Sarah Was Not Even In The Guest House That Day. However, he did not elaborate any further. (The Canadian Press) A man convicted of the mass murder of a family nearly 40 years ago revealed chilling details of his crime Wednesday as the Parole Board of Canada once again rejected his. I put the bodies in the car, four in the back seat, and the two little ones in the trunk. Apparently the agency was concerned that multiple reports of his movements might influence the Canadian authorities interest in the case, or the lengths to which they would go to track the suspect downeven if he had fled across the border. I think you sexually abused those girls before you killed them. Shearing said he looked in, told them a dangerous biker gang was around and their parents had run for help. "More than eight decades after the mysterious blaze, the Harris fire of 1933 remains a riddle," he writes. Did Government Officials Cover Up a Lethal Ohio School Poisoning? The day prior to the shootings Dianes sister testified that just the day before the murders, Sarah had asked for the keys to the gun safe.. I know the mans heart is in the right place and Im just here to back him up.. Where: Diamond Lake Lutheran Church, 5760 Portland Av. The remains of Alvira Johnson and her seven kids Harold, 10; Clifford, 9; Kenneth, 7; Dorothy, 5; Bernice, 4; Lester, 2, and James, 4 months were buried in a single casket. Johnson's brother, Anthony, 22, and a family friend, Michael Gunn, 27, are serving life sentences after having been found guilty of first-degree murder in separate trials for their involvement in . His father, since deceased, had once been a prison guard and his brother was a sheriff. It had been burned using an accelerant, probably gasoline mixed with something else. At other times, they pound away like a pile driver.". She was also a victim of domestic abuse. But for a cruel act of fate, those two precious little girls would be alive today.. Beautiful family that loved her, bright future ahead of her but she let herself think she was in love with this big time loser and killed her parents over him?? His second application, in 2012, was also rejected when a petition with 13,258 signatures was presented to the National Parole Board. Their time near the beautiful Wells Gray Park was cut short by a sadistic, brutal killer obsessed with young girls. Coincidentally, David Shearing was one of the first individuals to have been interviewed by RCMP after the investigation started when the two families were discovered in the car. Then, RCMP Constable Ken Leibel hiked through the bush to the fishing cabin. In August 1982, a family of six set out on what was supposed to be an idyllic two-week camping trip. Well, Im here to collect, David, and Im not taking no for an answer.. Some leads generated from all the publicity through investigators seriously off the scent. In 1995 he married a woman from Prince Albert, Saskatchewan. Because of the location of the vehicle in an accessible area, it was quickly assumed that a local was responsible for the murders. As part of the guilty plea, Shearing stated in a written statement: I walked out of the bush from behind the camper and started shooting. I dont have any right to go into your house and examine your guns. Police created an exact replica of the Bentley 1981 Ford camper down to the last detail, including the aluminum boat strapped to the roof. There are no ameliorating or mitigating factors. Most worrying of all was the fact that Albin Johnson, Alviras husband, was nowhere to be found. Morbidology Podcast The article continues below The location was beside Fage Creek, 18 km (11.2 mi) north of Clearwater and 18 km (11.2 mi) south of the Wells Gray Park entrance on Clearwater Valley Road. To double-check the story, Eastham found the prison guard. The group traveled to the remote Wells Gray Provincial Park,a wilderness park located in east-central British Columbia,Canada, around 300 miles (478 km) to the northeast of Vancouver. The gun safe was also unlocked, not broken into, and with Sarah being the one with the key its pretty self explanatory. When entire families are murdered, it's often a case of familicide, in which the mass murderer is a family member. Mary Lea was born in 1926 to blue-eyed, titian-haired society girl Ruth Dill Johnson, the first of the three wives of J. Seward Johnson, a playboy and one of the early barons of the then family . The parents deserved better. Brian Johnson will discuss his new book, Murder in Chisago County, about the death of his great-aunt Alvira Lundeen Johnson and her seven children in 1933. Leibel found them next to a second set, JJ, for 13-year-old Janet Johnson. Maggie Murdaugh/Facebook. Shearing then applied again in 2014, then withdrew the request a month before the hearing. However, like all states, we have seen our fair share of bad folks, including these 10 infamous Kansas serial killers and homicides that won't soon be forgotten. The accident was never reported to the police. At this point, the family called in the cavalry. -- Tammy Arishenkoff is a bundle of emotions when she speaks about the mass murder of the Johnson and Bentley families in British Columbia's Cariboo region 30 years ago. But then on October 18, 1983, fourteen months after the murders with the trail running cold for the killer, the Bentley's camper truck was finally found by two forestry workers, near Bear Creek, on an old logging road near Trophy Mountain. Shearing told Eastham he kept the girls alive for nearly a week, staying with them both at his ranch and at a small fishing cabin on the Clearwater River whilst repeatedly raping them. With Albin suspected of having fled to Canada, a massive manhunt began, with newspapers as far as Texas carrying the story: but early leads turned up only red herrings and false identifications. In his new book, he blends journalistic balance with his personal connections to the case. It had been burned using an accelerant, probably gasoline mixed with something else. If the fire started in the kitchen stove, experts say some of the victims would have been awakened by the smell of smoke. After effort and persuasion, Eastham managed to convince Shearing to confess to the six murders and he eventually agreed to re-enact the murders and even to turn over the murdered familys possessions. He went home and returned either that night or the next with a loaded .22 rifle. The RCMP started questioning possible suspects again in Clearwater. In rich detail, he lays out clue after clue, True Crime Tuesday Podcast interview with Brian Johnson, If you pay attention, you can tell when someones lying. Interview with Brian Johnson Tom Barnard Show. Other theories point to Albin poisoning the family. For example, two scruffy French-Canadian men were seen driving in a camper van east towards Quebec but it turned out this was an unrelated vehicle. The Bentleys subsequently arrived with their truck and camper van, with a boat on top. Alviras mother, Christine Lundeen, hired the Pinkerton Detective Agency to help locate Albin. AN ACCUSED killer was "hiding in plain sight" for years after he allegedly murdered a young woman decades ago then befriended her family in the nearly 30 years since. He told the girls to turn around so he could urinate, then shot each sister in the back of the head. Over 1,300 alleged sightings were investigated, but all turned out to be false. The media referred to the tragedy as the Wells Gray Park murders, but the actual site of the familys massacre was just outside the park entrance. See the latest list of Exclusive members-only articles on StrangeOutdoors.com, Read more True Crime Stories from StrangeOutdoors, Gary Michael Hilton - The disturbing case of the National Forest Serial Killer, Highway of Tears in British Columbia, Canada, Amy Wroe Bechtel - disturbing disappearances in U.S. forests, The real "Wolf Creek" - the disturbing case of the backpacker murders in the Australian Outback, The Cowden Family - Strange and disturbing murders in the U.S. wilderness, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wells_Gray_Provincial_Park, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wells_Gray_Provincial_Park_Family_Murders, http://dyingwords.net/david-shearing-the-monster-from-wells-gray-park/#sthash.hUyyi6wR.PxXToWpg.dpbs, http://murderpedia.org/male.S/s/shearing-david.htm, https://www.lelandhale.com/wordpress/startling-development-british-columbia/, https://christopherdiarmani.com/14874/crime/canadian-mass-murders/david-william-shearing-slaughtered-family-of-six-in-wells-gray-provincial-park/, The Seventh Shadow: The Wilderness Manhunt for a Brutal Mass Murderer by Michael Eastham and Ian McLeod (1999, Paperback), The Wells Gray Gunman https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=unFwrrYLZH8, The Detectives The Wells Gray Gunman S1 E1 (Canada only)https://watch.cbc.ca/the-detectives/season-1/episode-1/38e815a-00d94f07a15, Tagged: The disturbing story of David Shearing and the Wells Gray Park camping murders, The disturbing story of David Shearing and the Wells Gray Park camping murders in Canada, wells gray provincial park murders, johnson and bennett murders canada, The canadian camping ground murders, johnson family murders wells gray park, bob johnson and jackie johnson murders wells gray, janet johnson and karen johnson murdered wells gray, david william shearing serial killer wells gray park, wells gray park camping murders canada, family murders wells gray park canada, George Bentley and Edith Bentley murders wells gray park, Sign up now for a one-time fee for access to over 55 exclusive member articles, The disturbing story of David Shearing and the Wells Gray Park camping murders, Exclusive members-only articles on StrangeOutdoors.com, The disturbing story of David Shearing and the Wells Gray Park camping murders in Canada, bob johnson and jackie johnson murders wells gray, janet johnson and karen johnson murdered wells gray, david william shearing serial killer wells gray park, George Bentley and Edith Bentley murders wells gray park, The horrific rape and murder of Sophie Louise Hook whilst camping in her Uncle's garden, The miracle rescue of Alan Lee Phillips at Colorados Guanella Pass - the man who turned out to be a serial killer, The chilling story of Thomas Lee Dillon - the Ohio Outdoorsmen killer, The miraculous escape of the Brazilian and German backpackers at Salt Creek in South Australia, Robert Hansen Butcher Baker - the Alaska Serial killer who hunted his victims in the wilderness, The shocking unsolved Keddie Cabin murders, The disturbing death of Fiona Torbet in the Scottish highlands, The unsolved Williams and Winans camping murders in Shenandoah National Park, The real Wolf Creek - The Backpacker Murders in the Australian Outback, The mysterious death of Carol Laughlin in Yosemite National Park, The frightening case of the Trailside Killer David Carpenter, The mysterious Koh Tao - Death Island in Paradise, The Yosemite National Park Sightseer Murders and the two faces of evil, The disturbing disappearance of the Beaumont children on Glenelg Beach, The Kamloops Triangle - The British Columbia murders and disappearances, The Delphi hiking murders - Abigail Williams and Liberty German, The Peter Falconio disappearance in the Australian Outback, The unsolved murder of Scott Lilly on the Appalachian trail, The disturbing case of James Jordan - The Appalachian Trail Murderer. The location was beside Fage Creek, 18 km (11.2 mi) north of Clearwater and 18 km (11.2 mi) south of the Wells Gray Park entrance on Clearwater Valley Road. S., Minneapolis, Amazon Link: tinyurl.com/MurderinChisagoCounty, Publishers link: arcadiapublishing.com/Products/9781467142335, Send this article to anyone, no subscription is necessary to view it, Anyone can read, no subscription required, See Bentley truck Bear Creek, Trophy Mountain. All of the physical evidence pointed towards Sarah. Carrie Johnson is calling for Robert Brown to be kept behind bars after he killed Joanna Simpson Credit: Getty. They never returned home. But Shearing hid the girls behind the door and told them to stay quiet. However, Alan lived long enough to get out of the shower and walk to the bedroom where he collapsed beside his wife and bled to death. Well, Im here to collect, David, and Im not taking no for an answer.. He said he cleaned the campsite, then took the truck/camper back to his nearby property, only to burn it later when he discovered how difficult it was to re-register. Pinkerton's Persistent PI's On August 16, 1982, Bob Johnson failed to return to work at Gorman Brothers Lumber in Westbank. He even denounced ISIS - the militant Islamic group that his lawyers say influenced his thinking before the murder - at his sentencing. As part of the guilty plea, Shearing stated in a written statement: I walked out of the bush from behind the camper and started shooting. Shearing initially stated in his confession that he shot the four adults as they sat around their campfire, then shot the girls as they slept in the tent, saying he only wanted to rob them. And if you happen to find yourself in Harris, Minnesota, make sure to stop into the Kaffe Stuga for a cup of coffee. "I know I contributed to the spread of evil in this world," Johnson, now 21, told the court. Shearing said he saw the family when they set up camp and spent several days spying on them, with a fantasy to have sex with Janet and Karen. At the time of the interview, the murder weapon, Shearings .22 caliber rifle, hung on the wall of the family home. In September 2008, David Shearing was up for parole - 24 years after his conviction for the murders. There are no ameliorating or mitigating factors. Shearing now goes by his mother's maiden name, Ennis. Eastham what really happened. He said that the crime scene took him aback. Skull fragments sullied the bedroom floor and walls and blood spatter stained both the bathroom and the bedroom. Kendrick Johnson with his mother and father, Kenneth and Jackie Johnson (The Johnson Family) VALDOSTA, Ga. - Lowndes County Sheriff Ashley Paulk said he is putting up a $500,000 reward of. He first toyed with writing a novel, but "I could never make up anything as compelling as the true story of the Albin Johnson case. It sounds like youre in inmate with this convicted criminal. Eventually, they got him to confess to the crimes by getting him to relax and defer appointing a lawyer. He told the girls to turn around so he could urinate, then shot each sister in the back of the head. The logging road was near Battle Mountain Road, thirteen aerial miles from Bear Creek and north of the town of Clearwater. Five weeks after the families were last heard from, on September 13, 1982, a mushroom picker reported finding a burned-out car with the driver's side door open in a clearing off a mountainside logging road. Pictures: Fla. mom killed her 4. Locals had seen the family camped at Bear Creek and a search of the area by the RCMP resulted in six spent .22 caliber ammunition shells being located. Following Shearings conviction, RCMP Sergeant Mike Eastham re-interviewed him and got the disturbing truth behind the killings - pedophilia. I poured gasoline it just went Whoomph! I stood back and watched it burn. Suspicion doubled when forensics couldnt identify Albin among any of the deceased, with one theory holding that the farmerill-tempered, a known drinker, down on his luck and soon to be evicted from the property by his own grandfatherhad sooner killed his own family rather than drag them into a life of even more hardship in days to come. They were Bob and Jackie Johnson, their two daughters (Janet, 13 and Karen, 11), and Jackie's parents, George and Edith Bentley. CREATIVE. Questions, investigations and lawsuits have abounded in the years since Johnson's body was discovered at Lowndes High School in Valdosta, Ga., in January 2013. I cant believe how she could kill the two people in the world who loved her the most., Sarahs own brother, Matt Johnson, also addressed his sister, stating: I think some honesty needs to come out of you, and you need to plead to the court for some for forgiveness. Police lifted the wreck out with a helicopter and transported it to the RCMP Crime Lab in Vancouver. The wreckage was similar to the car that the Johnsons were driving. In 1995 he married a woman from Prince Albert, Saskatchewan. A sad and depressing story of outdoor adventure gone wrong, bad luck, and a mission by two Royal Canadian Mounted Police detectives to find the perpetrator of these awful crimes. The spot was only 15 miles from the murder site and 20 miles from where the Johnsons' car was located and on the different side of the mountain. Leibel found them next to a second set, JJ, for 13-year-old Janet Johnson. The RCMP posted a $7,500 reward, printed 10,000 posters and sent them to police detachments and post offices across North America. The location re-confirmed a local was most likely involved as outsiders would have been unlikely to find the isolated spot. Bobbi Gale Johnson, age 18, a cheerful soul, was a good student, considered "bright, intelligent and articulate." She was active in school theater and was liked by many. Thats why the traditional age of adulthood was 21!!! David Shearing finally told Sgt. Copyright 2019 by Arcadia Publishing, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Sadly it was the last family vacation they were ever to go on. When deputies pulled up to the family home on Riebel Ridge Road in Ohio Township around 9:40 a.m. Monday, Theresa Cain was standing on the patio outside, the sheriff said. At dusk on August 10, 1982, walked into the campsite with his rifle and shot Bob Johnson, then Jackie, and then George and Edith in cold blood. However, investigators had sealed off the street and turned away the garbage truck which was making it rounds shortly after the shooting. He said he cleaned the campsite, then took the truck/camper back to his nearby property, only to burn it later when he discovered how difficult it was to re-register. The Johnsons and Bentleys were last heard from on August 6th, 1982. Shearing did not appeal his sentence. In the meantime, online and paper petitions got 15,258 signatures urging the parole board not to release him. On February 16, 1981, Arne Cheyenne Johnson fatally stabbed his landlord Alan Bono and then said the Devil made him do it. She removed the .264 caliber rifle that was stored here and subsequently shot her parents. The enormity of the crimes demand the maximum sentence.. Very sad situation. Cops responded to the home at about 8:20 a.m.. Despite his reputation and criminal record, Shearing came from a respectable family. David William Shearing, 24, who lived locally was identified by someone who told police that, over a year earlier, Shearing had enquired about how to re-register a Ford pickup and repair a hole in its door. Suspicion soon fell upon Sarah who by this point, had changed her story several times. In advance of the campers arrival at each town or city, police held press conferences to publicize the campers arrival. In 1933, Alvira Johnson and her seven children were killed in a rapid blaze that burned down their Minnesota home. The abandoned logging road on Trophy Mountain was not easy to access. I could just slap this stupid child. They did not, in any way, provoke him. Collections; Project #ShowUs; . 1. Johnsons burnt out car discovered September 13, 1982. Eastham later wrote a book with Ian McLeod about the case called The Seventh Shadow, in which the author goes into great detail about all aspects of the case. Shearing lived three miles from the site of the murders and the police had never released the information about the bullet hole. Shearing lived three miles from the site of the murders and the police had never released the information about the bullet hole. Fellow workers reported that Bob was missing to the RCMP on August 23, 1982. Grandma wanted to find him She contacted them [the Pinkertons]. Shearing told Leibel he carved his initials on the wall there. Some beer caps of the brand known to be drunk by Bob Johnson were also found as well as full bottles cooling in a nearby stream. The group traveled to the remote Wells Gray Provincial Park,a wilderness park located in east-central British Columbia,Canada, around 300 miles (478 km) to the northeast of Vancouver. This was the maximum possible penalty for second degree murder and the first time in Canadian history that it had been handed out. The truck was well hidden and it appeared that there had been an attempt to drive the truck into the gorge, but logs had blocked its path. He first shot his 49-year-old girlfriend Rebecca K. Dieter, who was the only . On the 2nd of September, 2003, in Bellevue, Idaho, 16-year-old Sarah Marie Johnson ran out of her home screaming that somebody had murdered her parents. On September 2, 2003, Alan Scott Johnson and Diane Johnson were shot to death in their Bellevue, Idaho, home. Two sticks with sharp ends, probably used by the two girls to roast marshmallows were also at the site. Its possible that the number of theories surrounding Albins disappearance may have hindered the Pinkerton search, Johnson writes. Yeah, let me kill my parents and then him and I will ride off into the sunset of blissful living. We had no reason to suspect him.. how do you become so self absorbed that murdering your parents doesnt even phase you? The same as I didnt have any right to go into Mr. Shearings house. Such was the situation in Minnesota in April 1933, when a woman and her seven children were found dead on a Chisago County farm, burned to death and nearly cremated in an overnight fire. He went home and returned either that night or the next with a loaded .22 rifle. Murder in Chisago County : The Unsolved Johnson Family Mystery - Signed | Books & Magazines, Books | eBay! Police created an exact replica of the Bentley 1981 Ford camper down to the last detail, including the aluminum boat strapped to the roof. An investigation revealed deep secrets and a grudge Sarah had been holding over her parents. Many hours were wasted on these "wild goose" chases as the public phoned in thousands of sightings which all needed to be investigated. Forensic investigation of the bone fragments found that they had been shot with a .22 caliber gun. He drove the car to a secluded spot and burnt it. The family lived in Glen Aspen Drive, an affluent street where the $500,000 homes sit nestled among towering cottonwood, pine and aspen trees.1. Initially, he was led to believe the arrest was related to a hit and run incident which he quickly confessed to before the detectives confronted him with the Bennett-Johnson case. On April 17, 1984, Justice McKay sentenced David William Shearing to six concurrent terms of life in prison with no chance of parole for 25 years. I dont have any right to go into your house and examine your guns. Foul play, residents in the close-knit Swedish immigrant community cried. Eventually, they got him to confess to the crimes by getting him to relax and defer appointing a lawyer. The same as I didnt have any right to go into Mr. Shearings house. Shearing told Leibel he carved his initials on the wall there. Hey,I Already Said About How I Know That An Innocent Woman Is Mistakenly Incarcerated,Check Out The Details,Once Again & You Will See How. While she didnt know for sure, she said she presumed that they were dead for when she called their names, there was no response. Eastham later wrote a book with Ian McLeod about the case called The Seventh Shadow, in which the author goes into great detail about all aspects of the case. He gives voice to Albin's defenders, who insist he either died in the fire or took his own life. Sadly it was the last family vacation they were ever to go on. Thats a very dangerous girl. When police were questioned why they didnt seize the firearm and test it to see if casings fired from it matched those found at the scene, Inspector Vic Edwards cited basic rights. The 17-year-old disappeared one. The Johnsons and Bentleys were last heard from on August 6th, 1982. Jeffrey Dahmer Wikipedia Dahmer dismembered and murdered at least 17 boys and men. The two girls were already in their tent, ready for bed. Hes always been such a good boy. Dear Jack, Sorry but you are an illiterate idiot. The burnt remnants provided no clues, but the location was of interest. The case took another turn on Sept. 7, 2021, when PEOPLE reported that members of Alex's law firm had confronted him about missing money on Sept. 3 . The prosecution refuted the claims that Bruno was involved, stating that there was absolutely no evidence to connect him to the crime scene or even the home. Bentley truck Bear Creek, Trophy Mountain. On the 16th of March, 2005, Sarah Marie Johnson was found guilty When they opened the door, they discovered Johnson,. The location re-confirmed a local was most likely involved as outsiders would have been unlikely to find the isolated spot. It covers 5,250 square kilometers (1.3 million acres) and is British Columbia's fourth-largest park, after Tatshenshini,Spatsizi and Tweedsmuir. "At times, the facts surrounding the mystery bounce through my head like the silver orb in a pinball machine. Sick Robert Brown is up for automatic release later this year - just 13 years into . On the 30th of October, Sarah was arrested and charged as an adult in the double homicide of her parents. However, the Bentleys 1981 Ford truck and camper and their camping gear, boat and motor, and other possessions were still missing. Alex Murdaugh called 911 on the evening of June 7, 2021, and said he found his son and wife dead when he returned home from a one-hour visit with his mother, who has dementia. Heather Ennis claims her husband deserves a second chance, I have seen so much change in this man since we met (in 1993). 1:57 Family of victims of notorious Johnson-Bentley murders fight potential parole of killer In 1982, David Shearing killed six members of the same family in B.C., including two young girls. "I think her family, who presumably ordered the marker, was making a statement that they'd been murdered on the 10th before the house was torched in the early hours of the 11th," says Richfield author Brian Johnson. But Shearing hid the girls behind the door and told them to stay quiet. The Murdaugh family. The apparent confession was a complete fabrication and at the time the RCMP had had little choice but to accept Shearings version of events due to lack of evidence. Investigators had also discovered that Sarahs socks were spattered with Dianes blood despite the fact that Sarah claimed she did not go near the bodies out of fear of what she would find. Sarah,While Holding The Prison Chef Hostage,With His Own Butcher Knife,Will NeedRead more . During the sentencing phase, Dianes sister, Debbie Davis, addressed Sarah: I hope your father looking into your eyes when he was shot will be burned in your mind forever, while Alans sister, Lynne Murrill, said: She is a spoiled rotten brat that thinks only of herself. Petition: Help the Johnson and Bentley Family Read and sign the petition here . The Johnson Family Murders Pt. However, many were perplexed that the sentences were concurrent, giving him the chance to escape the prison system in later life. On September 13, the Johnson family car was found burned in a clearing off a mountainside logging road, thirteen aerial miles from Bear Creek. On August 2, 1982, Bob Johnson, 44, and Jackie Johnson, 41, and their daughters Janet, 13, and Karen, 11, went on a two-week camping trip with Jackie's parents, George Bentley, 66, and Edith Bentley, 59. Penny Boudreau murdered her 12-year-old daughter, Karissa, because she believed it would save her relationship On the 16th of June, 2009, 2-year-old Jada Justice vanished. I feel she has no remorse and feel she would do it again, except she would do better planning and she would try to get away with it.7. But then on October 18, 1983, fourteen months after the murders with the trail running cold for the killer, the Bentley's camper truck was finally found by two forestry workers, near Bear Creek, on an old logging road near Trophy Mountain. The bodies were so consumed that they were eventually interred together in one child-sized casket. The Chisago County Press reported her body was lying near the crib of 4-month-old James her youngest. Find The Otero Family Murders stock photos and editorial news pictures from Getty Images. A Parent's Murder and a 16-Year-old Daughter's Conviction: The Sarah Johnson Parricide Case On 2 September 2003, 16-year-old Sarah Johnson called 911 from her neighbor's house telling the operator her parents had just been shot by an intruder by Fiona Guy 14 June, 2022 in Family Violence & Homicide Reading Time: 8 mins read A A The RCMP also learned through Shearings closest friend, Ross Coburn, that he was with him when he ran over drunk lying on a Wells Gray Park road in 1980, killing him.