August 13, 2024 • 44 mins
What if a small town held more mysteries than it could ever reveal? In this gripping episode, we unravel the haunting disappearance of Branson Perry, a 20-year-old who vanished without a trace from his front yard in Skidmore, Missouri. We get to know Branson through the eyes of his friend, Jenna Crawford, who offers an unsettling account of the day he went missing. From his hobbies and health struggles to the disturbing incident with his neighbor, Jason Bierman, Branson's story is as perplexing as it is tragic.
But the shadows of Skidmore don't end with Branson. We explore the interconnected tragedies that have plagued this tiny town, focusing on the gruesome murder of Bobby Joe Stinnett and the tragic death of Wendy Gillenwater. Both women were connected through their grandmother, Mary Jo Stinnett, amplifying the collective grief experienced by their family. We also delve into the controversial figure of Rogers, a suspect in Branson's case whose online confessions and the steadfast belief of Branson's mother create a complex web of suspicion and doubt.
Skidmore's notorious reputation for violence is not a recent phenomenon. We take you through a macabre history, from the 1910 Hubble family murders to the 1981 vigilante killing of Ken Rex McElroy, and beyond. Through a series of chilling events—including the Merrigan family massacre, Tessie Hilt's unsolved murder, and the monastery shooting by Lloyd Robert Jeffress—we expose how this small town has become synonymous with tragedy. As we close, we invite you to support the podcast, share your thoughts, and suggest future cases, reminding everyone to stay vigilant.
Sources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disappearance_of_Branson_Perry
Eerie details emerge in disappearance of man, 20, who vanished without a trace from a shed near his home | The US Sun (the-sun.com)
Branson Perry, The 20-Year-Old Who Vanished From Missouri In 2001 (allthatsinteresting.com)
Branson Perry: Mysterious Small-Town Disappearance in Missouri - The CrimeWire
Music:
CrimeTrap by Muza Production
Things That Live in the Cellar by Geoff Harvey
Gone in a Blink is created by Heather Hicks and Danielle E.
Written and produced by Heather Hicks and hosted by Danielle E. and Heather Hicks.
Gone in a Blink theme: Crime Trap created and produced by Muzaproduction
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Thanks for joining us on the airwaves. And remember......Be Safe, Be Smart, and Try Not to Blink.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:13):
Skidmore, missouri, a small, sleepy town tucked away
in the heart of the Midwest Witha population of just under 250
people.
It's hard to imagine that sucha small town could harbor so
many secrets and, as it turnsout, a town that may not be so
(00:39):
sleepy after all.
It has an ominous feel about itand, with its murderous history
and dark, vigilante past, manyof the locals tend to shy away
from answering questions, andperhaps they have a very good
reason.
When 20-year-old Branson Perrydisappeared from his own front
(01:06):
yard on the afternoon of April11, 2001, many people had their
own theories of what may havehappened to him.
Three other potential witnesseswere at the home at the time of
the disappearance, yet no onesaw a thing.
This is the case of BransonPerry, and this is Gone in a
(01:36):
Blink hey true crime fans.
Speaker 2 (01:48):
I'm your host, heather, and I'm Danielle.
Speaker 1 (01:55):
Welcome to episode 22 of Gone in a Blink.
It is finally August.
I actually can't believe thatit's already August and I really
can't believe how fast thesummer has gone by.
Kiddos are getting ready tohead back to school and some
kiddos are probably already back.
Speaker 2 (02:09):
It's kind of sad.
I dropped my daughter off atcollege yesterday.
Speaker 1 (02:14):
Oh, that's hard, that's really hard.
Well, my daughter is gettingready to start middle school,
and that's a challenge in itselfright now, but it's exciting
and we're ready to get the kidsback to school, and that's
that's a challenge in itselfright now, but it's exciting and
we're ready to ready to get thekids back to school.
Speaker 2 (02:28):
I bet you are.
Haven't they been home allsummer?
They have been home most of thesummer.
Speaker 1 (02:32):
Yes, so they are probably sick of me and I think
they need to be in school rightnow.
Speaker 2 (02:39):
Don't worry.
Speaker 1 (02:39):
I won't tell.
Well, today's case is out ofthe tiny Midwestern town of
Skidmore, missouri.
Skidmore has in fact been inthe news quite a bit in the past
, both locally and nationally aswell.
It has quite a history attachedto it, with some of the most
bizarre stories that seem tohave come straight out of a
(03:00):
horror movie.
We will mention some of theseother strange occurrences.
However, today's case is overthe mysterious disappearance of
Brandon Perry.
So if you're ready, let's jumpright in.
Branson K Perry was born onFebruary 24th 1981 to parents
Bob and Rebecca Perry.
(03:21):
Branson's parents ended upgetting a divorce later on and
he remained living with hisfather in their home at 304 West
Oak Street in the small town ofSkidmore, missouri.
Branson graduated from theNottoway Holt High School in
1999 and would often workvarious odd jobs to make extra
(03:43):
money, including working as aroofer as well as helping to
maintain a traveling petting zooin the area.
Some of his hobbies consistedof lifting weights and
practicing Hapkido, which he hada black belt in, and he was
also known to suffer fromtachycardia, which is a
(04:06):
condition in which the heartbeats at a very excessive rate.
So he was kind of dealing withhealth issues that could have
quite possibly slowed him downin his hobbies, but he was a
fighter, so just a little bitabout him.
So then, on October 7th, fourdays before his disappearance,
(04:28):
branson visited the home of hisneighbor Jason, I think you
pronounce the name Bierman.
It could be Byerman, but Ithink it's, I think it's Bierman
.
While there, he had beendrugged with an unknown
substance, causing him to becomeextremely intoxicated, and I
think intoxicated is probablyputting it very, very mildly.
(04:51):
While Branson was under theinfluence of this drug, he
allegedly danced around thehouse naked, shaved his genitals
and then engaged in sexualactivity with Bierman.
After Branson had sobered upand realized what happened, he
was visibly upset and confessedeverything to his father, who
(05:13):
was absolutely livid, like anyparent would be, and he wasn't
mad at his son, but rather atBierman for drugging Branson and
taking advantage of him.
Bob Perry had always suspectedthat his son was homosexual and
had engaged in sexual activitywith men in the past, but never
(05:33):
anything quite like this.
So then, the following Wednesday, on April 11th 2001, branson
invited his friend JennaCrawford over to his house to
help clean because his father,bob, had been in the hospital
and he was expected to returnhome within a few days after.
(05:54):
So at this time, two other men,whose identities have not been
named, were at the residencethat day working on Bob's car
and changing out the alternator.
Once Branson and Jenna werefinished cleaning, jenna told
authorities that Bransonsuddenly grabbed something out
of the cabinet and immediatelywent outside, and she thought
(06:15):
that was a little strange.
But when he returned he didn'ttell Jenna what it was that he
grabbed or where he went.
Jenna decided she was going totake a shower and get cleaned up
after a long day of cleaning,and when she finished she saw
one of the mechanics riflingthrough a kitchen cabinet.
Jenna asked the man what he waslooking for, but he responded
(06:38):
that it was nothing, and then hewent back outside.
Now this info may or may nothold any weight in the case
whatsoever, but I think it wasdefinitely worth mentioning
because he is still missing.
So after this, jenna decided togo upstairs and rest for a bit,
and this made me think, becauseshe's like cleaning the house
and then she goes upstairs inBranson's house to rest.
(07:01):
They're probably pretty closefriends and she's probably very
comfortable at this house, Iwould think.
Speaker 2 (07:08):
That's what it's sounding like.
That at first struck me as odd,but I mean that just maybe
shows how close they are.
Speaker 1 (07:15):
Exactly, I was thinking the same thing.
That she's off obviously has acertain comfort level at at
Branson's home.
Soon after, at around 3pm, shehappened to glance out the
window and notice Bransonleaving the house.
She called out to him and askedwhere he was going.
He told her that he was goingto put away a set of jumper
(07:36):
cables in the shed and then runout for a bit, and that he'd be
back in a few minutes.
That was the last time anyonesaw or heard from Branson Perry
again, bob Perry was still inthe hospital and was expected to
be there for a few more days, afew more days than what was
originally expected.
So on April 12th, branson'sgrandmother, joanne Stennett,
(08:00):
decided to drop by the hospitaland visit Bob.
She asked if Branson had beenby to see him the night before,
but Bob explained that he hadn'tseen him.
Joanne thought this was odd,since Branson had been by to see
his dad every night since hisdad was hospitalized.
She ultimately shrugged off anyconcerns she was having until
(08:21):
she dropped by the home whereBranson lived with his dad and
found the doors unlocked andBranson was nowhere to be found.
She found this highly unusual,and so she made it a point to
call the residents several timesover the next few days, but
still she got no answer.
She then called Branson'smother, rebecca Cleno, and
(08:42):
discovered that she had notheard from Branson either.
By this time, joanne, branson'smother, rebecca, and his father
were all in a state of panic.
Bob ended up getting dischargedfrom the hospital several days
later than expected, so afterhis release he and Rebecca filed
a missing persons report.
On April 17th, ground searchteams were organized almost
(09:06):
immediately by the NottowayCounty Police, who searched the
area within a 15-mile radius ofthe Perry house.
They searched fields, farms andabandoned buildings, but
unfortunately the search turnedup nothing.
During the search, police wereunable to find the jumper cables
that Branson was returning tothe shed before he went missing.
(09:29):
But two weeks later the jumpercables were located just inside
the door to the shed that policehad already searched weeks
before.
Speaker 2 (09:39):
Whoa, that's weird.
Yeah, so almost like kind oflike an inside job.
So somebody that was helpinglook for Branson may have been
there.
Speaker 1 (09:52):
Yeah, absolutely, I am absolutely like they.
It makes it sound like theyknew that he was, that the
police were looking for thosejumper cables, and so they were
like, oh crap, better put thejumper cables back in the shed.
That's so weird though I mean,why would you even bother with
that?
Speaker 2 (10:09):
Well, I mean, I guess just thinking that maybe to
throw people off, like, oh well,they were looking for these
jumper cables, they couldn'tfind them, and then, oh, they
just happened to show up, likemaybe the police made a mistake
to make it look something likethat?
Speaker 1 (10:25):
Yeah, I guess that is a good point.
Within the first month and ahalf of the investigation,
investigators interviewed morethan 100 people.
Jenna Crawford, who was withBranson on the day he
disappeared, told investigatorsthat Branson had been
experimenting with such drugs asmarijuana and amphetamines.
Police questioned multiplepeople who were drug
(10:48):
acquaintances of Branson's inthe St Joseph area, which, st
Joseph, is approximately 48miles south of Skidmore.
Although rumors began to spreadthat Branson owed some drug
dealers money, everyone who wasquestioned informed police that
they had not heard from Bransonand all were given a polygraph
(11:09):
test and all passed.
Bob initially thought that maybehis son had left to stay with
friends in the Kansas City areaand that he may be hitchhiked
because Branson didn't have acar.
So this didn't appear to be thecase, according to
investigators, who workedtirelessly in the hopes of
finding some clues.
(11:29):
So on April 10th 2003, a59-year-old man by the name of
Jack Wayne Rogers was onpolice's radar.
Rogers lived in Fulton,missouri, which is approximately
251 miles southeast of Skidmore, so it's a good distance away,
and he was also a Presbyterianminister and a Boy Scout leader.
(11:53):
So this guy's story wasn'tnecessarily related to Branson's
disappearance.
But because it's so crazy whatI'm about to tell you.
They thought there was a goodpossibility.
So rogers was arrested forfirst degree assault and
practicing medicine without alicense when he performed
(12:14):
surgery on a woman by removingher genitals, while attempting a
makeshift gender reassignmentsurgery in a hotel room in
Columbia Missouri.
Um what?
Yes, this guy is insane, andthe scariest part of it is
probably the fact that he's aminister and a Boy Scout leader.
Speaker 2 (12:38):
Now the Boy Scout leader, I mean with all the
stuff that's been going on withthem over the past few years.
That doesn't surprise me.
That's been going on with themover the past few years.
That doesn't surprise me.
So, man, but I'm a littlesurprised by the woman as well
that would allow herself to havea makeshift gender.
What is the proper name of it?
Reassignment Reassignment in ahotel room.
Speaker 1 (13:02):
Yeah, it seems very, very sketchy and I don't know
why anyone would let someone puta knife to them.
I would not let somebody put aknife to me in a makeshift
surgery in a non sterile motelroom or hotel room, but I don't
know.
This was back in, I think, two.
I think I said this was back in2003.
(13:24):
So a lot of things weredifferent in 2003 than they are
now and even though it doesn'tmake it any less insane, maybe
back then doctors didn't performthose surgeries and this woman
must have been incrediblydesperate, but she went for it.
Into Rogers.
Police found child pornographywhich doesn't surprise me on his
(13:48):
personal computer as well asposts made on a public message
forum under different usernames.
Those usernames included quoteBooger Butt.
Actually, I don't know if it'sBooger Butt or supposed to be
bugger butt.
Speaker 2 (14:04):
Oh hail satan and extreme body mods, you bring up
a good point that this is 2001,time frame 2003.
A lot of things were differentthen.
I feel like not a whole lot wasknown about the, the boy scout
leaders at that time.
(14:26):
I mean that this would besomething very shocking at the
time.
I mean, you say that he's aminister but has a username or
handle of oh Hail Satan.
So it almost seems like thatthose positions, those titles
were covers for, you know, boyScout leader, maybe so he could
(14:46):
get closer to two children, theminister just probably,
especially in a small town, tobe.
Oh well, he's a minister, astand up citizen and but really
in disguise, living what itlooks like, a double life.
Speaker 1 (15:01):
And that is what is so incredibly scary right now.
Sad, too, for the trueministers and true Boy Scout
leaders and anyone else with arespectful title that are into
(15:24):
things like this and childpornography and just horrible
things like that, that do use acover as someone that's
typically well respected withinthe community a police officer,
a teacher, a coach, things likethat and so it's scary.
And these, unfortunately,pedophiles like this I mean this
(15:46):
guy went beyond pedophile, he'sjust batshit crazy.
But a lot of times you know,more times than not actually
they don't look like somescroungy drug addict.
They look like well-dressed,well-respected, well-educated
people.
They're people that youwouldn't expect to be.
(16:09):
Having these dark, dark secretslike this and it's very scary
Makes you not want your childrento go around anyone really.
Speaker 2 (16:18):
Well, yeah, I mean, if you think back just in this
day, especially with Boy Scouts,I mean that's someplace where
parents kind of felt that theirkids could be safe, that their
sons could kind of learnwilderness training, things like
that.
And I mean we were justlearning in 2003, if we knew at
(16:39):
all at that point of howsinister some of these Boy Scout
leaders were.
Speaker 1 (16:46):
Absolutely, and it's the ones that you trust that end
up being the ones that youcan't trust.
So, under these usernames, hedescribed the graphic torture of
multiple men that he hadcastrated.
In another post made under thesame usernames, he made claims
(17:06):
that he had raped and murdered ablonde hitchhiker, and the
man's body was buried in aremote area near the Ozarks.
Police suspected that the manmentioned in the online posts
could be Branson, convicted andsentenced to 17 years in prison
(17:31):
for assault, seven years forperforming surgery without a
license and 30 years for childpornography, and I feel like
maybe he should have gotten morefor the illegal surgery charges
than what he actually did.
But Rogers won't be eligiblefor release until the year 2028.
And by then he will be 83 yearsold.
During sentencing, branson'smother begged Rogers to tell her
(17:52):
where Branson is.
However, rogers told her thathe never knew Branson and had
not been a part of hisdisappearance.
Rebecca believed, afterspeaking with Rogers, that he
had nothing to do with her son'sdisappearance, and I don't know
, something made her really feellike it, and I don't know that
(18:15):
they have much proof other thanhim saying that he raped a man
that resembled Branson andkilled this man.
But whatever it was, she isfully convinced.
Maybe it's a mother not wantingto accept that her son has been
murdered, or maybe he was justthat convincing and she has a
gut feeling that it wassomething totally different.
Speaker 2 (18:37):
Yeah, I kind of understand that as a mom, you
don't want to believe it's aclosed case.
And no, he.
I mean if, even if he did rapeBranson, he didn't know him, he
didn't pay attention to the kindof person he was.
He was just out to rape and andto kill and so I could also.
So I definitely understand thatthe mom's point of view.
(18:58):
But I can also see that thethis murderer just totally
closed himself off,compartmentalized, like oh, I
didn't, I didn't know him.
It because it was nobody to himunfortunately.
Speaker 1 (19:11):
Yep, it was nobody, and that's how it usually is.
It's.
It's nothing more than a killum, and that that's crazy.
But police have not completelyruled rogers out as a suspect.
However, other than a turtleclaw necklace found in Roger's
car that resembled one like theone that Branson owned, they
(19:32):
have not found any solidevidence to charge him with
Branson's murder, if Branson wasmurdered.
So Skidmore, missouri, as Imentioned, has a very dark
history.
Some of our listeners and truecrime sleuths may recognize the
last name, stennett, and theties that it has to Skidmore.
(19:52):
So Branson's grandmother,joanne Stennett, is also the
grandmother to Bobby JoeStennett.
Bobby Joe Stennett, a verypregnant soon-to-be mother, was
a dog breeder living in Skidmore, missouri, with her husband.
In 2004, she made arrangementswith a woman by the name of Lisa
(20:14):
Montgomery to sell her one ofher puppies, and Montgomery
showed up at the Sten at homeand murdered Bobby Joe before
cutting Bobby Joe's unborn babyfrom the womb and fleeing the
scene with Bobby Joe, beforecutting Bobby Joe's unborn baby
from the womb and fleeing thescene with Bobby Joe's child.
Lisa Montgomery was trackeddown and arrested and the baby
(20:34):
actually lived, thank God, andwas reunited with her father,
zeb Stennett.
Lisa was later convicted andsentenced to death in 2007.
She was executed in January2021 and was the first female
execution in the US since 1953.
Speaker 2 (20:56):
Wow, that's crazy, I guess.
I was kind of wondering too ifthe baby lived.
So many times you hear thatonce the baby's cut out that
they don't live.
So I am glad that she did liveand was reunited with her father
.
Speaker 1 (21:10):
Yeah, I am very glad and very surprised because you
can imagine it was probably avery bloody scene.
Incident tied to the town ofSkidmore happened back in 2000
when a man by the name of GregDragoo, who was a hardcore drug
(21:32):
user and had a history ofdomestic violence, beat up his
19-year-old girlfriend, WendyGillenwater.
He then chained Wendy's body tohis car and dragged her over
the country roads surroundingSkidmore.
Dragoo is now currently servinga life sentence in the
Jefferson City CorrectionalCenter.
(21:53):
This town's got a lot of stuff,Got a lot of terrible, terrible
things happening, unfortunately.
Now, all three of these tragicevents were nothing short of
horrific.
However, something insanelycrazy that all three of these
events have in common is thefact that Branson's grandmother,
(22:14):
Mary Jo Stennett, was thegrandmother of all three victims
Branson Perry, Bobby JoStennett and Wendy Gillenwater.
Speaker 2 (22:25):
That is pretty ironic .
I am wondering, though, how?
How large did you say that thetown was?
Though the town hasapproximately 200 and just under
250 people, very, very smalltown even with 250 people,
that's still pretty ironic thatall three would have the same
(22:47):
grandmother.
Speaker 1 (22:49):
Yeah, I mean something horrible, absolutely
horrible would happen to allthree and they would share the
same grandmother.
That's pretty ironic.
Or near Skidmore include theHubble family murders that
occurred in 1910, the 1972Merrigan family massacre when,
(23:13):
on October 11th 1972, the bodiesof Marion Merrigan and Kathleen
Merrigan, who were husband andwife and their children William
and Helen Merrigan, were founddead in their home.
All of them had died fromgunshot wounds.
A man by the name of BenedictKemper was charged with those
(23:34):
crimes.
Other cases include the 1973unsolved murder of Northwest
Missouri State student TessieHilt.
Hilt was strangled and stabbedto death in her off-campus
apartment in Maryville, missouri, which is approximately 14
miles northeast of Skidmore.
So it's pretty close.
(23:55):
And probably one of the mostinfamous and notorious bizarre
murders to ever take place inthe town of Skidmore was the
1981 vigilante murder of localtown bully and violent criminal
Ken Rex.
Mcelroy McElroy was shot todeath as he sat in his pickup
(24:16):
truck by a huge group of localSkidmore residents who had
reached their breaking pointwith the assaults, harassment,
point with the assaults,harassment, bullying and
attempted murder.
At the hands of McElroy McElroywas shot twice and no one saw a
(24:38):
thing.
The killers were neveridentified and therefore no one
had ever been arrested for thecrime.
Mcelroy's wife had been in thetruck next to him and she ended
up settling a wrongful deathlawsuit against the town of
Skidmore and the county in theamount of $17,600 before packing
up her stuff and leaving townfor good.
So not the whole town.
Well, maybe maybe it was awhole town, big old mass of
(25:00):
people that could have includedall the residents, or at least
the majority of them, in thelittle town of Skidmoremore.
But they had enough.
They had enough of this guyharassing and bullying everyone
and intimidating everybody andthey grouped together and just
like, went after him and shothim dead in his truck and
(25:21):
everyone refused to talk that isis so interesting.
Speaker 2 (25:26):
I don't know if any of our listeners are from
Skidmore or around that area.
It'd be really interesting totalk to someone that maybe was
around at that time or haveheard of With any small town.
Of course, there's lots ofrumors, but it seems like
there's been so much happeningin this town.
Speaker 1 (25:46):
Yes, yes, there's been a tremendous amount and I
would love I would absolutelylove to hear from anyone that is
from Skidmore or surroundingareas to give us a little more
insight about it.
I don't like to paint this townbad, because I'm sure it's a
great town full of wonderfulpeople town bad because I'm sure
(26:07):
it's.
I'm sure it's a great town fullof wonderful people.
It it's terrible that all thesethings that have happened
happened to this town.
So I am curious, if anybody isfrom the area and would like to
give us a little more insight, Iwould absolutely love to hear
about it.
So a few more infamous murdersthat happened in or around the
Skidmore area.
(26:27):
There's more, there's a fewmore.
I mean, I'm probably onlysaying a few are the ones that I
found.
There's probably been otherstoo, but some of them included
the 1994 murder of DeborahTaylor by her husband, william,
who had deliberately caused aharvesting combine to roll on
(26:48):
top of her.
A lot of these seem prettyisolated.
I don't think, you know, itdoesn't sound like there's a
random person just going aroundkilling people, but they're
horrible things to happen in onetown.
So then there's the 2002murder-suicide of Lloyd Robert
(27:08):
Jeffress I think I pronouncedthat right who opened fire in a
monastery, killing two monks.
And then the 2013 courtroomsuicide of Steve Parsons.
Parsons, who deliberatelyswallowed a cyanide pill after
(27:32):
being sentenced to prison forseven years for the statutory
sodomy of his 14-year-oldbabysitter.
So, needless to say, skidmore,missouri, has been dubbed the
creepiest town in America.
Speaker 2 (27:43):
It's sad, but I mean you wonder the people that live
there now what their thought ofthat.
Speaker 1 (27:50):
I mean maybe it keeps people outsiders away, perhaps
that's a really good point, andmaybe that's what they want
after all of this, all of thisstuff, that's happened.
So, as of May 2024,investigators, along with the
FBI, have been following apromising tip into Branson
(28:12):
Perry's case.
Police are pretty confidentthat the, with the FBI, they can
collect enough evidence tofinally put away the person
responsible.
Unfortunately, branson's father, bob, died in 2004.
(28:34):
In 2010, branson's motheroffered a $20,000 reward for any
information leading to herson's whereabouts.
Then, sadly, in 2011, branson'smother passed away after a long
battle with cancer.
In Branson's mother's obituaryit was mentioned that she was
(28:55):
preceded in death by Branson andshe was buried beside an empty
plot for Branson that lists hisdate of death as April 11, 2001,
which is the same date that hehad disappeared.
If you have any informationinto the disappearance of
Branson Perry, please call theNottoway County Sheriff's Office
(29:18):
at area code 660-582-7451.
This case is so crazy, and whatis even crazier is that
Branson's grandmother had toendure the loss of three of her
grandchildren, and I sincerelyhope that this family gets some
(29:38):
sort of closure.
Thank you for listening toanother episode of Gone in a
Blink.
If you love our podcast, pleaseconsider giving us a five-star
review on Apple Podcasts, and wewould totally love for you to
follow us on any of our socialmedia sites and we will put
those on our show notes.
So we are always up for ideasalso for a show.
(30:01):
So if you have a case you'dlike us to cover, please email
us at gone in a blink pod atgmailcom, and always, please
remember, be safe.
No-transcript.
(37:32):
No-transcript.
Skidmore, missouri, a small, sleepy town tucked away
in the heart of the Midwest Witha population of just under 250
people.
It's hard to imagine that sucha small town could harbor so
many secrets and, as it turnsout, a town that may not be so
(00:39):
sleepy after all.
It has an ominous feel about itand, with its murderous history
and dark, vigilante past, manyof the locals tend to shy away
from answering questions, andperhaps they have a very good
reason.
When 20-year-old Branson Perrydisappeared from his own front
(01:06):
yard on the afternoon of April11, 2001, many people had their
own theories of what may havehappened to him.
Three other potential witnesseswere at the home at the time of
the disappearance, yet no onesaw a thing.
This is the case of BransonPerry, and this is Gone in a
(01:36):
Blink hey true crime fans.
Speaker 2 (01:48):
I'm your host, heather, and I'm Danielle.
Speaker 1 (01:55):
Welcome to episode 22 of Gone in a Blink.
It is finally August.
I actually can't believe thatit's already August and I really
can't believe how fast thesummer has gone by.
Kiddos are getting ready tohead back to school and some
kiddos are probably already back.
Speaker 2 (02:09):
It's kind of sad.
I dropped my daughter off atcollege yesterday.
Speaker 1 (02:14):
Oh, that's hard, that's really hard.
Well, my daughter is gettingready to start middle school,
and that's a challenge in itselfright now, but it's exciting
and we're ready to get the kidsback to school, and that's
that's a challenge in itselfright now, but it's exciting and
we're ready to ready to get thekids back to school.
Speaker 2 (02:28):
I bet you are.
Haven't they been home allsummer?
They have been home most of thesummer.
Speaker 1 (02:32):
Yes, so they are probably sick of me and I think
they need to be in school rightnow.
Speaker 2 (02:39):
Don't worry.
Speaker 1 (02:39):
I won't tell.
Well, today's case is out ofthe tiny Midwestern town of
Skidmore, missouri.
Skidmore has in fact been inthe news quite a bit in the past
, both locally and nationally aswell.
It has quite a history attachedto it, with some of the most
bizarre stories that seem tohave come straight out of a
(03:00):
horror movie.
We will mention some of theseother strange occurrences.
However, today's case is overthe mysterious disappearance of
Brandon Perry.
So if you're ready, let's jumpright in.
Branson K Perry was born onFebruary 24th 1981 to parents
Bob and Rebecca Perry.
(03:21):
Branson's parents ended upgetting a divorce later on and
he remained living with hisfather in their home at 304 West
Oak Street in the small town ofSkidmore, missouri.
Branson graduated from theNottoway Holt High School in
1999 and would often workvarious odd jobs to make extra
(03:43):
money, including working as aroofer as well as helping to
maintain a traveling petting zooin the area.
Some of his hobbies consistedof lifting weights and
practicing Hapkido, which he hada black belt in, and he was
also known to suffer fromtachycardia, which is a
(04:06):
condition in which the heartbeats at a very excessive rate.
So he was kind of dealing withhealth issues that could have
quite possibly slowed him downin his hobbies, but he was a
fighter, so just a little bitabout him.
So then, on October 7th, fourdays before his disappearance,
(04:28):
branson visited the home of hisneighbor Jason, I think you
pronounce the name Bierman.
It could be Byerman, but Ithink it's, I think it's Bierman
.
While there, he had beendrugged with an unknown
substance, causing him to becomeextremely intoxicated, and I
think intoxicated is probablyputting it very, very mildly.
(04:51):
While Branson was under theinfluence of this drug, he
allegedly danced around thehouse naked, shaved his genitals
and then engaged in sexualactivity with Bierman.
After Branson had sobered upand realized what happened, he
was visibly upset and confessedeverything to his father, who
(05:13):
was absolutely livid, like anyparent would be, and he wasn't
mad at his son, but rather atBierman for drugging Branson and
taking advantage of him.
Bob Perry had always suspectedthat his son was homosexual and
had engaged in sexual activitywith men in the past, but never
(05:33):
anything quite like this.
So then, the following Wednesday, on April 11th 2001, branson
invited his friend JennaCrawford over to his house to
help clean because his father,bob, had been in the hospital
and he was expected to returnhome within a few days after.
(05:54):
So at this time, two other men,whose identities have not been
named, were at the residencethat day working on Bob's car
and changing out the alternator.
Once Branson and Jenna werefinished cleaning, jenna told
authorities that Bransonsuddenly grabbed something out
of the cabinet and immediatelywent outside, and she thought
(06:15):
that was a little strange.
But when he returned he didn'ttell Jenna what it was that he
grabbed or where he went.
Jenna decided she was going totake a shower and get cleaned up
after a long day of cleaning,and when she finished she saw
one of the mechanics riflingthrough a kitchen cabinet.
Jenna asked the man what he waslooking for, but he responded
(06:38):
that it was nothing, and then hewent back outside.
Now this info may or may nothold any weight in the case
whatsoever, but I think it wasdefinitely worth mentioning
because he is still missing.
So after this, jenna decided togo upstairs and rest for a bit,
and this made me think, becauseshe's like cleaning the house
and then she goes upstairs inBranson's house to rest.
(07:01):
They're probably pretty closefriends and she's probably very
comfortable at this house, Iwould think.
Speaker 2 (07:08):
That's what it's sounding like.
That at first struck me as odd,but I mean that just maybe
shows how close they are.
Speaker 1 (07:15):
Exactly, I was thinking the same thing.
That she's off obviously has acertain comfort level at at
Branson's home.
Soon after, at around 3pm, shehappened to glance out the
window and notice Bransonleaving the house.
She called out to him and askedwhere he was going.
He told her that he was goingto put away a set of jumper
(07:36):
cables in the shed and then runout for a bit, and that he'd be
back in a few minutes.
That was the last time anyonesaw or heard from Branson Perry
again, bob Perry was still inthe hospital and was expected to
be there for a few more days, afew more days than what was
originally expected.
So on April 12th, branson'sgrandmother, joanne Stennett,
(08:00):
decided to drop by the hospitaland visit Bob.
She asked if Branson had beenby to see him the night before,
but Bob explained that he hadn'tseen him.
Joanne thought this was odd,since Branson had been by to see
his dad every night since hisdad was hospitalized.
She ultimately shrugged off anyconcerns she was having until
(08:21):
she dropped by the home whereBranson lived with his dad and
found the doors unlocked andBranson was nowhere to be found.
She found this highly unusual,and so she made it a point to
call the residents several timesover the next few days, but
still she got no answer.
She then called Branson'smother, rebecca Cleno, and
(08:42):
discovered that she had notheard from Branson either.
By this time, joanne, branson'smother, rebecca, and his father
were all in a state of panic.
Bob ended up getting dischargedfrom the hospital several days
later than expected, so afterhis release he and Rebecca filed
a missing persons report.
On April 17th, ground searchteams were organized almost
(09:06):
immediately by the NottowayCounty Police, who searched the
area within a 15-mile radius ofthe Perry house.
They searched fields, farms andabandoned buildings, but
unfortunately the search turnedup nothing.
During the search, police wereunable to find the jumper cables
that Branson was returning tothe shed before he went missing.
(09:29):
But two weeks later the jumpercables were located just inside
the door to the shed that policehad already searched weeks
before.
Speaker 2 (09:39):
Whoa, that's weird.
Yeah, so almost like kind oflike an inside job.
So somebody that was helpinglook for Branson may have been
there.
Speaker 1 (09:52):
Yeah, absolutely, I am absolutely like they.
It makes it sound like theyknew that he was, that the
police were looking for thosejumper cables, and so they were
like, oh crap, better put thejumper cables back in the shed.
That's so weird though I mean,why would you even bother with
that?
Speaker 2 (10:09):
Well, I mean, I guess just thinking that maybe to
throw people off, like, oh well,they were looking for these
jumper cables, they couldn'tfind them, and then, oh, they
just happened to show up, likemaybe the police made a mistake
to make it look something likethat?
Speaker 1 (10:25):
Yeah, I guess that is a good point.
Within the first month and ahalf of the investigation,
investigators interviewed morethan 100 people.
Jenna Crawford, who was withBranson on the day he
disappeared, told investigatorsthat Branson had been
experimenting with such drugs asmarijuana and amphetamines.
Police questioned multiplepeople who were drug
(10:48):
acquaintances of Branson's inthe St Joseph area, which, st
Joseph, is approximately 48miles south of Skidmore.
Although rumors began to spreadthat Branson owed some drug
dealers money, everyone who wasquestioned informed police that
they had not heard from Bransonand all were given a polygraph
(11:09):
test and all passed.
Bob initially thought that maybehis son had left to stay with
friends in the Kansas City areaand that he may be hitchhiked
because Branson didn't have acar.
So this didn't appear to be thecase, according to
investigators, who workedtirelessly in the hopes of
finding some clues.
(11:29):
So on April 10th 2003, a59-year-old man by the name of
Jack Wayne Rogers was onpolice's radar.
Rogers lived in Fulton,missouri, which is approximately
251 miles southeast of Skidmore, so it's a good distance away,
and he was also a Presbyterianminister and a Boy Scout leader.
(11:53):
So this guy's story wasn'tnecessarily related to Branson's
disappearance.
But because it's so crazy whatI'm about to tell you.
They thought there was a goodpossibility.
So rogers was arrested forfirst degree assault and
practicing medicine without alicense when he performed
(12:14):
surgery on a woman by removingher genitals, while attempting a
makeshift gender reassignmentsurgery in a hotel room in
Columbia Missouri.
Um what?
Yes, this guy is insane, andthe scariest part of it is
probably the fact that he's aminister and a Boy Scout leader.
Speaker 2 (12:38):
Now the Boy Scout leader, I mean with all the
stuff that's been going on withthem over the past few years.
That doesn't surprise me.
That's been going on with themover the past few years.
That doesn't surprise me.
So, man, but I'm a littlesurprised by the woman as well
that would allow herself to havea makeshift gender.
What is the proper name of it?
Reassignment Reassignment in ahotel room.
Speaker 1 (13:02):
Yeah, it seems very, very sketchy and I don't know
why anyone would let someone puta knife to them.
I would not let somebody put aknife to me in a makeshift
surgery in a non sterile motelroom or hotel room, but I don't
know.
This was back in, I think, two.
I think I said this was back in2003.
(13:24):
So a lot of things weredifferent in 2003 than they are
now and even though it doesn'tmake it any less insane, maybe
back then doctors didn't performthose surgeries and this woman
must have been incrediblydesperate, but she went for it.
Into Rogers.
Police found child pornographywhich doesn't surprise me on his
(13:48):
personal computer as well asposts made on a public message
forum under different usernames.
Those usernames included quoteBooger Butt.
Actually, I don't know if it'sBooger Butt or supposed to be
bugger butt.
Speaker 2 (14:04):
Oh hail satan and extreme body mods, you bring up
a good point that this is 2001,time frame 2003.
A lot of things were differentthen.
I feel like not a whole lot wasknown about the, the boy scout
leaders at that time.
(14:26):
I mean that this would besomething very shocking at the
time.
I mean, you say that he's aminister but has a username or
handle of oh Hail Satan.
So it almost seems like thatthose positions, those titles
were covers for, you know, boyScout leader, maybe so he could
(14:46):
get closer to two children, theminister just probably,
especially in a small town, tobe.
Oh well, he's a minister, astand up citizen and but really
in disguise, living what itlooks like, a double life.
Speaker 1 (15:01):
And that is what is so incredibly scary right now.
Sad, too, for the trueministers and true Boy Scout
leaders and anyone else with arespectful title that are into
(15:24):
things like this and childpornography and just horrible
things like that, that do use acover as someone that's
typically well respected withinthe community a police officer,
a teacher, a coach, things likethat and so it's scary.
And these, unfortunately,pedophiles like this I mean this
(15:46):
guy went beyond pedophile, he'sjust batshit crazy.
But a lot of times you know,more times than not actually
they don't look like somescroungy drug addict.
They look like well-dressed,well-respected, well-educated
people.
They're people that youwouldn't expect to be.
(16:09):
Having these dark, dark secretslike this and it's very scary
Makes you not want your childrento go around anyone really.
Speaker 2 (16:18):
Well, yeah, I mean, if you think back just in this
day, especially with Boy Scouts,I mean that's someplace where
parents kind of felt that theirkids could be safe, that their
sons could kind of learnwilderness training, things like
that.
And I mean we were justlearning in 2003, if we knew at
(16:39):
all at that point of howsinister some of these Boy Scout
leaders were.
Speaker 1 (16:46):
Absolutely, and it's the ones that you trust that end
up being the ones that youcan't trust.
So, under these usernames, hedescribed the graphic torture of
multiple men that he hadcastrated.
In another post made under thesame usernames, he made claims
(17:06):
that he had raped and murdered ablonde hitchhiker, and the
man's body was buried in aremote area near the Ozarks.
Police suspected that the manmentioned in the online posts
could be Branson, convicted andsentenced to 17 years in prison
(17:31):
for assault, seven years forperforming surgery without a
license and 30 years for childpornography, and I feel like
maybe he should have gotten morefor the illegal surgery charges
than what he actually did.
But Rogers won't be eligiblefor release until the year 2028.
And by then he will be 83 yearsold.
During sentencing, branson'smother begged Rogers to tell her
(17:52):
where Branson is.
However, rogers told her thathe never knew Branson and had
not been a part of hisdisappearance.
Rebecca believed, afterspeaking with Rogers, that he
had nothing to do with her son'sdisappearance, and I don't know
, something made her really feellike it, and I don't know that
(18:15):
they have much proof other thanhim saying that he raped a man
that resembled Branson andkilled this man.
But whatever it was, she isfully convinced.
Maybe it's a mother not wantingto accept that her son has been
murdered, or maybe he was justthat convincing and she has a
gut feeling that it wassomething totally different.
Speaker 2 (18:37):
Yeah, I kind of understand that as a mom, you
don't want to believe it's aclosed case.
And no, he.
I mean if, even if he did rapeBranson, he didn't know him, he
didn't pay attention to the kindof person he was.
He was just out to rape and andto kill and so I could also.
So I definitely understand thatthe mom's point of view.
(18:58):
But I can also see that thethis murderer just totally
closed himself off,compartmentalized, like oh, I
didn't, I didn't know him.
It because it was nobody to himunfortunately.
Speaker 1 (19:11):
Yep, it was nobody, and that's how it usually is.
It's.
It's nothing more than a killum, and that that's crazy.
But police have not completelyruled rogers out as a suspect.
However, other than a turtleclaw necklace found in Roger's
car that resembled one like theone that Branson owned, they
(19:32):
have not found any solidevidence to charge him with
Branson's murder, if Branson wasmurdered.
So Skidmore, missouri, as Imentioned, has a very dark
history.
Some of our listeners and truecrime sleuths may recognize the
last name, stennett, and theties that it has to Skidmore.
(19:52):
So Branson's grandmother,joanne Stennett, is also the
grandmother to Bobby JoeStennett.
Bobby Joe Stennett, a verypregnant soon-to-be mother, was
a dog breeder living in Skidmore, missouri, with her husband.
In 2004, she made arrangementswith a woman by the name of Lisa
(20:14):
Montgomery to sell her one ofher puppies, and Montgomery
showed up at the Sten at homeand murdered Bobby Joe before
cutting Bobby Joe's unborn babyfrom the womb and fleeing the
scene with Bobby Joe, beforecutting Bobby Joe's unborn baby
from the womb and fleeing thescene with Bobby Joe's child.
Lisa Montgomery was trackeddown and arrested and the baby
(20:34):
actually lived, thank God, andwas reunited with her father,
zeb Stennett.
Lisa was later convicted andsentenced to death in 2007.
She was executed in January2021 and was the first female
execution in the US since 1953.
Speaker 2 (20:56):
Wow, that's crazy, I guess.
I was kind of wondering too ifthe baby lived.
So many times you hear thatonce the baby's cut out that
they don't live.
So I am glad that she did liveand was reunited with her father
.
Speaker 1 (21:10):
Yeah, I am very glad and very surprised because you
can imagine it was probably avery bloody scene.
Incident tied to the town ofSkidmore happened back in 2000
when a man by the name of GregDragoo, who was a hardcore drug
(21:32):
user and had a history ofdomestic violence, beat up his
19-year-old girlfriend, WendyGillenwater.
He then chained Wendy's body tohis car and dragged her over
the country roads surroundingSkidmore.
Dragoo is now currently servinga life sentence in the
Jefferson City CorrectionalCenter.
(21:53):
This town's got a lot of stuff,Got a lot of terrible, terrible
things happening, unfortunately.
Now, all three of these tragicevents were nothing short of
horrific.
However, something insanelycrazy that all three of these
events have in common is thefact that Branson's grandmother,
(22:14):
Mary Jo Stennett, was thegrandmother of all three victims
Branson Perry, Bobby JoStennett and Wendy Gillenwater.
Speaker 2 (22:25):
That is pretty ironic .
I am wondering, though, how?
How large did you say that thetown was?
Though the town hasapproximately 200 and just under
250 people, very, very smalltown even with 250 people,
that's still pretty ironic thatall three would have the same
(22:47):
grandmother.
Speaker 1 (22:49):
Yeah, I mean something horrible, absolutely
horrible would happen to allthree and they would share the
same grandmother.
That's pretty ironic.
Or near Skidmore include theHubble family murders that
occurred in 1910, the 1972Merrigan family massacre when,
(23:13):
on October 11th 1972, the bodiesof Marion Merrigan and Kathleen
Merrigan, who were husband andwife and their children William
and Helen Merrigan, were founddead in their home.
All of them had died fromgunshot wounds.
A man by the name of BenedictKemper was charged with those
(23:34):
crimes.
Other cases include the 1973unsolved murder of Northwest
Missouri State student TessieHilt.
Hilt was strangled and stabbedto death in her off-campus
apartment in Maryville, missouri, which is approximately 14
miles northeast of Skidmore.
So it's pretty close.
(23:55):
And probably one of the mostinfamous and notorious bizarre
murders to ever take place inthe town of Skidmore was the
1981 vigilante murder of localtown bully and violent criminal
Ken Rex.
Mcelroy McElroy was shot todeath as he sat in his pickup
(24:16):
truck by a huge group of localSkidmore residents who had
reached their breaking pointwith the assaults, harassment,
point with the assaults,harassment, bullying and
attempted murder.
At the hands of McElroy McElroywas shot twice and no one saw a
(24:38):
thing.
The killers were neveridentified and therefore no one
had ever been arrested for thecrime.
Mcelroy's wife had been in thetruck next to him and she ended
up settling a wrongful deathlawsuit against the town of
Skidmore and the county in theamount of $17,600 before packing
up her stuff and leaving townfor good.
So not the whole town.
Well, maybe maybe it was awhole town, big old mass of
(25:00):
people that could have includedall the residents, or at least
the majority of them, in thelittle town of Skidmoremore.
But they had enough.
They had enough of this guyharassing and bullying everyone
and intimidating everybody andthey grouped together and just
like, went after him and shothim dead in his truck and
(25:21):
everyone refused to talk that isis so interesting.
Speaker 2 (25:26):
I don't know if any of our listeners are from
Skidmore or around that area.
It'd be really interesting totalk to someone that maybe was
around at that time or haveheard of With any small town.
Of course, there's lots ofrumors, but it seems like
there's been so much happeningin this town.
Speaker 1 (25:46):
Yes, yes, there's been a tremendous amount and I
would love I would absolutelylove to hear from anyone that is
from Skidmore or surroundingareas to give us a little more
insight about it.
I don't like to paint this townbad, because I'm sure it's a
great town full of wonderfulpeople town bad because I'm sure
(26:07):
it's.
I'm sure it's a great town fullof wonderful people.
It it's terrible that all thesethings that have happened
happened to this town.
So I am curious, if anybody isfrom the area and would like to
give us a little more insight, Iwould absolutely love to hear
about it.
So a few more infamous murdersthat happened in or around the
Skidmore area.
(26:27):
There's more, there's a fewmore.
I mean, I'm probably onlysaying a few are the ones that I
found.
There's probably been otherstoo, but some of them included
the 1994 murder of DeborahTaylor by her husband, william,
who had deliberately caused aharvesting combine to roll on
(26:48):
top of her.
A lot of these seem prettyisolated.
I don't think, you know, itdoesn't sound like there's a
random person just going aroundkilling people, but they're
horrible things to happen in onetown.
So then there's the 2002murder-suicide of Lloyd Robert
(27:08):
Jeffress I think I pronouncedthat right who opened fire in a
monastery, killing two monks.
And then the 2013 courtroomsuicide of Steve Parsons.
Parsons, who deliberatelyswallowed a cyanide pill after
(27:32):
being sentenced to prison forseven years for the statutory
sodomy of his 14-year-oldbabysitter.
So, needless to say, skidmore,missouri, has been dubbed the
creepiest town in America.
Speaker 2 (27:43):
It's sad, but I mean you wonder the people that live
there now what their thought ofthat.
Speaker 1 (27:50):
I mean maybe it keeps people outsiders away, perhaps
that's a really good point, andmaybe that's what they want
after all of this, all of thisstuff, that's happened.
So, as of May 2024,investigators, along with the
FBI, have been following apromising tip into Branson
(28:12):
Perry's case.
Police are pretty confidentthat the, with the FBI, they can
collect enough evidence tofinally put away the person
responsible.
Unfortunately, branson's father, bob, died in 2004.
(28:34):
In 2010, branson's motheroffered a $20,000 reward for any
information leading to herson's whereabouts.
Then, sadly, in 2011, branson'smother passed away after a long
battle with cancer.
In Branson's mother's obituaryit was mentioned that she was
(28:55):
preceded in death by Branson andshe was buried beside an empty
plot for Branson that lists hisdate of death as April 11, 2001,
which is the same date that hehad disappeared.
If you have any informationinto the disappearance of
Branson Perry, please call theNottoway County Sheriff's Office
(29:18):
at area code 660-582-7451.
This case is so crazy, and whatis even crazier is that
Branson's grandmother had toendure the loss of three of her
grandchildren, and I sincerelyhope that this family gets some
(29:38):
sort of closure.
Thank you for listening toanother episode of Gone in a
Blink.
If you love our podcast, pleaseconsider giving us a five-star
review on Apple Podcasts, and wewould totally love for you to
follow us on any of our socialmedia sites and we will put
those on our show notes.
So we are always up for ideasalso for a show.
(30:01):
So if you have a case you'dlike us to cover, please email
us at gone in a blink pod atgmailcom, and always, please
remember, be safe.
No-transcript.
(37:32):
No-transcript.
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