"Tom Johnson's" plans

[Cori aka ChrisSCrush]

Originally Posted by saywhat

I am pretty sure that Cori was using Cunanan as an example of someone who had different MOs in committing crimes, not suggesting that he was the person who committed this crime.

True.

[Drakken]

Originally Posted by wiseguy182

I'm still scratching my head why he would use the hammer as opposed to the gun. The gun would have stood a greater chance at killing Jeremy and Heather and in a timelier manner (assuming that's what Tom wanted). It might have been noisier, but there must have been pillows all over that room that could have helped silence the noise. And while I don't know a lot about guns, it was a smaller caliber handgun and it wouldn't have been as noisy as, say, a shotgun.

I'm willing to bet 20 bucks that TJ's gun had no ammo in it. Hence the use of the hammer after making sure neither victims could be in position to fight back.

[xxxxmattxxxx69]

Originally Posted by Drakken

I'm willing to bet 20 bucks that TJ's gun had no ammo in it. Hence the use of the hammer after making sure neither victims could be in position to fight back.

I agree with you. Watch it have been a cap gun. But for an inexperienced criminal 20 years unsolved is impressive. In part because of both victims passing

[lettucesolve1]

they both should have charged at him and beat him up 2-1. might as well do something if the gun in loaded or not. if its loaded he might hit one person and not the other. worst case scenario.

maybe TJ has that average look - you know a man with average height, brown hair, ave weight, etc. Thus he fits in with every crowd in USA - he does not stand out as being very tall or very short or fat or skinny. This is why he lets the hotel clerk and passerbys see him.

[lettucesolve1]

they both should have charged at him and beat him up 2-1. might as well do something if the gun in loaded or not. if its loaded he might hit one person and not the other. worst case scenario.

maybe TJ has that average look - you know a man with average height, brown hair, ave weight, etc. Thus he fits in with every crowd in USA - he does not stand out as being very tall or very short or fat or skinny. This is why he lets the hotel clerk and passerbys see him.

[Austin023]

I guess I'll bump up this thread.

I remember seeing this case on Unsolved Mysteries back sometime in the early to mid-90s and it had always stayed clear in my mind. I was much into conputers at that time, though a bit younger than the victims then.

I know quite a bit has already been covered in this long thread, I'd like to put a couple of things out there.

To me, it seems as though, largely based on Tom Johnson's behavior and actions during the actual attack, that he was improvising at least some of it...as if something did not go to plan.

One thing that I've questioned is how did Jeremy and Heather intend to verify the legitimacy of a check, or most likely, a cashiers check (assuming for a minute that they dealt with an innocent buyer)?

I sometimes wonder if perhaps the original--or preferred plan--of Tom Johnson was to give Jeremey a forged cashiers check, that an accomplice was to bring.
I think his accomplice didn't show up or got cold feet and thus he resorted to attacking his victims.

Johnson had the gun and hammer as a backup for whatever reason. I don't think the gun was actually loaded, just was intended to scare Jeremey and Heather into submission--the hammer almost seems like an afterthought, as if he purchased it shortly beforehand as a backup weapon. I think this so called Tom Johnson was indeed an experienced criminal, but he may not had killed before then. The fact he actually left the hammer behind, still in its wrapper of plastic, yet took care to rub down surfaces of fingerprints implies a rather disorganized killer--that he wasn't originally intending on killing them, but he would if he had to.

This case is so confounding as it has not only a good deal of evidence, let alone witnesses--it also just does not make sense in some ways. The advert for the Quadra was placed in a trade publication by the company Jeremy worked for. So, that alone reduces the readership substantially.
That computer was at the time a pretty unusual, state of the art machine that was way above the range of any home personal or even most business/commercial PCs. It had a pretty limited market of buyers. Tom Johnson either intended to keep it himself or ship it to a buyer out of the area, maybe even over seas.

I also think part of why this case was never solved was due to less than diligent investigative work. While this happened only a little before DNA came onto the forensics scene, there's still a lot of evidence to work with, not to mention multiple witnesses including Jeremy who survived the attack.
Back in 1992, it still wasn't necessarily required by motels for guests to show ID or even a credit card. So Johnson probably used cash and his assumed name. He probably chose that motel because of that and he was familiar with it---it had no security cameras, which wasn't off back then, either. The authorities very well may have additional information and evidence that they haven't made public.

[JannTosh]

This is sadly one of the cases that will never get solved

[Austin023]

Originally Posted by ShriekoftheVultu

This is sadly one of the cases that will never get solved

You're probably right.
So much time has passed, evidence lost and a number of key witnesses and others involved have since died. The computer is probably long gone in a landfill by now.

[tsaun]

Steeples must be Tom Johnson.

There are just way too many similarities there. We just need a picture for verification.

[LooksLikeCRicci]

Originally Posted by tsaun

Steeples must be Tom Johnson.

There are just way too many similarities there. We just need a picture for verification.

Agreed.

[baloony]

Originally Posted by ididn'tdoit

I know this has been posted before, but it deserves to be mentioned again:

Jeremy Rolfs, the guy who was going to sell a computer to a "Tom Johnson". This "Tom" later killed Jeremy's girlfriend, Heather Uffelman and stole the computer. Anyway, Jeremy was later killed in an automobile accident in South Africa in 1997, he was only 27.

http://www.truecrimeweblog.com/searc...her%20Uffelman

So sad when someone dies without ever getting closure.

[Hambone2421]

Did we ever get a picture of Jeremy Rolfs? In the segment, he remained hidden, but has a picture of him ever surfaced?

[baloony]

Originally Posted by Hambone2421

Did we ever get a picture of Jeremy Rolfs? In the segment, he remained hidden, but has a picture of him ever surfaced?

I'm not sure why it is, but pictures of Jeremy are hard to come by. This one is from the Peace Corps Volunteers memorial page. Probably the last known photo ever taken of him.



http://fpcv.org/volunteers/jeremy-rolfs/

[tsaun]

Originally Posted by LooksLikeCRicci

Agreed.

Keep in mind there is an article about Steeples's wife. She was loyal to Steeples, covered for him and even sent him cocaine while in prison which he later overdosed.

Could she have been the woman that backed out of the motel murder? It's possible

[Austin023]

Originally Posted by baloony

I'm not sure why it is, but pictures of Jeremy are hard to come by. This one is from the Peace Corps Volunteers memorial page. Probably the last known photo ever taken of him.

I found that odd, why Jeremy's face was hidden for the interview on the UM episode. I also have never found a picture of him (other than what is contained in the link you posted). A couple of pictures of his fiance Heather are easily found online, however.

The UM episode was aired sometime in early-mid 1994 and while both of the vicitm's names are put out, Jeremy's face is in silhouette--why?
I wonder. I feel there was some good reason, that he was either advised to do so or he himself thought there was still some kind of real danger out there.

The other big question I have long had with this case is---why was Jeremy's company selling this computer in the first place?? At that time, the Quadra 950, with all of its added power and features, etc. was not only very expensive and specialized for a specific market (music video editing)---it was a machine that had only been on the market for barely a year. Apple had released the Quadra 950 sometime around January, 1992, and this murder/robbery happened in October the same year. They could not have had it very long at all. Why were they selling it so soon?

In the episode, Jeremy remarks that "Tom Johnson" said something, after he pulled the gun, etc. to the effect that Jermey's "company would get an insurance check" as a result of the loss of the computer due to robbery/theft. I sometimes wonder if Jermey's employer was actually targeted or knew more than what has been let on.

It was not the kind of computer system that would be readily marketable on the black market, especially back then. I think sloppy investigative work was largely responsible for this case going unsolved.