In the aftermath of the 1979 disappearance of Etan Patz from

Were Two Best Friends Victims of a Serial Killer

canada goose uk outlet It has been 21 years since two best friends left their apartment in Glendale, Ariz., and never returned. On May 26, 1996, the young women walked to the buy canada goose jacket corner market and were never seen alive again. canada goose uk outlet

Twenty year old Diana Shawcroft and 19 year old Jennifer Lueth had recently moved to the Phoenix/Glendale area of Arizona from Loveland, Colo., and were living with Diana’s older sister Tina Frigo. The girls had been inseparable growing up.

buy canada goose jacket cheap Shortly after moving to Arizona, Diana began working at Discover Card and Jenny at Burger King. Things were off to a good start. Jenny called her parents, Bob and Deb Leuth, in Loveland nearly every day. buy canada goose jacket cheap

The evening of their disappearance, Diana told Tina, that she and Jenny were taking a quick walk up to canadian goose jacket the local convenience store in the vicinity of the 5900 block of Camelback in Glendale. She said they planned to buy cigarettes and a soda and would return soon. H19-307 It was the last time Tina saw Canada Goose online her little sister Diana, or her best friend Jenny.

Initially, there wasn’t cause for real concern when the two girls did not arrive back home that evening. Life was an adventure and, being new to the area, they looked forward to making new friends. However, by the following morning, Tina began to worry when she noticed the two had not canada goose outlet taken anything with them. When Tina canada goose clearance realized their makeup was left in the apartment (which they never left home without), she contacted her father, Rodger Shawcroft, who lives locally, and her mother, Kathy Shawcroft, who still resided in Colorado at the time. Word the girls were missing then quickly Canada Goose sale made its way to Jenny’s parents Robert and Deborah Lueth, who were also Colorado residents. Panic set in. The clerk indicated they were there for some length of time when a man pulled up in a blue truck, believed to be a Chevrolet model with possibly faded paint. The girls talked to the man for a while, got into the vehicle with the stranger and drove away. This is where the mystery begins.

The clerk described the man as a white male in his 30 s, with a blonde mullet hairstyle and wearing a blue denim jacket. Detectives made a composite sketch. After contacting police, the family then contacted me. At the time, I was the Chief Executive Officer and founder of the Nation’s Missing Children Organization, Inc. (NMCO), in Phoenix. Shortly after founding the agency in 1994, we discovered few resources for families existed who had an adult loved one missing. Diana and Jennifer’s disappearance was a pivotal point in time that would determine the future of my agency.

When a child goes missing it pulls at America’s heartstrings, but these were, legally, young adult women.

Missing Children vs. Missing AdultsIn 1984, President Ronald Reagan proclaimed May 25th, National Missing Children and appropriated funding to create the first national clearinghouse for missing children. In the aftermath of the 1979 disappearance of Etan Patz from New York, and the 1981 murder of Adam Walsh, the National Center for Missing Exploited Children was created by Congress, to address the many disappearances of children in the United States. The center was congressionally mandated to assist law enforcement and families of missing children, birth to 17 years old.

cheap Canada Goose Having opened NMCO in 1994, I knew individuals who were 18 or older when they disappeared did not receive the same Canada Goose Outlet national resources or attention as missing children. After Diana and Jenny disappeared, I quickly found out how much these families needed the same services. H12-224 Accordingly, cheap Canada Goose I formally expanded the charter of my agency to accept cases of missing adults. That decision eventually would eventually lead to a law being passed by Congress, though it would take years. cheap Canada Goose

The Physical SearchThe Shawcroft family immediately began searching places the girls frequented locally and even followed canada goose coats on sale a lead suggesting they may have gone to Mexico as the beach is a popular Memorial Day weekend getaway for teens and young adults.

buy canada goose jacket The canada goose clearance sale team at NMCO began making thousands of fliers, enlisting the community’s help to distribute them throughout the Valley. Ground searches focused on popular spots like the Lakes Bartlett and Pleasant, the Salt River, and watering holes, and the Dunes in nearby California. buy canada goose jacket

canada goose We began a monumental media campaign and engaged the help of KTVK, KNXV, KPHO, KSAZ and local Hispanic news stations. Local companies like Sterling Meat Company, Alliant Food Company, and Metropolitan Mattress offered to place large full color vinyl posters on their trucks providing increased public awareness throughout Arizona. canada goose

canada goose store Rodger Shawcroft worked night and day searching for his daughter Diana. We teamed up with volunteers to pass out fliers, apply vinyl posters to vehicles, and conducted ground searches. canada goose store

The police followed leads called in by concerned citizens, people offering help, and even psychics who were adamant they knew where the girls were located.

Canada Goose Parka Diana’s mother, Kathy Shawcroft, relocated from Colorado to Arizona to search for her youngest daughter. The family was consumed with finding Diana and Jenny, spending hours searching the desert canada goose black friday sale for any sign of the two girls. Canada Goose Parka

canada goose uk black friday Bob and Deb Leuth moved to Phoenix and stayed in a motel room to search for their daughter. For the next three months, both families maintained an exhaustive search for their missing daughters. canada goose uk black friday

canadian goose jacket Days and nights passed, then weeks, and then months. So many people who refused to give up their search for two beautiful young women who vanished without a trace. Two families who refused to give up hope. canadian goose jacket

canada goose coats on sale Grotesque DiscoveryThree months after Diana and Jenny’s disappearance, two hunters in Yavapai County made a grotesque discovery in an isolated desert location, approximately 100 miles north of Phoenix on Dugas Rd., nearly canada goose coats 20 miles east of I 17. The bodies of Diana and Jenny had been hidden on a small rock ridge, out of sight from the dirt road, canada goose store overlooking the vast Verde Valley below. canada goose coats on sale

Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office had now joined the Glendale Police Department in a murder investigation. The cause of Diana and Jenny’s death was a homicide, though police never released the details of how they were killed other than to say the killer had placed Diana’s body on top of Jenny’s.

Above the Canada Goose Parka area where the girls’ bodies had been dumped, there was a clearing. One has a clear 360 degree clear view of the surrounding area. From here, one could spot a car approaching a mile away, especially at night.

canada goose black friday sale Hunting is popular off Dugas Road (Forest Road 68), as the road is the only way into the isolated area of high desert from the west, off I 17. canada goose black friday sale

canada goose uk shop Police were confident the killer knew the area and possibly even hunted in the vicinity. The rock ledge where the bodies had been placed was a perfect perch for a hunter who might have glassed for elk, antelope or mule deer that seek shade during the day and emerge in the early evening. canada goose uk shop

The buttes and hills offer clear vantage points to see game. The months between April and July are not big game hunting months, so during this time, in this rugged desert, it is quite possible to never see a passer canada goose by, let alone hear someone scream.

canada goose factory sale At the time, police were fairly certain the killer was very strong or more than one person was involved because it would have been very difficult to subdue them both. Jenny was known as very protective and a scrapper. Her family knew she would have fought for her life aggressively. One can only speculate how Diana and Jenny were lured to such a secluded area, but they may have been told they were meeting up with others at a desert party. canada goose factory sale

The evening of Canada Goose Jackets the discovery of Diana and Jenny’s badly decomposed bodies, news stations reported the grisly find. Law enforcement made a public plea to anyone who may know about the deaths to please come forward.

Canada Goose Outlet Homicide Detective Bruce Foremny at Glendale Police Department secured a $1,000 reward, and we further enlisted help from local media to encourage yokosukabase.com the public to anonymously call SILENT WITNESS. Canada Goose Outlet

canada goose clearance Dell Webb offered a $25,000 reward. The thousands of missing persons fliers were transformed into “Unsolved Homicide” fliers with red print across each. canada goose clearance

Both families, devastated by their unimaginable loss, remained dedicated to finding out who murdered the two friends. Their public pleas for help continued, although the focus had now changed to seeking justice for Diana and Jenny and helping police get a killer off the street.

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