September 29, 2025 • 44 mins
In the season 7 premiere, Josh goes over a long list of significant new evidence, answers a few big questions, and asks plenty more new questions. A picture of a woman found in Keyes's car paints a very clear picture of some of his activity. New maps, journals, writings, and more set the stage for an eye-opening season.
This episode was written, researched, edited, and produced by Josh Hallmark.
Additional research by: Shana Wilensky, Michelle Tooker, and Jordan Taylor.
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This episode was written, researched, edited, and produced by Josh Hallmark.
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This is a Studio BOTH/AND production:
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Consider supporting Studio both And on Patreon. Patrons have access
to ad free and early episodes, bonus content, file access,
event discounts, and more, and all Patreon support goes directly
into our investigations. To support the show, go to Patreon
dot com slash studio both and. This is a Studio
(00:31):
both And production. This past spring marked nine years that
I've been working on this podcast, nine years that Israel
(00:54):
Keys has been living rent free in my head, nine
years of living inside Keys's life posthumously. So when we
received over one thousand new documents directly linked to his case,
I found myself completely dumbfounded when one of the first
(01:15):
images I clicked on was of Israel Keys's dead body
laying face down in his prison cell bed. This is
true crime bullshit. The Serialized Investigation into Israel Keys Season seven,
(01:39):
Episode one, The Death and Life of Israel Keys. Obviously,
Keys has been very much dead throughout the making of
this podcast and my awareness of an investigation into him
and his crimes. But he's also been very much alive
(02:01):
in all the work we've done, the conversations we've had,
the time we've devoted to his case. He's been a
ghost living in the walls of my home and office,
sitting next to me on long flights to Anchorage, Seattle,
Los Angeles, and so on. He's been as much alive
to me as he has been dead, So seeing his
(02:23):
lifeless body was incredibly sobering. In one second, he went
from this powerful, omnipressent presence to just dead. I don't
know that I can properly articulate how impactful that was,
but much like his confession of killing the couriers, it's
(02:43):
slightly something that will stick with me for the rest
of my life, and as impactful as it was, I
eventually had to just keep clicking, clicking on more images.
Photos of a cell, photos full of blood, more photos
of Keys's body, photos of his other bloody finger painting,
(03:06):
photos of his keepsakes, and photos of photos he'd thrown away.
The whole experience very much reframed a lot of what
I thought or felt about Israel Keys. Simultaneously, these files
gave us so much new information about Keys, information with
(03:27):
very significant investigative value. Chief amongst those new files were
the investigation into Keysa's death by suicide and Keys's arrest
and post arrest files, photos and videos in this episode,
I'll be detailing the contents of Keys's arrest and post
(03:48):
arrest reports, which are significant, But I want to start
with one of the last notations in that post arrest report,
which was a report created by the FBI and submitted
to the arresting officers with the Texas Rangers. That notation
(04:08):
reads Detective Bell stated Keyes was a serial killer responsible
for the murder of at least eleven people in multiple
states over a fourteen year period. This report is dated
July twenty five, twenty thirteen, eight months after Keys died
(04:33):
by suicide, and it's in stark contrast to what Agent
Holli stated in our discussions last year. Hulle told me
that the FBI believed that Keys had likely only killed
eleven people in the US, and that they believed his
first murder was in two thousand and one, eleven years
before his arrest. But according to Bell, at the close
(04:57):
of their investigation into Keys, key US first murder would
have been in nineteen ninety eight and not two thousand
and one, and they believed Keys killed at least eleven
people rather than at most. In this file, there are
(05:22):
two arrest videos and more than two hundred and forty
photos taken at the scene of his arrest and in
the following hours. The majority of these are items sees
from his rental car. Now, obviously we've gone over the
FBI's list of these items several times now, so I'm
not going to relist those items. But what I am
(05:43):
going to do is go over items that never appeared
on that list and provide some much needed context or
follow up to certain items included on that list. The
first few items are, in my opinion as of now,
least consequence, an empty diet doctor pepperbottle found in the
(06:04):
back of his trunk. An Avis map of the Las
Vegas metro area and most of the United States West Coast.
A collection of DVDs including the following horror films, The Strangers, Cloverfield, Teresta, Slither,
cry Wolf, The Return Queen of the Damned, Gothica, DreamCatcher,
(06:26):
ghost Ship, Wrong Turn One, two and three, and Altered.
And then there was a copy of the book Bones
by Jonathan Kellerman. And this book has made me reevaluate
my harsh stance on our good friend Dean Coont's because
it is absolutely the most boring book I have ever
(06:49):
tried to read I'd rather read chaotic nonsense than absolute
lifeless tedium. In fact, I only made it to page
twenty four before passing it off to our beleaguered intern
to read. They spent about a day highlighting areas of interest,
and ultimately only one thing stood out, a reference to
(07:11):
a location in Los Angeles, which we'll dive into shortly.
Next up are some things that at first didn't seem
all that important, but with greater context, could prove incredibly
helpful in understanding what Keys was doing looking for, and
perhaps a better understanding of how to identify his other crimes.
(07:34):
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The photos of items seized from Keysa's rental car also
(09:46):
included a drill, his police scanner, twelve different memory cards
for a digital camera. Other than photos of a trip
to the zoo and from Keys's sister's wedding, It's unclear
what else was on these memory cards. An active SI belt,
which Google tells me is a supportive brace worn around
(10:08):
the pelvis to alleviate sacroiliac joint pain by providing comprehensive
support and stability to the pelvic girdle. The clothing Keys
wore during his cross country atm withdrawals, which it turns out,
are the same clothes he wore during the Azal Bank
robbery during his trip to Texas a month prior, and
(10:29):
those included specifically de Marini batting gloves, a hoodie, Winchester
amber shooting classes, a cut off shirt sleeve used as
a mask, and a ski mask and all of these
will become more relevant as we make our way through
the season. And then there was Sarah's journal.
Speaker 2 (10:54):
Why aren't your own kid him? From what I.
Speaker 3 (10:59):
Understand talking to folks that's talk to her, she's pretty sure. Yeah,
and she goes to public school.
Speaker 4 (11:07):
Yep?
Speaker 2 (11:08):
What grade did you say she was in? Forty?
Speaker 3 (11:13):
Does she write journals cause she wants to or is
that something that she does in her on her own?
Speaker 2 (11:20):
Is that a part of a school or something?
Speaker 4 (11:23):
Not?
Speaker 2 (11:23):
Really, she just does it cause she just enjoys it.
Speaker 5 (11:29):
Yeah, she you know, needs a little coaxing though.
Speaker 2 (11:35):
You you encourage her to write in the journal.
Speaker 5 (11:37):
I yeah, Uh, her teacher is too.
Speaker 2 (11:42):
What's your teacher think about her.
Speaker 5 (11:46):
Teacher's pet?
Speaker 2 (11:47):
Oh?
Speaker 4 (11:47):
Really?
Speaker 2 (11:48):
Yeah? What she wanna do?
Speaker 5 (11:50):
Hm?
Speaker 2 (11:50):
What does she wanna do when she could sell to school?
Speaker 5 (11:53):
I don't know if she thinks out for her.
Speaker 2 (11:57):
When a lot of girls wanna be nurses and teachers.
Speaker 5 (12:00):
And yeah, uh, she talks about a lot of different stuff.
Speaker 2 (12:07):
But yeah, she did. Does she like living in Alaska?
Speaker 5 (12:13):
Yeah?
Speaker 2 (12:17):
I know she likes animals.
Speaker 5 (12:20):
Uh.
Speaker 3 (12:24):
You know, we've we've talked to I I haven't personally
talked to 'em. I mean I they've shared with me. Uh,
other investigators have about her journals and her poems that
she puts in her journals and things like that.
Speaker 6 (12:38):
Uh.
Speaker 3 (12:38):
I did bring a part of her journal I wanted
you to look at if you wouldn't mind, it's something
she wrote in.
Speaker 2 (12:43):
Her journals or third too, you took her journey from that.
Speaker 3 (12:48):
Now we got a social one on the car, and
there was a journal in the car. This ain't got
nothing to do with the crime that you're accused of.
It's just something that I want you to see. I
(13:08):
don't know if you've ever seen this, but I thought
you might enjoy it. Can you read that?
Speaker 7 (13:16):
You, ma'am?
Speaker 3 (13:17):
You can't just a kid can't have a day like
it anywhere except Alaska. They don't have news that runs
around and tastes that's also brought you something that you're
welcome to keep. You can have both of them if
you want 'em, if.
Speaker 2 (13:40):
They'll let you have, if not, it will put 'em
in your property either way.
Speaker 1 (13:52):
I need to be clear that Sarah's journal does not
provide any shut and closed evidence. What it does provide, though,
our clues about her relationship with her father and time
she spent with and away from him. As an example,
on Monday, October seventeenth of two thousand eleven, she wrote
(14:14):
about how great her previous weekend had been. That she
and her father spent Friday working together on a house.
On Saturday, they cleaned her bedroom together, and on Sunday
she spent the day at someone's house that she had
only met once before. It's unclear if Keys was wither
or not, but that night she wrote that she and
(14:35):
her dad ate pizza and watched football together. And this
seemingly innocuous entry adds three days to our calendar where
Keys was previously unaccounted for October fourteenth, fifteenth, and sixteenth
of two thousand eleven, and those three days happened to
narrow the scope on when he was in the Northeast
(14:56):
that month while working on the sugar shack in Maine.
That something will EXI floor more deeply later this season.
Along with other entries in Sarah's journal, The final five
items to discuss were critical items that gave us new
information about previous information. Items that gave us clear insight
(15:18):
into Keysas plans for that March twenty twelve trip and
where he'd likely been prior, and new maps that would
both reaffirm old ideas and theories and provide new information
about Kesas travels. First were a pair of sweatpants with
what appears to be bloodstains running down the right leg.
(15:38):
Next was the actual printed receipt from Keys's February seventeenth,
twenty twelve trip to the Walmart in Jacksonville, Texas, a
Walmart I visited over the spring while in Texas and Louisiana.
This is the trip where Keys purchased a folding shovel,
air freshener and loube while on his way from Dallas
to the Houston Airport. This was just two days after
(16:00):
n Jimmy Tidwell was last seen and one day following
the Azal robbery and Alito Arson. You'll recall that not
only was Sarah with him at the time of the transaction,
but actually in the store and seen on surveillance. And
immediately after this purchase, Keyes used five hundred dollars in
cash to buy a Walmart prepaid card. As you may
(16:21):
also remember, this Walmart is just a forty five minute
drive from where Jimmy Tidwell's truck was recovered days later.
The new files also included photos of these items, which
were recovered from Keysa's rental car, and those photos confirmed
that the lube was not personal lube. It was super
(16:42):
Tech lubricant, which I'm told as similar to w D forty.
The third item was a photo of the two porn
DVDs found in the rental car, Full Service Transsexuals Volume
two and Combat Zone. We've known about these DVDs since
my initial rest the FBI foya. However, another item found
(17:03):
in Keys's backpack provided some additional context to those DVDs.
Folded up in that same DVD travel case was a
photo of a woman. The FBI files mentioned this but
didn't provide some very critical information, and for the longest
time we just assumed it was a photo of Tammy.
(17:25):
The FBI file said wallet photo of black woman, handwriting
on the back. However, these new files included a copy
of that photo as well as new information about it.
The photo is actually a printed out picture which Keys
had downloaded from an email. The black woman in it
(17:47):
is in lingerie, leaning over a desk. She's clearly in
her twenties, and according to the attached report, she's a
trans woman and on the back of that print out,
Keys had written three numbers.
Speaker 2 (18:05):
On the one of h on on the prostitutes, on
prostitution you have? Was there a preference on gender always?
Or there?
Speaker 5 (18:14):
Did you have?
Speaker 2 (18:15):
Did you see male prostitutes?
Speaker 4 (18:17):
No?
Speaker 5 (18:17):
I well no.
Speaker 2 (18:20):
Kind of male prostitutes.
Speaker 5 (18:24):
We're gonna say, you get really fuzzy, goin.
Speaker 2 (18:28):
I forgot how semitic you could be half male?
Speaker 5 (18:35):
That's one way to say it.
Speaker 2 (18:45):
Are you thinking or are you just oh, you're.
Speaker 8 (18:49):
That No?
Speaker 5 (18:53):
For the most part, is female prostitute.
Speaker 2 (19:04):
Sounds like a guest to me? The most part?
Speaker 9 (19:08):
Yeah, Well, I'm sure you guys found my corner collections,
so you know, I have a wide range of tastes
and it just varies. Okay, It's that's the way I am.
When I go like a year obsessed with one thing
and then completely drop it, and then the next year
(19:29):
it's something else, and.
Speaker 4 (19:32):
The prostitution thing played that same played along that same thing.
Speaker 5 (19:36):
Yeah, I mean, yeah, visiting prostitutes.
Speaker 4 (19:41):
Is that something that you've continued to do over the years,
including an anchorage.
Speaker 5 (19:46):
Yeah, I mean I've I've done it over the years.
Do you usually means something I do all the time? Okay?
Speaker 4 (19:54):
Is it something that when you Is it something that
you use the Internet for? Is it something are you
do you go out to the street. I know there's
not a lot of street walkers anymore, at least up
here there are thanks to ye, thanks listing, back Page
and a few others.
Speaker 2 (20:10):
But is internet the way that you would usually find them?
Speaker 5 (20:14):
Or how would you?
Speaker 10 (20:16):
No?
Speaker 5 (20:17):
That was I mean, really, I've only.
Speaker 2 (20:21):
Used computers for.
Speaker 5 (20:23):
The last few years.
Speaker 9 (20:27):
I was always seems like every time these computers that
get busted so by somebody who wasn't supposed to see
it for it that way.
Speaker 2 (20:41):
I didn't figure out how to clear your history.
Speaker 9 (20:44):
Well, I got better at it, but I was still
paranored about it because it seems like damn thing will
always pop up an opportunity.
Speaker 2 (20:52):
Could Kimberly ever see that stuff? Oh yeah, she's stiff.
Speaker 9 (20:56):
Yeah, we were together for a long time, so she
saw maybe my share of mistakes.
Speaker 2 (21:06):
Which websites did you use the most?
Speaker 5 (21:09):
You mentioned Craigslist, that's the most popular.
Speaker 9 (21:11):
I think, Yeah, I would use I would use the
Internet or phone books to get lists of phone numbers,
and I would rate the phone numbers, and then I
(21:32):
would just you know, when I got to whatever area
that I was gonna do it, then I'd just called
down the list of numbers until I got a hit
on one.
Speaker 2 (21:41):
How would you rate it? What was the I would
read it just based on.
Speaker 9 (21:52):
The vibe I got off of the ad or the
description online, and then you know, usually about twenty five
percent of the numbers work, so i'd right now you
know a lot of different numbers.
Speaker 4 (22:06):
So would you actually call and talk to somebody and
see what they had to say and that would be
part of the rating too.
Speaker 7 (22:12):
Yeah, okay, yeah, so with that in mind, the rating thing,
tell me if that's what this is?
Speaker 2 (22:25):
Did you figured it out? That lot familiar?
Speaker 5 (22:32):
Yeah?
Speaker 2 (22:32):
Is that what that is? The one, two, three rating system?
Speaker 4 (22:36):
Cause we know that those are numbers and we know
what those are numbers too. But okay, that makes sense
what you're talking about with a rating system. Now, did
you call any of these No?
Speaker 2 (22:46):
I don't think so, cause this was from your trip. Well,
it was in the car.
Speaker 4 (22:54):
It was in the car, so it was on that
when you're when you.
Speaker 9 (22:56):
Were right, That wasn't a for sure thing.
Speaker 2 (22:58):
That was just one of those things.
Speaker 9 (23:03):
If I had had the opportunity to go up there,
I would have gone.
Speaker 2 (23:05):
It's not like I was gonna go for sure.
Speaker 1 (23:10):
Luckily for us, those numbers weren't redacted in the files.
I tried calling and got disconnected or wrong numbers. But
what we did have were area codes, and these numbers
were for phone numbers in central Tennessee, including Nashville and
(23:31):
areas just north of Route four twelve, Northern Louisiana including
Shreveport and Houston, Texas. As Keyes mentioned, each of these
phone numbers included a rating. Central Tennessee was rated eleven,
Northern Louisiana was rated three, and Houston was rated two.
(23:55):
And the thing is, all three of these areas are
quite telling based on what we know about keys and
some of the research and theories we've developed over time.
To start, based on the three name is forty five
cases along Route four twelve in Tennessee, Holly Bobo, Amber Kates,
(24:15):
and Bethany Markowski, We've long suspected that Keyes was active
in that area, and we can place keys in Louisiana
at least three different times between two thousand and eight
and twenty twelve, and we now know he not only
staked out southern Louisiana quite methodically but he also hit
at least one cash there. Northern Louisiana and Shreveport in
(24:39):
particular are directly in route from Dallas and Lufkin to
central Tennessee. We've gathered several tips placing Keys in southern
Missouri and western Arkansas between two thousand and six and
two thousand and eight, and we'll get into this later
this season. And most compelling is that Keys seem to
be looking for a black trans woman specifically at that time,
(25:03):
and we know that based on the name is forty five,
Keys had photos of the Live Oak Dough on his computer.
The Live Oak Dough was a black trans woman found
on Live Oak Street in Houston, Texas in nineteen eighty six.
Clearly Keys was not responsible for her death. He was
(25:23):
eight at the time of her recovery. But it seems
very likely that Keyes was searching for dead black trans
women in Houston, Texas while he was in Texas with
a list of black trans escorts with him. Now I
know we don't necessarily have to parse any of Keyes's statements.
(25:46):
He's careful with his words and constantly tries to misdirect
through semantics. But we do not know for sure that
Keys didn't have this list on his previous trip to Texas.
There were other items found on him from that trip,
including the Jacksonville Walmart receipt, cash from the Azel Bank robbery,
and so on. Second to that, if Keys was merely
(26:08):
looking to have sex with an escort and not actually
kill someone, why would he need to drive upwards of
three hours to Shreveport or further to Nashville when Dallas
and Houston are much larger cities with presumably many more
sex workers. The final item of significance to us was
(26:44):
a second map.
Speaker 5 (26:48):
Computer any x's on him anywhere.
Speaker 11 (26:54):
Highlight the only map you found that had highlight on.
Speaker 2 (27:03):
I didn't believe highlights.
Speaker 5 (27:05):
Who didn't highlight on on?
Speaker 2 (27:07):
I don't know what about the map that when you
think there was one in the car.
Speaker 12 (27:13):
I think it was highlighted when I was arrested. Yeah, yeah,
but I didn't do the highlighting on. I know that's
what they were.
Speaker 4 (27:26):
Well, it was the interstate that was highlighted, and you
don't seem to really be an interstate.
Speaker 5 (27:30):
Kind of person.
Speaker 2 (27:32):
No, that's just.
Speaker 1 (27:36):
In Keys's rental car. Texas rangers and the FBI found
a folded up triple A Western States and Provinces map.
One side featured California, Utah, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico, and
part of Colorado. The other side featured Washington, Oregon, Idaho,
and parts of Montana, Wyoming, British Columbia, and albert And
(28:01):
this fairly well worn map was marked specifically. There were
roots and different cities and locations highlighted in pink and yellow. Now,
according to Keys in that audio you just heard, he
isn't the one who marked up this map. According to Keys,
the highlighting was there when he found it. However, there
(28:23):
are a few links to Keys that may escape even
the keenest of eyes. For example, one route that's highlighted
is from Port Angelus to Los Angeles, a route we
know that Keys had driven. Another highlighted route is Salt
Lake City to Rock Springs, Wyoming, another route we know
(28:43):
that Keys had driven. Now, before we get into what
else was highlighted, it's worth noting that, in addition to
the highlights added to it, the map was manufactured with
certain areas highlighted in orange, yellow, and green, generally urban areas,
forested areas, and in some cases it was nearly impossible
(29:05):
to determine whether some of those highlights were original to
the map or added, but the pink highlights were clear.
On the Washington state side, Interstate five was highlighted from
Port Angelis to Redding, California, and on the reverse side,
Interstate five was highlighted from Redding, California to Inglewood, California,
(29:29):
which is just outside of LA. There was one other
section where it was clear that highlights had been added
Utah and Wyoming. Someone highlighted from the Salt Lake City
Airport through Green River to Rock Springs, Wyoming, and then curiously,
(29:50):
just south of Rock Springs, that person highlighted the Flaming
Gorge Reservoir. It's a reservoir we've mentioned before that spans
from Green lad Hiver, Wyoming south into Utah. It's the
location we've long agreed is the most likely site of
the Green River Cache. It's also where a motel worker
(30:11):
told me that she saw the FBI searching back in
twenty twelve or twenty thirteen, and there it was highlighted
on a map found in Israel Kisa's rental car. As
(30:31):
for the remaining highlights on the map, the researchers and
I were stumped so I started mining the internet trying
to find this specific edition of this specific Triple A map,
and after a few weeks it arrived in my office.
(30:52):
In addition to the Port Angelist to Inglewood and the
Salt Lake City to Rock Springs highlights were the following,
which had been added after the map was purchased. Port Angelus, Washington, Eugene, Oregon, Medford, Oregon,
and Los Angeles, California. Riverside, California and Las Vegas, Nevada
(31:13):
are two ambiguous spots where the highlighting on Keys's map
appears to be larger and more differently shaped than the
highlighting on the original, but it's unclear if those were
added or not, And much like Flaming Gorge, all four
of these highlighted areas have come up in our investigation
into Keys. Keys obviously spent a lot of time in
(31:37):
Port Angelus and buried at least one cash there, although
Haulla believes there are likely two caches in Port Angelis. Eugene,
Oregon is where Wendy de Hoop was last seen. However,
Halla believes it would be very challenging but not impossible,
for Keys to have been involved in Wendy's disappearance. Eugene
(31:58):
is also the last known location of Kevin Scott Nordquist,
who disappeared just twelve hours after Keys checked out of
a motel two hours away in Gresham, Oregon. Medford, Oregon
is just fourteen miles from where Celia Darlene Barnes disappeared
while hiking on September one of two thousand and two,
a date Keys cannot be accounted for. Los Angeles is
(32:21):
a place Keys traveled at least six different times between
two thousand and twenty twelve. It also comes up in
that terribly boring book Bones where they discuss the best
place to bury someone in urban la More on that later.
And nearby in Riverside County we have the Lake Paris
(32:42):
and potential cash siding the disappearance of Donald Tobin, and
the name is forty five missing person, Christine Nicole Hamilton.
Now there is one caveat, and it's a big one.
There is, of course, the possibility that Kim highlighted this map.
She did, after all, work in Rock Springs on occasion,
(33:06):
but for all of Kim's travels, we have no record
of her ever going to Medford, Eugene or taking road
trips from Port Angelus to La or vice versa. Also,
why would Kim highlight Flaming Gorge reservoir? And why would
Keys be so cagy about just saying that he found
it somewhere rather than Kim loaned it to him. In
(33:31):
addition to the map, there were other little tidbits of
new information, some that confirmed tips we've received over time,
others that answered small and maybe inconsequential questions we've had
over the years, and some that expanded research avenues we've
already gone long down. For example, we can now confirm
(33:55):
the tip that Keys trained at the Fort Hood and
Fort Irwin military base is in Colleen, Texas and Barstow, California, respectively.
Speaker 11 (34:04):
What year did you go in the army? Either ninety
nine or two thousand? I don't remember ninety.
Speaker 2 (34:14):
Ninety nine or ninety eight? How did it happen?
Speaker 5 (34:19):
How did go on the army?
Speaker 11 (34:21):
I got tired of living on the farm.
Speaker 2 (34:25):
Well, I mean, did you see a commercial on TV
or no?
Speaker 5 (34:28):
I'd always wanted to go on the army.
Speaker 2 (34:30):
What was what attracted you to the army?
Speaker 11 (34:33):
I'd read World War two books from the time Mike
read and thought it was all so great and wanted
to go on.
Speaker 2 (34:44):
How long did you serve?
Speaker 5 (34:46):
Just three years?
Speaker 2 (34:47):
Three Where bouts did you serve?
Speaker 11 (34:54):
Stationed in Fort Lewis, Washington. I did training missions down.
Speaker 2 (34:59):
Here in for and.
Speaker 5 (35:03):
For Erwin in California, six months in Ages. That was
pretty much it.
Speaker 1 (35:20):
We also found that Keyes told the FBI that he
used the screen name is It to not only argue
politics with people online, but to comment on disappearances that
he was responsible for comments we've yet to find yet,
(35:41):
And confirmation that Sarah was asleep in the backseat of
his rental car when Keys used Samantha's ATM card while
en route from Vegas to Texas and during other criminal
activity on that same trip. After hours of poring over
(36:12):
the Keys post arrest files, I went back to the
death investigation files, a long report and interviews detailing exactly
how Keys died and how exactly it was able to happen.
I flipped through photos his head, his hands covered in blood, karakol,
(36:34):
other writings I'd never seen or heard of before, his
cell and final moments. From all angles, I learned about
his time in prison, how he spent his days leading
up to his death, what he had access to what
he didn't and all this new information, the things we've
(36:55):
barely skimmed over today, things Haulla told me that we
haven't released yet, things I learned on my trips to
Texas and Louisiana had all started to come together in
a single frame, the death and life of Israel Keys.
Over the next few months, I'd talked to new witnesses,
(37:18):
old friends of Keys, cops, other investigators, former FBI agents,
and sources close to the Keys family. I'd receive and
go through thousands of pages of missing persons files, and
I'd spend hours with the team with somewhere in the Pines,
going over everything. And by late summer, the life and
(37:43):
death of Israel Keys was more visible and made more
sense than ever before, and it was clear that no
matter how long nor how dead he was, he will
always be just outside at the door.
Speaker 13 (38:33):
Please excuse me what I got too, OTSK. I only
be nice because you want some.
Speaker 6 (38:46):
S my fair tail up said, because all your response.
Speaker 4 (39:02):
And this.
Speaker 10 (39:05):
I never gave you the coachment.
Speaker 8 (39:12):
And you chart erase my child, Arizon, mo you.
Speaker 1 (39:53):
This episode was written, research, edited, and produced by me
Josh Hallmark, with additional research by Jordan Taylor, she Na Wilensky,
and Michelle Tooker. This episode was made possible by the
following Patreon producers, Amy Basel, Kendall, C, Heather Horton, Wheedon,
Sherry d Dale Axton, Stephanie Taylor, Lydia Rodarte, Quayle, Shelley, Drew, Iapond,
Amelia Hancock, Christina Sisson, Nicole and Dennis Henry, Gillian, Natalelna Holiday,
(40:17):
Tuesday Woodworth, zach Ignattowitz, Warren, Kathleen Stuter, Annette l Casey, Jensen, Richardson,
sc Benjamin Choppafong, Trista, Nicole, Ashfish, Becky C. Pink, Jen
j Cory Deatlee, Robin, Carol, Lisa, Jordan, M Kate Lusier,
John Comery, Kathy Nation, Carry, Jordan t Bethany Heinz, Lauren Faery,
Emily Payne, Tory Meyers, Sabrina Abbott, Megan Inman, Ashley Cupin,
(40:40):
Michael Randall and Dewayne C. Thank you to True Crime
Bullshit's newest Patreon supporters David B, Suzanne C, Chris Ashley, K,
Vicky v Billy, j Evan A Colin, A, Karen O,
Helen R. Melissa m claire S. Sarah P, Kristin G,
Carla L, Jared W, Amanda B D B. Margaret S, Brie,
Charles v W, M, Jill R, Laura W, Genie M,
(41:03):
Rachel s Rihanna, Lori and Daughter of d Lo's. To
support the investigation, go to patreon dot com slash Studio
both and. This episode included music by Howling at the Moon, Odyssey,
Lee Roosevir, Josek, Sergei Cherimisanov Don of a New era
of life in the Day, and Radical Face with featured
(41:25):
music by Tom York.
Speaker 10 (42:04):
Your Chartragement more oh more, lottle more more, charge, rage more, snow,
(42:33):
your stop, notta stop about stas not.
Speaker 7 (43:37):
Not not not not
Speaker 6 (43:53):
Not That's nothing,
Consider supporting Studio both And on Patreon. Patrons have access
to ad free and early episodes, bonus content, file access,
event discounts, and more, and all Patreon support goes directly
into our investigations. To support the show, go to Patreon
dot com slash studio both and. This is a Studio
(00:31):
both And production. This past spring marked nine years that
I've been working on this podcast, nine years that Israel
(00:54):
Keys has been living rent free in my head, nine
years of living inside Keys's life posthumously. So when we
received over one thousand new documents directly linked to his case,
I found myself completely dumbfounded when one of the first
(01:15):
images I clicked on was of Israel Keys's dead body
laying face down in his prison cell bed. This is
true crime bullshit. The Serialized Investigation into Israel Keys Season seven,
(01:39):
Episode one, The Death and Life of Israel Keys. Obviously,
Keys has been very much dead throughout the making of
this podcast and my awareness of an investigation into him
and his crimes. But he's also been very much alive
(02:01):
in all the work we've done, the conversations we've had,
the time we've devoted to his case. He's been a
ghost living in the walls of my home and office,
sitting next to me on long flights to Anchorage, Seattle,
Los Angeles, and so on. He's been as much alive
to me as he has been dead, So seeing his
(02:23):
lifeless body was incredibly sobering. In one second, he went
from this powerful, omnipressent presence to just dead. I don't
know that I can properly articulate how impactful that was,
but much like his confession of killing the couriers, it's
(02:43):
slightly something that will stick with me for the rest
of my life, and as impactful as it was, I
eventually had to just keep clicking, clicking on more images.
Photos of a cell, photos full of blood, more photos
of Keys's body, photos of his other bloody finger painting,
(03:06):
photos of his keepsakes, and photos of photos he'd thrown away.
The whole experience very much reframed a lot of what
I thought or felt about Israel Keys. Simultaneously, these files
gave us so much new information about Keys, information with
(03:27):
very significant investigative value. Chief amongst those new files were
the investigation into Keysa's death by suicide and Keys's arrest
and post arrest files, photos and videos in this episode,
I'll be detailing the contents of Keys's arrest and post
(03:48):
arrest reports, which are significant, But I want to start
with one of the last notations in that post arrest report,
which was a report created by the FBI and submitted
to the arresting officers with the Texas Rangers. That notation
(04:08):
reads Detective Bell stated Keyes was a serial killer responsible
for the murder of at least eleven people in multiple
states over a fourteen year period. This report is dated
July twenty five, twenty thirteen, eight months after Keys died
(04:33):
by suicide, and it's in stark contrast to what Agent
Holli stated in our discussions last year. Hulle told me
that the FBI believed that Keys had likely only killed
eleven people in the US, and that they believed his
first murder was in two thousand and one, eleven years
before his arrest. But according to Bell, at the close
(04:57):
of their investigation into Keys, key US first murder would
have been in nineteen ninety eight and not two thousand
and one, and they believed Keys killed at least eleven
people rather than at most. In this file, there are
(05:22):
two arrest videos and more than two hundred and forty
photos taken at the scene of his arrest and in
the following hours. The majority of these are items sees
from his rental car. Now, obviously we've gone over the
FBI's list of these items several times now, so I'm
not going to relist those items. But what I am
(05:43):
going to do is go over items that never appeared
on that list and provide some much needed context or
follow up to certain items included on that list. The
first few items are, in my opinion as of now,
least consequence, an empty diet doctor pepperbottle found in the
(06:04):
back of his trunk. An Avis map of the Las
Vegas metro area and most of the United States West Coast.
A collection of DVDs including the following horror films, The Strangers, Cloverfield, Teresta, Slither,
cry Wolf, The Return Queen of the Damned, Gothica, DreamCatcher,
(06:26):
ghost Ship, Wrong Turn One, two and three, and Altered.
And then there was a copy of the book Bones
by Jonathan Kellerman. And this book has made me reevaluate
my harsh stance on our good friend Dean Coont's because
it is absolutely the most boring book I have ever
(06:49):
tried to read I'd rather read chaotic nonsense than absolute
lifeless tedium. In fact, I only made it to page
twenty four before passing it off to our beleaguered intern
to read. They spent about a day highlighting areas of interest,
and ultimately only one thing stood out, a reference to
(07:11):
a location in Los Angeles, which we'll dive into shortly.
Next up are some things that at first didn't seem
all that important, but with greater context, could prove incredibly
helpful in understanding what Keys was doing looking for, and
perhaps a better understanding of how to identify his other crimes.
(07:34):
But before we get into that, let's hear from our sponsors,
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The photos of items seized from Keysa's rental car also
(09:46):
included a drill, his police scanner, twelve different memory cards
for a digital camera. Other than photos of a trip
to the zoo and from Keys's sister's wedding, It's unclear
what else was on these memory cards. An active SI belt,
which Google tells me is a supportive brace worn around
(10:08):
the pelvis to alleviate sacroiliac joint pain by providing comprehensive
support and stability to the pelvic girdle. The clothing Keys
wore during his cross country atm withdrawals, which it turns out,
are the same clothes he wore during the Azal Bank
robbery during his trip to Texas a month prior, and
(10:29):
those included specifically de Marini batting gloves, a hoodie, Winchester
amber shooting classes, a cut off shirt sleeve used as
a mask, and a ski mask and all of these
will become more relevant as we make our way through
the season. And then there was Sarah's journal.
Speaker 2 (10:54):
Why aren't your own kid him? From what I.
Speaker 3 (10:59):
Understand talking to folks that's talk to her, she's pretty sure. Yeah,
and she goes to public school.
Speaker 4 (11:07):
Yep?
Speaker 2 (11:08):
What grade did you say she was in? Forty?
Speaker 3 (11:13):
Does she write journals cause she wants to or is
that something that she does in her on her own?
Speaker 2 (11:20):
Is that a part of a school or something?
Speaker 4 (11:23):
Not?
Speaker 2 (11:23):
Really, she just does it cause she just enjoys it.
Speaker 5 (11:29):
Yeah, she you know, needs a little coaxing though.
Speaker 2 (11:35):
You you encourage her to write in the journal.
Speaker 5 (11:37):
I yeah, Uh, her teacher is too.
Speaker 2 (11:42):
What's your teacher think about her.
Speaker 5 (11:46):
Teacher's pet?
Speaker 2 (11:47):
Oh?
Speaker 4 (11:47):
Really?
Speaker 2 (11:48):
Yeah? What she wanna do?
Speaker 5 (11:50):
Hm?
Speaker 2 (11:50):
What does she wanna do when she could sell to school?
Speaker 5 (11:53):
I don't know if she thinks out for her.
Speaker 2 (11:57):
When a lot of girls wanna be nurses and teachers.
Speaker 5 (12:00):
And yeah, uh, she talks about a lot of different stuff.
Speaker 2 (12:07):
But yeah, she did. Does she like living in Alaska?
Speaker 5 (12:13):
Yeah?
Speaker 2 (12:17):
I know she likes animals.
Speaker 5 (12:20):
Uh.
Speaker 3 (12:24):
You know, we've we've talked to I I haven't personally
talked to 'em. I mean I they've shared with me. Uh,
other investigators have about her journals and her poems that
she puts in her journals and things like that.
Speaker 6 (12:38):
Uh.
Speaker 3 (12:38):
I did bring a part of her journal I wanted
you to look at if you wouldn't mind, it's something
she wrote in.
Speaker 2 (12:43):
Her journals or third too, you took her journey from that.
Speaker 3 (12:48):
Now we got a social one on the car, and
there was a journal in the car. This ain't got
nothing to do with the crime that you're accused of.
It's just something that I want you to see. I
(13:08):
don't know if you've ever seen this, but I thought
you might enjoy it. Can you read that?
Speaker 7 (13:16):
You, ma'am?
Speaker 3 (13:17):
You can't just a kid can't have a day like
it anywhere except Alaska. They don't have news that runs
around and tastes that's also brought you something that you're
welcome to keep. You can have both of them if
you want 'em, if.
Speaker 2 (13:40):
They'll let you have, if not, it will put 'em
in your property either way.
Speaker 1 (13:52):
I need to be clear that Sarah's journal does not
provide any shut and closed evidence. What it does provide, though,
our clues about her relationship with her father and time
she spent with and away from him. As an example,
on Monday, October seventeenth of two thousand eleven, she wrote
(14:14):
about how great her previous weekend had been. That she
and her father spent Friday working together on a house.
On Saturday, they cleaned her bedroom together, and on Sunday
she spent the day at someone's house that she had
only met once before. It's unclear if Keys was wither
or not, but that night she wrote that she and
(14:35):
her dad ate pizza and watched football together. And this
seemingly innocuous entry adds three days to our calendar where
Keys was previously unaccounted for October fourteenth, fifteenth, and sixteenth
of two thousand eleven, and those three days happened to
narrow the scope on when he was in the Northeast
(14:56):
that month while working on the sugar shack in Maine.
That something will EXI floor more deeply later this season.
Along with other entries in Sarah's journal, The final five
items to discuss were critical items that gave us new
information about previous information. Items that gave us clear insight
(15:18):
into Keysas plans for that March twenty twelve trip and
where he'd likely been prior, and new maps that would
both reaffirm old ideas and theories and provide new information
about Kesas travels. First were a pair of sweatpants with
what appears to be bloodstains running down the right leg.
(15:38):
Next was the actual printed receipt from Keys's February seventeenth,
twenty twelve trip to the Walmart in Jacksonville, Texas, a
Walmart I visited over the spring while in Texas and Louisiana.
This is the trip where Keys purchased a folding shovel,
air freshener and loube while on his way from Dallas
to the Houston Airport. This was just two days after
(16:00):
n Jimmy Tidwell was last seen and one day following
the Azal robbery and Alito Arson. You'll recall that not
only was Sarah with him at the time of the transaction,
but actually in the store and seen on surveillance. And
immediately after this purchase, Keyes used five hundred dollars in
cash to buy a Walmart prepaid card. As you may
(16:21):
also remember, this Walmart is just a forty five minute
drive from where Jimmy Tidwell's truck was recovered days later.
The new files also included photos of these items, which
were recovered from Keysa's rental car, and those photos confirmed
that the lube was not personal lube. It was super
(16:42):
Tech lubricant, which I'm told as similar to w D forty.
The third item was a photo of the two porn
DVDs found in the rental car, Full Service Transsexuals Volume
two and Combat Zone. We've known about these DVDs since
my initial rest the FBI foya. However, another item found
(17:03):
in Keys's backpack provided some additional context to those DVDs.
Folded up in that same DVD travel case was a
photo of a woman. The FBI files mentioned this but
didn't provide some very critical information, and for the longest
time we just assumed it was a photo of Tammy.
(17:25):
The FBI file said wallet photo of black woman, handwriting
on the back. However, these new files included a copy
of that photo as well as new information about it.
The photo is actually a printed out picture which Keys
had downloaded from an email. The black woman in it
(17:47):
is in lingerie, leaning over a desk. She's clearly in
her twenties, and according to the attached report, she's a
trans woman and on the back of that print out,
Keys had written three numbers.
Speaker 2 (18:05):
On the one of h on on the prostitutes, on
prostitution you have? Was there a preference on gender always?
Or there?
Speaker 5 (18:14):
Did you have?
Speaker 2 (18:15):
Did you see male prostitutes?
Speaker 4 (18:17):
No?
Speaker 5 (18:17):
I well no.
Speaker 2 (18:20):
Kind of male prostitutes.
Speaker 5 (18:24):
We're gonna say, you get really fuzzy, goin.
Speaker 2 (18:28):
I forgot how semitic you could be half male?
Speaker 5 (18:35):
That's one way to say it.
Speaker 2 (18:45):
Are you thinking or are you just oh, you're.
Speaker 8 (18:49):
That No?
Speaker 5 (18:53):
For the most part, is female prostitute.
Speaker 2 (19:04):
Sounds like a guest to me? The most part?
Speaker 9 (19:08):
Yeah, Well, I'm sure you guys found my corner collections,
so you know, I have a wide range of tastes
and it just varies. Okay, It's that's the way I am.
When I go like a year obsessed with one thing
and then completely drop it, and then the next year
(19:29):
it's something else, and.
Speaker 4 (19:32):
The prostitution thing played that same played along that same thing.
Speaker 5 (19:36):
Yeah, I mean, yeah, visiting prostitutes.
Speaker 4 (19:41):
Is that something that you've continued to do over the years,
including an anchorage.
Speaker 5 (19:46):
Yeah, I mean I've I've done it over the years.
Do you usually means something I do all the time? Okay?
Speaker 4 (19:54):
Is it something that when you Is it something that
you use the Internet for? Is it something are you
do you go out to the street. I know there's
not a lot of street walkers anymore, at least up
here there are thanks to ye, thanks listing, back Page
and a few others.
Speaker 2 (20:10):
But is internet the way that you would usually find them?
Speaker 5 (20:14):
Or how would you?
Speaker 10 (20:16):
No?
Speaker 5 (20:17):
That was I mean, really, I've only.
Speaker 2 (20:21):
Used computers for.
Speaker 5 (20:23):
The last few years.
Speaker 9 (20:27):
I was always seems like every time these computers that
get busted so by somebody who wasn't supposed to see
it for it that way.
Speaker 2 (20:41):
I didn't figure out how to clear your history.
Speaker 9 (20:44):
Well, I got better at it, but I was still
paranored about it because it seems like damn thing will
always pop up an opportunity.
Speaker 2 (20:52):
Could Kimberly ever see that stuff? Oh yeah, she's stiff.
Speaker 9 (20:56):
Yeah, we were together for a long time, so she
saw maybe my share of mistakes.
Speaker 2 (21:06):
Which websites did you use the most?
Speaker 5 (21:09):
You mentioned Craigslist, that's the most popular.
Speaker 9 (21:11):
I think, Yeah, I would use I would use the
Internet or phone books to get lists of phone numbers,
and I would rate the phone numbers, and then I
(21:32):
would just you know, when I got to whatever area
that I was gonna do it, then I'd just called
down the list of numbers until I got a hit
on one.
Speaker 2 (21:41):
How would you rate it? What was the I would
read it just based on.
Speaker 9 (21:52):
The vibe I got off of the ad or the
description online, and then you know, usually about twenty five
percent of the numbers work, so i'd right now you
know a lot of different numbers.
Speaker 4 (22:06):
So would you actually call and talk to somebody and
see what they had to say and that would be
part of the rating too.
Speaker 7 (22:12):
Yeah, okay, yeah, so with that in mind, the rating thing,
tell me if that's what this is?
Speaker 2 (22:25):
Did you figured it out? That lot familiar?
Speaker 5 (22:32):
Yeah?
Speaker 2 (22:32):
Is that what that is? The one, two, three rating system?
Speaker 4 (22:36):
Cause we know that those are numbers and we know
what those are numbers too. But okay, that makes sense
what you're talking about with a rating system. Now, did
you call any of these No?
Speaker 2 (22:46):
I don't think so, cause this was from your trip. Well,
it was in the car.
Speaker 4 (22:54):
It was in the car, so it was on that
when you're when you.
Speaker 9 (22:56):
Were right, That wasn't a for sure thing.
Speaker 2 (22:58):
That was just one of those things.
Speaker 9 (23:03):
If I had had the opportunity to go up there,
I would have gone.
Speaker 2 (23:05):
It's not like I was gonna go for sure.
Speaker 1 (23:10):
Luckily for us, those numbers weren't redacted in the files.
I tried calling and got disconnected or wrong numbers. But
what we did have were area codes, and these numbers
were for phone numbers in central Tennessee, including Nashville and
(23:31):
areas just north of Route four twelve, Northern Louisiana including
Shreveport and Houston, Texas. As Keyes mentioned, each of these
phone numbers included a rating. Central Tennessee was rated eleven,
Northern Louisiana was rated three, and Houston was rated two.
(23:55):
And the thing is, all three of these areas are
quite telling based on what we know about keys and
some of the research and theories we've developed over time.
To start, based on the three name is forty five
cases along Route four twelve in Tennessee, Holly Bobo, Amber Kates,
(24:15):
and Bethany Markowski, We've long suspected that Keyes was active
in that area, and we can place keys in Louisiana
at least three different times between two thousand and eight
and twenty twelve, and we now know he not only
staked out southern Louisiana quite methodically but he also hit
at least one cash there. Northern Louisiana and Shreveport in
(24:39):
particular are directly in route from Dallas and Lufkin to
central Tennessee. We've gathered several tips placing Keys in southern
Missouri and western Arkansas between two thousand and six and
two thousand and eight, and we'll get into this later
this season. And most compelling is that Keys seem to
be looking for a black trans woman specifically at that time,
(25:03):
and we know that based on the name is forty five,
Keys had photos of the Live Oak Dough on his computer.
The Live Oak Dough was a black trans woman found
on Live Oak Street in Houston, Texas in nineteen eighty six.
Clearly Keys was not responsible for her death. He was
(25:23):
eight at the time of her recovery. But it seems
very likely that Keyes was searching for dead black trans
women in Houston, Texas while he was in Texas with
a list of black trans escorts with him. Now I
know we don't necessarily have to parse any of Keyes's statements.
(25:46):
He's careful with his words and constantly tries to misdirect
through semantics. But we do not know for sure that
Keys didn't have this list on his previous trip to Texas.
There were other items found on him from that trip,
including the Jacksonville Walmart receipt, cash from the Azel Bank robbery,
and so on. Second to that, if Keys was merely
(26:08):
looking to have sex with an escort and not actually
kill someone, why would he need to drive upwards of
three hours to Shreveport or further to Nashville when Dallas
and Houston are much larger cities with presumably many more
sex workers. The final item of significance to us was
(26:44):
a second map.
Speaker 5 (26:48):
Computer any x's on him anywhere.
Speaker 11 (26:54):
Highlight the only map you found that had highlight on.
Speaker 2 (27:03):
I didn't believe highlights.
Speaker 5 (27:05):
Who didn't highlight on on?
Speaker 2 (27:07):
I don't know what about the map that when you
think there was one in the car.
Speaker 12 (27:13):
I think it was highlighted when I was arrested. Yeah, yeah,
but I didn't do the highlighting on. I know that's
what they were.
Speaker 4 (27:26):
Well, it was the interstate that was highlighted, and you
don't seem to really be an interstate.
Speaker 5 (27:30):
Kind of person.
Speaker 2 (27:32):
No, that's just.
Speaker 1 (27:36):
In Keys's rental car. Texas rangers and the FBI found
a folded up triple A Western States and Provinces map.
One side featured California, Utah, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico, and
part of Colorado. The other side featured Washington, Oregon, Idaho,
and parts of Montana, Wyoming, British Columbia, and albert And
(28:01):
this fairly well worn map was marked specifically. There were
roots and different cities and locations highlighted in pink and yellow. Now,
according to Keys in that audio you just heard, he
isn't the one who marked up this map. According to Keys,
the highlighting was there when he found it. However, there
(28:23):
are a few links to Keys that may escape even
the keenest of eyes. For example, one route that's highlighted
is from Port Angelus to Los Angeles, a route we
know that Keys had driven. Another highlighted route is Salt
Lake City to Rock Springs, Wyoming, another route we know
(28:43):
that Keys had driven. Now, before we get into what
else was highlighted, it's worth noting that, in addition to
the highlights added to it, the map was manufactured with
certain areas highlighted in orange, yellow, and green, generally urban areas,
forested areas, and in some cases it was nearly impossible
(29:05):
to determine whether some of those highlights were original to
the map or added, but the pink highlights were clear.
On the Washington state side, Interstate five was highlighted from
Port Angelis to Redding, California, and on the reverse side,
Interstate five was highlighted from Redding, California to Inglewood, California,
(29:29):
which is just outside of LA. There was one other
section where it was clear that highlights had been added
Utah and Wyoming. Someone highlighted from the Salt Lake City
Airport through Green River to Rock Springs, Wyoming, and then curiously,
(29:50):
just south of Rock Springs, that person highlighted the Flaming
Gorge Reservoir. It's a reservoir we've mentioned before that spans
from Green lad Hiver, Wyoming south into Utah. It's the
location we've long agreed is the most likely site of
the Green River Cache. It's also where a motel worker
(30:11):
told me that she saw the FBI searching back in
twenty twelve or twenty thirteen, and there it was highlighted
on a map found in Israel Kisa's rental car. As
(30:31):
for the remaining highlights on the map, the researchers and
I were stumped so I started mining the internet trying
to find this specific edition of this specific Triple A map,
and after a few weeks it arrived in my office.
(30:52):
In addition to the Port Angelist to Inglewood and the
Salt Lake City to Rock Springs highlights were the following,
which had been added after the map was purchased. Port Angelus, Washington, Eugene, Oregon, Medford, Oregon,
and Los Angeles, California. Riverside, California and Las Vegas, Nevada
(31:13):
are two ambiguous spots where the highlighting on Keys's map
appears to be larger and more differently shaped than the
highlighting on the original, but it's unclear if those were
added or not, And much like Flaming Gorge, all four
of these highlighted areas have come up in our investigation
into Keys. Keys obviously spent a lot of time in
(31:37):
Port Angelus and buried at least one cash there, although
Haulla believes there are likely two caches in Port Angelis. Eugene,
Oregon is where Wendy de Hoop was last seen. However,
Halla believes it would be very challenging but not impossible,
for Keys to have been involved in Wendy's disappearance. Eugene
(31:58):
is also the last known location of Kevin Scott Nordquist,
who disappeared just twelve hours after Keys checked out of
a motel two hours away in Gresham, Oregon. Medford, Oregon
is just fourteen miles from where Celia Darlene Barnes disappeared
while hiking on September one of two thousand and two,
a date Keys cannot be accounted for. Los Angeles is
(32:21):
a place Keys traveled at least six different times between
two thousand and twenty twelve. It also comes up in
that terribly boring book Bones where they discuss the best
place to bury someone in urban la More on that later.
And nearby in Riverside County we have the Lake Paris
(32:42):
and potential cash siding the disappearance of Donald Tobin, and
the name is forty five missing person, Christine Nicole Hamilton.
Now there is one caveat, and it's a big one.
There is, of course, the possibility that Kim highlighted this map.
She did, after all, work in Rock Springs on occasion,
(33:06):
but for all of Kim's travels, we have no record
of her ever going to Medford, Eugene or taking road
trips from Port Angelus to La or vice versa. Also,
why would Kim highlight Flaming Gorge reservoir? And why would
Keys be so cagy about just saying that he found
it somewhere rather than Kim loaned it to him. In
(33:31):
addition to the map, there were other little tidbits of
new information, some that confirmed tips we've received over time,
others that answered small and maybe inconsequential questions we've had
over the years, and some that expanded research avenues we've
already gone long down. For example, we can now confirm
(33:55):
the tip that Keys trained at the Fort Hood and
Fort Irwin military base is in Colleen, Texas and Barstow, California, respectively.
Speaker 11 (34:04):
What year did you go in the army? Either ninety
nine or two thousand? I don't remember ninety.
Speaker 2 (34:14):
Ninety nine or ninety eight? How did it happen?
Speaker 5 (34:19):
How did go on the army?
Speaker 11 (34:21):
I got tired of living on the farm.
Speaker 2 (34:25):
Well, I mean, did you see a commercial on TV
or no?
Speaker 5 (34:28):
I'd always wanted to go on the army.
Speaker 2 (34:30):
What was what attracted you to the army?
Speaker 11 (34:33):
I'd read World War two books from the time Mike
read and thought it was all so great and wanted
to go on.
Speaker 2 (34:44):
How long did you serve?
Speaker 5 (34:46):
Just three years?
Speaker 2 (34:47):
Three Where bouts did you serve?
Speaker 11 (34:54):
Stationed in Fort Lewis, Washington. I did training missions down.
Speaker 2 (34:59):
Here in for and.
Speaker 5 (35:03):
For Erwin in California, six months in Ages. That was
pretty much it.
Speaker 1 (35:20):
We also found that Keyes told the FBI that he
used the screen name is It to not only argue
politics with people online, but to comment on disappearances that
he was responsible for comments we've yet to find yet,
(35:41):
And confirmation that Sarah was asleep in the backseat of
his rental car when Keys used Samantha's ATM card while
en route from Vegas to Texas and during other criminal
activity on that same trip. After hours of poring over
(36:12):
the Keys post arrest files, I went back to the
death investigation files, a long report and interviews detailing exactly
how Keys died and how exactly it was able to happen.
I flipped through photos his head, his hands covered in blood, karakol,
(36:34):
other writings I'd never seen or heard of before, his
cell and final moments. From all angles, I learned about
his time in prison, how he spent his days leading
up to his death, what he had access to what
he didn't and all this new information, the things we've
(36:55):
barely skimmed over today, things Haulla told me that we
haven't released yet, things I learned on my trips to
Texas and Louisiana had all started to come together in
a single frame, the death and life of Israel Keys.
Over the next few months, I'd talked to new witnesses,
(37:18):
old friends of Keys, cops, other investigators, former FBI agents,
and sources close to the Keys family. I'd receive and
go through thousands of pages of missing persons files, and
I'd spend hours with the team with somewhere in the Pines,
going over everything. And by late summer, the life and
(37:43):
death of Israel Keys was more visible and made more
sense than ever before, and it was clear that no
matter how long nor how dead he was, he will
always be just outside at the door.
Speaker 13 (38:33):
Please excuse me what I got too, OTSK. I only
be nice because you want some.
Speaker 6 (38:46):
S my fair tail up said, because all your response.
Speaker 4 (39:02):
And this.
Speaker 10 (39:05):
I never gave you the coachment.
Speaker 8 (39:12):
And you chart erase my child, Arizon, mo you.
Speaker 1 (39:53):
This episode was written, research, edited, and produced by me
Josh Hallmark, with additional research by Jordan Taylor, she Na Wilensky,
and Michelle Tooker. This episode was made possible by the
following Patreon producers, Amy Basel, Kendall, C, Heather Horton, Wheedon,
Sherry d Dale Axton, Stephanie Taylor, Lydia Rodarte, Quayle, Shelley, Drew, Iapond,
Amelia Hancock, Christina Sisson, Nicole and Dennis Henry, Gillian, Natalelna Holiday,
(40:17):
Tuesday Woodworth, zach Ignattowitz, Warren, Kathleen Stuter, Annette l Casey, Jensen, Richardson,
sc Benjamin Choppafong, Trista, Nicole, Ashfish, Becky C. Pink, Jen
j Cory Deatlee, Robin, Carol, Lisa, Jordan, M Kate Lusier,
John Comery, Kathy Nation, Carry, Jordan t Bethany Heinz, Lauren Faery,
Emily Payne, Tory Meyers, Sabrina Abbott, Megan Inman, Ashley Cupin,
(40:40):
Michael Randall and Dewayne C. Thank you to True Crime
Bullshit's newest Patreon supporters David B, Suzanne C, Chris Ashley, K,
Vicky v Billy, j Evan A Colin, A, Karen O,
Helen R. Melissa m claire S. Sarah P, Kristin G,
Carla L, Jared W, Amanda B D B. Margaret S, Brie,
Charles v W, M, Jill R, Laura W, Genie M,
(41:03):
Rachel s Rihanna, Lori and Daughter of d Lo's. To
support the investigation, go to patreon dot com slash Studio
both and. This episode included music by Howling at the Moon, Odyssey,
Lee Roosevir, Josek, Sergei Cherimisanov Don of a New era
of life in the Day, and Radical Face with featured
(41:25):
music by Tom York.
Speaker 10 (42:04):
Your Chartragement more oh more, lottle more more, charge, rage more, snow,
(42:33):
your stop, notta stop about stas not.
Speaker 7 (43:37):
Not not not not
Speaker 6 (43:53):
Not That's nothing,
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