Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:14):
Welcome to Hunting for Answers, a true crime podcast. I'm
your host, Hunter Gilmour. On today's episode, we're diving into
a real mystery, examining the cold case of a seven
year old little girl who went missing while walking to
school with her stepfather back in two thousand and two.
(00:35):
He claims he dropped her off at the school playground
that day, but teachers say she never made it. Over
two decades later, her mother believes her daughter is still
somewhere out there. She remained steady searching for answers over
the years and is hopeful for her safe return. This
(00:58):
is the story of Alexis Patterson.
Speaker 2 (01:07):
To our Missing series now in the disappearance of a
little girl named Alexis Patterson. It was May third, two
thousand and two, when the seven year old walked to
school with her stepfather in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. She never made
it home that day. That was twenty years ago. No
one has seen Alexis since. You may not have heard
of Alexis's disappearance when it happened all those years ago,
(01:30):
and some say it's because of another young girl who
went missing around the same time, more than one thousand
miles away and it is a case you'll know that
gripped the nation. Fourteen year old Elizabeth Smart was kidnapped
in Salt Lake City. Within hours, her photos were everywhere,
plastered on national TV. The FBI joined the search and
(01:51):
offered a two hundred and fifty thousand dollars reward, but
when it came to Alexis's case, things moved much more slowly.
The FBI DA did not get involved until three days
after this little girl vanished. A week after that, a
ten thousand dollars reward was offered. Elizabeth was found nine
months after her abduction. Alexis, two decades later, is still missing.
Speaker 1 (02:16):
Alexis was born April fourth, nineteen ninety four. She is
described as a bright seven year old little girl who
loved school. In fact, her mother, Aona Patterson, says that
she never missed one day, enjoying activities like reading and writing.
She was a very ambitious student. Flashback to May third,
(02:43):
two thousand and two, young Alexis walked less than a
block away from her home to High Mount Elementary with
her stepfather, Laurent Bourgeois, dropping her off at the corner.
He reportedly says he watched her walk up to the
playground before returning home, but teachers say she never showed
(03:04):
up to class as her photo was plastered across the neighborhood.
With hopes of figuring out what happened, police launched their investigation.
Speaker 3 (03:16):
Officers further obtained photographs of the child, along with a
detailed description, clothing worn, and any personal items that she
may have had in her procession at the time she
went missing. This information was immediately broadcast to police units
throughout the city, as well as given to the media
(03:37):
and hopes that it would generate additional tips and leads.
The Milwaukee Police Department continued their investigation and commenced in
an extensive neighborhood canvas that included door to doors, door
to door contacts, searching alleys, checking vacant residents. The search
(03:59):
was eventually expanded to include some geographic good searching, and
if you remember, at one point, the Milwaukee Police Department
relocated its mobile command post to a permanent location within
Washington Park.
Speaker 1 (04:14):
The story takes a turn when some investigators begin to
theorize that Alexis's disappearance might be connected to her stepfather's
skeetchy dealings in the drug world. Bourgeois, a low level
drug dealer with a history, begins to raise eyebrows with
authorities during a polygraph test. Red flags start popping up
(04:40):
when Boujois fails certain elements of the test questions concerning
whether or not he had any knowledge of Alexis's whereabouts. Later,
news surfaces about his involvement in a nineteen ninety four
bank robbery. Alexis's mother believes the focus on his criminal
(05:01):
history back then diverted attention from finding Alexis.
Speaker 4 (05:06):
I don't make anything of that because I took a
lot of tective tests too, But there's no telling what
they asked him. Well, I mean, I don't know. I
don't trust Laura either. I don't trust him. I don't
trust nobody.
Speaker 1 (05:16):
Their union wouldn't last much longer after Alexis's disappearance, and
soon the couple's marriage crumbles in two thousand and five.
In twenty twenty one, Bourgeois would die of an apparent overdose.
Speaker 5 (05:32):
Yeah, Joyce, We've been working for several hours to get
this information confirmed since early this afternoon. That confirmation coming
just within the last forty five minutes from the medical
Examiner's office. Laurent Bourgeois found dead today. According to Milwaukee Police,
Bourgeois was one of two people found dead inside a
home near fiftieth in Clark this afternoon. Officials have not
(05:53):
identified the woman who was also found dead with Bourgeois.
He was the last person, as you mentioned, to see
his stepdaughter at the time, a Lexus Patterson, before she vanished.
Speaker 1 (06:04):
The plot dickens in twenty sixteen, when the unthinkable happens.
Ayana receives a tip from a journalist suggesting a woman
living in Ohio could possibly be Alexis. She was hopeful
she had finally found her daughter after fourteen painful years.
Speaker 6 (06:23):
Saturday, that woman told me, in no uncertain terms, she
is not Alexis Patterson. This morning I learned from police
in Ohio that woman has produced a passport of visa
and court documents that all establish her identity as not
Alexis Patterson. Everybody though still waiting on DNA test results
to see if those documents, along with this woman's story
(06:43):
hold up.
Speaker 4 (06:44):
Today I got the results on the media. I didn't
get a call to after they released it on the media,
stating that Lisa is not Alexis. I don't believe that,
and The reason why is because I just gave the
(07:04):
MPD my DNA yesterday, okay, and they told me the lieutenant.
I talked to the lieutenant today. He told me that
they matched Lisa's DNA with the DNA that they got
fourteen years ago of Alexis's. Well, first of all, who
gave you the DNA fourteen years ago? You never received
(07:26):
the DNA from me? What DNA did you use from
a toothbrush? Nine nine nine nine nine. Give me the
real DNA. Use my DNA. Put my DNA to Elisa's
DNA and take it from there. And if the test
come back stating that she's not mine, then that's when
(07:47):
I will accept it. But right now I'm not accepting
it because she's too much like me. How does she
have the same mode right here that I have, that
my daughters have and her granddaughter and her daughter have.
She has the same birthmark as Alexis had when Alexis
was firstborn. She has the same mark in her eye,
the right eye well my daughter had. Okay, She has
(08:10):
the same bump, and she has the same mold on
her nose right here too.
Speaker 1 (08:13):
We're too much alike, But this not to.
Speaker 4 (08:15):
Be my child. I worry about my daughter every day.
I've been worried by my baby for fourteen years, you understand.
And then now that I finally got a nice I
feel like a solid clue. You know what I'm saying,
the solid lead. Y'all gonna tell me that it's not her.
Speaker 1 (08:34):
Sadly, the tip doesn't yield the results Ayana hoped it would,
but six years later she was still convinced that she
had in fact found her daughter. In twenty sixteen, however,
she claims the police are covering it up.
Speaker 7 (08:50):
Leanna, adding the Milwaukee Police Department never did their own
DNA testing. However, News Nation received an email from the
department saying they didn't do a test that did not
connect the two women.
Speaker 4 (09:03):
This has been done purposely. They're going out that way
not to connect me and my daughter DNA because there
are higher people involved, high people, more higher up. So
when it comes to little bitty Alexis, little black, little girl,
she don't matter. She does not matter. She never did.
Speaker 1 (09:26):
Nearly twenty two years later, and no one has been
arrested or charged in the disappearance of Alexis Patterson, authorities
released age progression photos of Alexis over the years with
hopes of receiving new leads, and according to the Milwaukee
Police Department, they're still dedicated to the case of Alexis
(09:48):
Patterson and continue to request the public's assistance. You don't
know that this is a homicide. We don't even know
if she's deceased.
Speaker 3 (09:56):
There is a chance she's out there and just needs
to be found and brought home.
Speaker 4 (10:00):
The time, I just wanted my baby, and now I
just want my baby.
Speaker 1 (10:05):
My heart goes out to the family and friends of
Alexis Patterson, especially her mother. You know, it's cases like
these that really drive home the reason why I do this.
Mainstream media falls short repeatedly, and when they don't, it's
oftentimes too late, and clearly we can see the impact
(10:26):
that this has in our communities time and time again.
Please let these stories serve as a reminder of the
importance of empathy and awareness. And if you want to
catch up with more cold cases like Alexis's, tune into
Hunting for Answers, a true crime podcast. Join us in
(10:47):
the ongoing conversations. So share your thoughts in the comments
and let's amplify these stories. Thank you so much for
joining us and hunting for Answers, a true crime podcast
until next time.