December 26, 2024 • 14 mins
In this year-end recap episode of Cold and Missing, we revisit some of the most compelling cases from our archives, exploring new updates and breakthroughs that have emerged in 2024. We delve into advancements in genetic genealogy and highlight the tireless efforts of law enforcement and advocates keeping these cases alive. Join us as we reflect on the ongoing quest for answers and justice in these unresolved mysteries. This episode is a powerful reminder that no case is truly cold when we keep shining a light on it.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
The views and opinions expressed in Cold and Missing are exclusively those of the hosts.
(00:13):
All parties mentioned are considered innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
Cold and Missing also contains adult themes and languages.
Listener discretion is advised.
I'm your host, Ali McLaughlin-Sulkowski.
And I'm your co-host, Eli Sulkowski.
And this is Cold and Missing, where we cover cold cases and missing person cases.
(00:34):
Hello everyone and welcome back to Cold and Missing.
I'm Ali.
And I'm Eli.
Welcome back everyone.
It is the end of the year, end of 2024.
Christmas just passed as of uploading this episode and we're rounding the corner to
New Year's.
Yeah, so as this year comes to a close, we're going to be navigating this episode just a
(00:59):
little differently.
Yeah, we thought it might be nice at the end of the year to just go back and just talk
about any updates of any of the cases that we have covered on the podcast because there
has been some movement, arrests, convictions on some of the cases that we've covered here
since the beginning of Cold and Missing.
So it might be nice just to recap everything and close the year out that way.
(01:23):
More importantly than anything, it gives us a chance here at Cold and Missing, Ali and
I, a chance to really emphasize why Cold and Missing is here.
And it's to do exactly what we're doing in this episode today.
Yes, we love to cover cold and missing cases, especially those that have, you know, lived
(01:47):
underrepresented for far too long.
But this gives us another chance to emphasize to our listeners as well, go back and listen
to the cases that have had updates, check to see if other podcasts have covered cases,
maybe even more in depth.
And it gives you a chance to search for these people, another go around.
(02:13):
Yeah, we always want to help bring answers to the family, bring justice, close these
cases out.
So, you know, us doing this recap is really a way to just like honor that part of the
mission as well of Cold and Missing.
And with that, I think we can move into episode 113 where Ali provides us with some updates.
(02:37):
And just as a quick content warning at the top, there will be some brief mentions of
sexual assault.
So some of these updates will just be quick little quips, just some small things that
have been happening on the case, but other ones have had some pretty substantial movements.
So the first one we're going to be talking about is from episode two, which was Tionda
and Diamond Bradley.
(02:59):
So just as a quick recap, they were 10 and two at the time of their disappearance in
2001.
They had disappeared from their apartment in Chicago, Illinois.
There was a note left by Tionda saying that they were going to a park to play and then
to the store, but the girls have never been found.
In 2023, there was a woman in Texas who came forward saying that she thought that she could
(03:24):
be Diamond Bradley.
The FBI did do a DNA test and according to the family, it was not a match.
So they are still searching for what happened to Tionda and Diamond.
The family still hold vigils every single year, so they are actively trying to keep
this case in the media.
The next update is from episode three and this is the case of Trevelle Henley.
(03:49):
Trevelle was 15 years old when he went missing in Columbus, Ohio under mysterious circumstances.
His case kind of went viral on social media when a woman on TikTok in Columbus, Ohio was
like doing some work in her yard and she found a rug that had been rolled up and buried in
her yard, so she put it up on TikTok and it kind of caused this big sensation and so she
(04:14):
called police who did investigate it and there was no body.
Nothing really nefarious seems to be coming from the rug, though I think they are still
doing some DNA testing from what I could find or just general testing on it, not DNA, just
general testing to make sure there is no DNA or evidence on it.
But when that whole thing went viral, Trevelle's case was really linked to it and thought that
(04:40):
maybe this could be related to him, so his case was brought up a lot.
Unfortunately there were no new leads or anything, but I thought this was kind of an interesting
development and a way for somebody's missing person case to get out there.
His case is still open.
Moving right along, our next update is episode nine and this was the murder of Abby Williams
(05:02):
and Libby German in Delphi, Indiana.
Richard Allen was arrested, we've covered this on the podcast, and he did go to trial
recently and was found guilty.
He has been sentenced to 130 years for the murder of Abby and Libby and now this case
is considered closed.
In episode 15, this is about Betty Rolfe.
(05:25):
She was 60 years old in 1988 and was walking to work when she was assaulted and murdered.
Gene Mayer was arrested in the murder and assault of Betty.
He was found guilty at trial and was sentenced to life in prison with a chance at parole
in 34 years.
Since he is 68 years old in 2024, he will likely die in prison before he is eligible
(05:49):
for parole, but that case is also considered closed.
The next update is from episode 33, which is Dorien Thomas.
Dorian was nine years old in 1998 when he went missing.
He was riding his bike to go get a snack from a nearby gas station in Amarillo, Texas.
(06:09):
In 2024, the Amarillo Police Department got a tip that remains could be found near Smelter
Road and Hastings Avenue.
When police arrived and searched the area, they did end up finding bones.
Police initially thought that this could be Dorien.
Unfortunately, the bones turned out to be animal bones, so we are still searching for
(06:32):
what happened to Dorien Thomas.
His case is still open.
In episode 35, we covered Teekah Lewis's case.
Teekah went missing when she was only two years old from a bowling alley in Tacoma, Washington
in 1999.
In August of 2024, a woman who resembled Teekah’s age-progress photo was seen at a Home Depot
(06:53):
asking to use the bathroom near Tacoma, Washington.
Teekah’s uncle worked at the home depot and saw the girl and alerted the family.
Teekah’s family are pushing the police to investigate, but there have been no updates from them as
far as if they looked into this or not.
But the family is pushing for the police to work more on the case.
(07:13):
Her case is still open.
In episode 37, Jason Cannon was two years old when he went missing in 1982.
He was playing in his front yard and his mom went to go get a jacket for him, and when she
returned he was gone.
In April of 2024, police announced that they reopened the case and are asking for the public's
(07:34):
help in solving what happened to him.
Jason's case is still open.
The next update is from episode 40, Lina Sadar Khil.
She was three years old when she went missing from the playground at her apartment complex
when she was playing with other children in 2021.
Police say they remain committed to her case.
(07:55):
Quote, after nearly three years investigating the disappearance of Lina Khil, the San Antonio
Police Department remains committed to following up on and investigating every lead that we
receive.
SAPD continues to use all tools available, including working with our partners at the
FBI to investigate all leads.
SAPD would like to take the opportunity to ask anyone with information on Lena's disappearance
(08:20):
and or whereabouts to please call the police at 210-207-7660.
End quote.
Her case is still open.
Our next update comes from episode 61.
In this episode we covered the cold case of Sigrid Stevenson.
Sigrid was found brutally murdered in her college's theater right before classes were
(08:43):
set to begin again in the fall of 1977.
Sigrid's case was featured on the most recent season of Netflix's Unsolved Mysteries, and
the New Jersey Cold Case Squad in September of 2024 announced that they were reopening
the case.
So hopefully we'll see something in the future on Sigrid's case, but her case is still open.
(09:07):
In episode 67 we covered the murder of Jenny Lin.
She was found murdered after coming home from school in 1994.
She was only 14 years old.
Police say they have uploaded DNA to public DNA sites, hoping to use genetic genealogy
to solve the case.
Police say, quote, we definitely have DNA that we can work with, but at this point in
(09:30):
time we just don't have anything to match it with.
Our investigators are in touch with people who are developing new processes as far as
forensically and those efforts are ongoing.
End quote.
And then our last update comes from episode 78, where we covered the cold case of Carmen
Van Huss.
(09:51):
Carmen was found brutally murdered in her apartment in Indianapolis in 1993.
Police have been able to find a DNA match to Dana Shepard, who was arrested in June
of 2024 for the murder of Carmen.
The family is very grateful to be getting answers in her case.
But that is all we have for our 2024 updates.
(10:15):
While I know you and I doing this podcast, that we didn't find the answers to questions
for any of these cases, but it feels very special to know some of these people in the
way that you have brought them to us and that some of these families have answers and any
(10:38):
kind of peace that you can have when experiencing loss like this.
We are always grateful to see any movement on cases and especially three cases, you know,
have had arrests, two of them are completely solved.
People are in jail serving time for what they did.
And in one of the cases, you know, we have an arrest and so that is working its way through
(11:00):
the criminal justice system.
And of course, you are innocent until proven guilty, but it's very exciting to see movement
and arrests on these cold cases, especially ones that are several decades old.
It just gives so much hope to so many families who are waiting answers out there.
And all of these cases can be found on our website, www.coldandmissing.com.
(11:27):
We have transcripts.
We can sort it by states and categories.
So if you're looking for more cold and missing, if you're looking for these cases specifically
that we cover today, you can go find it there.
We also have an Instagram.
While I'm the co-host, I also do the graphic design work for cold and missing.
(11:49):
Our Instagram is at cold and missing.
And if you follow the grid, that's another great way to visually see the cases that we've
covered with some more specifics about details that Ali breaks down when she is reporting
on the timeline.
And then thank you to everyone who's rated and reviewed us this past year.
(12:10):
It means so much to us to read them on Apple podcast or on our website, again, www.coldandmissing.com.
And also on all the other podcast platforms, you know, I periodically check in and just
like see where we're at and I see you liking, five starring, reviewing.
I realized Spotify very recently, you're allowed to leave comments on episodes and I see people
(12:33):
chatting there.
So thank you so much for all of that interaction on the YouTube, on the Instagram.
It's so cool to see you guys like talking and chatting about these cases.
And I'm trying to figure out how to get a Spotify to like comment back, but we'll get
there eventually.
And as we move into 2025, Ali and I are both brainstorming ways to speak and engage with
(13:01):
people who are engaging with our podcasts, specifically in the comment section.
And even more importantly, people who are emailing us to bring cases to our attention
or fact checking us on cases that we've covered before.
We would really love for 2025 to open more doors of communication with our listeners
(13:23):
and hopefully we can bring you more content and overall just engage with you all more.
Yeah, for 2025, you know, we're full steam ahead.
We're going to keep covering cold cases and missing people that need closure, that need
justice.
We are actively talking with families and working with families to cover their loved
(13:46):
ones cases.
So we're going to keep bringing you new episodes in the new year.
Thank you so much for listening to Cold and Missing.
I'm your host Ali.
And I'm your co-host Eli.
Have a good week and stay safe y'all.
Stay safe y'all.
The views and opinions expressed in Cold and Missing are exclusively those of the hosts.
(00:13):
All parties mentioned are considered innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
Cold and Missing also contains adult themes and languages.
Listener discretion is advised.
I'm your host, Ali McLaughlin-Sulkowski.
And I'm your co-host, Eli Sulkowski.
And this is Cold and Missing, where we cover cold cases and missing person cases.
(00:34):
Hello everyone and welcome back to Cold and Missing.
I'm Ali.
And I'm Eli.
Welcome back everyone.
It is the end of the year, end of 2024.
Christmas just passed as of uploading this episode and we're rounding the corner to
New Year's.
Yeah, so as this year comes to a close, we're going to be navigating this episode just a
(00:59):
little differently.
Yeah, we thought it might be nice at the end of the year to just go back and just talk
about any updates of any of the cases that we have covered on the podcast because there
has been some movement, arrests, convictions on some of the cases that we've covered here
since the beginning of Cold and Missing.
So it might be nice just to recap everything and close the year out that way.
(01:23):
More importantly than anything, it gives us a chance here at Cold and Missing, Ali and
I, a chance to really emphasize why Cold and Missing is here.
And it's to do exactly what we're doing in this episode today.
Yes, we love to cover cold and missing cases, especially those that have, you know, lived
(01:47):
underrepresented for far too long.
But this gives us another chance to emphasize to our listeners as well, go back and listen
to the cases that have had updates, check to see if other podcasts have covered cases,
maybe even more in depth.
And it gives you a chance to search for these people, another go around.
(02:13):
Yeah, we always want to help bring answers to the family, bring justice, close these
cases out.
So, you know, us doing this recap is really a way to just like honor that part of the
mission as well of Cold and Missing.
And with that, I think we can move into episode 113 where Ali provides us with some updates.
(02:37):
And just as a quick content warning at the top, there will be some brief mentions of
sexual assault.
So some of these updates will just be quick little quips, just some small things that
have been happening on the case, but other ones have had some pretty substantial movements.
So the first one we're going to be talking about is from episode two, which was Tionda
and Diamond Bradley.
(02:59):
So just as a quick recap, they were 10 and two at the time of their disappearance in
2001.
They had disappeared from their apartment in Chicago, Illinois.
There was a note left by Tionda saying that they were going to a park to play and then
to the store, but the girls have never been found.
In 2023, there was a woman in Texas who came forward saying that she thought that she could
(03:24):
be Diamond Bradley.
The FBI did do a DNA test and according to the family, it was not a match.
So they are still searching for what happened to Tionda and Diamond.
The family still hold vigils every single year, so they are actively trying to keep
this case in the media.
The next update is from episode three and this is the case of Trevelle Henley.
(03:49):
Trevelle was 15 years old when he went missing in Columbus, Ohio under mysterious circumstances.
His case kind of went viral on social media when a woman on TikTok in Columbus, Ohio was
like doing some work in her yard and she found a rug that had been rolled up and buried in
her yard, so she put it up on TikTok and it kind of caused this big sensation and so she
(04:14):
called police who did investigate it and there was no body.
Nothing really nefarious seems to be coming from the rug, though I think they are still
doing some DNA testing from what I could find or just general testing on it, not DNA, just
general testing to make sure there is no DNA or evidence on it.
But when that whole thing went viral, Trevelle's case was really linked to it and thought that
(04:40):
maybe this could be related to him, so his case was brought up a lot.
Unfortunately there were no new leads or anything, but I thought this was kind of an interesting
development and a way for somebody's missing person case to get out there.
His case is still open.
Moving right along, our next update is episode nine and this was the murder of Abby Williams
(05:02):
and Libby German in Delphi, Indiana.
Richard Allen was arrested, we've covered this on the podcast, and he did go to trial
recently and was found guilty.
He has been sentenced to 130 years for the murder of Abby and Libby and now this case
is considered closed.
In episode 15, this is about Betty Rolfe.
(05:25):
She was 60 years old in 1988 and was walking to work when she was assaulted and murdered.
Gene Mayer was arrested in the murder and assault of Betty.
He was found guilty at trial and was sentenced to life in prison with a chance at parole
in 34 years.
Since he is 68 years old in 2024, he will likely die in prison before he is eligible
(05:49):
for parole, but that case is also considered closed.
The next update is from episode 33, which is Dorien Thomas.
Dorian was nine years old in 1998 when he went missing.
He was riding his bike to go get a snack from a nearby gas station in Amarillo, Texas.
(06:09):
In 2024, the Amarillo Police Department got a tip that remains could be found near Smelter
Road and Hastings Avenue.
When police arrived and searched the area, they did end up finding bones.
Police initially thought that this could be Dorien.
Unfortunately, the bones turned out to be animal bones, so we are still searching for
(06:32):
what happened to Dorien Thomas.
His case is still open.
In episode 35, we covered Teekah Lewis's case.
Teekah went missing when she was only two years old from a bowling alley in Tacoma, Washington
in 1999.
In August of 2024, a woman who resembled Teekah’s age-progress photo was seen at a Home Depot
(06:53):
asking to use the bathroom near Tacoma, Washington.
Teekah’s uncle worked at the home depot and saw the girl and alerted the family.
Teekah’s family are pushing the police to investigate, but there have been no updates from them as
far as if they looked into this or not.
But the family is pushing for the police to work more on the case.
(07:13):
Her case is still open.
In episode 37, Jason Cannon was two years old when he went missing in 1982.
He was playing in his front yard and his mom went to go get a jacket for him, and when she
returned he was gone.
In April of 2024, police announced that they reopened the case and are asking for the public's
(07:34):
help in solving what happened to him.
Jason's case is still open.
The next update is from episode 40, Lina Sadar Khil.
She was three years old when she went missing from the playground at her apartment complex
when she was playing with other children in 2021.
Police say they remain committed to her case.
(07:55):
Quote, after nearly three years investigating the disappearance of Lina Khil, the San Antonio
Police Department remains committed to following up on and investigating every lead that we
receive.
SAPD continues to use all tools available, including working with our partners at the
FBI to investigate all leads.
SAPD would like to take the opportunity to ask anyone with information on Lena's disappearance
(08:20):
and or whereabouts to please call the police at 210-207-7660.
End quote.
Her case is still open.
Our next update comes from episode 61.
In this episode we covered the cold case of Sigrid Stevenson.
Sigrid was found brutally murdered in her college's theater right before classes were
(08:43):
set to begin again in the fall of 1977.
Sigrid's case was featured on the most recent season of Netflix's Unsolved Mysteries, and
the New Jersey Cold Case Squad in September of 2024 announced that they were reopening
the case.
So hopefully we'll see something in the future on Sigrid's case, but her case is still open.
(09:07):
In episode 67 we covered the murder of Jenny Lin.
She was found murdered after coming home from school in 1994.
She was only 14 years old.
Police say they have uploaded DNA to public DNA sites, hoping to use genetic genealogy
to solve the case.
Police say, quote, we definitely have DNA that we can work with, but at this point in
(09:30):
time we just don't have anything to match it with.
Our investigators are in touch with people who are developing new processes as far as
forensically and those efforts are ongoing.
End quote.
And then our last update comes from episode 78, where we covered the cold case of Carmen
Van Huss.
(09:51):
Carmen was found brutally murdered in her apartment in Indianapolis in 1993.
Police have been able to find a DNA match to Dana Shepard, who was arrested in June
of 2024 for the murder of Carmen.
The family is very grateful to be getting answers in her case.
But that is all we have for our 2024 updates.
(10:15):
While I know you and I doing this podcast, that we didn't find the answers to questions
for any of these cases, but it feels very special to know some of these people in the
way that you have brought them to us and that some of these families have answers and any
(10:38):
kind of peace that you can have when experiencing loss like this.
We are always grateful to see any movement on cases and especially three cases, you know,
have had arrests, two of them are completely solved.
People are in jail serving time for what they did.
And in one of the cases, you know, we have an arrest and so that is working its way through
(11:00):
the criminal justice system.
And of course, you are innocent until proven guilty, but it's very exciting to see movement
and arrests on these cold cases, especially ones that are several decades old.
It just gives so much hope to so many families who are waiting answers out there.
And all of these cases can be found on our website, www.coldandmissing.com.
(11:27):
We have transcripts.
We can sort it by states and categories.
So if you're looking for more cold and missing, if you're looking for these cases specifically
that we cover today, you can go find it there.
We also have an Instagram.
While I'm the co-host, I also do the graphic design work for cold and missing.
(11:49):
Our Instagram is at cold and missing.
And if you follow the grid, that's another great way to visually see the cases that we've
covered with some more specifics about details that Ali breaks down when she is reporting
on the timeline.
And then thank you to everyone who's rated and reviewed us this past year.
(12:10):
It means so much to us to read them on Apple podcast or on our website, again, www.coldandmissing.com.
And also on all the other podcast platforms, you know, I periodically check in and just
like see where we're at and I see you liking, five starring, reviewing.
I realized Spotify very recently, you're allowed to leave comments on episodes and I see people
(12:33):
chatting there.
So thank you so much for all of that interaction on the YouTube, on the Instagram.
It's so cool to see you guys like talking and chatting about these cases.
And I'm trying to figure out how to get a Spotify to like comment back, but we'll get
there eventually.
And as we move into 2025, Ali and I are both brainstorming ways to speak and engage with
(13:01):
people who are engaging with our podcasts, specifically in the comment section.
And even more importantly, people who are emailing us to bring cases to our attention
or fact checking us on cases that we've covered before.
We would really love for 2025 to open more doors of communication with our listeners
(13:23):
and hopefully we can bring you more content and overall just engage with you all more.
Yeah, for 2025, you know, we're full steam ahead.
We're going to keep covering cold cases and missing people that need closure, that need
justice.
We are actively talking with families and working with families to cover their loved
(13:46):
ones cases.
So we're going to keep bringing you new episodes in the new year.
Thank you so much for listening to Cold and Missing.
I'm your host Ali.
And I'm your co-host Eli.
Have a good week and stay safe y'all.
Stay safe y'all.
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