Creepiest "Unexplained Death" segments

[Kane]

What would you consider to be among the creepiest or most disturbing "Unexplained Death" segments?

I have two that come to mind:

1) The death of Clarence Roberts. He was the Indiana man who supposedly died in two separate fires: one in 1970, and the other in 1980. His wife Geneva was killed in the second fire. Clarence Roberts had fallen on hard times, so there was speculation that he faked his death in the 1970 fire in order to collect insurance money. Some believe that the body found in that fire was a drifter who was seen with Clarence earlier, and then mysteriously disappeared. Although, the body found in the 1980 fire (along with Geneva's body) was identified as Clarence Roberts, some people were skeptical.

2) The murder of Rhonda Hinson. In December of 1981, she was shot to death while en route home from a Christmas party. What I found creepy about the case was Rhonda's demeanor in the days before her death. She took some showers after midnight, which is common behavior for sexual assault victims (although no one knows for sure whether she was a victim herself). Additionally, during a conversation with her mother, Rhonda asked her if it was okay to date a married man. Given this information, I believe that Rhonda knew of such an affair, either she was involved in one, or that she knew of someone who was. If this theory were the case, she may have been on the verge of exposing it, and then was killed before she could. In any case, I believe that she knew her killer.

[themaninblack]

the way megan curl was killed was pretty brutal, and the composite of the suspect would give anybody the creeps.
also the killings in the mississippi prisons where people supposedly hanged themselves.
and then of course the case involving the woman found in a lake behind her home inside of a barrel, and then the barrel comes up missing and the cops deny ever finding it.

[U.M. Fanatic]

Originally Posted by Kane

What would you consider to be among the creepiest or most disturbing "Unexplained Death" segments?

I have two that come to mind:

1) The death of Clarence Roberts. He was the Indiana man who supposedly died in two separate fires: one in 1970, and the other in 1980. His wife Geneva was killed in the second fire. Clarence Roberts had fallen on hard times, so there was speculation that he faked his death in the 1970 fire in order to collect insurance money. Some believe that the body found in that fire was a drifter who was seen with Clarence earlier, and then mysteriously disappeared. Although, the body found in the 1980 fire (along with Geneva's body) was identified as Clarence Roberts, some people were skeptical.

2) The murder of Rhonda Hinson. In December of 1981, she was shot to death while en route home from a Christmas party. What I found creepy about the case was Rhonda's demeanor in the days before her death. She took some showers after midnight, which is common behavior for sexual assault victims (although no one knows for sure whether she was a victim herself). Additionally, during a conversation with her mother, Rhonda asked her if it was okay to date a married man. Given this information, I believe that Rhonda knew of such an affair, either she was involved in one, or that she knew of someone who was. If this theory were the case, she may have been on the verge of exposing it, and then was killed before she could. In any case, I believe that she knew her killer.

You picked two good ones, Kane.

Rhonda Hinson is especially creepy. Unsolved Mysteries did an excellent job conveying the struggle Rhonda was having right before she died. That image of her staring out of her window late at night is very haunting, you could tell she was distraught over something, but still didnt want to involve anyone with her problems.


I also vote for the unexplained death of Matt Flores. For the new members here, he was the guy who worked for a software company in southern California. He had just started his job, when he was basically assassinated as he was getting out of his car at his work. Unsolved Mysteries showed a re-enactment of the company's security video of the parking lot, which showed that a Ford Explorer had been tailing other cars in the lot before Matt was killed. Very, very creepy

[Awsi Dooger]

Clarence Roberts is an excellent nomination. I've never understood why another program didn't pick up on that segment and analyze at greater length.

My submission would be the Canadian guy who was frantic to enter the United States, even asking a neighbor to drive him across the border. He apparently felt threatened but no one could figure out who or why anyone would want to harm him. Then very soon he wound up dead in a Tennessee motel parking lot, even though he seemingly had no connection to anyone from Tennessee or the general area. There were other weird aspects like the keys to his rental car not matching the model of car he was trying to drive.

[dynoguy88]

Yeah, that Rhonda Hinson case is pretty haunting. And it still amazes me that her killer just fired one shot at her as she drove away - the bullet traveling through the trunk, through the back seat, through the drivers seat and right through her heart. I mean, what are the odds of getting such a perfect shot?

I still wonder if the killer was waiting in the parking lot for her at that company Christmas party she attended. Remember, she was responsible for driving home two of her friends. I'm guessing the killer followed her the entire way and just waited for her to be alone.

A little side note - the actress they got to play Rhonda in this segment is a dead ringer for the real Rhonda. Just look at the pictures and compare. Pretty amazing.

[crystaldawn]

Those are all good selections. Here are some I would add:

Kurt Sova- his body was found 5 days after he disappeared after going to a party. There were no signs of trauma and no drugs or alcohol in his system. What did he die from?

Cindy James-I still don't believe she was responsible for all the things done to her and her death was very creepy. Hogtied and overdosed on drugs.

Crystal Spencer- the aspiring actress from Hollywood. Neighbors report hearing screams in the days earlier but when she was found there was no trauma and no apparent cause of death.

Kathy Bonderson- this is a more obscure one that is hardly mentioned on here but she's the lady who went out late at night looking for her teenage son who was out past curfew. In fact her son even passed her on the road shortly after. Soon after that her car was in flames and she was dead inside. Some think it was just an accident but others think the car was set on fire as the gas tank still had a lot of gas in it and the undercarriage of the car had not been burned.

[UMfan0682]

There is one case I thought was very interesting, but can't remember the details. So, if anyone can help me out:

A school bus driver was waiting for his shift to begin, and somehow walked over to this cave, where he found the remains of a body. It was decomposed, but was identified. It was someone dealing in selling horses. The only other details I can recall is a buyer being a suspect, and the victim was doing some illegal activity.

David Marifield- This was a very strange case. I always wondered who the mystery person going by "Sam Jones" was. That name sounds like something a person would say not wanting to reveal their identity. I think David Marifield had a time circled in his appointment book. There was a pickup truck seen near his office the morning of his murder.

[crystaldawn]

I remember that story. The man's whose remains were found were Gary Simmons. It seems like he owned a gas company. I know they think he had been there for 17 years before he was found. The day he went missing he was on his way to buy a horse for $30,000. They think Tom Dixon is responsible for his murder but I'm unsure if he has ever been located.

[Opal]

Originally Posted by U.M. Fanatic

I also vote for the unexplained death of Matt Flores. For the new members here, he was the guy who worked for a software company in southern California. He had just started his job, when he was basically assassinated as he was getting out of his car at his work. Unsolved Mysteries showed a re-enactment of the company's security video of the parking lot, which showed that a Ford Explorer had been tailing other cars in the lot before Matt was killed. Very, very creepy

Yeah, I found that one really sad.
I’m thinking the little baby must be around 10 or 11 by now (I think that case was profiled around 1995). It's so heartbreaking that the only memories of her father will be on videotape. What I found really odd was that no one could come up with any logical motives for his murder. I think the only thing the police said was that it was a possible case of mistaken identity, but I’m not sure.

[dynoguy88]

In regards to the Matt Flores segment, the biggest theory is that is he was shot as a case of mistaken identity because the white explorer (which was seen following a car around the parking lot that looked like Matt's car) continued to drive around.

I'm hoping the police looked into seeing which car every single employee at that office building drove. That way they could find out who drove a car that resembled Matt's car, see if he/she had any enemies and see where an investigation could go from there.

[Kane]

Originally Posted by dynoguy88

Yeah, that Rhonda Hinson case is pretty haunting. And it still amazes me that her killer just fired one shot at her as she drove away - the bullet traveling through the trunk, through the back seat, through the drivers seat and right through her heart. I mean, what are the odds of getting such a perfect shot?

My belief: either it was a lucky shot, or the killer was extremely experienced with guns. Just a thought.

[UMfan0682]

I will add one more case to the list. I have mentioned it before, but it was a very interesting segment. The death of Shelly Malone. She was riding her horse and was killed when it was spooked and stepped on her. It's been a while since I've seen the case, but it was suspected she might have been murdered. I think her boyfriend was at her house right after she was killed sorting through her belongings. The family said he was not upset over her death. Maybe there was something involved with a life insurance policy. If anyone can recall any more details, please post them.

[themaninblack]

that may have been a case where the horse or her was injected with something to make things go awry

[Opal]

I believe that case happened in Michigan. I live in Michigan, so that stuck in my mind. LOL

[Kane]

Originally Posted by themaninblack

that may have been a case where the horse or her was injected with something to make things go awry

The injection thing happened in the murder of Shannon Mohr Davis, one of UM's early cases. But that case has already been resolved. Her husband, Dave Davis, was captured after being profiled on the show, and is serving a life sentence in Michigan.