Hi, I'm new to this board but not new to Unsolved Mysteries. I used to watch this show all the time when it was on NBC back in 1990/1991. I was only around 8 or 9 years old at the time and some of the stories really freaked me out. I'd like to hear your thoughts on the following stories that I still remember to this day:

There was a lady who had had an abortion back in the 60s and disappeared. Then in the late 80s or early 90s somebody started calling the police and said the lady was alive and living in Omaha, Nebraska. Did they ever find out if she was still alive or if she had died? The people whispering into the phone that she was still alive creeped me out for some reason.

There was another lady who met a man at a singles bar, lost her wallet, the man came to her home to return the wallet, stripped her naked and raped her, threw her in the trunk of his car and took her to a wooded area and shot her dead. I remember she was naked and had her hands tied behind her back. The lady who played the part in the re-enactment did a good job because I felt like she was really fearful for her life. Anyone remember this story? Did they catch the man she met at the bar?

Another woman was kidnapped by a guy who was hiding in her car and told to withdraw money from an ATM. Eventually he stabbed her and she got out of the car saying "HE stabbed me" and fell to her death. I check behind the car seat every time I get into the car because of that story, and it had to have aired around 15 years ago. Did they ever catch the guy who stabbed her?

One last segment for now--a man beat his whole family (his children, wife, and mother) with a hammer and then took them to a wooded area and burned their bodies. Did they ever catch this guy?

This show, as much as I liked it, made me paranoid and I eventually stopped watching it. The worst part about it was that it came on right before I went to bed so sometimes I felt weird when I was trying to go to sleep because of what I had just seen.

Thanks for any and all thoughts/comments on these stories. These are the only ones I can remember right now, although I'm sure I remember more than this.

Welcome!!! :wave:

I remember the case about the lady that had an abortion. I believe the police detirmined that she was dead --- so the phone calls and letters were hoaxes.

Another woman was kidnapped by a guy who was hiding in her car and told to withdraw money from an ATM. Eventually he stabbed her and she got out of the car saying "HE stabbed me" and fell to her death. I check behind the car seat every time I get into the car because of that story, and it had to have aired around 15 years ago. Did they ever catch the guy who stabbed her?

One last segment for now--a man beat his whole family (his children, wife, and mother) with a hammer and then took them to a wooded area and burned their bodies. Did they ever catch this guy?

The first one was the Gretchen Burford. An arrest was made a few months ago. Check the article at the following link for more details:

http://mv-voice.com/morgue/2005/2005_07_01.coldcase.shtml


The second was William Bradfod Bishop. Here's his wanted poster (which means he's still on the run):

http://www.mcsheriff.com/bishop.htm

Welcome to the board! :)

Yes, the Judy Himes case is a classic with those phone calls! An anonymous person sent a letter to the police saying she died from complications stemming from an illegal abortion and her body was dumped in some body of water (don't remember which one). The police think the letter is credible.

The woman who met the man in the singles bar was Hilda Rochet. Yes, that was a very disturbing scene when she was taken out in the woods and shot. Yes someone was arrested for her murder and I believe his name was Gregory Barker.

Yes, now I remember the names now that you mentioned them. I'm glad they finally found the guy who murdered Gretchen. I seem to remember them showing a really nice picture of her and she looked like a genuinely nice person. Her daughter(?) was talking about how much she helped other people and I truly felt bad that she was killed the way she was. Glad they got the scum who did it.

I remember Hilda Roche now because I thought it was an unusual name. That story really freaked me out. I found myself imagining how terrified she must have felt to have her new boyfriend turn out to be such a creep. Getting locked in the trunk naked with her hands tied behind her back and then led through the woods the same way....scary stuff. Like I said before, the actress who played Hilda did a really good job because I REALLY felt scared for her. Hadn't he raped her prior to this as well? What a sicko. I'm glad they made an arrest in the case. Anybody know what happened to him (sentence)?

I've remembered a couple other cases I was wondering about since they aired so long ago. There was a woman who supposedly secreted some kind of metallic foil through her skin and had objects coming out of her eyes. Did they ever prove whether or not she was a hoax? I personally was disgusted by seeing her with all that foil on--that's why I remember the story :)

Another one was a young woman who was a stripper and lived in an apartment building. She was found dead but the cause of death officially was natural causes. The part that scared me was her neighbors heard her screaming and didn't call the police because they didn't want to get involved. Did they ever find out exactly what happened to her?

Another case--there was a man who went around to people's houses where he knew young girls (pre-teenagers) lived and impersonated a police officer in order to gain entry into the home. Then he put eye drops into their eyes and molested them. I did see an update for this story and the guy had been apprehended. Does anyone know what kind of sentence he got, or what he's up to now? I remember this because the guy who played him was so ugly and scary looking.

Sorry I can't remember names, but hopefully you'll all know who I'm talking about :)

Regrding the Judith Himes case. A dectective at a police conference in Omaha, Neb was contacted after with the mysterious phone calls (made by a female). He eventually tracked the lead down to a Turkish doctor living in the U.S. who was performing illegal abortions at the time she disappeared. Confronted with this information, The Dr. fled the country (in all likelihood Turkey). The Detective eventually got word that she had died as a result and her body was dumped in Biscayne Bay in Florida. The case is therefore closed. Hope this helps.

I remember Hilda Roche now because I thought it was an unusual name. That story really freaked me out. I found myself imagining how terrified she must have felt to have her new boyfriend turn out to be such a creep. Getting locked in the trunk naked with her hands tied behind her back and then led through the woods the same way....scary stuff. Like I said before, the actress who played Hilda did a really good job because I REALLY felt scared for her. Hadn't he raped her prior to this as well? What a sicko. I'm glad they made an arrest in the case. Anybody know what happened to him (sentence)?

I found a link related to the story. It mentions the fact that Hilda's murder was profiled on UM. Additionally, the suspect, Gregory Richard Barker, agreed to a 50-year prison sentence in a deal to avoid a possible death sentence.

http://www.xgboy.com/html/suspect.html

Another one was a young woman who was a stripper and lived in an apartment building. She was found dead but the cause of death officially was natural causes. The part that scared me was her neighbors heard her screaming and didn't call the police because they didn't want to get involved. Did they ever find out exactly what happened to her?

The victim's name was Crystal Spencer. Admittedly, it looks like it will take pure luck to find out the true nature of her death, in part because the case was obviously mishandled. Additionally, since she was cremated, an additional autopsy is impossible.

Another case--there was a man who went around to people's houses where he knew young girls (pre-teenagers) lived and impersonated a police officer in order to gain entry into the home. Then he put eye drops into their eyes and molested them. I did see an update for this story and the guy had been apprehended. Does anyone know what kind of sentence he got, or what he's up to now? I remember this because the guy who played him was so ugly and scary looking.

Was the man's last name Stanton? If so, I remember it (and although he was caught, I don't know the final outcome of the case). But as I recall, he wasn't posing as a cop. Only as some kind of non-law enforcement official.

Thanks everyone for the information. It's sad to see some of these cases are still not solved. The murder of Crystal Spencer is most likely considered a "cold" case now that so much time has passed. That's a shame that it will probably never be solved. Of course, they just solved Gretchen's murder this year, so perhaps there's still hope.

I liked the article on Hilda Roche's case. Wow, that's even creepier that the only real evidence they developed against Barker was a print off Hilda's shoe found inside his trunk. I guess he allowed her to keep her shoes on even though she was naked otherwise--what a nice guy. I hope the creep regrets hurting her and all the other people he's hurt every day and he rots in jail FOREVER!! :)

I'm sorry, but that is one case that's stuck in my mind all these years because of how scared it made me feel. Poor Hilda, God bless her soul. That happened in 1982?! That was the year I was born! Man, that seems like a long time ago.

I do believe the child molester's name was Stanton, now that you mention it. I just remember his looking really creepy.

Noboby commented about the lady with the foil coming out of her skin--does anyone here recall that story? Do you know if they ever determined the validity of her claims? Personally, I think she's full of it :), but then again what do I know?!

That lady who grew foil case is so ridiculous do you really need proof that it was a hoax? :) I do remember on the segment itself they brought in a magician and he was able to simulate the "crying jewels" part with slight of hand. I can't believe UM stooped so low as to actually give her air time. Not one of their shining moments.

Yeah, she did seem pretty ridiculous. I was just wondering if they ever did an update on her.

Here's another one I remember and was wondering about--there was a married couple who were at least in their 50s or 60s. I think they owned a gas station in the town they lived in, or a convenience store or something like that. One night two men busted into their house, tied up the wife and killed the husband. They ransacked the house as well. Did they ever find out who did this and what was their sentence? I think they said the man may have known about some kind of drug dealling that was going on in town and the murderers may have wanted to silence him.

Anyone remember this?

Another comment about Hilda Roche---the article mentioned that the police found a footprint from her shoe in the trunk of Barker's car. The murder happened in 1982 and they didn't apprehend him until 1991--was he still driving the same car that he kidnapped Hilda with and did he not notice her footprint was in there all those years? He was kind of stupid!! :)

The woman who met the man in the singles bar was Hilda Rochet. Yes, that was a very disturbing scene when she was taken out in the woods and shot. Yes someone was arrested for her murder and I believe his name was Gregory Barker.

Disturbing alright!!!! :eek: Watched this and the Rochelle Robinson case I just commented on and throw in Michael Hunter... guess who's sleeping with one eye open tonight?? :eek4:

Welcome to the board ilovejustinw.

I predict it will be a short stay.

Here's another one I remember and was wondering about--there was a married couple who were at least in their 50s or 60s. I think they owned a gas station in the town they lived in, or a convenience store or something like that. One night two men busted into their house, tied up the wife and killed the husband. They ransacked the house as well. Did they ever find out who did this and what was their sentence? I think they said the man may have known about some kind of drug dealling that was going on in town and the murderers may have wanted to silence him.

Anyone remember this?



That was the case of Stanley and Esther Gryzeic. One man was wanted for questioning and otherwise there were few leads and no suspects. There is little, if anything, about this case on the Internet as it's more than 30 years old.

Regrding the Judith Himes case. A dectective at a police conference in Omaha, Neb was contacted after with the mysterious phone calls (made by a female). He eventually tracked the lead down to a Turkish doctor living in the U.S. who was performing illegal abortions at the time she disappeared. Confronted with this information, The Dr. fled the country (in all likelihood Turkey). The Detective eventually got word that she had died as a result and her body was dumped in Biscayne Bay in Florida. The case is therefore closed. Hope this helps.

I'm actually an Omaha native myself..........this is the first time I've heard of this case however and find it somewhat fascinating. I can't find much information on the web about it--any links people dig up would be appreciated :)

I'm actually an Omaha native myself..........this is the first time I've heard of this case however and find it somewhat fascinating. I can't find much information on the web about it--any links people dig up would be appreciated :)

I couldn't find anything online and I doubt if there's anything to find. There was an update after UM aired the story and an anonymous person wrote a letter in saying that Judy Himes died as a result of an allergic reaction of something given to her during the illegal abortion. I believe it also said they put her body in Biscayne Bay. Police think the letter is credible.