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Jessica Lyn Keen was born on September 24th, 1975 in Columbus, Franklin County, Ohio to Rebecca Keen Smitley and James Keen. She was 15-years-old an honor student and a cheerleader. Everyone loved her. Jessica composed music and wanted to become a singer or an actress. She also had a huge passion for animals. She was planing on studying Zoology when she got to college.
Things were going great for Jessica and then she met 18-year-old Shawn Thompson. Soon after she quit cheerleading. Her parents objected to her seeing Thompson. Jessica's grades started to suffer because she would skip school to see Thompson. Jessica and her mom began arguing a lot and couldn't stand to be around each other. Her parents didn't know what to do so they placed her, so on March 4th, 1991 they placed Jessica in a home for troubled teens called "Huckleberry House". For the first few weeks that Jessica attended counseling at the Huckleberry House, things seemed to be going well. She was making peace with her mistakes and owning up to the problems that she had caused. On March 15th, Jessica had a bad argument with Thompson over the phone that ended their relationship. After she departed Huckleberry House to go to the mall. Jessica was last seen alive at the bus stop at around 6 p.m. This was the day before she was going to be released to go home.
At 11 p.m., bed checks at Huckleberry revealed that Jessica hadn't returned. Jessica's mom was contacted and she was so concerned that she put in a missing persons' report with police. Jessica's mom thought that maybe she was with Thompson.
After being missing for two days, Jessica's body was found at the back of Foster Chapel Cemetery, 20 miles from Huckleberry. She had been raped and bludgeoned to death. She was wearing a mangled bra and one sock. She still had on her ring and watch, but a pendant with the word "taken" was nowhere to be found. Jessica had duct tape around her hands and her head covering her mouth.
Investigators believed that Jessica was abducted from the bus stop or coerced into a vehicle, raped, and held for at least six hours. Then sometime in the middle of the night on March 16th, she escaped from her attackers and ran towards the cemetery. Evidence showed that she hid behind several tombstones. One of her socks her knee print was found behind one of the tombstones. Also, one of the tombstones had her blood on it along with a big crack.
It is surmised that she saw a light from a farmhouse and while running towards it, she slammed into a fence post. This allowed her attackers to catch up with her. They raped her, beat her to death by hitting a tombstone against her head. This would explain the blow to the forehead and the evidence of rape that was discovered in her autopsy. The autopsy also showed that Jessica had no alcohol or drugs in her system.
Initially, the police directed their focus on Shawn, but he and several friends had left for Florida during the time that Jessica was killed, and DNA evidence cleared him in the case.
Crimestoppers anonymous and police together put up a reward on information in Jessica's murder.
Jessica's parents put a cross with her name on it where her body was discovered.
Jessica is buried 7 miles from the scene of her death, in Sunset Cemetery on Rt. 40 in Franklin County.
"I try to imagine her as older. . . . I dream about that, envision what her life would have been," said her sister, Heather. "But she'll always be just my little sister."
Chantal Lewis was Jessica 's best friend. "She was a very beautiful person," Lewis said. "She had this sparkle in her eye. You knew she was gonna be something."
Seventeen years later, based on DNA evidence taken from Jessica's body, Marvin Lee Smith was arrested for her abduction, rape, and murder. He had been charged with assaults against two Columbus women and was out on bond when she was killed. He eventually was convicted for the two Columbus attacks and served nine years in prison. Since he was a felon, he had to submit his DNA, which led to the match.
In 2009, Smith confessed to Jessica's murder to avoid the death penalty. His details from the confession matched with that at the crime scene. He also confirmed that he was the only person responsible. Smith revealed that he had used a seventy-pound tombstone to strike her over the head. In February 2009, he pled guilty to aggravated murder, kidnapping, and rape, and was sentenced to life in prison and will not be eligible for parole until 2038.
Joseph McStay was 40 years old and lived in Fallbrook, California with his 43 year old wife Summer and their sons Gianni (age 4) and Joseph Jr. (age 3). Everybody loved Joe, the boys were full of life and Summer was an amazing mom. She was very protective of her kids. Joe owned and operated Earth Inspired Products, a company that built decorative fountains, which he ran from home.
The family would spend their free time surfing and hanging out at the beach.
On the morning of Thursday, February 4th, 2010, Joe was talking on the phone with his dad, Patrick. He informed his father he was going to meet with a business associated around noon, so he had to get going. Summer spent the day overseeing the renovations being done on their house and planning for Joseph Jr's birthday party that weekend.
At lunch time Joe ate at a Chick-fil-a in the local mall. He had talked business with Chase Merrit. This was the last known sighting of Joe. Later that night, at 7:47 pm, a neighbor's surveillance system caught the McStay family's 1996 Isuzu Trooper driving off. In the surveillance recording, who was in the vehicle could not be seen.
At 8:28 pm, Joe's business associate, Merritt, received a call from Joe's phone, which went to voice mail. Merritt later told police that he ignored it because he was watching a movie. Joe's cellphone pinged a tower in Fallbrook. This was the last call made from Joe's phone.
On February 9th, Dan Kavanaugh, who managed Joe's business' website, contacted Patrick to inform him that he hadn't been able to get a hold of Joe or Summer for days. Patrick lived in Texas, so he called Joe's brother, Michael, who lived near Joe.
On February 10th, law enforcement was notified about the missing family. Officers went to the McStay's house, but did not go inside. The doors were locked and the police said that they didn't find anything suspicious so they left.
Merrit says he decided to go over to the McStay's house to check things out for himself. He drove past the house and saw the family's two dogs, Bear and Digger outside.
On February 13th, Michael drove to the McStay's house to see what is going on. Merrit met Michael there and they both climbed inside the house through an open window. Eggs were rotting on the kitchen counter and coffee grinds were scattered about. There was popcorn on the couch and clothes were thrown everywhere. Michael decided to wait a few days, to see if the family would show up before calling police.
On February 15th, Michael contacted the Sheriff's department, who went to the house to investigate and immediately notified homicide as per policy. The officers didn't seal off the residence, they simply locked the house back up and left to go get search warrants.
In the meantime, Joe's mother went to the McStay's home and cleaned up the kitchen. Investigators also let Joe's family and friends remove some items from the home.
Authorities also had put out a BOLO on the family's Isuzu and instantly got a hit. It had been impounded from a mall near the Mexican border, between 5 and 5:30 p.m., four days after the family had went missing.
On February 19th, the officers returned with warrants to fully search the home. They discovered that a week before the family disappeared, there was a search on the family's computer about getting passports to Mexico.
Summer's sister stated that her passport was expired
The McStay family had left their computers and the kids' stroller behind.
The McStay family had more than $100,000 in bank accounts, with no withdrawal of funds, and their accounts were untouched after their disappearance.
If the McStay family was going on a trip or running away or what have you, why didn't they empty their accounts?
Investigators also uncovered surveillance footage from the evening of February 8th, that showed a family of four resembling the McStays walking across the border into Mexico around 7 p.m.
If that had been the McStay family crossing the boarder, what did they do for an hour and a half before they crossed the boarder?
There was no surviellance footage of the McStay family from the mall, the bank or any of the stores between there and the border.
Why would the McStay family park their vehicle and walk over the border in the dark?
Patrick said that Summer was fearful of Mexico and would never take her kids there. He also stated that he was sure the people in the surveillance footage was not the Joe and his family.
Patrick was upset how the case had been handled so far and the direction it was being led into, so he contacted the head of a non-profit search and rescue organization, Tim Miller.
Miller traveled to California to investigate the McStay family disappearance. Miller recruited investigative journalist, Steph Watts for assistance.
They search the McStay home and are baffled that the authorities never sealed off the home as a crime scene. They find no signs of foul play, however they find no indications that the family was planning a trip.
The next day Miller and Steph travel to the Mexican border in the search for answers, but called off their search once the police had shown them the surveillance video of a family crossing the border.
The case went cold until the FBI took it over in 2013.
On November 11th, 2013 at 9:58 a.m., a motorcyclist called 911 to say he had found human remains while he was riding in the Mohave desert. When the sheriff's department arrived on scene, they found two shallow graves and four skeletons.
Two days later, the remains were identified being the missing McStay family. Their deaths were ruled a homicide and the authorities said they believed the family died of blunt force trauma. Investigators believed that the murder weapon was a 3-pound sledgehammer, which was found in the grave containing the remains of Summer and her son. They also believe that the family was tortured before death.
On November 15th, the San Bernardino sheriff's department took over the case. They re-interviewed and looked at everyone from the McStay's lives.
Michael had withdrew money from Joe's bank account in the first few weeks after the family disappeared. He also had sold off some of Joe's property. Michael claims he did that so the McStay's house wouldn't go into foreclosure.
Joe's business was worth more than a million dollars.
Kavanaugh had began withdrawing money from the business account starting on February 6th, 2010. Kavanaugh claims he had permission from the family to do this to use it to keep Joe's business going. In 2011, without the family's permission and even though he didn't own any part of the company, Kavanaugh sold Joe's business.
Merritt was the last known person to have had contact with Joseph McStay. Merritt had felony convictions for burglary and receiving stolen property. His most recent felony conviction, in 2001, was for the theft of $32,000 worth of welding and drilling equipment from San Gabriel Valley Ornamental Iron Works. An acquaintance of Merritt's told a San Diego reporter, "I think police should look at him and anyone associated with him."
Merritt alleged that Summer had anger issues and that Joseph had been ill for some time with a mysterious ailment. Joseph's family confirmed that he had an unexplained illness and that Summer was possessive of her husband, but they called Merritt's suggestion that she was responsible for his illness unfounded.
The McStays' relatives believe that Summer's email records show that her ex-boyfriend, Vick W. Johansen, was obsessed with Summer for years after their relationship ended. Johansen had a criminal history that included violent threats, felony vandalism, disturbing the peace, interfering with a business and resisting a peace officer. The family also said that his pattern of movement around the time of the disappearance was suspicious.
On November 5th, 2014, detectives from the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department arrested Merritt in connection with the deaths of the McStay family on the fact that they had recovered Merrit's DNA from their car. He was charged with four counts of murder, and the district attorney was seeking the death penalty.
Patrick was shocked and saddened that Merrit would do such a thing to Joe and his family. Patrick said that he thinks Merrit killed the family over money and that Joe possibly was going to fire Merrit before the family went missing.
Prosecutors alleged that Merritt's motive was a gambling problem, and that killed the family over money. They said that he wrote checks totaling more than $21,000 on Joseph's business account in the days after the family was killed, and then went on a gambling spree at nearby casinos, where he lost thousands of dollars.
Merritt's trial was had repeated delays and as of February 2016, he had gone through five attorneys.
In January 2018, a trial-setting conference was scheduled for February 23. Merritt's attorney filed a motion in San Bernardino Superior Court on April 7, 2018, arguing that Joseph's business and accounting records were hearsay evidence and therefore inadmissible. On May 4, the case was scheduled to go to trial in July 2018.
The trial finally began on January 7, 2019, in a San Bernardino court, with both sides making opening statements.
On June 10, 2019, a San Bernardino County jury found 62 year old Merritt guilty of murdering the McStay family. He could face the death sentence as a result.
On June 24th, 2019, a jury of 12 people recommended a sentence of death for Merritt, in counts two, three and four, but life in prison without the possibility of parole on count one.
The jury recommended Merritt be put to death for the murders of Summer McStay and her two young sons, but recommended life in prison without parole for the murder of Joseph McStay.
Merritt will be formally sentenced September 27th of this year.
It is expected that Merritt and his defense team will appeal the quadruple murder conviction. Do you agree that Merrit is guilty and that he acted alone?
Scholars were baffled when in Ashkelon, on the Southern coast of Israel, archaeologists discovered a sinister sight in the sewers under a Roman bathhouse. Someone had disposed of human beings down there, specifically human babies. All of the infants were the same age and with no signs of disease or skeletal malformation, suggested infanticide rather than a catastrophe such as epidemic. All the infants are thought to probably be girls because female infanticide was widespread in Roman society.
In a letter written in 1 B.C a husband instructs his pregnant wife, "if it is a boy keep it, if a girl discard it."
In Italy a bizarre discovery was made when archaeologists found a skeleton in an ancient necropolis. Dating back to the 6th to 8th centuries, the skeleton was of a man in his 40's or 50's. It is thought that he was a member of the mysterious German barbarians known as the Longobords. Instead of a hand, the man had a knife attached to his arm. His teeth on one side were worn down. The Archaeologists said that "The survival of this Longobard male testifies to community care, family compassion and a high value given to human life." There was also a headless horse and several greyhounds found in the necropolis.
It is an archaeological site in Peru and was the religious center of the Chavin people and the capital of the Chavin culture. The Chavin culture dates back more than 3,000 years.
In 2018, researchers used small robots to travel underneath the largest existing temple of the site. These robots made their way through cracks in the stone work and, to the amazement of the researchers, found a large network of tunnels. Inside these 30 interlocking tunnels human remains and other artifacts were found.
Researches aren't exactly sure what the tunnels were used for or if there is more of them yet to be discovered. Some theorize that they were used to trap people and use them for secret rituals involving hallucinogenic plants and sacrifice.
The site was described as “the birthplace of South American culture."
In 2018, a terrible drought parched the Elbe river as this area suffered record heatwaves. As the water level of the river dropped, frightening messages carved into rock were revealed. These 700 year old inscriptions reminds us of the brutal wars raged over the precious resource known as water.
One of the inscriptions reads:
"If you again see this stone, so will you weep, so shallow was the water in the year 1417."
Another inscription expressed that drought had brought a bad harvest, lack of food, high prices and hunger for poor people.
No one knows what happened to the authors of the stones.
The Hunger stones are among the oldest hydro-logical landmarks in Central Europe.
Recently in China, at a site called Shimao. a new excavation revealed an enormous walled settlement topped with a stepped pyramid. The 4,000 year old pyramid is massive. It stands 229 feet tall and totals eleven separate platforms.
Originally mistaken for part of China's Great Wall, this Bronze Age site was built on at least six pits full of decapitated human heads(all of young women) which served as a building sacrifice.
Experts are in awe at this complex society they didn't even know existed. Researchers say that this walled settlement is not only the largest of its time in ancient China, but was also among the largest centers in the world.
This finding calls into question the traditional text-based narrative in which Chinese civilization supposedly arose on the Central Plains and then spread to other regions.
Some experts theorize that this finding is evidence of a pyramid culture with connections to the same rituals and buildings seen in South America and Africa at the time.
It is not clear what happened that caused the pyramid to be abandoned and fall into ruin. But archaeological excavations are ongoing, so more answers might be coming.
Hadrian's Wall is in the UK and was a defensive fortification used by the Romans to keep tribes, in what is now modern day Scotland, from attacking their settlements.
In 2018, in a fort next to the wall, a hand made of solid bronze was unearthed. Some believe the hand was connected to the worship of an ancient god known as Jupiter Dolichenus whose mysterious cult was widespread in the Roman Empire from the early-2nd to mid-3rd centuries AD. It was possible that the hand was placed there on purpose in celebration of victory against Scottish tribes during the Roman invasion. In one account of the Roman invasion, written by famous Roman writer of the time, Cassius Dio, the Roman army was going to annihilate the Scottish tribes.
“We are not going to leave a single one of them alive, down to the babies in their mothers’ wombs, not even they must live. The whole people must be wiped out of existence, with none to shed a tear for them, leaving no trace.”
A mass grave containing the remains of 54 dismembered skeletons, and 51 skulls in a pile were discovered in June of 2009 when archaeologists excavating in preparation for the anticipated Weymouth Relief Road in the seaside town of Weymouth in Dorset, England. The archaeologists realized that the bones were inside of a pit and whoever buried them had arranged them into specific piles according to body parts. None of the remains show any sign of battle wounds and no clothing or other remnants were found within the pit.The archaeologists discovered that these were remains of Scandinavian Vikings and that the pit was a Roman quarry.It has yet to be determined what exactly happened to the Vikings or why their remains were neatly arranged.
It is an ancient stone tablet in Sumerian writing. It is a list of the kings of ancient southern Iraq and neighboring dynasties. The Sumerian's long dead civilization is one of the oldest on record. Their civilization appeared to have a keen understanding of objects in outer space that can't be seen with the naked eye. It lists historical events which line up with accounts from the Old Testament. The kings seemed to have divine power and many believed that they were gods or multidimensional creatures.
They are a system of glyphs and were discovered in the 19th century on Easter Island. These inscriptions were carved onto two dozen wooden objects with weird shapes of distorted humans with large eyes on the outside of their heads. Some theorize that this shapes depict evil non human creatures. Experts have yet to decipher what the symbols mean due to the fact that when they were found they had been heavily weathered, burned, or otherwise damaged, None of the objects remain on the island. They are all scattered in museums and private collections.
It was discovered in 1902 when workers cutting cisterns (water tanks) for a new housing development broke through its roof. It is located in Paola, Malta and dates back at least 4,500 years. The underground labyrinth is made from soft globigerina limestone and consists of three levels.
Upper level-Some of the chambers were used for burial. Remains of more than 7,000 people have been found inside. Some of the skulls have strange elongations and shapes.
Middle level-
The main chamber- itswalls are red with clay and it is where the "Sleeping Lady" was discovered. The clay figure thought to represent a mother goddess.
The Oracle Room- It's one of the smallest chambers and has an elaborately painted ceiling, consisting of spirals in red clay with circular spots and spirals. It has been carved to produce echo anomaly.
Decorated Room- It is near the Oracle Room and is a spacious hall, circular, with inward slanting smooth walls, richly decorated in a geometrical pattern of spirals. On the right side wall of the entrance is a image of a human hand carved into the rock.
Holy of Holies- is the center room of the labyrinth and appears to be oriented toward the winter solstice.
Lower level- It contained no bones or offerings, only water. It is thought that this was the storage area for grain.
Excavations began in November of 1903 by Manuel Magri on behalf of the Museums Committee. Some of the grave goods and human remains, were emptied out and discarded without being properly cataloged. Also, Magri died in 1907 while conducting missionary work in Tunisia and his report on the Hypogeum was lost.
Excavation continued under Sir Themistocles Zammit, who attempted to salvage what he could and continued excavating until 1911.
The labyrinth opened to visitors in 1908 while the excavations were ongoing. Real attempts to preserve the site started in 1991 when it closed for a decade to arrange it for visits. In 2011, a more intensive program was launched to monitor the decay of the site.The labyrinth reopened in May 2017 after being closed for a year.
Some say that the labyrinth was built for religious purposes.
Natasha Roseanna Boykin was born on February 5th, 1985 to Angel King. She was a native of Florida and had resided in St. Augustine since 2003. She was a petite girl just under 5 feet tall. Natasha was very vibrant and bubbly. She loved to spend time with her family and friends. Natasha always wanted to take care of people, but she was also strong willed. Natasha was working at "Aunt Kate's"Restaurant. One of her close friends had just been killed in Iraq and she was going through a divorce. She had started a relationship with Willis Casey White whom she had met at a skeet shooting club. Their families had revolved in the same social circles. He was 15 years older than Natasha. Supposedly, he told her that they only could go out on certain days of the week, but he also didn't want her seeing anyone else. Casey was also recently divorced and he claimed he just wanted to move slowly with their relationship. Angel says her daughter was skeptical of his claims and thought that maybe he was seeing someone else. This made Natasha send Casey a text on November 10th, 2009.
"I really feel like i have a hole in my heart because of this. I'm sorry i came on too strong, i'm sorry i cared and i'm sorry i wanted to be with you so much. i guess i was wrong and i am sorry. i will not do it."
Casey tells Natasha that he is going out with some buddies and in turn Natasha decides to make plans with one of her friends, Miranda. Before leaving for the night, Natasha says to her mother that she has something she wants to tell her that might make her mad, but she can't tell her right now. She does tell her mother that "You were right, all along."
It was in the early morning on November 11th, 2009 when Natasha's mother received a tragic call. Natasha's body was found at her boyfriends parents rental detached garage apartment with a single gun shot wound to the chest. The bullet somehow shot through Natasha's breast implant, but didn't leave a hole or a drop of blood on her bra, and went straight through her heart. Natasha's jeans were unzipped, her panties turned inside out. Police bring people in for questioning to try to find out what transpired leading up to Natasha's death. Natasha's friend, Miranda, tells police that she and Natasha decided to have a girls' night out and hit up a few bars along Jackson Beach. However, it didn't stay a girls night very long. Miranda and Natasha ran into Casey and his friends at a bar called "The Ritz". Casey was brought in for questioning as well. He stated that he and Natasha had a great time at The Ritz and he'd hope to see her later that night at his house. He said that Natasha left first and then he left two hours later. Casey said that he was expecting to find Natasha curled up in his bed, instead he claims to have found her dead on the floor. The gun that she had allegedly used was was Casey's .357 magnum that he kept by his bed. He said that Natasha was lying on her back with one hand on her chest. Casey says that he didn't touch or move Natasha, but he did pick up the gun and put it back where he says it was supposed to be. He says then he made the call to 911, which was emotionless. At the crime scene, there is a trail of blood that starts in the bathroom and leads through the house. There are also fresh bruises found on Natasha's forehead, neck and other parts of her body. Natasha had blood on the inside of her pant leg. Even though Casey says he didn't touch Natasha, police say that it appears she was rolled onto her back after she was shot. Authorities claim that Casey did move the body, but forgot that he did. Police do a gun shot residue test on Natasha and Casey's hands, both come up positive.
In crime scene photos, to some people it appears that Casey has burnt gun powder particles on his forehead and eyebrow, which was never tested. Casey claims that it is dirty or something, probably from the bushes in the driveway.
Some say that in this crime scene picture that it looks like Casey has a gun holster on his ankle. The autopsy stated that there were almost four pints of blood missing from Natasha's body, but at the crime scene there was only 1/4 of a pint of blood found. The police and medical examiner come to the official cause of death as suicide and that Natasha's "suicide" text to Casey proves it.
"At your apartment and using your gun thanks for keeping it loaded."
This completely stuns family and friends who think that Natasha was murdered. Angel hired private investigator, David Hodges to find out once and for all if Natasha had killed herself or if foul play was involved. David Hodges had been an investigator for 28 years who had worked hundreds of cases. He says that he has found evidence that cops have ignored, like the fingerprint that was clearly visible on the gun that was lying beside Natasha on the floor, which police never tested. Hodges also wants to know how Natasha's bra didn't have any bullet holes in it. Police say that the holes in Natasha's shirt matched up wit the trajectory of the bullet and where it was found in the mattress. Hodges and his team used cellphone tower pings and discovered that Natasha didn't send that "suicide" text while she was at Casey's apartment and that she was on the move at the time. He thinks that someone else sent the text from Natasha's phone. After Hodges concluded his investigation, he came to the conclusion that Natasha was a victim of murder and not suicide. He believes that Natasha was killed somewhere else and then was taken to Casey's apartment where her death was staged to look like a suicide. Angel also brought in renowned forensic pathologist, Dr. Jonathan Arden, who had previously worked the Chandra Levy and the D.C. Sniper cases. He said that the "dirt" on Casey's forehead seemed to be stippling, which means that he was at least within two feet of the gun when it was fired. When Arden looked closely at the pictures of Natasha's shirt he said that it looked like her shirt was bunched up when she was shot. Like maybe there was an altercation going on at the time. Arden said that there should have been a hole in the back strap of Natasha's bra. He stated that she either wasn't wearing her bra or it had been slid up or was unfastened at the time she was shot and then put on or fastened up later. Arden also comes to the conclusion that Natasha was murdered. And he thinks that at least her manner of death should be changed to undetermined. It's a year after Natasha's death and Angel contacts the local sheriff's department and shows them Arden's findings. Then Casey is brought back in for more questioning and they ask him to take a lie detector test. He was asked three questions.
"Did you see Natasha shoot herself?"
"Were you there when Natasha shot herself?"
"When Natasha shot herself, were you there?"
To all three questions he answered no. Police say that Casey passed the test.
Angel said that she wasn't surprised that Casey passed, because they asked the wrong questions. That he passed because Natasha didn't shoot herself.
Do you think it was murder or suicide? I think there are some things that don't add up. That doesn't necessarily mean that she was murdered. I do think that at the very least Casey isn't 100 percent truthful of what went on that night. I wish that the particles on Casey's forehead had been tested and a more thorough investigation would have been done. Then one way or the other i think it would be more clear what happened.
On a side note, Casey got involved in a relationship with Natasha's best friend. Also, according to Angel, Casey was good friends with the local police.
A 57 year old German man was sentenced to life in prison for poisoning his colleagues' sandwiches with dangerous heavy metals. 21 of his victims died and two victims have been left with serious kidney damage and a third is in a vegetative state after falling into a coma. Even though the man refused to speak during his trial and the motive for his actions is still unclear. However, a mental health expert for the prison service told the court that the defendant wanted to see how the poison would affect his colleagues, like a scientist performing tests on a rabbit.
Enceladus is Saturn's fifth largest moon. It is mostly covered by fresh, clean ice.
NASA’s Cassini probe sampled a plume of material erupting from Enceladus’s surface and discovered the surface of the moon could be much more hospitable to life than previously believed.
The oceans of the moon has concentrations of carbon dioxide and hydrogen and a Earthlike pH level could provide fuel for living microbes. Is there an extraterrestrial world hidden below the surface?
In April police ended their two month search at a Colorado landfill for Kelsey Berreth's remains. No trace of Kelsey was found. Now, with the trial against Kelsey's ex, Patrick Frazee, on the horizon, Krystal Lee Kenny is preparing to testify for the prosecution. Kelsey Berreth was a 29-year-old flight instructor from Woodland Park, Colorado. She hasn’t been seen in public since Thanksgiving afternoon 2018, when surveillance video captured her with her and Frazee's daughter entering a local market.
Kyrstal Kenney Lee was a nurse and became romantically involved with Frazee prior to Kelsey's disappearance.
Lee told police that Frazee took matters into his own hands. Lee claims that Frazee wrapped a sweater around Kelsey Berreth's head and fatally beat her with a baseball bat at her home on Thanksgiving Day. She says then he allegedly called her to help come clean up the mess and help get ride of the evidence.
On April 13th, 1993, George H. W. Bush was targeted in an assassination plot when he visited Kuwait to commemorate the coalition's victory over Iraq in the Gulf War. This happened 25 months after U.S.-led forces chased Iraqi troops out of Kuwait in the first Gulf War and three months after Bush Sr. surrendered the White House to Bill Clinton.
The terrorists were believed to be working for Saddam Hussein when they smuggled bombs into Kuwait. The plot was foiled when Kuwaiti officials found the bomb and arrested 17 people who were allegedly involved in using a car bomb in an attempt to kill Bush. Two of the suspects, Wali Abdelhadi Ghazali and Raad Abdel-Amir al-Assadi, retracted their confessions at the trial. They claimed that their confessions were extracted by repeated beatings. At the time, Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International expressed strong doubts that the trials could be fair, noting that it had received credible reports of severe beatings meted out to defendants accused of capital crimes in Kuwait. The FBI established that the plot had been directed by the Iraqi Intelligence Service. A Kuwaiti court later convicted all but one of the defendants.
Two months after the attack, then-president Bill Clinton responded by launching a cruise missile attack on an Iraqi intelligence building in Baghdad. The plot was used as one of the justifications for the Iraq Resolution, which authorized the use of the United States Armed Forces against Saddam Hussein's Iraq government in what would be known as Operation Iraqi Freedom.
The day before the strike, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Madeleine Albright went before the Security Council to present evidence of the Iraqi plot.
Then Vice President Al Gore said the attack "was intended to be a proportionate response at the place where this plot" to assassinate Bush "was hatched and implemented" A closer look at the plot, in light of the findings by the Iraq Survey Group (ISG), the special team of experts that spent 15 months investigating Baghdad's WMD programs, brings forth doubts that Saddam was behind it.
According to the report, Saddam was convinced that the CIA had thoroughly penetrated his regime, even though they hadn't. This led him to believe they would know not only that he had dismantled his WMD, but also would know about his plans for important intelligence operations. So if Saddam thought that the CIA would probably know of the assassination attempt ahead of time, why would he order it in the first place?
Also according to the report, while Saddam derived ''prestige'' from being an enemy of the U.S., he also considered it to be ''equally prestigious for him to be an ally of the United States, and regular entreaties were made during the last decade to explore this alternative''.
The report stated that high ranking Iraqis made proposals through intermediaries for dialogue with Washington.
''Baghdad offered flexibility on many issues, including offers to assist in the Israel- Palestine conflict. Moreover, in informal discussions, senior officials allowed that, if Iraq had a security relationship with the United States, it might be inclined to dispense with WMD programs and/or ambitions,'' it added.
The report even concluded that Iraq was willing to be Washington's ''best friend".
Saddam was bewildered at Bush's and Clinton's lack of interest according to the report.
"Saddam seems to be not a madman, but someone who would understand very well the consequences of an assassination'', notes Gregory Thielmann, a former senior State Department analyst who specialized in Iraq's WMD programs. ''If his top priority was getting the (UN economic) sanctions lifted, then it doesn't follow that he would try to kill the president of the United States.''
He was born on October 3, 1978 in Glenville, Fairfield County, Connecticut to Maureen and George Smith. He had played football in high school.
He was 26 years-old and with his father, he managed the Cos Cob Liquor Store in Glenville. George was 6’2” tall and a quiet and friendly guy. His caring and compassionate nature, witty sense of humor and zest for life made him someone family and friends loved to be around. His friends from both home and college meant the world to him, and he considered them all to be his family.
George Smith and Jennifer Hagel had been together since June 8th, 2002.
On June 25, 2005, George and Jennifer married at cliff side ceremony in Newport, Rhode Island.
For their honey moon eleven days after they walked down the aisle, they embarked on a romantic 12-day Mediterranean cruise.
George and Jennifer, were on their honeymoon in waters between Greece and Turkey on the Royal Caribbean ship "Brilliance of the Seas."
They had a balcony stateroom on the 9th deck of the ship.
On July 4th, 2005, halfway through their honeymoon cruise, they spent the day ashore in Mykonos.
At night, they returned to the ship and changed for dinner. They had a romantic dinner in one of the shipboard restaurants, afterwards they went to the casino to meet up with another couple also on their honeymoon. They also connected with several young men that they had met on the cruise.
There was a rumor on the ship that George was carrying large sums of money, and a report that both George and Jennifer had talked about how people were stuffing cash into their pockets at their wedding. Their was also rumors that they had brought all the money with them on the cruise.
When the casino closed at 2:30 a.m., they moved on with their friends to the disco. They were all drinking heavily, and Jennifer began flirting with other men, including one of the casino staff. At some point, someone brought out a bottle of absinthe.
It was around 3:25 a.m., Jennifer and George got into an argument, and at least three witnesses said that they were both very drunk, and that Jennifer kicked her husband in the groin before walking out of the disco.
Later, Jennifer said that George was mixing alcohol with his prescription medications, Zoloft and Clonazepam.
Around 4 a.m. on July 5th, 2005, passengers heard loud noises, including scuffling and a thud, coming from Smith's cabin and called security. But no cruise line employees entered the cabin or called to determine what was happening. Cleaning personnel would later find Jennifer unconscious lying in the alcove some 400 feet away from her cabin. Security personnel would then take her by wheelchair back her empty cabin, where the cruise line security personnel put her in bed, turn out the lights, and closed the door.
The ship docked in Kusadasi, Turkey, at 6:14 a.m., and passengers were cleared to go ashore at 6:39 a.m.
When Jennifer awoke on the morning of July 5th, she was not immediately concerned that George was not in their room. She believed he had continued partying after she went to bed and had simply fallen asleep in their new friends’ room, as had happened once before. She and George had appointments at the ship’s spa for massages, so she went to the spa to keep her appointment. Jennifer thought that George would join her there when he woke up.
Around 8:30 a.m., several passengers on their balconies noticed a large bloodstain on one of the lifeboat canopies.
16 year-old cruise passenger Emilie Rausch took a photograph of the large blood stain, with a hand print off the side of it, on the awning. Blood was also found on the Smiths’ balcony railing, in their cabin, and on the side of the ship.
A search of the ship initially showed three missing passengers: George and Jennifer Smith, and Josh Askin. Jennifer was located in the ship’s spa shortly before 10 a.m., and Josh Askin was also found.
Three officers told Jennifer that George was missing. When questioned, Jennifer said she did not remember anything after leaving the casino until she woke up in their room that morning.
After looking at the electronic trail of their movements and looking at surveillance footage and talking to witnesses, a basic timeline of events were constructed.
3:30 a.m- The disco closed and George and his friends went back to his room. When George realized that Jennifer was not with them, he asked the other men to help him locate her, but they were unable to find her.
4:02 a.m.-They all returned to George’s room where the partying apparently continued.
Between 4:00 and 4:30 a.m.- George’s companions returned to their own room and ordered room service, even taking pictures of the food.
Around 4 a.m.-The passengers in the neighboring rooms, Cletus Hyman, a law enforcement officer and Pat and Greg Lawyer, said they heard what sounded like a loud party and a drinking contest in the Smiths’ room that night.
4:05 a.m.- Mr. Hyman called the Guest Relations desk to complain about the noise. He thought he heard at least one voice out in the corridor, and then what he describes as an argument on the balcony that lasted about a minute, involving three voices.
Around 4:15 a.m.- Mr Hyman heard voices saying “good night” softly and when he looked out his door, he saw three men walking away. Pat and Greg Lawyer who were staying on the other side of the Smiths’ room also called Guest Relations to complain about the noise. They said they heard three male voices talking quietly outside their room and believed two of the men spoke with accents.
Then Smiths’ neighbors heard someone talking in a conversational tone in the Smiths’ room, and sounds like furniture was pushed around and cabinets being opened and closed, as though the room was either being put back in order or searching for something.
Mr. Hyman said there was only one voice speaking, and after about ten minutes, the voice moved to the balcony, where he heard one of the metal balcony chairs being moved. It was quiet for a minute or so, and then he heard what he described as “a horrific thud” coming from the Smiths’ balcony, strong enough that he felt the vibration in his room. He said his first thought was that someone had fallen on the balcony. He did not hear anyone leave through the Smiths’ door, which he normally did.
4:30 a.m- Security personnel finally responded to Mr. Hyman’s call about the loud noise in the neighboring room. Everything by now was quiet. Mr. Lawyer suggested they might want to enter the room because it sounded as though the room was being trashed, but when the security staff knocked and there was no response, they left.
Shortly after 4:30 a.m.- Jennifer was discovered passed out in a corridor on Deck Nine, but on the other side of the ship from her own room. She was too disoriented to find the correct room but was able to tell the staff who she was and her room number. Crew members stayed with Jennifer while two other staff went to her cabin to try to find George.
4:45 a.m.- Unaware of the first visit by security staff just a few minutes earlier, the crew members entered the room around looking for George and found the room empty.
4:57 a.m.-Two security officers and a female crew member took Jennifer by wheelchair back to the Smiths’ cabin and helped her to bed. As they were leaving, Mr. Hyman stuck his head out the door and mentioned that he had heard commotion in the room about an hour earlier. The security personnel said that they had seen nothing amiss and then left.
George was reported missing to the Turkish police. The captain insisted that Jennifer leave the ship in order to undergo a day of interrogation by Turkish officials. Josh Askin, one of the men who had been partying with the Smiths, was also taken ashore to be questioned by police.
6 p.m.- Captain Lachtaridis had the crew wash the bloodstain away and prepared to depart for the ship’s next port of call. When Brilliance of the Seas returned to the Bahamas, the captain filed George’s disappearance a “probable accident.” The Turkish police and Royal Caribbean turned over their findings to the FBI, who didn't board the ship until two days later, including over 100 security tapes from various points on the ship.
The last people that George was seen with were Josh Askin of California and three Russian-Americans, brothers Greg and Zachary Rozenberg and their cousin Rostislav “Rusty” Kofman of Brooklyn. All four men were in their late teens or early twenties. The Turkish police interviewed Askin, but none of the others. When contacted by the FBI, they insisted that they had all left George’s room by 4:15 a.m. and returned to Kofman’s room to order room service. Askin said he returned to his own room around 5:15 a.m. All insist George was alive and well when they left him in his own room.
The young Russian men had already been warned by ship personnel regarding their behavior and during the 48 hours after George vanished, there were several more incidents involving them. All 13 people, Kofman, the Rozenberg family, and the Askin family, were removed from the ship in Italy after an alleged sexual assault on a female passenger that at least two of the young men participated in and videotaped.
The Turkish police investigated the crime scene for about two hours, but were rushed off the boat so that the cruise ship could continue on to its next scheduled port of call.
Jennifer and a crew member stayed with her from the moment she learned that George was missing until she left Turkey to return home.
The Smiths’ room was sealed to preserve a potential crime scene.
January 2006- Royal Caribbean allowed forensic specialist Dr. Henry Lee aboard to collect forensic evidence from the Smiths’ room. He collected samples, photographed the scene and took measurements. However, they wouldn't let him to his experiments involving throwing a dummy off the balcony.
May 2012- A video, that the FBI had in their possession since 2005, was released to the public. It was taken the day George disappeared while the search for him was underway. In it it shows the four men that were with George prior to his disappearance. They were in the dining room, on board the Brilliance of the Seas, sitting around and talking about his death and apparently mocking him. The four men took the video themselves, apparently passing around a flip phone. At the end of the video one of the men stands up, hunches his shoulders, and flashes gang signs saying, “Told ya I was gangsta.”
Jennifer received a $1.1 million settlement from Royal Caribbean in 2006. George’s family challenged the settlement and Jennifer's position as executor of her husband's estate, but a probate court approved the settlement and the ruling was upheld in Superior Court in 2008. A portion of the money went to create a charitable fund in George's name. Included in the settlement was an agreement from Royal Caribbean to turn over the evidence they collected at the time of George's disappearance from their own internal investigation.
“I have no doubt in my mind whatsoever that my son was murdered on that cruise ship,” explained George’s mother.
George's parents didn’t approve of the ship giving their son’s belongings, which they say may have held forensic value, to Jennifer.
“The evidence will be given to a woman whose whereabouts are unknown when George was thrown overboard,” says the Smith family. “A woman who has done everything in her power to stop us from finding out what happened to George on July 5, 2005…”
George's body has never been found.
Did you know that an article about George’s disappearance was deleted from Wikipedia?
