IA IA - Johnny Gosch, 12, West Des Moines, 5 Sept 1982 #4

[Mysteries1974]

Forgive me if this has been suggested but could this skull found in the Des Moines River in 2023 belong to Johnny or one of the other missing boys? No exact age could be determined and NamUs lists the skull as adult but ME/LE have gotten ages wrong on skeletal remains before.

We do know the skull is male but have no clue on when the person died or how the skull got into the river.

IA Thread 'IA - Des Moines River near Polk County park, skull, June 20 2023'

Jun 26, 2023

Link to article

Polk County, Iowa —
A family camping trip turned into a potential crime scene after two sisters found what appeared to be a human skull on a sand bar in the Des Moines River near Yellow Banks Park.

Deputies from the Polk County Sheriff's Office are investigating, trying to learn as much as they can about the skull. Though, that will take quite some time, according to Capt. Ryan Evans. Deputies were called around 7:30 p.m. Friday to the boat ramp at Yellow Banks Park. Sisters Willow Kam and Kyla Riley found the skull on a camping trip downstream and the...

• subaw0067
• Replies: 1
• Forum: The Unidentified

• 

 

[Leprikawn]

I agree. In 2018, Heinrich said he never molested another child after killing Jacob due to guilt but I don’t know whether I believe him on that. Perhaps Jacob wasn’t his first murder victim. He’s definitely a good person to be looking at, plus he’s still in prison for years.

However, something about these cases makes me think this was done by someone who was local to the area or had extensive knowledge of Des Moines. Enough knowledge to be able to conceal all three boys remains for this long without anyone finding anything.

I wish I could find the thread, but years ago a PI was commenting on a thread, and said that the person who took all 3 boys and killed them was a local who is now living in Texas. He fled after Johnny went missing, and came home to see his parents on the occasions others went missing. He is a convicted Pedophile and the police never even looked at him. He fits the profile, and appearance of the killer. He actually named the guy in the thread.

 

[Mysteries1974]

I wish I could find the thread, but years ago a PI was commenting on a thread, and said that the person who took all 3 boys and killed them was a local who is now living in Texas. He fled after Johnny went missing, and came home to see his parents on the occasions others went missing. He is a convicted Pedophile and the police never even looked at him. He fits the profile, and appearance of the killer. He actually named the guy in the thread.

I actually remember seeing this when it happened, I think the police should look into him if they haven’t and honestly it’s quite ridiculous if they haven’t tried. So he fled after Johnny goes missing (suspicious) and then when he’s in town, Eugene Martin and Marc Allen disappear (suspicious). Sounds like a perfect suspect to me.

 

[Leprikawn]

I actually remember seeing this when it happened, I think the police should look into him if they haven’t and honestly it’s quite ridiculous if they haven’t tried. So he fled after Johnny goes missing (suspicious) and then when he’s in town, Eugene Martin and Marc Allen disappear (suspicious). Sounds like a perfect suspect to me.

Yeah and add in he has been convicted of sex crimes against boys and he becomes very interesting. It also tells you the bodies are more than likely close to town, and Johnny probably close to his parents house. Criminals usually stay close to home on their first killing.

 

[Leprikawn]

 

[Johnny Joe Dillinger]

I recently did some thinking on this case. IF all three are connected, then Marc Allen was the outlier. Johnny and Eugene were paperboys who could be targeted at a known location, Marc was possibly just a crime of opportunity. If that's the case, then the chances the offender lived closest to Marc would make the most sense. If applying Rossmo's Formula to this, which can approximate where a subject lives or works, it could narrow down a closer location to a local offender. If Marc was taken closer to the offenders home, this could have forced him to lay low for awhile, perhaps he was almost caught, or thought he was. Any number of reasons can send a subject in to a cooling down period. Add to that the first sex offender register in Iowa was released in 1995, was he on that list for a prior offense? The more time goes on I just believe this was a local offender. I don't know what to make of Noreen Gosch's claim that her son visited her as an adult, but a grieving parent could be made to believe many things I fear. I know people are taken and kept in captivity for years, but three boys who would soon go thru growth spurts would be hard to handle for one lone offender. He was probably a smaller adult male, who could control someone that age. Things can be solved, we just have to care enough. Been away for awhile. Glad to be back. Solve on.

 

[Leprikawn]

I recently did some thinking on this case. IF all three are connected, then Marc Allen was the outlier. Johnny and Eugene were paperboys who could be targeted at a known location, Marc was possibly just a crime of opportunity. If that's the case, then the chances the offender lived closest to Marc would make the most sense. If applying Rossmo's Formula to this, which can approximate where a subject lives or works, it could narrow down a closer location to a local offender. If Marc was taken closer to the offenders home, this could have forced him to lay low for awhile, perhaps he was almost caught, or thought he was. Any number of reasons can send a subject in to a cooling down period. Add to that the first sex offender register in Iowa was released in 1995, was he on that list for a prior offense? The more time goes on I just believe this was a local offender. I don't know what to make of Noreen Gosch's claim that her son visited her as an adult, but a grieving parent could be made to believe many things I fear. I know people are taken and kept in captivity for years, but three boys who would soon go thru growth spurts would be hard to handle for one lone offender. He was probably a smaller adult male, who could control someone that age. Things can be solved, we just have to care enough. Been away for awhile. Glad to be back. Solve on.

That's a really good point. Hopefully someone in the police department puts some fresh eye's on these cases. I am interested in the found skull, that could rally shake things up. I feel sorry for Noreen and I think she has been desperate to keep her son's name in the news, which is understandable. She has also done a lot of good things that have brought missing children home.