Footlocker case

[mah79]

Hi Everyone,
I thought to post this message b/c I stumbled across a clue in the footlocker case from Wyoming, and I wonder if this might hint at where the mystery person comes from. The "footlocker case" is about some old bones that were found in a trunk that a man named Gabby bought at a garage sale in 1986. Gabby then forgot about the trunk (said he didn't have a hacksaw to open the thing, and that opening the trunk would take a "lot of work"). He then moved out of state, and left the trunk with a friend. The friend opened the trunk 6 years later and discovered the bones. The remains belonged to a white middle aged man who was murdered sometime around or after 1908.
But this is the clue that set off "bells and whistles" for me. ALso in the trunk was a bag from a supermarket chain called Hy-Vee. It had a particular logo from the 1950's time period. Anyhow, Hy-vee is a supermarket chain in Iowa. I go to school in Iowa. Everything in Iowa is Hy-vee. As far as I know, Hy-vee is only located in Iowa. (Does anyone know if Hy-vee is in any other state?)
Remember in the segment how Gabby thought that he might have thought that he bought the trunk in Iowa or somewhere in the midwest? Well, I DO seriously think that somehow, whether or not Gabby actually BOUGHT it in Iowa, that there IS an Iowa connection. I don't know if the man was killed in Iowa, or reburied there, but somehow IOwa must have been significant. Remember in the segment that the skeleton had been buried, then dug up and "reburied" in the trunk.
Also, speaking of Gabby, what DO you think of him? The sherriff had his suspicions, but i just don't know. Gabby just didn't strike me as suspicious...only just as an airhead who said that his excitement just "atrophies." I don't know. It just seems that he really misses the boat. But I don't know.
I'd greatly appreciate your theories!Do you think that this case could somehow be traced to IOwa?

[Zero]

It's not uncommon for people to buy something old, broken, worn out, etc.... With the intention of fixing, using or restoring them. It's also not uncommon for laziness, disinterest or realities of life to set in and make them abandon that now "worthless" item they spent money on once. I know. It happened to me. I spent money on an old broken video game because I LOVE the game. A year and a half later, I have yet to shell out the $80 to have someone come look at it and give me an estimate. There have been times when I could have afforded it, but the money goes quickly on other things. And now that game has the priority of "I'll get to it, when I get to it".

And now that you know enough about me, let's talk about Gabby. It's impossible to believe that was alive during the early 1900's. Let alone be alive and OLD ENOUGH to kill the person in the chest. Did he know who did it? It's a remote possibility. But for that to even be the case, he would have had to have been told who the murder was by most likely an older relative. Such as his father, Grandfather, Great Grandfather or Great cousin or aunt or something like that. And if Gabby had been told as a child, the murderer would have most likely been very old or dead. And I don't believe this chest was a family heirloom passed down.

I know you mentioned nothing of this aspect of Gabby. But I thought I'd mention it anyway. I honestly don't know what to think of him. But I don't believe he did it..... I think he bought this item dirt cheap, and ultimately decided it wasn't worth doing anything to but leaving it in the shed or wherever.

[soilentgreen]

There are Hy-Vees in several other states (IL, MO, SD to name a few) since the 1960's - 1970's. Apparently Hy-Vees were only a chain in Iowa into the 1950's.

I wish there had been more discussion on the UM segment about the padlock (the type and age of the mechanism). There was speculation that the trunk had been used by a member of the armed forces between WWI and WWII. The remains may have been exhumed from a basement or backyard when the murderer moved. It's also possible that the body was simply stolen from a burial site by someone who wanted skeletal remains. I think that after the person who had locked up the trunk passed away, his possessions were either auctioned off or sold at a garage sale/flea market.

Gaby came across to me as your typical pack rat -- someone who buys junk and plans to go through all of it, but gets sidetracked by newer finds and never gets around to it. The possessions he left with his friend in Thermopolis were things obviously not pertinent to his daily life. If this was a trunk whose secret he inherited, why he would leave it with people who might pry, instead of simply disposing of the bones on his own? This case remains one of the most unsolvable mysteries UM ever profiled.

[Mastermind]

And now that you know enough about me, let's talk about Gabby. It's impossible to believe that was alive during the early 1900's. Let alone be alive and OLD ENOUGH to kill the person in the chest. Did he know who did it? It's a remote possibility. But for that to even be the case, he would have had to have been told who the murder was by most likely an older relative.

Didn't they say the chest was opened before during the 1950's, where Gaby would have been alive? Something to do with a supermarket wrapper or something?

One theory I did post a while back was that Gaby or someone he knew may have killed someone by accident (or on purpose) way back in the 50s and they used the locker to bury him without Gaby's knowledge. Gaby may have only just dawned on Gaby who the person in the locker was, hence his suspicious behavior.

Is it a given that the victim died before the 1950s? I know the bullet was form a vintage gun, but that may not mean anything. Gaby or someone in his family may have had a vintage gun in their collection that was used to committ the crime.

[zack007attack]

Originally Posted by mah79

Hi Everyone,
I thought to post this message b/c I stumbled across a clue in the footlocker case from Wyoming, and I wonder if this might hint at where the mystery person comes from. The "footlocker case" is about some old bones that were found in a trunk that a man named Gabby bought at a garage sale in 1986. Gabby then forgot about the trunk (said he didn't have a hacksaw to open the thing, and that opening the trunk would take a "lot of work"). He then moved out of state, and left the trunk with a friend. The friend opened the trunk 6 years later and discovered the bones. The remains belonged to a white middle aged man who was murdered sometime around or after 1908.
But this is the clue that set off "bells and whistles" for me. ALso in the trunk was a bag from a supermarket chain called Hy-Vee. It had a particular logo from the 1950's time period. Anyhow, Hy-vee is a supermarket chain in Iowa. I go to school in Iowa. Everything in Iowa is Hy-vee. As far as I know, Hy-vee is only located in Iowa. (Does anyone know if Hy-vee is in any other state?)
Remember in the segment how Gabby thought that he might have thought that he bought the trunk in Iowa or somewhere in the midwest? Well, I DO seriously think that somehow, whether or not Gabby actually BOUGHT it in Iowa, that there IS an Iowa connection. I don't know if the man was killed in Iowa, or reburied there, but somehow IOwa must have been significant. Remember in the segment that the skeleton had been buried, then dug up and "reburied" in the trunk.
Also, speaking of Gabby, what DO you think of him? The sherriff had his suspicions, but i just don't know. Gabby just didn't strike me as suspicious...only just as an airhead who said that his excitement just "atrophies." I don't know. It just seems that he really misses the boat. But I don't know.
I'd greatly appreciate your theories!Do you think that this case could somehow be traced to IOwa?

I looked on Hy-Vee's official website and they operate stores in these states: Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, South Dakota, and Wisconsin. So it is safe to assume Gabby bought the trunk while traveling in Illinois or Iowa from what he said about where he bought it

I don't think he is responsible for any murder, he seems just like he doesn't want anything to do with the investigation except give what knowledge he has. In the segment, they said the body was buried, dug up again, then put in the footlocker. Whoever Gabby bought the footlocker from has to know much more detail than Gabby.

If the forensic anthropologists ran tests on decomposition to determine when this person was killed, they could determine whether Gabby had anything to do with it or has any knowledge about the person at all.

[Austin023]

This UM case has to be among the most fascinating...and bizarre. There are a number of interesting clues mentioned in it: Firstly, the foot locker that contained the bones was manufactured around the 1930s, and apparently had been used by someone in the US military in that time period between WWI and II--the lock was of similar 1930s era vintage. However, a plastic bag inside dated to after 1952.

The Hy-Vee grocery chain adopted that name in 1952, with the first store using that name in 1953, in Fairfield, Iowa. The Hy-Vee name is derived from the company name Hyde and Vredenburg, which had merged into one company years earlier.
However, Hy-Vee chain didn't expand into other states until sometime in the 1960s. So, the bag likely dates to the 50s or 60s and thus would had been around 30-40 years old when found in 1992. I would say that could indicate the time period of when the bones were exhumed and placed in the trunk.

The bullet found in the skull was an old .25 caliber, which is uncommon these days but at one time was very common for small arms in the US. The gun for them, Colt Model 1908 "vest pocket" was manufactured from 1908 until around 1948.

The bones had apparently been buried at one time, then exhumed and placed in this foot locker....I wonder if a sale of property forced someone to dig up the bones and take them away?
The plastic bag probably signifies this exhumation and transfer was done around 1953 or later.
Since it was said the bones had once been buried, then dug up and put in the trunk...I wonder if some soil residue was found within crevices of the bones? In recent years improved analysis of soils and minerals can trace them to a certain region or specific area, which if possible could be done on these bones. I might tell more of where these bones had been buried at one time.

I am still a bit suspect of Gabby. His face is shadowed---I think he may know more than he lets on about either where the locker came from or who is inside it. Was his past checked out?
It would seem likely the bones were at one time in Iowa, or the mid-west at least. DNA testing could now likely shed light on this case, which was not readily available in 1992, when the bones were first analyzed by the Wyoming State crime lab.

[MarianFoster]

I grew up in Iowa and Hy-Vee stores were only in Iowa in the 50's and 60's. Not sure when they started expanding to other states but even in the 70's the odds are the bag is from Iowa.

I wonder if Gabby had any ties to Iowa?

[bell83]

Originally Posted by MarianFoster

I grew up in Iowa and Hy-Vee stores were only in Iowa in the 50's and 60's. Not sure when they started expanding to other states but even in the 70's the odds are the bag is from Iowa.

I wonder if Gabby had any ties to Iowa?

This actually got solved, recently.

"Sadly, Newel Sessions passed away in 2003. On October 25, 2017, the skeleton was identified as Joseph J. Mulvaney, born in 1923. Joseph's granddaughter, Shelley, helped lead to the identification. DNA testing with his daughter confirmed his identity. Investigators learned from his daughter that he had been shot and killed by her uncle, John David Morris (identified as "Gabby" in the segment), in 1960. After the murder, Morris buried Joseph in the footlocker in Iowa. At some point, Morris dug the trunk back up and transported it to Wyoming, where he was working. He then left the trunk behind with Newel. He later moved to Mississippi where he committed suicide.
Joseph's remains have been returned to his family and they will now be able to give him a proper burial."

[bell83]

Little more in depth write-up here:

http://jg-tc.com/news/local/bones-id...fed686938.html

[MarianFoster]

Originally Posted by bell83

This actually got solved, recently.

"Sadly, Newel Sessions passed away in 2003. On October 25, 2017, the skeleton was identified as Joseph J. Mulvaney, born in 1923. Joseph's granddaughter, Shelley, helped lead to the identification. DNA testing with his daughter confirmed his identity. Investigators learned from his daughter that he had been shot and killed by her uncle, John David Morris (identified as "Gabby" in the segment), in 1960. After the murder, Morris buried Joseph in the footlocker in Iowa. At some point, Morris dug the trunk back up and transported it to Wyoming, where he was working. He then left the trunk behind with Newel. He later moved to Mississippi where he committed suicide.
Joseph's remains have been returned to his family and they will now be able to give him a proper burial."

Fascinating! I can't believe he left that locker behind.

[Necco]

Originally Posted by MarianFoster

Fascinating! I can't believe he left that locker behind.

People do stupid things like leave trunks with bodies behind or forget to keep paying for the storage locker they left their victims in. A number of cases have had this happen. (general cases, not unsolved mysteries cases) For pete's sake, if you're going to leave a body in a storage locker, set up autopay, people!

[bell83]

Originally Posted by Necco

For pete's sake, if you're going to leave a body in a storage locker, set up autopay, people!

Note to self....

[Arnold_OldSchool]

Solved.

[thekingof8]

I was always fascinated by the facial reconstruction on the skull. I wonder what would come out if they did a reconstruction on one of those fake, plastic skulls or fish tank skulls.

[scarfish]

I do believe I once ran across a mugshot profile of Newell Sessions and he was arrested for child molestation. I know it’s off topic but just wanted to throw some gas on the fire