Found Deceased NE - William Leslie "Les" Arnold, 24, on the lam, Lincoln, 15 July 1967 *died in 2010, ID'd in 2023*

[Gardener1850]

[h=1]4157DMNE - William Leslie Arnold[/h]

Images 2: Age-progressed to 66 years (circa 2010)
Name: William Leslie Arnold
Case Classification: Endangered Missing
Missing Since: July 15, 1967
Location Last Seen: Lincoln, Lancaster County, Nebraska
[h=2]Physical Description[/h] Date of Birth: August 28, 1942
Age: 24 years old
Race: White
Gender: Male
Height: 5'9"
Weight: 155 lbs.
Hair Color: Brown
Eye Color: Brown
Distinguishing Marks/Features: Small scar in the center of his forehead, a scar on his upper right arm, and moles/scar on his right cheek.
[h=2]Identifiers[/h] Dentals: Not Available
Fingerprints: Available
DNA: Available
[h=2]Clothing & Personal Items[/h] Clothing: Unknown
Jewelry: Unknown
Additional Personal Items: Unknown
[h=2]Circumstances of Disappearance[/h] William Leslie Arnold, known as Les, was last seen in Lincoln on July 15, 1967.
In 1958, when he was 16, he killed his parents after an argument over the family car. He shot his mother six times. He buried his parents in a single grave in the back yard. He later confessed and led police to the bodies.
In 1967, Arnold and another inmate broke out of the penitentiary by cutting bars on a window. The other inmate was captured in 1968 and stated that after the breakout, they were driven to Chicago. Arnold has never been seen or heard from again.
In 2006, a retired minister told the Lincoln Journal Star that on the night of the July 1967 breakout, he picked up the two escapees at a bowling alley, drove them to a bus station and bought them tickets to Chicago. The minister had known Arnold since childhood and said when the escaped convict called for help, he didn't think about the fact that providing aid would break the law: "I was thinking about a friend in need."
While an inmate, Arnold played the saxophone and talked of Brazil.
[h=2]Investigating Agency(s)[/h] Agency Name: Nebraska State Patrol, Investigative Services, HDQ Troop
Agency Contact Person: Inv. Jeff Ward
Agency Phone Number: 402 471-4545
Agency E-Mail: N/A
Agency Case Number: H09-13937
NCIC Case Number: M198331670
NamUs Case Number: 2677
[h=2]Information Source(s)[/h] Namus
WOWT News - Gone Missing
Onin.com - Wanted Party
Chicago Tribune News Archive - October 12, 1958
KSL News

http://www.doenetwork.org/cases/4157dmne.html

https://www.findthemissing.org/en/cases/2677/

 

[king clopperdoodle]

Omaha World Record longread, three-part series 05 Sept 2017

He killed his parents in Omaha at age 16 and escaped from prison nearly a decade later. Then he simply vanished

 

[Betty P]

Omaha World Record longread, three-part series 05 Sept 2017

He killed his parents in Omaha at age 16 and escaped from prison nearly a decade later. Then he simply vanished

Wow. What a story. A very angry, violent man. How could they not have found him by now? Would DNA from his surviving brother help?

I wonder if he has committed more crimes since his escape? With his temper, it seems very possible.

 

[Gardener1850]

Omaha World Record longread, three-part series 05 Sept 2017

He killed his parents in Omaha at age 16 and escaped from prison nearly a decade later. Then he simply vanished

From that link:

The Omaha police detectives who teased out his confession, the prosecutor who sent him to prison with encouraging words, and the warden who watched over the boy-inmate all have long since retired and died.

But in recent years, there have been some for whom the memory of Leslie Arnold has lived on.

Jim Harding never forgot Arnold. Harding went over the fence with Arnold that July night in 1967. Even though Harding was recaptured within a year, he always felt that he was the lucky one.

Frank Spenceri hasn’t forgotten Arnold. Having grown up next door to the Arnolds, he knew well the smart but troubled boy who others failed to understand.

Jim Child hasn’t forgotten Arnold. He now admits to aiding his childhood friend’s escape, putting him on a bus bound for Chicago that night. Talk to the retired minister today and he has a surprising answer as to whether he regrets that sin.

Jim Arnold hasn’t forgotten Leslie, his older brother. To this day, Jim Arnold remains bitter over the crime that left him an orphan and turned his life upside down. He only in recent years got beyond the nightmares and feelings of shame, anger and guilt that tormented him for decades.

Geoff Britton hasn’t forgotten Leslie Arnold. Decades after the escape, the State Corrections Department investigator spent countless hours trying to pick up Arnold’s trail. He believes that Arnold — who would have turned 75 years old last week — could very well still be alive. In fact, Britton has a hunch he knows where Arnold has been.

Very long article: He killed his parents in Omaha at age 16 and escaped from prison nearly a decade later. Then he simply vanished

 

[NotSHolmes]

Sorry to revive a 9 month old post, but I was wondering where to post a write-up I made about his case, detailing my (amateur) investigation and subsequent submission of a potential match to an unidentified person on NamUs. I'm new to Web Sleuths so still trying to find my way around it!
Thanks for your help!

 

[Gardener1850]

Sorry to revive a 9 month old post, but I was wondering where to post a write-up I made about his case, detailing my (amateur) investigation and subsequent submission of a potential match to an unidentified person on NamUs. I'm new to Web Sleuths so still trying to find my way around it!
Thanks for your help!

Welcome! Feel free to post about your unidentified submission here in this thread. Or if the unidentified case has a thread in the Unidentified Forum you can post about Les Arnold as a suggested match on that thread too. Either way works. Sometimes the Unidentified thread has more posts and therefore more members may see it and discuss the possible match there. Depends on how well known the case.

You may also want to familiarize yourself with the site rules (AKA TOS): The Rules

 

[Iwatchingeye]

Very interesting case. I can't wait to hear more about this one.

 

[NotSHolmes]

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NOTE TO THE MODS: Apologies for breaching the rules by adding Reddit links, I wasn't aware - though I must say that after being informed where to look I didn't find it - it must be very obscure or written implicitly.
==================

N.B. Sorry for the convoluted post - I like to be very comprehensive which leads to a lot of rambling. Also, this post is full of speculation as I try to set out a possible theory to explain how the UP and MP are one and the same (backed by facts, of course).

Good day fellows! I decided to compile my research which led to the submission into a write-up. I found this case incredibly interesting and I hope you do too! Any thoughts/input appreciated!

For background, check out this great news series:

• Part 1 - The Killings: He killed his parents in Omaha at age 16 and escaped from prison nearly a decade later. Then he simply vanished
• Part 2 - The Escape: http://webcache.googleusercontent.c...cle_67f67d94-8e81-11e7-b97f-93b8ef14cbcf.html
• Part 3 - The Fugitive: Five decades after escaping prison, the Omaha boy who killed his parents in 1958 remains a wanted man
• Part 4 - New Evidence: New evidence surfaces in mystery of Omaha killer who escaped from prison and vanished

The most relevant news story to this write-up (Part 4): New evidence surfaces in mystery of Omaha killer who escaped from prison and vanished


The missing person (MP) and unidentified person (UP) in question are:

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs) (No postmortem, for those uncomfortable)

Summary (copied verbatim from 4157DMNE - William Leslie Arnold):

William Leslie Arnold, known as Les, was last seen in Lincoln on July 15, 1967.

In 1958, when he was 16, he killed his parents after an argument over the family car. He shot his mother six times. He buried his parents in a single grave in the back yard. He later confessed and led police to the bodies.

In 1967, Arnold and another inmate broke out of the penitentiary by cutting bars on a window. The other inmate was captured in 1968 and stated that after the breakout, they were driven to Chicago. Arnold has never been seen or heard from again.

In 2006, a retired minister told the Lincoln Journal Star that on the night of the July 1967 breakout, he picked up the two escapees at a bowling alley, drove them to a bus station and bought them tickets to Chicago. The minister had known Arnold since childhood and said when the escaped convict called for help, he didn't think about the fact that providing aid would break the law: "I was thinking about a friend in need."

While an inmate, Arnold played the saxophone and talked of Brazil.

Details in support of my theory:

• Matching height and weight both exact (weight is 1 lb off - exact in my book!)
  
  
• Eye colour is the same, hair colour is too
  
  
• There is mention of the UP having a cow-lick (The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)), which is quite obvious in this photo of Arnold (https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VZsLA2Ip...PlbxUwa7wCLcBGAs/s640/59a59c0b03f1c.image.jpg)
  
  
• The distance from the last sighting location of the MP and the recovery location of the UP of 788 miles (Google Maps) initially threw me off until I read that Arnold had got to Chicago along with his fellow escapee. That narrowed down the distance to ~300 miles (Google Maps)
  
  
• The fellow convict was recaptured in May of 1968 - a month before the UP was found, leaving just enough time for some freak incident(s) to occur, but not too long to be unreasonable to connect them together

Problems with my theory:

• Distance -> The distance from the last sighting by his fellow convict of Chicago is still ~300 miles from the location where the UP was found (Google Maps). This isn't easy to explain away, though with a month of time between the final sighting by the other convict and the recovery of the body, it is still within the realms of possibility

• Speed of decomposition -> I had an initial doubt about the speed of decomposition in a month, maximum (if the last sighting date by the fellow convict of May 1968 is anything to go by) - condition of the remains was stated as "Not recognizable - Decomposing/putrefaction". I search online and found that, according to https://www.aftermath.com/content/human-decomposition/, decomposition is much quicker than I would have thought (especially in water, as was the UP)

• Brazilian registration card -> Finally, and the most damning, a Brazilian registration card with Arnold's details (https://web.archive.org/web/2017091...cle_ba48dfd9-e117-58fb-a805-13f43788591b.html). However this could be simply explained by identity theft or perhaps a hoax. I personally don't feel like it is genuine - after all, one would think that he would be living under an assumed name. He also risked it being found out (as it was) - though that may have been intentional, perhaps as a parting taunt or perhaps even simply to convince his family that he had indeed got there.
  
  
• As for how he got to Brazil (if it was really he), then I feel the most likely scenario was that he established a new identity in or near Chicago (he didn't really risk recognition as the case wasn't very well-known outside Oklahoma - to my knowledge), collected enough money/resources and then left by air or sea, perhaps as a stow away. Since the distance he would have had to travel was around 7000 miles straight-line (https://www.freemaptools.com/how-fa...o-illinois_-usa-and-brazil_-south-america.htm) I highly doubt he traveled by land. I don't know much about traveling through South American countries, but I'm quite surprised that he didn't register elsewhere (though, of course, they may not have resurfaced or been released). Or perhaps in 1968 regulation was not so stringent?

Possible sequence of events:

"In solving a problem of this sort, the grand thing is to be able to reason backward."

-- Sherlock Holmes

As to how the MP may have ended up in the situation the UP was found, then my proposal is as follows (taking the information that he got to Chicago as a fact - I don't think there is much reason to doubt it):

• Arnold realises that his fellow escapee has been captured so stays low and perhaps gets out of Chicago
  
  
• He established contact with shady people and had dealings with them - money, provision, perhaps even (petty?) crime
  
  
• In one such case, he angered someone, forfeiting his life
  
  
• His body was disposed off in the lake - an easy way to get rid of any incriminating evidence

This is, of course, all speculation, but I believe that they are the most likely in the case that they are one and the same. There is one other very simple possibility - suicide. However I highly doubt that he would do so after all the ordeals he endured to get to the advantageous position he was in. Then again, the human mind can be extremely unpredictable.

Whilst there are many similarities, overall my instinct is that this is not a match. There were just too many options available to him and it's unlikely that he wouldn't have capitalised on any of them. Furthermore, the chance of a hoax registration is virtually nil, since it wouldn't have been worth going to such efforts to achieve. The only possible way it could be fake is if somebody stole his identity and used it on entering Brazil, but for what purpose? The only scenario I could imagine is an elaborate one; that someone wanted people to believe that he had got to Brazil when he hadn't.

As I was writing the previous paragraph, I thought of a crazy, but perhaps believable reason (prepare for the wildest bit of speculation throughout); that Arnold got someone else to register in his name, all the while settling in some far-flung (or perhaps not) area America, under a new identity. Perhaps he had gotten away with it for a long time and realised that all he needed to do was to simply convince everyone that he had got away, rather than have to move to a foreign country and start all over again. Anyhow, I doubt that he'll be found until a major investigation is conducted which explores all of these possibilities thoroughly, and I think it's unlikely for that to ever occur.

Conclusion:
I want to end on a reflective note, since I - and I am certain this isn't exclusive to me - find myself poring over the details of this, and other cases, and experiencing a thrill when piecing together the facts and submitting a match, almost as if the excitement and the glory of being the one to solve the mystery is all that matters, forgetting the actual weight of the situation, and the people whose lives are forever changed.

The inexplicable hurt William caused his family and those around him is irreparable, yet I am sure they care about him nevertheless and want closure, and I hope they, and all other families with missing, get it, regardless of the one to whom the success is accredited.

Thank you for reading. God Bless.

 

[T rex]

I think he went to Brazil. He had the one minister helping him and I read in another place that after arriving in Chicago he received help from another minister. There was a lot of missionary work going on in Sao Paulo in 1968. I think it's very possible that it was arranged for him to go there as a missionary.

 

[NotSHolmes]

I think he went to Brazil. He had the one minister helping him and I read in another place that after arriving in Chicago he received help from another minister. There was a lot of missionary work going on in Sao Paulo in 1968. I think it's very possible that it was arranged for him to go there as a missionary.

I agree, that sound likely. However, wouldn't they have done any background checks before "recruiting" a missionary, if even to check "how Christian" they are? Surely records of all of the missionaries would have been kept, too. Couldn't they be retrieved and searched?

 

[T rex]

I agree, that sound likely. However, wouldn't they have done any background checks before "recruiting" a missionary, if even to check "how Christian" they are? Surely records of all of the missionaries would have been kept, too. Couldn't they be retrieved and searched?

I guess it would depend on the church or organization. Im sure different ones had different methods for choosing their missionaries. It probably would only take the right person to refer someone. Another possibility is between the time Leslie Arnold escaped and the registration card got filled out in Brazil that he became a member of a church under an alias. I don't know how hard it would have been to get a passport in 1968 under an alias but if he is indeed the one that filled out the card then he obviously used his real name when he arrived there. As far as records go there may well be records of it, maybe someone should check that out.

 

[NotSHolmes]

Any idea where to check? I expect the false ID scenario is quite likely, but then I wonder why he registered under his own name when he got to Brazil? Also, surely missionaries are sent in groups? If so then the other members of his group will have questions/answers? about what happened to him (i.e. where they went, why he stayed behind and didn't return, why he registered under a "different" name, ect.).
Thank you very much for your input, and apologies for so many questions - I warned you that I like to be thorough!

 

[Gardener1850]

The Brazil immigration card can be seen on Familysearch.org (you have to sign up for a membership to see it but it's free) : FamilySearch

I think it's likely Arnold was the one who filled it out since he talked about Brazil while in prison. Although I suppose anyone who knew his birthdate could have used his name. Interesting choice for him to want to go there with what was going on in 1968: 1968 in Brazil - Wikipedia

I wonder if he hoped to join the students marching against the Dictatorship or if he was in favor of the new government? Either way, I doubt that Brazil would have bothered with extraditing him back to the US with the chaos going on in their country. That may have been his reason for choosing Brazil. I also wonder how easy it would have been for him to fill out the immigration card but then quietly leave Brazil for another country after that without leaving a paper trail? Could he have made his way back to the US? Perhaps the trip to Brazil was only to send US investigators on a wild goose chase?

If any of Arnold's family members survive today they should have their DNA done by all the commercial genealogical websites (Ancestry DNA, 23&Me, etc) to see if there are cousin matches in Brazil (or elsewhere). If he stayed in Brazil he may have changed his name. His children or grandchildren may not know his true identity and may someday test their DNA because they are curious.

MOO.

 

[NotSHolmes]

I wonder if he hoped to join the students marching against the Dictatorship or if he was in favor of the new government? Either way, I doubt that Brazil would have bothered with extraditing him back to the US with the chaos going on in their country. That may have been his reason for choosing Brazil. I also wonder how easy it would have been for him to fill out the immigration card but then quietly leave Brazil for another country after that without leaving a paper trail? Could he have made his way back to the US? Perhaps the trip to Brazil was only to send US investigators on a wild goose chase?

Many interesting ideas! As for his reasons for going to Brazil, then I think it was most likely to simply escape, though the last theory (about a wild goose chase) is very intriguing, particularly because I can't see many people (and Americans especially) settling in such a foreign and third-world country - at least at the time. I doubt he went further for reasons of cost, effort, and the fact that there wasn't really anything better. However, living under an assumed name in America all along or returning to it is my bet (if nothing happened to him along the way). My biggest question right now is where in the world was he and what was he up to in the 6 months between his jail escape and supposedly getting to Brazil?

 

[T rex]

Many interesting ideas! As for his reasons for going to Brazil, then I think it was most likely to simply escape, though the last theory (about a wild goose chase) is very intriguing, particularly because I can't see many people (and Americans especially) settling in such a foreign and third-world country - at least at the time. I doubt he went further for reasons of cost, effort, and the fact that there wasn't really anything better. However, living under an assumed name in America all along or returning to it is my bet (if nothing happened to him along the way). My biggest question right now is where in the world was he and what was he up to in the 6 months between his jail escape and supposedly getting to Brazil?

I agree, Leslie Arnold definitely went to Brazil for no other reason than to escape. When I suggested he went there as a missionary it wasn't so much a reason but more of a means to an end.
It's possible he could have returned to the US at some point but I don't think it's likely. His parents were dead at his own hand, his only brother didn't want anything to do with him, neither would the community he grew up in and he was a wanted man. If you think about it he didn't really have any reason at all to go back and every reason to just stay where he was at. I believe he got an alias, blended in, established himself in the community, had a family and became a citizen. If he's still alive he's likely there now.

 

[T rex]

Any idea where to check? I expect the false ID scenario is quite likely, but then I wonder why he registered under his own name when he got to Brazil? Also, surely missionaries are sent in groups? If so then the other members of his group will have questions/answers? about what happened to him (i.e. where they went, why he stayed behind and didn't return, why he registered under a "different" name, ect.).
Thank you very much for your input, and apologies for so many questions - I warned you that I like to be thorough!

I don't know how an internet sleuther would go about finding this out. I'm sure there's not too many old church records online, although theres probably more than I think.
We can only speculate that he would have left from the Chicago area. It would be like looking for a needle in a haystack. I suppose the best bet would be to start in Sao Paulo and try to figure out what all missions came in around that time, trace them back to places in the US and then go from there. Of course it would be much easier for LE, a reporter or someone like that who has more resources and knows how to use them.

 

[Gardener1850]

I don't know how an internet sleuther would go about finding this out. I'm sure there's not too many old church records online, although theres probably more than I think.
We can only speculate that he would have left from the Chicago area. It would be like looking for a needle in a haystack. I suppose the best bet would be to start in Sao Paulo and try to figure out what all missions came in around that time, trace them back to places in the US and then go from there. Of course it would be much easier for LE, a reporter or someone like that who has more resources and knows how to use them.

Without knowing what alias he could have used it's hard to sleuth. We can't openly sleuth random American's living in Brazil at that time here on WS due to the rules here. But if a private investigator wanted to work on this on their own (and send any possible aliases found in to LE as a tip) I would suggest looking for church records mentioning American men in the right age range who got married or had children in Brazil after 1968. There are scans of Brazilian church records on Family Search: Family History Research in South America, Brazil — FamilySearch.org

Family Search is free to access if you sign up for a membership. Most of the records don't seem to be searchable, however. It would take many hours of browsing page by page to even find records from the 1960's/1970's that might be him. Most of the records are much older than the time period we need to look at, going back to 1598. They are also in either Latin or Portuguese. That makes it harder to browse. Many years ago I found my great great grandparents baptism records from a European country by going page by page through Family Search records similar to these. But I had an idea of what year and name I was looking for. It was a very long and tedious process and I had to learn a foreign language to even understand which records I was looking through.

Another strategy is to use the search feature there and look at all searchable birth records in Brazil from 1968 to around 1980 (figuring that if he established an alias and had a family as his cover it would likely be within the decade after he arrived in Brazil): FamilySearch

Keep in mind only a selection of the records are searchable-- this probably isn't searching all births in Brazil. Which is why I mentioned first about going through the records page by page. But with the searchable records that are there one can either look for fathers with American sounding names (if any) or look at all fathers (with the idea he could have taken on a Brazilian name). It would require sleuthing each father listed and focusing on things that would rule them out like their age, when they married, if they had their own birth records, if they had other children prior to 1968, etc. Again, we can't post any names of possible matches found in a process like this but one could theoretically make a spreadsheet to keep track of their searches and narrow it down (men with no other records prior to 1968, who fit the age range, are known to be American, etc) and pass any interesting info found on to the FBI.

MOO.

 

[NotSHolmes]

And the 6-month interim? Very solid theories and great information otherwise - thanks for your input! I'll definitely do a bit of searching on the FamilySearch website and update with any new information.

 

[NotSHolmes]

Hmm, I did a bit of searching, but unfortunately didn't uncover anything new - just his (supposed) immigration certificate: FamilySearch. Funnily enough I couldn't find a convincing birth certificate (should be more available than the immigration card, surely); apparently at least a dozen William Arnold's were born in 1942.

Here are some other interesting certificates (using the search: FamilySearch) with similar DOBs and identical names (minus his middle name in some cases) - they would have to be investigated further (I do not know how):
FamilySearch
FamilySearch
FamilySearch

I'm very skeptical that they are relevant though, since if he remained in the USA he would have surely moved to another state, and likely lived under an assumed name. Or he was so assured of himself that he kept his real name (the other people with very similar names helps too).

 

[Hockeyfan158]

This is going to sound ridiculous but assuming he did go and end up living in Chicago wouldn’t it be something if he was one of John Wayne Gacy unidentified victims. I know it dumb to say but just a thought if he did stay in Chicago but i doubt it he probably fled the country or ended up like Theodore John Conrad

52-year-old mystery solved: Dead man ‘obsessed’ with movie named bank heist suspect

He would only be 80 so there is a small chance he’s somehow still out there.