Identified! NH - Allenstown, Adult Female, 23-33, & 3 Children, Marlyse Honeychurch, Marie Vaughn, Sarah McWaters, Rea Rasmussen

[Tabirey]

Rea's birth listing

 

[jennytrevor]

Are they going to be able to find dental records for somebody who wasn't reported missing for 50 years though? Unless the one living brother remembers something unique about her teeth or that she never saw a dentist (thereby ruling out all people who've had work done), I don't think that will be a viable method of ID.

I'd be curious if they have fingerprints on file for her, because that would allow for a match if she was an unidentified body that didn't have DNA available.

Good point! I hope he would at least be able to know if she received dental care at all...though that's not really that helpful for definitive exclusion. It's also possible she was reported missing at some point and dental records were retained somewhere? Idk stranger things have popped up! For example, finding Rea's birth certificate with Terry Rasmussen's legal name on it! Here's to hoping!

Though considering Terry moved across the country with Rea, I'm guessing Pepper would have been left behind, whether alive or murdered, in CA.

 

[jennytrevor]

Now we know:

-As early as September 1975, Rasmussen met and impregnated Pepper Reed. This means he was very likely in Texas by this time.

-December 25th, 1975: Pepper Reed seen by family in Houston, TX. She is pregnant at this point. Rasmussen likely living in TX. It is interesting in the timeline, it is noted Rasmussen visited family for Christmas in '75 or '76 with an unidentified female. Was it possible that he saw his family/Pepper was with hers shortly before or after Christmas Day, meaning it's possible she was brought to his family in Christmas '75? I had thought there was mention of the woman he brought to his family being Asian but I'm not certain of that. I do not think Pepper would be mistaken as Asian.

-June 1976: Rea Rasmussen born in Orange County CA. Guessing Rasmussen was in CA too.

-By 1978, Rasmussen was back working in TX.

• Did he go back to TX with Reed and Rea? I would think she would have tried to reach out to family if possible if she was back in her home state, but he may have been isolating her from loved ones.
• Did he flee to TX in 1978 after killing Reed somewhere in CA circa late 76/77/78? Where was Rea during this time if this was the case?
• Did he leave Reed to take of their daughter alone in CA while he went to make easy money in TX oil fields? I could then see a scenario where he goes back to CA in 1978, reunites with Reed, kills her, and then meets Marlyse Honeychurch. If Reed was out of the picture, he may have really wanted to find a new woman to take care of his daughter.

-November (Thanksgiving) 1978: Honeychurch last seen by family with boyfriend Rasmussen. There was no mention/remembering of him having a daughter. I would think this detail would stand out in family's minds. It's possible she did not mention it because she knew there would be stigma. Either way, where was Rea then? With a babysitter? Or was Reed still alive?

Timeline from here: https://mm.nh.gov/files/uploads/doj/remote-docs/20171102-allenstown-manchester-timeline.pdf

 

[LookingForClues]

At the time of her death, Rea was between 2 and 4 years old. Unfortunately, there are no known photographs of Rea, so investigators are continuing to use NCMEC’s facial reconstruction to provide the most accurate visual of what Rea may have looked like.

The Little Girl in the Barrel: A Bear Brook Mystery Solved

Twenty-five years after the body of an unidentified little girl was discovered in a 55-gallon drum...

www.missingkids.org

This answers my question about pictures of Rea. Heartbreaking that we may never see what she looked like in life. My oldest granddaughter has a longer name that includes a variation of Rea. I'm feeling a bit of the shivers.

 

[Alleykins]

I'd love to know Pepper's lineage to TJ Mitchell and William Livings.
How old would Pepper Reed be now?
RIP Rea. So glad you have your name back, sweet angel.

 

[LookingForClues]

Identification of Final Unidentified Victim in the Allenstown, NH Homicide Case (Bear Brook Murders)

Concord, NH – Attorney General John M. Formella and Colonel Mark B. Hall of the New Hampshire State Police announce a major development on behalf of the New Hampshire Cold Case Unit in the investigation of the 1985/2000 Allenstown homicide case, widely referred to as the Bear Brook murders.

The final unidentified victim - previously known as the “middle child” - has been identified as Rea Rasmussen, born in 1976 in Orange County, California. Rea was the biological daughter of Terry Peder Rasmussen, the man responsible for the murders (who died in prison in 2010), and Pepper Reed, who was born in 1952, is originally from Texas, and has not been seen since the late 1970s.

This identification concludes a more than 40-year search to give names to all four victims found in Bear Brook State Park in Allenstown, New Hampshire.

https://www.doj.nh.gov/news-and-media/identification-final-unidentified-victim-allenstown-nh-homicide-case-bear-brook

 

[ssarahbg]

Are they going to be able to find dental records for somebody who wasn't reported missing for 50 years though? Unless the one living brother remembers something unique about her teeth or that she never saw a dentist (thereby ruling out all people who've had work done), I don't think that will be a viable method of ID.

I'd be curious if they have fingerprints on file for her, because that would allow for a match if she was an unidentified body that didn't have DNA available.

Last I had heard about the UID case, they were looking into other ways of obtaining DNA. There was hair so I have wondered if they could get a profile from the non-root hairs if they are still able to be located.

At the time of her death, Rea was between 2 and 4 years old. Unfortunately, there are no known photographs of Rea, so investigators are continuing to use NCMEC’s facial reconstruction to provide the most accurate visual of what Rea may have looked like.

The Little Girl in the Barrel: A Bear Brook Mystery Solved

Twenty-five years after the body of an unidentified little girl was discovered in a 55-gallon drum...

www.missingkids.org

This answers my question about pictures of Rea. Heartbreaking that we may never see what she looked like in life. My oldest granddaughter has a longer name that includes a variation of Rea. I'm feeling a bit of the shivers.

i always wondered if she was this little girl in the party photos. These were photos put out to the public to help identify the children in the photo and eventually identify Rea. She looks very much like the sketch.

 

[LookingForClues]

In an interview with NHPR ahead of the state announcement Sunday, New Hampshire State Police Detective Sergeant Chris Elphick said the state finally “got lucky” in June of this year. Investigators and the DNA Doe Project compiled a family tree with about 25,000 people in it, but Elphick said this summer, they finally found a key DNA match in the family tree that led them to Rea’s mother.

According to the DNA Doe Project, the match was a couple born in the 1870s. Next, the team says they found a 2005 obituary for one of the couple’s great-great-great-granddaughters, which said she was survived by a daughter named Pepper Reed.

The team could find no records for Reed after the 1970s, but the DNA Doe Project says once they had her name, they found a birth record for her daughter, Rea Rasmussen, within 30 minutes.

More at link:

Investigators identify last remaining Bear Brook murder victim — but a new mystery emerges

The New Hampshire Attorney General’s office announced it has finally identified the victim known as “the middle child,” one of four bodies found in barrels in Bear Brook State Park decades ago.

www.nhpr.org

 

[ssarahbg]

The Honeychurches were last seen Nov of 1978, I would assume Pepper would've disappeared before TR met them

I thought that but there was no mention of him having a little girl with him when he met the Honeychurch family. I feel as if he likely met back up with Pepper/Rea after or during his time with Marlyse.

 

[Alleykins]

Last I had heard about the UID case, they were looking into other ways of obtaining DNA. There was hair so I have wondered if they could get a profile from the non-root hairs if they are still able to be located.

i always wondered if she was this little girl in the party photos. These were photos put out to the public to help identify the children in the photo and eventually identify Rea. She looks very much like the sketch.

Yes, they can get DNA from hair without a follicle now.

 

[jennytrevor]

I thought that but there was no mention of him having a little girl with him when he met the Honeychurch family. I feel as if he likely met back up with Pepper/Rea after or during his time with Marlyse.

I was thinking about this too. We know from the fact that he abandoned Dawn/Lisa later on that he does not have any problems leaving his daughter with babysitters. I think it's possible she was with a babysitter just for that day. Or even long term/multiple years, if he killed Pepper earlier, closer to 76/77/early 78. He could even have been sending money back to this caretaker from his work in TX. Just a thought. Though Pepper could have been alive too. It's hard to say right now.

 

[earth2mass]

Will there be a press conference held?

 

[faithx]

Will there be a press conference held?

Yes, according to WMUR. It is scheduled for tomorrow at 11 AM (Eastern Time).

 

[iamshadow21]

Sleep well, Rea. I'm so glad to know your name.

 

[SophieRose]

Pepper

Pepper Reed (1952-1976) - Find a Grave Memorial

Date of birth and location provided by Ancestry.com. Records are confirmed to be her based on parents names matching information given from identification. Missing Person. On May 9, 2000, in Bear Brook State Park in Allenstown, New Hampshire, a barrel containing the bodies of two little girls...

www.findagrave.com

Her mother

Barbara Jean Purvis Reed (1932-2005) - Find a...

Barbara Jean Reed, 73, of Houston, went to be with the Lord on Friday, April 15, 2005. She was born on February 15, 1932, in Waynesboro, Mississippi, to Barney and Helen Purvis. Barbara is survived by her two loving children, Bobby Reed and Pepper Reed; brother, John Purvis; three grandchildren...

www.findagrave.com

 

[Tahlia Woodson]

With the identification of Rea and the knowledge that she was born in Orange County, I just wanted to bring up something I thought was a bit interesting.

When Terry was arrested for abandoning Lisa, there was a newspaper article published seeking his identity.

On the 3rd column there's a paragraph that states that "Kimball" was married to a woman known as "Donna" work (allegedly) worked as a nurse in Orange County, CA.

I'm not sure how relevant or truthful this is, and the paper was published in 1986 - 10 years after Rea was born, so it might be a red herring but I thought it was interesting to bring up considering his daughter was born in the exact same place.

 

[Alleykins]

I must be the worlds worst amateur genealogist. I was able find Pepper's family history based on info in her mother's obituary, and there's not one Livings or Mitchell, or any of the other common surnames associated with their families, like Spiers, on the family trees I found.

Also, when they found out Rea was TPR's daughter, didn't they check California birth records for his name to see what shook out back then? Or am I misremembering? I could have sworn they did.

 

[summergirl1]

I'd love to know Pepper's lineage to TJ Mitchell and William Livings.
How old would Pepper Reed be now?
RIP Rea. So glad you have your name back, sweet angel.

Pepper Reed would have been 73 on Sept 6, according the Find a Grave link above which says that was her birthday.

 

[Alleykins]

Also, someone is listing Pepper as deceased on Findagrave and Family Search, and possibly other sites, which is kinda jumping the gun here because we don't know for certain she's deceased.

Don't know who's doing it, but they truly need to stop doing it and also remove her information until it's proven she is deceased. There's a chance she's still alive and may not want her privacy invaded.

 

[Alleykins]

Pepper Reed would have been 73 on Sept 6, according the Find a Grave link above which says that was her birthday.

Thank you, I finally figured it out after some digging.