October 22, 2025 • 36 mins
In the days following 11-year-old Bethany Markowski’s disappearance, her mother Jonnie refused to rest. She called detectives every thirty minutes, plastered missing posters across Jackson, and begged anyone who would listen for answers.
Amid the chaos, one truth stood out - Jonnie passed her polygraph with flying colors. Larry Markowski did not.
As the investigation unfolded, the question lingered: How could a father forget?
View relevant photos for this episode here:
https://missinginhushtown.com/blog/chapter-1-pt-3
Learn More:
Visit BethanyMarkowski.com to learn more about Bethany’s case
Explore episode notes, photos, and related case information at MissingInHushTown.com.
Missing in Hush Town Season 2 is executive produced in partnership by Fire Eyes Media LLC’s Jules Thorp and Jen Rivera and MomCast Productions’ Rachel Holloway and Heather Northcraft. The script is written by Jules Thorp and edited by Heather Northcraft, project lead is Rachel Holloway, and master editing and audio production is done by Jen Rivera. Jules Thorp is your host.
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/missing-in-hush-town--6404892/support.
Amid the chaos, one truth stood out - Jonnie passed her polygraph with flying colors. Larry Markowski did not.
As the investigation unfolded, the question lingered: How could a father forget?
View relevant photos for this episode here:
https://missinginhushtown.com/blog/chapter-1-pt-3
Learn More:
Visit BethanyMarkowski.com to learn more about Bethany’s case
Explore episode notes, photos, and related case information at MissingInHushTown.com.
Missing in Hush Town Season 2 is executive produced in partnership by Fire Eyes Media LLC’s Jules Thorp and Jen Rivera and MomCast Productions’ Rachel Holloway and Heather Northcraft. The script is written by Jules Thorp and edited by Heather Northcraft, project lead is Rachel Holloway, and master editing and audio production is done by Jen Rivera. Jules Thorp is your host.
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/missing-in-hush-town--6404892/support.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:02):
My memory's fading too.
Speaker 2 (00:04):
I don't remember what beth Andy s laugh sounds like anymore.
I don't remember what she smells like anymore. It's gone,
you know, And I get losing the memories. It's like
losing them all over again. But I will never ever,
(00:31):
I really don't believe I will ever forget what happened
the day she disappeared, or all of these years and
everything we've done trying to beg people to give us
information on one of the tapes that the TVI has
right after Bethany disappeared. I think if it had been
a week, maybe two weeks, and I was crying and
(00:55):
I was saying, please tell me everything that happened that day,
And he said, it's been a week or two weeks, whatever,
way do you think I can remember what happened on
the cow? How could you forget? How could you forget?
I had nightmares about it for years. I couldn't sleep
more than two to three hours a night for years.
Speaker 1 (01:17):
But yet.
Speaker 2 (01:20):
He couldn't remember.
Speaker 3 (01:23):
This is missing in Hushtown Season two, Bethany Markowski. This
is the third and final part of chapter one. The
week after I'm your host, Jules, Hey, guys, on behalf
of Buthany's brigade. Welcome Back, Let's Go. Stored safely inside
(02:13):
a clear plastic tub, a collection of letters, cards, records,
leads checked away in the midst of different organized overflowing
paper stocks, some folded and unfolded dozens of times, some
read and reread, and some forgotten about. Is a certificate
awarded to Johnny Carter by the Jackson Police Department, the
award most truthful polygraph Results. You know who didn't receive
(02:37):
an award, though, is Larry Joe Murkowski. And that's because
his results showed deception. We find ourselves still in Jackson, Tennessee.
And to catch you up really quickly, Johnny, her sister
Anne Laurie, and their friend Diane or All and Jackson
putting up missing child posters everywhere they can, talking to
everybody who will listen, and wearing down the detectives with
panic calls every thirty minutes from a frantic job. And
(03:00):
at one point the detectives told her kindly, we can't
do our jobs if you don't stop calling us, so
we can do our jobs, and Johnny understood, but she
kept calling because her daughter was missing. According to an
interview on a Nashville News segment published in two thousand
and two, a year after Bethany went missing, the TBI
agent assigned to Bethany's case, Jack van Hoosier, shares this
(03:23):
the state.
Speaker 4 (03:24):
Of Tennessee since nineteen ninety six, we believe has experienced
four strange abductions, the last being Bethany Markowski in Jackson.
Speaker 3 (03:34):
Does this statement indicate that TBI agent Jack van Hoosier
believes Bethany was abducted by a stranger? We believe it
indicates that there is liability if they say she was
not abducted by a stranger. And I'll let you know.
Larry Murkowski has never been named a suspect in the
disappearance of Bethany Murkowski, but he has been named a
person of interest. Could that statistic have been shared to
(03:56):
prove a point without saying it out loud? The likelihood
of Bethany being abducted by a stranger was highly unlikely.
A missing child was not something the Jackson Police Department
was experienced in handling, So when Johnny's Hotel was swarmed
with reporters trying to catch even a glimpse of missing Bethany,
Murkowski's mother, Johnny Carter. In hopes of receiving any piece
(04:17):
of information from her, the Jackson Police requested that Johnny
do not talk to the press. This is something which
has haunted Johnny over the years, as is very evident
in today's world of information and studies into how information
and visibility in the public eye helps missing persons cases.
She wishes she hadn't listened to them. This is a
(04:38):
common theme I've noticed from my interactions with Johnny. Her
mind is always turning, analyzing what could they have done differently,
what could they have changed. But I try to remind
her quite often that nobody is ever prepared to have
a missing child. There's no playbook, there's nothing to go by.
All you can do is search as hard and as
long as you can until you find her. And that's
(05:02):
what she is still doing today. Twenty five years later,
the week following Bethany's disappearance, the Jackson Police Department informed
Johnny that the day Bethany went missing, March fourth, they
found a shovel which appeared brand new, in an adjacent
cemetery connected to the old Hickory Mall. According to the
website Tngenweb dot org. This particular cemetery, named Elmwood Cemetery
(05:27):
is quote a large black cemetery adjoining Old Hickory Mall
on the West in Jackson, Tennessee. Maintenance at the cemetery
is minimal, mostly occasional mowings. Perhaps as many as half
of all the burials are unmarked end quote. According to
law enforcement, the shovel had a sticker on it and
they were able to trace it back to being sold
(05:47):
at the Walmart in Jackson, Tennessee, and thus we're able
to review security footage of a man checking out with
a shovel. We will have a map of the mall
on her website, so head on over to Missing and
dot com and check out our blog post for chapter one.
Rachel and I sat down with the former commander of
Violent Crimes Unit, Mike cult.
Speaker 1 (06:09):
Would you like to introduce yourself in your experience and
how you met the Markowski family.
Speaker 5 (06:17):
Well, I'm Mike Holt two thousand and one. Has it
been that long?
Speaker 1 (06:24):
M Yeah, yes it has March two thousand and one.
Speaker 5 (06:29):
In March two thousand and one, I was the commander
of the Violent Crimes Unit at the Jackson, Tennessee Police Department.
I've since retired from JPD, and I became involved in
this case on the evening on that March evening when
Beth and It was reported missing at the mall. Apparently
(06:49):
there had been a there have been a search in
the mall by the mall security, and then officers responded
in additional search and with the possibility of play, you know,
we responded also and became involved in the investigation. My unit,
my team at the time, then became responsible for the
investigation after that that fact and continued upon. Actually, one
(07:16):
of the investigators on that team that was involved in
this investigation became a TBI agent and carried the investigation
on with her to TBI, where I assume she's still
the case agent.
Speaker 3 (07:28):
He is referring to TBI agent Kathy Ferguson.
Speaker 5 (07:31):
I was involved in all aspects of the investigation early on,
within a few days after we got into the investigation,
a new shovel was found approximate to the mall parking lot,
and this would be on the other side of a
fence in a kind of a wooded area between it
and some apartments that was fairly regularly travel by kids
(07:56):
and whatnot. Going back and forth. It seemed out of
place at the time. We have not been able to
connect the shovel to anything related to Bethany. I can
tell you that the you know, the forensic testing that
was done on it and whatnot didn't provide anything that
(08:16):
was helpful at the time. You know, a Walmart SKEW
code on a shovel is a Walmart SKU show on
a couple on a shovel at every Walmart. So to
be able to determine which one it came from it
was not possible.
Speaker 1 (08:33):
So that does answer my follow up. It was taken
into evidence, it was forensically tested. Was it tested against
did you have Larry's DNA or fingerprints? Was it tested
against any of that? Any anything with Bethany?
Speaker 5 (08:52):
Yeah, there was. There was nothing of forensic value to
compare on the shovel.
Speaker 1 (08:59):
Gotcha? Okay?
Speaker 3 (09:01):
A side note, I cannot believe this shovel hasn't been
reassessed or retested since two thousand and one.
Speaker 1 (09:08):
And that shovel it would then still be because it's
still the open case, it would likely still be in evidence,
I would hope.
Speaker 3 (09:17):
So technology advances are astronomical today compared to then. Also
full transparency. If the shovel was retested since then, we
don't know because they have not told Johnny or updated
her on any of the retesting of the evidence that
they collected. I really believe the shovel needs to be retested,
so I pushed a little more.
Speaker 1 (09:39):
Do you know what it would take to retest that shovel?
Who would be responsible to go in and do retesting?
Just because it's been a few decades, TBI, TBI that
night that Larry came in, did he give his DNA?
Did he do a sample? Do you recall we.
Speaker 5 (09:57):
Did not collect his DNA at the time. And let
me say this too, but the state of what we
know and how we see DNA now, you know, in
cases versus what they were like in two thousand and one. Okay,
you know, it's not something that was routinely collected in
cases in two thousand and one. It was collected when
we had something to compare it to.
Speaker 1 (10:19):
Absolutely. Yeah, And that's one of the big points too,
is what would it be like today if this happened
today with all of the advances that are available.
Speaker 5 (10:28):
But even with his DNA, what would you compare it to?
Speaker 1 (10:32):
Yeah? And I mean Larry even referenced the blood in
his van.
Speaker 3 (10:39):
We really wanted confirmation that the blood spots found in
Larry's van were tested. We're giving something away a little
bit ahead of time here, so yes, we will confirm
right now that a few drops of blood were found
leader in Larry's van, and it was through testing by
the TBI Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, not the Jackson Police Department,
and it would be eleven days later from March fourth.
(11:01):
More on that in a little bit, though, Hang on tight.
I have a few more questions.
Speaker 1 (11:05):
Was there ever a scent dog brought to that mall location?
Speaker 5 (11:13):
I don't specifically remember, but there's certainly something we would
routinely have done. I don't remember.
Speaker 1 (11:20):
Did your department have sent dogs in the department?
Speaker 5 (11:23):
We had, Yes, we had canines that were tracking and
our dual purpose canines.
Speaker 1 (11:29):
Would that be tracking in cadever not be tracking in patrol.
Speaker 3 (11:34):
It's a great time to remind everyone listening that although
my colt is retired, this case has stayed with him forever,
and he agreed to come on to our podcast to
help Bethany in two thousand and one. He also had
a little girl, also eleven years old, he shares with
us how personal this case has felt and how it
continues to remain. So if it sounds like I put
(11:54):
him on the stand to answer questions, it's likely because
I had a small windwof time and I had a
lot of questions. Was trying to stay focused Bethany's brigade.
We need you, We need your help to find out
if search and rescue dogs were deployed to the mall
that evening. As mister Holt himself shares that he wasn't
at them all that evening, we haven't been able to
get confirmation if sent dogs were used to track Bethany
(12:15):
at all? Did they pick up percent at all? Who
were her handlers? Did they go into the mall? Recall,
the mall would close at six o'clock pm on March four,
two thousand and one, it was a Sunday. Did they
keep them all open for law enforcement? Were the dogs
inside the mall? These aren't questions to catch Jackson p
d not doing a great job, you know. In fact,
(12:36):
this is a job in a career that most of
us likely would not be able to handle. The things
they see and live with often haunt them forever. However,
we are big believers and asking the tough questions and
going back and assessing what else could they have done?
Now back to the shovel with the shovel?
Speaker 1 (12:53):
Did you did you yourself get to look at the
Walmart security from people who were saying that that footage
was Do you ever go a looking at any Walmart
footage off someone buying a shovel?
Speaker 5 (13:11):
We looked at a lot of footage from the mall
and other places. But where are they saying they saw that?
Or were they video of someone with a shovel Walmart
was seeing?
Speaker 1 (13:24):
I believe Johnny I might be mistaken Rachel, but I
can also clarify what Johnny do. But I believe that
Johnny had seen the video footage or somebody told her
they watched a video footage and they're trying to determine
if it was Larry or not. We checked it was
Johnny checking out at the Walmart, and they were saying
(13:44):
it didn't appear to be Larry. They couldn't tell. It
looked like it could be the clothes and the hair.
But because Larry kept his money in his front pocket
and not in the back in a wallet, where this
individual and the video pulled it out from they thought
it might not be him.
Speaker 3 (14:01):
From the Bethanymarkowski dot com website. The individual on the
surveillance Walmart footage bought the following a shovel, a rope,
a two point five gallon gas can. In fact, the
jacket the man on the video was wearing was a
camouflage jacket, one which Larry was known to own, but
he later says it was lost. By the way, the
(14:21):
website Bethanymarkowski dot com is an incredible resource. Everyone needs
to check it out. Bethany's cousin Jordan, does a phenomenal
job updating it with recent information. Johnny says when she
saw the footage of the man, it could be Larry,
but one thing that didn't seem to flow was that
it looked like the watch on the man's wrist was metal.
Speaker 1 (14:42):
Larry always wore a leather watch band.
Speaker 3 (14:45):
Obviously, with today's age of technology, nobody can go anywhere
without it being documented their cameras everywhere, But in two
thousand and one this wasn't the case. I asked mister
Holt about intersection cameras. I wanted to see could we
track Larry's van on the mot This would be a
simple way to prove or disprove whether his van was
even at Walmart.
Speaker 5 (15:06):
We didn't have intersection canra.
Speaker 3 (15:08):
His recollection is correct. We checked most towns in Tennessee
had intersection cameras implemented after two thousand and six. It
seems like the simplest ways we could solve this case
today are the same ways that make this case still unsolved.
In order to rule Larry out as a suspect in
the disappearance of Bethany, we need evidence to prove where
(15:29):
he wasn't. Instead, we're left with a few cell phone
pings and a lot of could or could not. This
would have been such a valuable time to talk with
mister Murkowski, to ask him each question. Could he help
us rule him out or was he concerned we wouldn't
be able to He's referenced all the speculations surrounding his
alleged involvement with the disappearance of his little girl by saying, quote,
(15:52):
it's a witch hunt, end quote. And I would love
to publicly say, with the platform that we have, we
on this side are one hundred one percent focused on
searching for Bethany. However, there is no story about Bethany
without talking about her two parents, Larry and Johnny. For
an eleven year old girl, those two people are her
(16:13):
entire world, and one half of her world was the
last one to see her alive. And his stories don't
add up. Nor is he actively searching, begging, pleading to
find her. Instead, he's refused to interview by stating, quote,
nobody is going to believe me anyway.
Speaker 1 (16:28):
End quote.
Speaker 3 (16:29):
But mister Markowski, I still want to challenge you. What
if you could offer an alternative view, an alternative lead.
It's worth it if it brings us one step closer
to getting answers to find Bethany. It's worth it, isn't it?
With the shovel sitting in evidence for two decades, the
Walmart footage of a man some people believe is Larry,
(16:50):
nothing is confirmed. We move forward with our timeline. While
Johnny and her sister and Diana are at the hotel
in Jackson the week about the Ney's disappearance, Larry drives
to his sister house. Remember Laurie Holt, the one who
drove to the mall that evening with Larry's mother, Janita
Markowski Ward. Yeah, he spent the next few nights at
Laurie's house. Kristin and sarah Lynn were young then younger
(17:13):
than Bethany by just a few years, and bravely interviewed
with us about what they could remember when Larry arrived
at their home. Producer Jenna Myself interviewed sarah Lynn first.
She is three years younger than Bethany and the younger
sister by eleven months.
Speaker 6 (17:27):
To Kristin, so I'm Bethany's cousin from her dad's side,
which is my uncle, it's my mother's brother. I am
here because I feel like Larry is guilty and he
one hundred percent had something to do with Bethany's disapparents.
(17:47):
I do not claim him as my uncle. I do
claim my aunt Johnny as my aunt, even though you
know she was just not by marriage. I one hundred
percent support my Aunt Johnny and support Larry zero percent.
And my goal is to get the inside scoop of
(18:08):
our life and just try to get awareness out like
what Anthony possibly went through.
Speaker 3 (18:14):
And there she is Sarah Lynn, and she is just
getting warmed up.
Speaker 1 (18:18):
Buckle up.
Speaker 3 (18:19):
She didn't come to play. She wants her cousin home.
Speaker 6 (18:23):
So I'm gonna be honest, my mother did not like
me being around Larry my life. I have been trained
to be scared of her family from my sense like
they molested or did something to their brothers and sisters,
because I was always told that I couldn't be left.
Speaker 1 (18:40):
Alone with them.
Speaker 6 (18:41):
So that's always where my brain went. My mother has
always honestly avoided contact with him. I feel like and
I never can get a direct answer, but I was
always told don't be alone with him. I was always
told don't be alone with his brother Johnny.
Speaker 3 (18:58):
Sarah Lyne begins going into the day Larry came to
their house the first night Bethany was missing. She admittedly
has some memory issues, confusion on dates, times, et cetera,
because not only was she just seven when Bethany went missing,
but it's been two decades plus and trauma brain is real.
It affects the memory and slowly takes away pieces of
(19:18):
the puzzle you once had intact. But she does recall
enough that time for us to work with. But first
she wanted to get the listeners more insight about the
Markowski family, Larry and his siblings, to be exact, so
we gave her the floor.
Speaker 6 (19:33):
I truly think that their relationship as children was to
be beat and neglected. I think mostly my mother tried
her best out of all of them. I feel like
the Markowski children were neglected and they were allowed to
be abused verbally, physically, and mentally. And I feel like
(19:53):
if you got out of a Markowski household, you probably
lived in survival mode and you survived something horrendous because
they were not the best people. I don't know if
Glorie would admit it, but my mom has kept us
away in her own way for her own reasons that
she really hasn't really went into besides telling us that
(20:16):
we don't ever need to be alone with them.
Speaker 1 (20:19):
Wow.
Speaker 3 (20:20):
That says a lot, though, doesn't it. Yeah, if you
didn't catch that. Sarah Lynn often refers to her mother
by a first name basis Laurie throughout this podcast, and
we have come to learn it's for us listeners to
know whom she's referring to. But the relationship is heavy,
it's complicated, and appears fractured from an outsider perspective. One
thing I will say is Lorie Holt has two amazing, intelligent,
(20:42):
brave daughters who will continue to show up throughout the podcast.
And share hard truths and hope that it will find Bethany.
Speaker 6 (20:50):
I've taken notes over the years of how the Markowski
screwed our life, like it's screwed a lot of things
in our life. And I love my cousin beth Me like,
I feel like if she could have been born from
Johnny and another man, I would have wanted her here
today and she would have lived a great life. But sometimes,
(21:12):
and this it hurts a lot of times, I'm like,
I'm glad she didn't have to go anymore with Larry,
like whatever happened to her, because I fully one hundred
percent think that he did something to her to get
back at Johnny. I'm sad that it happened, But I'm like,
what would her life have been if she had to
stay around Larry longer than she had had stayed.
Speaker 3 (21:35):
Now we pivot to the evening. Larry arrives at Sarah
Lynn's family home in March four, two thousand and one,
and here's what she recalls before we begins. This is
a fairly lengthy piece of Sarah Lynn's interview, but US
producers felt and needed to stay in as is to
give Sarah Lynne the floor to continue to tell her truth.
Speaker 6 (21:54):
I was always told that Larry was allowed to stay
at her house because the police asked my mother to
let him stay there so they can watch him. That's
what I was always told. I was told that the
police actually was the one that set that up and
made it like Larry needs to stay with you.
Speaker 3 (22:11):
Close quick side note, The following is all alleged.
Speaker 6 (22:17):
So I remember him putting all of Bethany's things and
this shed that we had outside of our house, But
other than that, I was just always told he was
only there to be watched by the police, and my
mother always made me think that he was being watched
by the police is why he stayed with us, because honestly,
I was scared because I was always taught to be
(22:39):
scared of him.
Speaker 1 (22:41):
The shed. Can you talk to me about the shed
was there? Did do you know if he kept things
in that shed before? Did he ever come back and
get the things in the shed? Did you ever see
the stuff in the shed?
Speaker 6 (22:50):
I know that there was a lot of things in
the shed that was said to be it was all Bethany's.
Everything that was in his van was supposedly put in
the shed. From my memory, I never. I was so young,
I never went in the shed. I do know it
was full after after he stayed with us, I do
not remember. I can't remember whatever happened or did he
(23:12):
come get it. Honestly, I've blocked it off. I can't
remember what happened.
Speaker 1 (23:18):
Do you know if he kept things in there before
Beth and he disappeared? Never? Never?
Speaker 6 (23:24):
I do know the shp has gone today. I have
to pass the house daily, and I know the shed's
not there no more. But I've never he never came
to our house like that.
Speaker 1 (23:34):
Really, And when he stayed at your house? Do you
recall how long he stayed there?
Speaker 6 (23:39):
In my mind, I can only remember like one or
two days. It wasn't I don't remember it being completely long.
Speaker 1 (23:46):
And where did he? Do you even know where he slept?
Speaker 6 (23:49):
Honestly, all I know is I slept with my mother
in her bed. That was Yet I don't know where
he stayed there was only there was only two other
rooms in one room. My mother had a man that
she took care of that lived with us, so it
had to be my room that he slept in or
on the couch.
Speaker 1 (24:07):
Okay, and your dad and your mom were together at
this time or were they.
Speaker 6 (24:12):
So they were together, but there he was. Their relationship
was really like sometimes he'd be home, sometimes he would Okay,
they were very domestic together, so I can't recall if
he was there or not.
Speaker 1 (24:28):
And do you recall overhearing, because you know how adults
talk and they don't always realize kids are actually listening.
Do you ever recall overhearing anything that you could remember?
Speaker 6 (24:38):
Yes, I do, and it's going to piss a lot
of people off, but I remember it distinctly, and my
dad would be able to tell you as well.
Speaker 1 (24:46):
And my sister.
Speaker 6 (24:47):
I remember hearing my dad and my mom talking saying
that Larry made an inappropriate comment to Laurie my mom.
I don't know what it was, but I remember them bigger,
and because my mom telling my dad that Larry had
made an inappropriate sexual comment towards her. I don't know
what it was it was. I know it had something
(25:09):
about they were in my room and my mother bent over,
and I honestly, honestly, I can't remember, but I know
it had something to do with my mother bending over
in an inappropriate comment. And I even called my dad
the other day and I said, Dad, like and I
remembering this correctly, Like I remember distinctly being told that
(25:33):
he made an inappropriate comment when she bent over, and
I remember my dad saying, well, that's not something you
say when your child is missing. And you know that's
that's not something you say to your sister either, but
especially when your child's missing. And he said, no, you're
remembering correctly. He said, Now, his honest words were, Now,
I wouldn't go on a camera and say that, because
(25:54):
you don't know if that was true or if that
was made up. He said, but that did happen, now,
he said, I don't know if your mother was being
honest about it or not. He said, but yes, that
comment was made. You remember it correctly.
Speaker 1 (26:08):
He's confirming that she told him that he nobody else
witnessed it, is what he's saying, Yeah.
Speaker 7 (26:16):
And that I have a quick question. The timeframe was
that around? Was that when Larry was staying with you guys?
Do you know when that time frame?
Speaker 6 (26:23):
Okay, yes, that was when, because it was a big deal,
because I really I just remember it being dramatic and
drawn out, and that's why, like nobody wanted him there.
So I remember nobody wanting him there and then that happened,
and I remember, just sintly are my parents talking about
it and being aggravated about it. So I will tell
(26:45):
you this too, and it might upset some people. The
way my mother remembers things and the way me and
my sister remember things are totally different, and that might
upset her, but it's the truth. Like I feel like
she sometimes remembers things that she wants to remember because
maybe it's a coping mechanism for her as an adult.
(27:07):
I always I used to be mad, but the way
that she would respond to things, But as I get older,
I'm like, I really truly feel like all the kids
Larry Johnny Warren, Bobby Timmy, my mom, I feel like
they were so neglected and abused as a child and
not taking care of the stories I hear. I think
(27:30):
that they don't even realize that they're doing, like they're
they're telling things that are not like how they should
be told, or like the the real realization of how
they should be told. So there's that. That's I guess
that's why my dad and my dad noticed that too,
And my Dad's like, I don't know if I say
that on camera, and I was like, look, I'm not
trying to make anybody happy. I'm just trying to get
(27:51):
Bethany like I'm trying to paint a picture, because I
feel like like nobody's ever been able to paint a
picture because they've been too scared to paint a picture.
So what I hear is what I'm.
Speaker 1 (28:04):
Going to tell.
Speaker 6 (28:05):
And if I make people mad, I don't care, because
the ultimate goes to find Bethany and to paint what
bethany childhood was like, to paint what her sibling childhood
was like. Because if you know the real Larry, if
you hear all the stories, then you know this man
is guilty.
Speaker 3 (28:20):
And there it is Sarah Lyne through the eyes of
an adult, carried on by the memories of a child.
Speaker 1 (28:26):
Larry Markowski to.
Speaker 3 (28:27):
Her as she remembers the week Bethany disappeared. We'll hear
more from Sarah Lyne as the season continues.
Speaker 1 (28:34):
Anything else you want to touch on that we didn't
touch on or anything.
Speaker 6 (28:38):
No, I just pray that my mom gets on here
and she's honest about her brother. We've had an argument,
We've argued this Bethany needs somebody to speak up for
I was like, you know, we were young. We can
only say so much. But you were an adult, so
you're going to remember. I was like, so you tell
your truth and if anybody's not at you, it doesn't matter.
(28:58):
Like you tell your truth. I was like, but somebody
has to be the advocator for Bethany because she's obviously
not here. I was like, if you upset people, like,
the goal is not to make people happy on this podcast,
it's to find Bethany to get answers. I was like,
I guess everybody thinks, oh, it's just gonna be tr
a man, everybody's gonna hate me. Who cares? Is what
I think? Like, if if justice comes from my cousin Bethany,
(29:23):
then the whole world can hate me. She's had a
terrible life, like she's missed out on so much already.
If we can just bring her closure, or if she
is alive, if we can give her a better life.
I've always thought, man, I hope if she was cannapt,
if she truly was, which I don't think she was.
I think Larry did it. But I was always thought,
(29:46):
maybe a good family cannapp her and got her out
of this. Maybe because if she would have lived in
that life. I don't think she would have lived a
good life with Larry. I think Larry would have made
it hell.
Speaker 3 (29:58):
Sarah Lyne's sister, also interviewed and shared about their uncle Larry.
As Kristin recalls it, Larry was allowed at their home
before March of two thousand and one. In fact, Bethany
would come by when Larry would bring her and the
kids would play together. But after Bethany went missing, it
all changed. Kristen tells us that uncle Larry was only
at their home a few nights, and the way she
(30:20):
recalls it, he came back a few days after that,
and that's when he put things of Bethany's into the
storage shed at their home. And get this, well, let's
have Kristen tell you.
Speaker 8 (30:31):
He had come in, dropped off a couple of his
sayings a few days later in our little storage that
we had, and my mom and then was l down
open the door and let him in if he comes in,
which we were younger, we didn't understand. We just know,
don't let him in.
Speaker 3 (30:48):
Here's what we need to know. What the heck was
Larry putting in that shed? Why did he need to
move it from the van to the shed. He was
going to return to his home in a few days. Anyway,
why was it imperative that he store things away from
his van or away from his home? You know what
were still unclear? Is this whether Larry put the items
(31:10):
in this shed while he was at Lorie's home those
first few nights, or if he did indeed leave for
a few days and return with things to put in
the shed. Does this mean he brought things from home
to store? And why or was it that Kristen doesn't
remember correctly? Was Sarah Lynn right? Was it while he
was there? Either way, we have got to find out
(31:33):
what was in that shed. And here is why whatever
was in his van, from bringing it from his home
or not, was not in his van any longer once
the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation joined the case and came
for his van. And yes, there was blood inside the van.
As you may recall, the van wasn't searched on the
evening of March four, two thousand and one. There was
(31:53):
no probable cause at the time. According to the Legal
Information Institute, a rule was filed on November six, two
thousand and one, and would become effective March thirtieth, two
thousand and two, so a year after Bethany was missing,
it would be mandated, and it's the Tennessee Missing Children Clearinghouse.
It essentially states that any missing child shall be reported
(32:14):
immediately to the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation. According to the
effect date, it may not have been mandated when Bethany
was missing. But get this, the Jackson Police Department did
not call the TBI intentionally. They only knew of Bethany's
disappearance because nine days later, on March thirteenth, when the
Jackson Police Department reached out to the TBI to run
(32:35):
a background check on the individuals connected to Bethany's disappearance,
that the TBI questioned why it was needed. And it's
then that the Jackson PD informs them they have a
missing girl. And that moment is when the TBI begins
their journey into the case. And it's then that Larry's
van was located and searched. Before searching the van, agents
(32:56):
asked Larry if there would be any reason that they
may find Bethany's blood in the van, and he replied, quote, yes,
she sat on a thorn end.
Speaker 1 (33:04):
Quote.
Speaker 3 (33:05):
The next piece of information I am about to share
is infuriating because if the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation had
been notified immediately, I guarantee that nineteen ninety five Astro
van would not have been washed and the interior would
not have been shampooed by the time the TBI arrived. Yes,
Larry had the van interior completely shampooed and clean. The
(33:27):
blood that was recovered, it was just a few spots,
and from all the information that we've been able to gather,
it was on Bethany's pillowcase and a blanket. So this
tells me it's still in evidence. I mean, it has
to be correct. What else was tested on that blanket?
There seems to be inconsistencies.
Speaker 1 (33:45):
About the blood. Was it a few drops? Was it
all over?
Speaker 3 (33:48):
We obviously don't have access to the files as it's
an open case, but we do know the TBI confirmed
to Johnny that yes, there were a few drops of
blood inside the van. This is a good time to
introduce Larry's former best friend, Harold Roberts. Harold Roberts is
getting his own chapter, as he is a key to
piecing together this case. But let's just say Larry and
(34:11):
Harold are far from anything resembling friends these days. Harold
recalls the time when he witnessed Larry ms out a
gas tank in front of him. There I went in
the back of his truck and then toss a red
rope into the woods. He's often wondered if that was
part of something bigger. But here Harold tells Rachel about
what he recalls about the van.
Speaker 4 (34:32):
I was told this by the empty eye in the Arkansas.
Did we ever find Vithiny or her body? We got
enough to put Larry away on what we found in
the van. And they told me what was found in
that vand and they showed pictures to me what was
shut down in that van?
Speaker 1 (34:51):
The law enforcement showed you pictures.
Speaker 4 (34:54):
Yes, you know because I passed the ice to the
lot of Tacher test right. And when I asked did
they sing that I had no part of it?
Speaker 5 (35:04):
That I didn't know.
Speaker 4 (35:06):
So they thought, well, this guy knows Larry better than anybody.
Speaker 1 (35:10):
Maybe when you order used him a little bit, and
they did.
Speaker 8 (35:16):
In the pictures.
Speaker 7 (35:17):
Can you tell me what was seen in the van?
Speaker 1 (35:20):
Yeah?
Speaker 5 (35:21):
Yeah, I tell you exactly what was saying.
Speaker 2 (35:22):
In its.
Speaker 7 (35:40):
Missing in Hushtown. Season two is executive produced in partnership
by Fireeyes Media LLCs Jules Thorpe and Gen Rivera, as
well as mom Cast Productions Rachel Holloway and Heather Northcraft.
The script is written by Jules Thorpe and edited by
Heather Northcraft. Project lead is Rachel Holloway and master editing
and audio production is done by John Rivera. Jules Thorpe
(36:03):
is your host fire Eyes Media.
Speaker 2 (36:11):
My mom has raising voices while raising kids
My memory's fading too.
Speaker 2 (00:04):
I don't remember what beth Andy s laugh sounds like anymore.
I don't remember what she smells like anymore. It's gone,
you know, And I get losing the memories. It's like
losing them all over again. But I will never ever,
(00:31):
I really don't believe I will ever forget what happened
the day she disappeared, or all of these years and
everything we've done trying to beg people to give us
information on one of the tapes that the TVI has
right after Bethany disappeared. I think if it had been
a week, maybe two weeks, and I was crying and
(00:55):
I was saying, please tell me everything that happened that day,
And he said, it's been a week or two weeks, whatever,
way do you think I can remember what happened on
the cow? How could you forget? How could you forget?
I had nightmares about it for years. I couldn't sleep
more than two to three hours a night for years.
Speaker 1 (01:17):
But yet.
Speaker 2 (01:20):
He couldn't remember.
Speaker 3 (01:23):
This is missing in Hushtown Season two, Bethany Markowski. This
is the third and final part of chapter one. The
week after I'm your host, Jules, Hey, guys, on behalf
of Buthany's brigade. Welcome Back, Let's Go. Stored safely inside
(02:13):
a clear plastic tub, a collection of letters, cards, records,
leads checked away in the midst of different organized overflowing
paper stocks, some folded and unfolded dozens of times, some
read and reread, and some forgotten about. Is a certificate
awarded to Johnny Carter by the Jackson Police Department, the
award most truthful polygraph Results. You know who didn't receive
(02:37):
an award, though, is Larry Joe Murkowski. And that's because
his results showed deception. We find ourselves still in Jackson, Tennessee.
And to catch you up really quickly, Johnny, her sister
Anne Laurie, and their friend Diane or All and Jackson
putting up missing child posters everywhere they can, talking to
everybody who will listen, and wearing down the detectives with
panic calls every thirty minutes from a frantic job. And
(03:00):
at one point the detectives told her kindly, we can't
do our jobs if you don't stop calling us, so
we can do our jobs, and Johnny understood, but she
kept calling because her daughter was missing. According to an
interview on a Nashville News segment published in two thousand
and two, a year after Bethany went missing, the TBI
agent assigned to Bethany's case, Jack van Hoosier, shares this
(03:23):
the state.
Speaker 4 (03:24):
Of Tennessee since nineteen ninety six, we believe has experienced
four strange abductions, the last being Bethany Markowski in Jackson.
Speaker 3 (03:34):
Does this statement indicate that TBI agent Jack van Hoosier
believes Bethany was abducted by a stranger? We believe it
indicates that there is liability if they say she was
not abducted by a stranger. And I'll let you know.
Larry Murkowski has never been named a suspect in the
disappearance of Bethany Murkowski, but he has been named a
person of interest. Could that statistic have been shared to
(03:56):
prove a point without saying it out loud? The likelihood
of Bethany being abducted by a stranger was highly unlikely.
A missing child was not something the Jackson Police Department
was experienced in handling, So when Johnny's Hotel was swarmed
with reporters trying to catch even a glimpse of missing Bethany,
Murkowski's mother, Johnny Carter. In hopes of receiving any piece
(04:17):
of information from her, the Jackson Police requested that Johnny
do not talk to the press. This is something which
has haunted Johnny over the years, as is very evident
in today's world of information and studies into how information
and visibility in the public eye helps missing persons cases.
She wishes she hadn't listened to them. This is a
(04:38):
common theme I've noticed from my interactions with Johnny. Her
mind is always turning, analyzing what could they have done differently,
what could they have changed. But I try to remind
her quite often that nobody is ever prepared to have
a missing child. There's no playbook, there's nothing to go by.
All you can do is search as hard and as
long as you can until you find her. And that's
(05:02):
what she is still doing today. Twenty five years later,
the week following Bethany's disappearance, the Jackson Police Department informed
Johnny that the day Bethany went missing, March fourth, they
found a shovel which appeared brand new, in an adjacent
cemetery connected to the old Hickory Mall. According to the
website Tngenweb dot org. This particular cemetery, named Elmwood Cemetery
(05:27):
is quote a large black cemetery adjoining Old Hickory Mall
on the West in Jackson, Tennessee. Maintenance at the cemetery
is minimal, mostly occasional mowings. Perhaps as many as half
of all the burials are unmarked end quote. According to
law enforcement, the shovel had a sticker on it and
they were able to trace it back to being sold
(05:47):
at the Walmart in Jackson, Tennessee, and thus we're able
to review security footage of a man checking out with
a shovel. We will have a map of the mall
on her website, so head on over to Missing and
dot com and check out our blog post for chapter one.
Rachel and I sat down with the former commander of
Violent Crimes Unit, Mike cult.
Speaker 1 (06:09):
Would you like to introduce yourself in your experience and
how you met the Markowski family.
Speaker 5 (06:17):
Well, I'm Mike Holt two thousand and one. Has it
been that long?
Speaker 1 (06:24):
M Yeah, yes it has March two thousand and one.
Speaker 5 (06:29):
In March two thousand and one, I was the commander
of the Violent Crimes Unit at the Jackson, Tennessee Police Department.
I've since retired from JPD, and I became involved in
this case on the evening on that March evening when
Beth and It was reported missing at the mall. Apparently
(06:49):
there had been a there have been a search in
the mall by the mall security, and then officers responded
in additional search and with the possibility of play, you know,
we responded also and became involved in the investigation. My unit,
my team at the time, then became responsible for the
investigation after that that fact and continued upon. Actually, one
(07:16):
of the investigators on that team that was involved in
this investigation became a TBI agent and carried the investigation
on with her to TBI, where I assume she's still
the case agent.
Speaker 3 (07:28):
He is referring to TBI agent Kathy Ferguson.
Speaker 5 (07:31):
I was involved in all aspects of the investigation early on,
within a few days after we got into the investigation,
a new shovel was found approximate to the mall parking lot,
and this would be on the other side of a
fence in a kind of a wooded area between it
and some apartments that was fairly regularly travel by kids
(07:56):
and whatnot. Going back and forth. It seemed out of
place at the time. We have not been able to
connect the shovel to anything related to Bethany. I can
tell you that the you know, the forensic testing that
was done on it and whatnot didn't provide anything that
(08:16):
was helpful at the time. You know, a Walmart SKEW
code on a shovel is a Walmart SKU show on
a couple on a shovel at every Walmart. So to
be able to determine which one it came from it
was not possible.
Speaker 1 (08:33):
So that does answer my follow up. It was taken
into evidence, it was forensically tested. Was it tested against
did you have Larry's DNA or fingerprints? Was it tested
against any of that? Any anything with Bethany?
Speaker 5 (08:52):
Yeah, there was. There was nothing of forensic value to
compare on the shovel.
Speaker 1 (08:59):
Gotcha? Okay?
Speaker 3 (09:01):
A side note, I cannot believe this shovel hasn't been
reassessed or retested since two thousand and one.
Speaker 1 (09:08):
And that shovel it would then still be because it's
still the open case, it would likely still be in evidence,
I would hope.
Speaker 3 (09:17):
So technology advances are astronomical today compared to then. Also
full transparency. If the shovel was retested since then, we
don't know because they have not told Johnny or updated
her on any of the retesting of the evidence that
they collected. I really believe the shovel needs to be retested,
so I pushed a little more.
Speaker 1 (09:39):
Do you know what it would take to retest that shovel?
Who would be responsible to go in and do retesting?
Just because it's been a few decades, TBI, TBI that
night that Larry came in, did he give his DNA?
Did he do a sample? Do you recall we.
Speaker 5 (09:57):
Did not collect his DNA at the time. And let
me say this too, but the state of what we
know and how we see DNA now, you know, in
cases versus what they were like in two thousand and one. Okay,
you know, it's not something that was routinely collected in
cases in two thousand and one. It was collected when
we had something to compare it to.
Speaker 1 (10:19):
Absolutely. Yeah, And that's one of the big points too,
is what would it be like today if this happened
today with all of the advances that are available.
Speaker 5 (10:28):
But even with his DNA, what would you compare it to?
Speaker 1 (10:32):
Yeah? And I mean Larry even referenced the blood in
his van.
Speaker 3 (10:39):
We really wanted confirmation that the blood spots found in
Larry's van were tested. We're giving something away a little
bit ahead of time here, so yes, we will confirm
right now that a few drops of blood were found
leader in Larry's van, and it was through testing by
the TBI Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, not the Jackson Police Department,
and it would be eleven days later from March fourth.
(11:01):
More on that in a little bit, though, Hang on tight.
I have a few more questions.
Speaker 1 (11:05):
Was there ever a scent dog brought to that mall location?
Speaker 5 (11:13):
I don't specifically remember, but there's certainly something we would
routinely have done. I don't remember.
Speaker 1 (11:20):
Did your department have sent dogs in the department?
Speaker 5 (11:23):
We had, Yes, we had canines that were tracking and
our dual purpose canines.
Speaker 1 (11:29):
Would that be tracking in cadever not be tracking in patrol.
Speaker 3 (11:34):
It's a great time to remind everyone listening that although
my colt is retired, this case has stayed with him forever,
and he agreed to come on to our podcast to
help Bethany in two thousand and one. He also had
a little girl, also eleven years old, he shares with
us how personal this case has felt and how it
continues to remain. So if it sounds like I put
(11:54):
him on the stand to answer questions, it's likely because
I had a small windwof time and I had a
lot of questions. Was trying to stay focused Bethany's brigade.
We need you, We need your help to find out
if search and rescue dogs were deployed to the mall
that evening. As mister Holt himself shares that he wasn't
at them all that evening, we haven't been able to
get confirmation if sent dogs were used to track Bethany
(12:15):
at all? Did they pick up percent at all? Who
were her handlers? Did they go into the mall? Recall,
the mall would close at six o'clock pm on March four,
two thousand and one, it was a Sunday. Did they
keep them all open for law enforcement? Were the dogs
inside the mall? These aren't questions to catch Jackson p
d not doing a great job, you know. In fact,
(12:36):
this is a job in a career that most of
us likely would not be able to handle. The things
they see and live with often haunt them forever. However,
we are big believers and asking the tough questions and
going back and assessing what else could they have done?
Now back to the shovel with the shovel?
Speaker 1 (12:53):
Did you did you yourself get to look at the
Walmart security from people who were saying that that footage
was Do you ever go a looking at any Walmart
footage off someone buying a shovel?
Speaker 5 (13:11):
We looked at a lot of footage from the mall
and other places. But where are they saying they saw that?
Or were they video of someone with a shovel Walmart
was seeing?
Speaker 1 (13:24):
I believe Johnny I might be mistaken Rachel, but I
can also clarify what Johnny do. But I believe that
Johnny had seen the video footage or somebody told her
they watched a video footage and they're trying to determine
if it was Larry or not. We checked it was
Johnny checking out at the Walmart, and they were saying
(13:44):
it didn't appear to be Larry. They couldn't tell. It
looked like it could be the clothes and the hair.
But because Larry kept his money in his front pocket
and not in the back in a wallet, where this
individual and the video pulled it out from they thought
it might not be him.
Speaker 3 (14:01):
From the Bethanymarkowski dot com website. The individual on the
surveillance Walmart footage bought the following a shovel, a rope,
a two point five gallon gas can. In fact, the
jacket the man on the video was wearing was a
camouflage jacket, one which Larry was known to own, but
he later says it was lost. By the way, the
(14:21):
website Bethanymarkowski dot com is an incredible resource. Everyone needs
to check it out. Bethany's cousin Jordan, does a phenomenal
job updating it with recent information. Johnny says when she
saw the footage of the man, it could be Larry,
but one thing that didn't seem to flow was that
it looked like the watch on the man's wrist was metal.
Speaker 1 (14:42):
Larry always wore a leather watch band.
Speaker 3 (14:45):
Obviously, with today's age of technology, nobody can go anywhere
without it being documented their cameras everywhere, But in two
thousand and one this wasn't the case. I asked mister
Holt about intersection cameras. I wanted to see could we
track Larry's van on the mot This would be a
simple way to prove or disprove whether his van was
even at Walmart.
Speaker 5 (15:06):
We didn't have intersection canra.
Speaker 3 (15:08):
His recollection is correct. We checked most towns in Tennessee
had intersection cameras implemented after two thousand and six. It
seems like the simplest ways we could solve this case
today are the same ways that make this case still unsolved.
In order to rule Larry out as a suspect in
the disappearance of Bethany, we need evidence to prove where
(15:29):
he wasn't. Instead, we're left with a few cell phone
pings and a lot of could or could not. This
would have been such a valuable time to talk with
mister Murkowski, to ask him each question. Could he help
us rule him out or was he concerned we wouldn't
be able to He's referenced all the speculations surrounding his
alleged involvement with the disappearance of his little girl by saying, quote,
(15:52):
it's a witch hunt, end quote. And I would love
to publicly say, with the platform that we have, we
on this side are one hundred one percent focused on
searching for Bethany. However, there is no story about Bethany
without talking about her two parents, Larry and Johnny. For
an eleven year old girl, those two people are her
(16:13):
entire world, and one half of her world was the
last one to see her alive. And his stories don't
add up. Nor is he actively searching, begging, pleading to
find her. Instead, he's refused to interview by stating, quote,
nobody is going to believe me anyway.
Speaker 1 (16:28):
End quote.
Speaker 3 (16:29):
But mister Markowski, I still want to challenge you. What
if you could offer an alternative view, an alternative lead.
It's worth it if it brings us one step closer
to getting answers to find Bethany. It's worth it, isn't it?
With the shovel sitting in evidence for two decades, the
Walmart footage of a man some people believe is Larry,
(16:50):
nothing is confirmed. We move forward with our timeline. While
Johnny and her sister and Diana are at the hotel
in Jackson the week about the Ney's disappearance, Larry drives
to his sister house. Remember Laurie Holt, the one who
drove to the mall that evening with Larry's mother, Janita
Markowski Ward. Yeah, he spent the next few nights at
Laurie's house. Kristin and sarah Lynn were young then younger
(17:13):
than Bethany by just a few years, and bravely interviewed
with us about what they could remember when Larry arrived
at their home. Producer Jenna Myself interviewed sarah Lynn first.
She is three years younger than Bethany and the younger
sister by eleven months.
Speaker 6 (17:27):
To Kristin, so I'm Bethany's cousin from her dad's side,
which is my uncle, it's my mother's brother. I am
here because I feel like Larry is guilty and he
one hundred percent had something to do with Bethany's disapparents.
(17:47):
I do not claim him as my uncle. I do
claim my aunt Johnny as my aunt, even though you
know she was just not by marriage. I one hundred
percent support my Aunt Johnny and support Larry zero percent.
And my goal is to get the inside scoop of
(18:08):
our life and just try to get awareness out like
what Anthony possibly went through.
Speaker 3 (18:14):
And there she is Sarah Lynn, and she is just
getting warmed up.
Speaker 1 (18:18):
Buckle up.
Speaker 3 (18:19):
She didn't come to play. She wants her cousin home.
Speaker 6 (18:23):
So I'm gonna be honest, my mother did not like
me being around Larry my life. I have been trained
to be scared of her family from my sense like
they molested or did something to their brothers and sisters,
because I was always told that I couldn't be left.
Speaker 1 (18:40):
Alone with them.
Speaker 6 (18:41):
So that's always where my brain went. My mother has
always honestly avoided contact with him. I feel like and
I never can get a direct answer, but I was
always told don't be alone with him. I was always
told don't be alone with his brother Johnny.
Speaker 3 (18:58):
Sarah Lyne begins going into the day Larry came to
their house the first night Bethany was missing. She admittedly
has some memory issues, confusion on dates, times, et cetera,
because not only was she just seven when Bethany went missing,
but it's been two decades plus and trauma brain is real.
It affects the memory and slowly takes away pieces of
(19:18):
the puzzle you once had intact. But she does recall
enough that time for us to work with. But first
she wanted to get the listeners more insight about the
Markowski family, Larry and his siblings, to be exact, so
we gave her the floor.
Speaker 6 (19:33):
I truly think that their relationship as children was to
be beat and neglected. I think mostly my mother tried
her best out of all of them. I feel like
the Markowski children were neglected and they were allowed to
be abused verbally, physically, and mentally. And I feel like
(19:53):
if you got out of a Markowski household, you probably
lived in survival mode and you survived something horrendous because
they were not the best people. I don't know if
Glorie would admit it, but my mom has kept us
away in her own way for her own reasons that
she really hasn't really went into besides telling us that
(20:16):
we don't ever need to be alone with them.
Speaker 1 (20:19):
Wow.
Speaker 3 (20:20):
That says a lot, though, doesn't it. Yeah, if you
didn't catch that. Sarah Lynn often refers to her mother
by a first name basis Laurie throughout this podcast, and
we have come to learn it's for us listeners to
know whom she's referring to. But the relationship is heavy,
it's complicated, and appears fractured from an outsider perspective. One
thing I will say is Lorie Holt has two amazing, intelligent,
(20:42):
brave daughters who will continue to show up throughout the podcast.
And share hard truths and hope that it will find Bethany.
Speaker 6 (20:50):
I've taken notes over the years of how the Markowski
screwed our life, like it's screwed a lot of things
in our life. And I love my cousin beth Me like,
I feel like if she could have been born from
Johnny and another man, I would have wanted her here
today and she would have lived a great life. But sometimes,
(21:12):
and this it hurts a lot of times, I'm like,
I'm glad she didn't have to go anymore with Larry,
like whatever happened to her, because I fully one hundred
percent think that he did something to her to get
back at Johnny. I'm sad that it happened, But I'm like,
what would her life have been if she had to
stay around Larry longer than she had had stayed.
Speaker 3 (21:35):
Now we pivot to the evening. Larry arrives at Sarah
Lynn's family home in March four, two thousand and one,
and here's what she recalls before we begins. This is
a fairly lengthy piece of Sarah Lynn's interview, but US
producers felt and needed to stay in as is to
give Sarah Lynne the floor to continue to tell her truth.
Speaker 6 (21:54):
I was always told that Larry was allowed to stay
at her house because the police asked my mother to
let him stay there so they can watch him. That's
what I was always told. I was told that the
police actually was the one that set that up and
made it like Larry needs to stay with you.
Speaker 3 (22:11):
Close quick side note, The following is all alleged.
Speaker 6 (22:17):
So I remember him putting all of Bethany's things and
this shed that we had outside of our house, But
other than that, I was just always told he was
only there to be watched by the police, and my
mother always made me think that he was being watched
by the police is why he stayed with us, because honestly,
I was scared because I was always taught to be
(22:39):
scared of him.
Speaker 1 (22:41):
The shed. Can you talk to me about the shed
was there? Did do you know if he kept things
in that shed before? Did he ever come back and
get the things in the shed? Did you ever see
the stuff in the shed?
Speaker 6 (22:50):
I know that there was a lot of things in
the shed that was said to be it was all Bethany's.
Everything that was in his van was supposedly put in
the shed. From my memory, I never. I was so young,
I never went in the shed. I do know it
was full after after he stayed with us, I do
not remember. I can't remember whatever happened or did he
(23:12):
come get it. Honestly, I've blocked it off. I can't
remember what happened.
Speaker 1 (23:18):
Do you know if he kept things in there before
Beth and he disappeared? Never? Never?
Speaker 6 (23:24):
I do know the shp has gone today. I have
to pass the house daily, and I know the shed's
not there no more. But I've never he never came
to our house like that.
Speaker 1 (23:34):
Really, And when he stayed at your house? Do you
recall how long he stayed there?
Speaker 6 (23:39):
In my mind, I can only remember like one or
two days. It wasn't I don't remember it being completely long.
Speaker 1 (23:46):
And where did he? Do you even know where he slept?
Speaker 6 (23:49):
Honestly, all I know is I slept with my mother
in her bed. That was Yet I don't know where
he stayed there was only there was only two other
rooms in one room. My mother had a man that
she took care of that lived with us, so it
had to be my room that he slept in or
on the couch.
Speaker 1 (24:07):
Okay, and your dad and your mom were together at
this time or were they.
Speaker 6 (24:12):
So they were together, but there he was. Their relationship
was really like sometimes he'd be home, sometimes he would Okay,
they were very domestic together, so I can't recall if
he was there or not.
Speaker 1 (24:28):
And do you recall overhearing, because you know how adults
talk and they don't always realize kids are actually listening.
Do you ever recall overhearing anything that you could remember?
Speaker 6 (24:38):
Yes, I do, and it's going to piss a lot
of people off, but I remember it distinctly, and my
dad would be able to tell you as well.
Speaker 1 (24:46):
And my sister.
Speaker 6 (24:47):
I remember hearing my dad and my mom talking saying
that Larry made an inappropriate comment to Laurie my mom.
I don't know what it was, but I remember them bigger,
and because my mom telling my dad that Larry had
made an inappropriate sexual comment towards her. I don't know
what it was it was. I know it had something
(25:09):
about they were in my room and my mother bent over,
and I honestly, honestly, I can't remember, but I know
it had something to do with my mother bending over
in an inappropriate comment. And I even called my dad
the other day and I said, Dad, like and I
remembering this correctly, Like I remember distinctly being told that
(25:33):
he made an inappropriate comment when she bent over, and
I remember my dad saying, well, that's not something you
say when your child is missing. And you know that's
that's not something you say to your sister either, but
especially when your child's missing. And he said, no, you're
remembering correctly. He said, Now, his honest words were, Now,
I wouldn't go on a camera and say that, because
(25:54):
you don't know if that was true or if that
was made up. He said, but that did happen, now,
he said, I don't know if your mother was being
honest about it or not. He said, but yes, that
comment was made. You remember it correctly.
Speaker 1 (26:08):
He's confirming that she told him that he nobody else
witnessed it, is what he's saying, Yeah.
Speaker 7 (26:16):
And that I have a quick question. The timeframe was
that around? Was that when Larry was staying with you guys?
Do you know when that time frame?
Speaker 6 (26:23):
Okay, yes, that was when, because it was a big deal,
because I really I just remember it being dramatic and
drawn out, and that's why, like nobody wanted him there.
So I remember nobody wanting him there and then that happened,
and I remember, just sintly are my parents talking about
it and being aggravated about it. So I will tell
(26:45):
you this too, and it might upset some people. The
way my mother remembers things and the way me and
my sister remember things are totally different, and that might
upset her, but it's the truth. Like I feel like
she sometimes remembers things that she wants to remember because
maybe it's a coping mechanism for her as an adult.
(27:07):
I always I used to be mad, but the way
that she would respond to things, But as I get older,
I'm like, I really truly feel like all the kids
Larry Johnny Warren, Bobby Timmy, my mom, I feel like
they were so neglected and abused as a child and
not taking care of the stories I hear. I think
(27:30):
that they don't even realize that they're doing, like they're
they're telling things that are not like how they should
be told, or like the the real realization of how
they should be told. So there's that. That's I guess
that's why my dad and my dad noticed that too,
And my Dad's like, I don't know if I say
that on camera, and I was like, look, I'm not
trying to make anybody happy. I'm just trying to get
(27:51):
Bethany like I'm trying to paint a picture, because I
feel like like nobody's ever been able to paint a
picture because they've been too scared to paint a picture.
So what I hear is what I'm.
Speaker 1 (28:04):
Going to tell.
Speaker 6 (28:05):
And if I make people mad, I don't care, because
the ultimate goes to find Bethany and to paint what
bethany childhood was like, to paint what her sibling childhood
was like. Because if you know the real Larry, if
you hear all the stories, then you know this man
is guilty.
Speaker 3 (28:20):
And there it is Sarah Lyne through the eyes of
an adult, carried on by the memories of a child.
Speaker 1 (28:26):
Larry Markowski to.
Speaker 3 (28:27):
Her as she remembers the week Bethany disappeared. We'll hear
more from Sarah Lyne as the season continues.
Speaker 1 (28:34):
Anything else you want to touch on that we didn't
touch on or anything.
Speaker 6 (28:38):
No, I just pray that my mom gets on here
and she's honest about her brother. We've had an argument,
We've argued this Bethany needs somebody to speak up for
I was like, you know, we were young. We can
only say so much. But you were an adult, so
you're going to remember. I was like, so you tell
your truth and if anybody's not at you, it doesn't matter.
(28:58):
Like you tell your truth. I was like, but somebody
has to be the advocator for Bethany because she's obviously
not here. I was like, if you upset people, like,
the goal is not to make people happy on this podcast,
it's to find Bethany to get answers. I was like,
I guess everybody thinks, oh, it's just gonna be tr
a man, everybody's gonna hate me. Who cares? Is what
I think? Like, if if justice comes from my cousin Bethany,
(29:23):
then the whole world can hate me. She's had a
terrible life, like she's missed out on so much already.
If we can just bring her closure, or if she
is alive, if we can give her a better life.
I've always thought, man, I hope if she was cannapt,
if she truly was, which I don't think she was.
I think Larry did it. But I was always thought,
(29:46):
maybe a good family cannapp her and got her out
of this. Maybe because if she would have lived in
that life. I don't think she would have lived a
good life with Larry. I think Larry would have made
it hell.
Speaker 3 (29:58):
Sarah Lyne's sister, also interviewed and shared about their uncle Larry.
As Kristin recalls it, Larry was allowed at their home
before March of two thousand and one. In fact, Bethany
would come by when Larry would bring her and the
kids would play together. But after Bethany went missing, it
all changed. Kristen tells us that uncle Larry was only
at their home a few nights, and the way she
(30:20):
recalls it, he came back a few days after that,
and that's when he put things of Bethany's into the
storage shed at their home. And get this, well, let's
have Kristen tell you.
Speaker 8 (30:31):
He had come in, dropped off a couple of his
sayings a few days later in our little storage that
we had, and my mom and then was l down
open the door and let him in if he comes in,
which we were younger, we didn't understand. We just know,
don't let him in.
Speaker 3 (30:48):
Here's what we need to know. What the heck was
Larry putting in that shed? Why did he need to
move it from the van to the shed. He was
going to return to his home in a few days. Anyway,
why was it imperative that he store things away from
his van or away from his home? You know what
were still unclear? Is this whether Larry put the items
(31:10):
in this shed while he was at Lorie's home those
first few nights, or if he did indeed leave for
a few days and return with things to put in
the shed. Does this mean he brought things from home
to store? And why or was it that Kristen doesn't
remember correctly? Was Sarah Lynn right? Was it while he
was there? Either way, we have got to find out
(31:33):
what was in that shed. And here is why whatever
was in his van, from bringing it from his home
or not, was not in his van any longer once
the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation joined the case and came
for his van. And yes, there was blood inside the van.
As you may recall, the van wasn't searched on the
evening of March four, two thousand and one. There was
(31:53):
no probable cause at the time. According to the Legal
Information Institute, a rule was filed on November six, two
thousand and one, and would become effective March thirtieth, two
thousand and two, so a year after Bethany was missing,
it would be mandated, and it's the Tennessee Missing Children Clearinghouse.
It essentially states that any missing child shall be reported
(32:14):
immediately to the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation. According to the
effect date, it may not have been mandated when Bethany
was missing. But get this, the Jackson Police Department did
not call the TBI intentionally. They only knew of Bethany's
disappearance because nine days later, on March thirteenth, when the
Jackson Police Department reached out to the TBI to run
(32:35):
a background check on the individuals connected to Bethany's disappearance,
that the TBI questioned why it was needed. And it's
then that the Jackson PD informs them they have a
missing girl. And that moment is when the TBI begins
their journey into the case. And it's then that Larry's
van was located and searched. Before searching the van, agents
(32:56):
asked Larry if there would be any reason that they
may find Bethany's blood in the van, and he replied, quote, yes,
she sat on a thorn end.
Speaker 1 (33:04):
Quote.
Speaker 3 (33:05):
The next piece of information I am about to share
is infuriating because if the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation had
been notified immediately, I guarantee that nineteen ninety five Astro
van would not have been washed and the interior would
not have been shampooed by the time the TBI arrived. Yes,
Larry had the van interior completely shampooed and clean. The
(33:27):
blood that was recovered, it was just a few spots,
and from all the information that we've been able to gather,
it was on Bethany's pillowcase and a blanket. So this
tells me it's still in evidence. I mean, it has
to be correct. What else was tested on that blanket?
There seems to be inconsistencies.
Speaker 1 (33:45):
About the blood. Was it a few drops? Was it
all over?
Speaker 3 (33:48):
We obviously don't have access to the files as it's
an open case, but we do know the TBI confirmed
to Johnny that yes, there were a few drops of
blood inside the van. This is a good time to
introduce Larry's former best friend, Harold Roberts. Harold Roberts is
getting his own chapter, as he is a key to
piecing together this case. But let's just say Larry and
(34:11):
Harold are far from anything resembling friends these days. Harold
recalls the time when he witnessed Larry ms out a
gas tank in front of him. There I went in
the back of his truck and then toss a red
rope into the woods. He's often wondered if that was
part of something bigger. But here Harold tells Rachel about
what he recalls about the van.
Speaker 4 (34:32):
I was told this by the empty eye in the Arkansas.
Did we ever find Vithiny or her body? We got
enough to put Larry away on what we found in
the van. And they told me what was found in
that vand and they showed pictures to me what was
shut down in that van?
Speaker 1 (34:51):
The law enforcement showed you pictures.
Speaker 4 (34:54):
Yes, you know because I passed the ice to the
lot of Tacher test right. And when I asked did
they sing that I had no part of it?
Speaker 5 (35:04):
That I didn't know.
Speaker 4 (35:06):
So they thought, well, this guy knows Larry better than anybody.
Speaker 1 (35:10):
Maybe when you order used him a little bit, and
they did.
Speaker 8 (35:16):
In the pictures.
Speaker 7 (35:17):
Can you tell me what was seen in the van?
Speaker 1 (35:20):
Yeah?
Speaker 5 (35:21):
Yeah, I tell you exactly what was saying.
Speaker 2 (35:22):
In its.
Speaker 7 (35:40):
Missing in Hushtown. Season two is executive produced in partnership
by Fireeyes Media LLCs Jules Thorpe and Gen Rivera, as
well as mom Cast Productions Rachel Holloway and Heather Northcraft.
The script is written by Jules Thorpe and edited by
Heather Northcraft. Project lead is Rachel Holloway and master editing
and audio production is done by John Rivera. Jules Thorpe
(36:03):
is your host fire Eyes Media.
Speaker 2 (36:11):
My mom has raising voices while raising kids
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