?

 

[LaborDayRN]

Greetings. I have some familiarity with this area, more so on the NE side of the MO River. Donald D Studey did time in the Nebraska State Penitentiary for 18 months (April 1963) for check fraud. Seems that was a common crime he commited across many states. He also may have been in the service sometime right out of high school; where he was visiting family in Nebraska City, Nebraska in the early 50's, quoted: "home on furlough". In the 1963 court conviction, the judge chastised him for being a poor father and provider, and described him as a "drifter". He had a borther/cousin/etc. living in Gillette, WY by the name of John Studey. Yes, he inherited the land, his father Ira, owned it previous to that. The Study family is rather extensive and has been in the area since at least the 1850's.

As goes wells, it is not uncommon to confuse a well and a cistern; both can have very wide openings. There are hand-dug wells, and there are also "sand point" wells (these are too narrow an opening for our purposes here). Sand point wells are more like our modern wells, and generally employ a windmill, pump, etc, to extract water. In any case, 100 feet for a well isn't particularly deep for a sandpoint, but hand-dug---that's pretty deep--it would be very very challenging to excavate. In the case of this well, I was under the impression that it was at the edge of the property line on the east side of the parcel (The parcel is irregular shaped). Looking at a 1950's aerial photo; it does appear a farmstead/outbuildings stood in the general area of the trailer.

I would venture a guess that it is a very old well, and likely belonging to a one-time homestead that is no longer there. This area is called the Loess Hills, because the hills are comprised mostly of Loess. This soil is fairly compact and is wind-blown in origin, and can be kind-of be "cut away", it has very little rock and gravel typically. As goes the culture of the area, it is important to remember that relatively few people live in Fremont county. Families have been there for generations. If you decide to go after someone as a serial killer, you better be 100% sure, because everyone will know you made the accusation. If you are wrong, it will stay with you for life. Why? Because there are so few people there, and so much intermarriage, that you will be a social pariah forever. Why not just move then? Because, most of the people there are attached to the land (often times inherited) for agricultural purposes, etc. Generally, you'd be asking people to move away from their source of income and families---so I think that it is possible that something could go on unabated.

I don't know about the 50 to 70 number, but I can say that Omaha has a very long history of organized crime and prostitution, but by the time of the 1960's and on, crime and prostitution was far less "organized". Assuming he did this, and was active in the 1960/70/80's, I would think it wasn't just sex workers, but others as well.

Welcome to WS's @bkr5 & @NewGirl78

 

[JujuColumbo]

Given that DDS once worked as a truck driver, as Lucy mentioned in one of her interviews, I don’t have the source right now, IMO it’s very possible his victims may be from throughout the Midwest…

 

[Curiosa20]

Anna’s Headstone?

 

[Curiosa20]

So far all the photos I’ve seen of his wives fit the description of his alleged victims.

 

[Curiosa20]

The poor woman. But she didn’t give up.
There must be something behind why LE didn’t take this seriously.

According to WHO-TV, the Fremont County Sheriff's Office said Lucy Studey reached out to them 15 years ago, urging them to recover the bodies of up to 70 women who she says were murdered by her now-deceased father, Donald Dean Studey.
"She [Lucy] told us in 2007 and we went out and there was only one well on the property that we could see, we didn't realize that it was on other people's property," Bothwell said.

Woman Who Says Dad Was Serial Killer Told Police About Mass Grave in 2007. They Excavated the Wrong Site

Authorities said Lucy Studey reached out to them 15 years ago, urging them to recover the bodies of up to 70 women she said were murdered by her late father, Donald Dean Studey

people.com

 

[Curiosa20]

In 2005, he threatened to kill his wife, Anna Tordoff Studey, and his stepson, Dan Tordoff. The son told the newspaper that his mother was afraid of her husband, and he feared for her safety. She died in 2006.
Studey told the deputy that around 1980 she was with her father when he picked up a 15-year-old girl on an interstate. Her father allegedly convinced the girl that it was safe to go with him. She believed her father raped and murdered the teenager. She was gone the next day, the Register reported.

Iowa Woman Claims Father Was A Serial Killer Murdering Up To 70 People Over 30 Years | Oxygen Official Site

Law enforcement, including the FBI, are investigating an Iowa woman’s shocking claims that her now-deceased father was a prolific serial killer – murdering dozens of women over 30 years — and he forced his children to help bury the bodies.

www.oxygen.com

 

[Curiosa20]

The well or burial sites appear to be on the land of the old poor farm, about 1/4 mile from Studey’s lair. Remember that place by any chance @sgmet ?
“There were always stories about Green Hollow,” said Bill Reeves, who was elected mayor in the town of fewer than 170 a year ago. “You just didn’t go up there. Even when my dad was a boy.”

Some, like Johnson, remember children teasing each other about the “Green Holler Mauler,” a fabled monster that roamed the woods near where Studey lived with one wife and later another, both long dead.
In the report, Wake mentions that he had heard that Studey killed a man named Doug Semore “and put his body in a well but we could never get any information on when or where. I believe the last time I saw Doug was in 1988.”

https://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/news/2022/10/27/iowa-sheriff-vows-to-get-to-bottom-of-donald-studey-serial-killer-allegations/69590176007/?itm_source=premium_bundle&itm_medium=onsite

 

[ClaireNC]

I read somewhere that the well is actually behind the house on a Neighbor’s property or on the edge of the former Studey property. I pulled up the county property line map and also looked at google maps to try and estimate it’s location. It could also be an old livestock well or an even older well given the history of that area. I live in this area and it is heavily wooded and it also consist of Bluffs and flat pasture areas. If this story is true there is difficult terrain to search in addition to the well. I would assume that the well is on the higher ground behind the property which looks more like a pasture area. Hoping someone can look at these images and estimate where a well might be located.

Welcome NewGirl78! Thanks for those map images. Do you have a link to the property ownership maps for Fremont County? I searched and couldn’t find them.

 

[ClaireNC]

The well or burial sites appear to be on the land of the old poor farm, about 1/4 mile from Studey’s lair. Remember that place by any chance @sgmet ?
“There were always stories about Green Hollow,” said Bill Reeves, who was elected mayor in the town of fewer than 170 a year ago. “You just didn’t go up there. Even when my dad was a boy.”

Some, like Johnson, remember children teasing each other about the “Green Holler Mauler,” a fabled monster that roamed the woods near where Studey lived with one wife and later another, both long dead.
In the report, Wake mentions that he had heard that Studey killed a man named Doug Semore “and put his body in a well but we could never get any information on when or where. I believe the last time I saw Doug was in 1988.”

https://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/news/2022/10/27/iowa-sheriff-vows-to-get-to-bottom-of-donald-studey-serial-killer-allegations/69590176007/?itm_source=premium_bundle&itm_medium=onsite

What do you mean by the “old poor farm”? Can‘t view the article without a subscription to see how the newspaper describes the location.

 

[?!?]

Today's Yahoo take - no real NEWS:

Was Donald Studey really a serial killer? Sheriff, townspeople don't count it out.

Residents of tiny Thurman, Iowa, say they weren't surprised when daughter of the late Donald Studey told investigators he had been a serial killer.

news.yahoo.com

 

[sgmet]

The well or burial sites appear to be on the land of the old poor farm, about 1/4 mile from Studey’s lair. Remember that place by any chance @sgmet ?
“There were always stories about Green Hollow,” said Bill Reeves, who was elected mayor in the town of fewer than 170 a year ago. “You just didn’t go up there. Even when my dad was a boy.”

Some, like Johnson, remember children teasing each other about the “Green Holler Mauler,” a fabled monster that roamed the woods near where Studey lived with one wife and later another, both long dead.
In the report, Wake mentions that he had heard that Studey killed a man named Doug Semore “and put his body in a well but we could never get any information on when or where. I believe the last time I saw Doug was in 1988.”

https://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/news/2022/10/27/iowa-sheriff-vows-to-get-to-bottom-of-donald-studey-serial-killer-allegations/69590176007/?itm_source=premium_bundle&itm_medium=onsite

I've never heard of "the old poor farm". Poor farms were something well before my time, but I know just about every county had one. This was before nursing homes, social security, etc... Surely not a fun place, and most certainly a breeding ground for creepy stories long after they're gone.

 

[ClaireNC]

I've never heard of "the old poor farm". Poor farms were something well before my time, but I know just about every county had one. This was before nursing homes, social security, etc... Surely not a fun place, and most certainly a breeding ground for creepy stories long after they're gone.

Apparently the “old poor farm” is described as a “county-run workhouse.“
“On at least two occasions, McKiddy told authorities her father had killed people and buried their bodies in an old, 90-foot-deep well on land where a county-run workhouse had been located.”

https://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/news/2022/10/27/iowa-sheriff-vows-to-get-to-bottom-of-donald-studey-serial-killer-allegations/69590176007/?itm_source=premium_bundle&itm_medium=onsite

 

[sgmet]

I've strained over this map trying to figure out where an old well of this type might be. An old well of this diameter is almost certainly associated with an old homestead or other type of structure. It's not going to be in the heavily wooded area. From the description, I think it's going to be some distance from the trailer, but not too far. Maybe a quarter mile or so?

Something else about these mostly desolate areas... Even where there are no roads, there are often "paths" and this is real common. Some of these paths are currently used and some aren't, but from a satellite map you can usually see where the paths have been. An old homestead or other structure is likely along one of these paths.

This is all conjecture of course, but if such a well does in fact exist, this is the area where I'd expect to find it.

And I do see a couple areas of interest here. This area for example. It sits a quarter mile NE of the trailer. The round object (per Google's measure tool) is 6 feet in diameter. It might actually be covering an old well, or it might be something else entirely, I can't tell. There's another round object south of this along the same path.

 

[ClaireNC]

I've strained over this map trying to figure out where an old well of this type might be. An old well of this diameter is almost certainly associated with an old homestead or other type of structure. It's not going to be in the heavily wooded area. From the description, I think it's going to be some distance from the trailer, but not too far. Maybe a quarter mile or so?

Something else about these mostly desolate areas... Even where there are no roads, there are often "paths" and this is real common. Some of these paths are currently used and some aren't, but from a satellite map you can usually see where the paths have been. An old homestead or other structure is likely along one of these paths.

This is all conjecture of course, but if such a well does in fact exist, this is the area where I'd expect to find it.

View attachment 376463

And I do see a couple areas of interest here. This area for example. It sits a quarter mile NE of the trailer. The round object (per Google's measure tool) is 6 feet in diameter. It might actually be covering an old well, or it might be something else entirely, I can't tell. There's another round object south of this along the same path.

View attachment 376464
View attachment 376465

I noticed those round features on the maps too. It’s hard to tell what they are without knowing the area. My first impression was possibly a watering system for livestock, but I don’t know if the area is used for livestock.

 

[ClaireNC]

I’ve been trying to just identify the property that was once owned by the Studey family. Does anyone know if it’s the 8.8 acre property highlighted on this map?

https://www.acrevalue.com/map/IA/Fremont/?lat=40.871545&lng=-95.743684&zoom=15&place=Thurman,%20Iowa,%20United%20States

 

[sgmet]

I noticed those round features on the maps too. It’s hard to tell what they are without knowing the area. My first impression was possibly a watering system for livestock, but I don’t know if the area is used for livestock.

I initially discounted them as hay rings. And they may be. They're about the right size, a hay ring is usually 8 feet in diameter. But there's nothing in the middle of a hay ring (except, of course, sometimes hay). These circles look like there's something solid in the middle.

 

[Curiosa20]

What do you mean by the “old poor farm”? Can‘t view the article without a subscription to see how the newspaper describes the location.

From the same article:
Bothwell said Studey also approached a neighbor years ago who had been covering old wells at the former poor farm, about a quarter mile behind the Studey property. At the time, Studey reportedly told the neighbor he wanted a pipe from one of the wells. Studey also suggested to the neighbor that he might see bones in the well, but he insisted they were from cows, Bothwell said.

 

[Curiosa20]

I also read that the land has changed considerably since Lucy lived there, I suppose clearing and may have occurred. That Lucy walked right up to the well where the dogs later indicated human remains was in her favor, since it has changed so much.
From Newsweek:
The landscape had changed since Lucy Studey was last on the site so she was invited up from her home in the South for the investigation to see if she could spot the location of the well. "She walked right to it," Wake said. "She said, 'It should be right here somewhere,' and I went out and found it."
Sean Smith, who with his father owns that abutting land and grew up with the Studey children, isn't surprised by any of the allegations. He, too, had heard the stories and he remembers an odd call he got about a decade ago.

Dad was serial killer, woman says, as cadaver dogs hunt field of nightmares

Lucy Studey says her father forced her and her siblings to help bury his murder victims for years. Now she believes cadaver dogs have found the burial sites.

www.newsweek.com

 

[AliceInPain]

From the same article:
Bothwell said Studey also approached a neighbor years ago who had been covering old wells at the former poor farm, about a quarter mile behind the Studey property. At the time, Studey reportedly told the neighbor he wanted a pipe from one of the wells. Studey also suggested to the neighbor that he might see bones in the well, but he insisted they were from cows, Bothwell said.

That article has been out for about a week.
Anything new?
Last I read she (Lucy) had changed her story from her report last year.
And the first time LE heard about the daddy serial killer was when dad accused her of stealing money from him, sometime around 2005.
I'm not believing this until human remains have actually been found.
As much as I want a whole bunch of missing people being found and families getting closure.
Something is off here. imo