Identified! TN - Jellico, WhtFem UP1579, 17-30, pregnant, off I-75, burn scars, Jan'85 - Tina Farmer
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folieadeuxnola
70's-80's Jane Doe's
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Police hunt for possible serial killer in 1980s 'redhead murders'
More than 30 years after the bodies of multiple young, red-haired women were discovered dumped near U.S. highways in Tennessee, Kentucky and Arkansas, police say the killings may be the work of an unknown serial killer.
"The cases are probably connected," said Detective Aaron Frederick of the Kentucky State Police. "There's a lot of similarities."
In the spring of this year, a high school sociology class in Elizabethton, Tenn., began researching the "redhead murders" for a class project. The students and their teacher, Alex Campbell, gathered information from multiple police agencies and solicited advice from an FBI profiler.
The killer, they said, was probably a truck driver based in Knoxville, Tenn. He lured hitchhikers or prostitutes into his truck, then killed them with his bare hands before dumping their bodies beside the road, the students' profile alleges.
The students sent their eight-page profile to each agency investigating the killings, including Frederick, who -- still waiting for the DNA results for his victim -- immediately recognized that the children's analysis could be right.
A few months after the students released their findings, investigators with the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation came across a blog post about a red-haired woman missing from Indiana. The woman matched the description of a Jane Doe found more than 30 years earlier beside Interstate 75 in Tennessee. Fingerprints confirmed the woman was 21-year-old Tina Farmer.
"Since this investigation is ongoing and remains very active, we can't confirm any connection this case may have to another," Leslie Earhart, a spokeswoman for TBI, said in an email. "It's too premature in the investigation to discuss such specifics."
More than 30 years after the bodies of multiple young, red-haired women were discovered dumped near U.S. highways in Tennessee, Kentucky and Arkansas, police say the killings may be the work of an unknown serial killer.
"The cases are probably connected," said Detective Aaron Frederick of the Kentucky State Police. "There's a lot of similarities."
In the spring of this year, a high school sociology class in Elizabethton, Tenn., began researching the "redhead murders" for a class project. The students and their teacher, Alex Campbell, gathered information from multiple police agencies and solicited advice from an FBI profiler.
The killer, they said, was probably a truck driver based in Knoxville, Tenn. He lured hitchhikers or prostitutes into his truck, then killed them with his bare hands before dumping their bodies beside the road, the students' profile alleges.
The students sent their eight-page profile to each agency investigating the killings, including Frederick, who -- still waiting for the DNA results for his victim -- immediately recognized that the children's analysis could be right.
A few months after the students released their findings, investigators with the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation came across a blog post about a red-haired woman missing from Indiana. The woman matched the description of a Jane Doe found more than 30 years earlier beside Interstate 75 in Tennessee. Fingerprints confirmed the woman was 21-year-old Tina Farmer.
"Since this investigation is ongoing and remains very active, we can't confirm any connection this case may have to another," Leslie Earhart, a spokeswoman for TBI, said in an email. "It's too premature in the investigation to discuss such specifics."
A Hoosier woman waited three decades for answers in the disappearance of her sister, only to find out she'd been a Jane Doe states away for an almost equal amount of time.
The last time Liza Plummer saw her big sister, Tina McKenney Farmer, was at Liza's birthday 35 years ago.
"We never just thought that you know we would ever see her again," Plummer said.
Indiana woman learns missing sister was Jane Doe states away for more than 30 years
The last time Liza Plummer saw her big sister, Tina McKenney Farmer, was at Liza's birthday 35 years ago.
"We never just thought that you know we would ever see her again," Plummer said.
Indiana woman learns missing sister was Jane Doe states away for more than 30 years
TatianaBarbie
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I just read the news article and I was looking to see if it had been posted. It was a fairly long article, but well written. Thanks for posting it, @Cagle!
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TBI identifies suspect in 1985 "redhead murders" case as Cleveland, Tenn. man
The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) says it has identified a suspect in a murder case that's more than 30 years old.
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A Grand Jury in Campbell County, Tennessee ruled Wednesday that if Jerry Leon Johns were still alive today, he would be facing an indictment for first degree murder in connection with the 1985 death of 22-year-old Tina Marie McKenney Farmer. At a news conference about the case on Thursday, the TBI identified Johns as a truck driver who lived in Cleveland, Tennessee at some point prior to his arrest in the 1980s.
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Johns died in December 2015 while in custody, before new leads were developed in the Tina Farmer case.
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The profile matched that of Jerry Leon Johns, who was 67 years old at the time of his death in 2015, and 37 years old at the time of the murder.
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During the course of the investigation, agents learned that two months after Ms. Farmer’s body was located in Campbell County, Jerry Johns picked up a woman in Knox County and proceeded to strangle and bind her before dumping her body along Interstate 40. The woman resembled Tina Farmer, and the circumstances in both cases were strikingly similar. The victim in that case miraculously survived, and her statement led to the arrest of Jerry Johns on numerous charges, including aggravated kidnapping and assault. He was convicted on those charges in 1987.
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Campbell County Grand Jury found that if Jerry Johns were alive today, he would be indicted on a charge of First Degree Murder.
“While I am extremely disappointed that this case has not ended in the prosecution of Jerry Johns, I am pleased that this investigation has answered questions for Ms. Farmer’s family that heretofore had gone unanswered for over thirty-four years,” said District Attorney General Jared Effler.
TBI identifies suspect in 1985 "redhead murders" case as Cleveland, Tenn. man
The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) says it has identified a suspect in a murder case that's more than 30 years old.
---
A Grand Jury in Campbell County, Tennessee ruled Wednesday that if Jerry Leon Johns were still alive today, he would be facing an indictment for first degree murder in connection with the 1985 death of 22-year-old Tina Marie McKenney Farmer. At a news conference about the case on Thursday, the TBI identified Johns as a truck driver who lived in Cleveland, Tennessee at some point prior to his arrest in the 1980s.
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Johns died in December 2015 while in custody, before new leads were developed in the Tina Farmer case.
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The profile matched that of Jerry Leon Johns, who was 67 years old at the time of his death in 2015, and 37 years old at the time of the murder.
---
During the course of the investigation, agents learned that two months after Ms. Farmer’s body was located in Campbell County, Jerry Johns picked up a woman in Knox County and proceeded to strangle and bind her before dumping her body along Interstate 40. The woman resembled Tina Farmer, and the circumstances in both cases were strikingly similar. The victim in that case miraculously survived, and her statement led to the arrest of Jerry Johns on numerous charges, including aggravated kidnapping and assault. He was convicted on those charges in 1987.
---
Campbell County Grand Jury found that if Jerry Johns were alive today, he would be indicted on a charge of First Degree Murder.
“While I am extremely disappointed that this case has not ended in the prosecution of Jerry Johns, I am pleased that this investigation has answered questions for Ms. Farmer’s family that heretofore had gone unanswered for over thirty-four years,” said District Attorney General Jared Effler.
TBI identifies suspect in 1985 "redhead murders" case as Cleveland, Tenn. man
Announcement on official TBI fb page:
In 1985, the body of a young woman was found along Interstate 75 in Campbell County. Investigators were unable to identify her, and she was listed as Jane Doe. Last year, we told you about how a remarkable set of circumstances helped agents positively identify the victim as Tina Farmer. Today, we are pleased to announce that, as a result of a lengthy investigation, we know the person responsible for her death.
Tennessee Bureau of Investigation
In 1985, the body of a young woman was found along Interstate 75 in Campbell County. Investigators were unable to identify her, and she was listed as Jane Doe. Last year, we told you about how a remarkable set of circumstances helped agents positively identify the victim as Tina Farmer. Today, we are pleased to announce that, as a result of a lengthy investigation, we know the person responsible for her death.
Tennessee Bureau of Investigation
MajorHoople
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Appalachian Unsolved: The Trucker Who Liked Redheads
Jerry L. Johns worked as an independent trucker in the 1970s and 80s. Authorities are checking for links between his travels and numerous unsolved killings.
The woman known as "Tasha" danced nude at the Katch. It was a lucrative profession, sometimes bringing her a thousand dollars a week.
Appalachian Unsolved: The trucker who liked redheads
This is the best article I've seen on this case. Fortunately Tasha survived and quick police work led to the capture of Jerry Johns. A Knox County jury convicted him and the judge sentenced him to a lengthy prison sentence.
Jerry L. Johns worked as an independent trucker in the 1970s and 80s. Authorities are checking for links between his travels and numerous unsolved killings.
The woman known as "Tasha" danced nude at the Katch. It was a lucrative profession, sometimes bringing her a thousand dollars a week.
Appalachian Unsolved: The trucker who liked redheads
This is the best article I've seen on this case. Fortunately Tasha survived and quick police work led to the capture of Jerry Johns. A Knox County jury convicted him and the judge sentenced him to a lengthy prison sentence.
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