1 00:00:08,245 --> 00:00:16,845 Speaker 1: School of Humans. 2 00:00:18,005 --> 00:00:21,565 Speaker 2: On September thirtieth, nineteen ninety four, twenty year old Jared 3 00:00:21,605 --> 00:00:25,205 Speaker 2: Green was scared. His sister, Shannon, who was three years 4 00:00:25,205 --> 00:00:28,125 Speaker 2: older than Jared, remembered her baby brother as the kid 5 00:00:28,165 --> 00:00:31,645 Speaker 2: he was always laughing and smiling, who had a mischievous 6 00:00:31,685 --> 00:00:35,245 Speaker 2: sense of humor. Jared's middle name was Devlin, so they 7 00:00:35,285 --> 00:00:36,405 Speaker 2: called him the little devil. 8 00:00:37,365 --> 00:00:40,165 Speaker 1: I've used this expression before. He was like light and 9 00:00:40,325 --> 00:00:45,085 Speaker 1: life and laughter. He was always making jokes. He had 10 00:00:45,125 --> 00:00:49,325 Speaker 1: a really infectious laugh. He was always getting into trouble. 11 00:00:50,125 --> 00:00:52,245 Speaker 1: My mom called him like a little monkey because he 12 00:00:52,365 --> 00:00:55,725 Speaker 1: was climbing on stuff when we were kids and he 13 00:00:55,845 --> 00:00:58,445 Speaker 1: jumped off the top bunk bed knocked himself out. But 14 00:00:58,565 --> 00:01:02,485 Speaker 1: he was constantly doing silly stuff like that. If there 15 00:01:02,525 --> 00:01:05,205 Speaker 1: was a mischief to be had, he was going to 16 00:01:05,205 --> 00:01:06,125 Speaker 1: be in the middle of it. 17 00:01:06,845 --> 00:01:11,205 Speaker 2: But his humor was always fun, never cruel. Shannon said 18 00:01:11,325 --> 00:01:14,125 Speaker 2: that Jared was always a little bit naive. He was 19 00:01:14,125 --> 00:01:16,885 Speaker 2: someone who always trusted others and someone who would do 20 00:01:16,925 --> 00:01:21,925 Speaker 2: anything for a friend. Jared had a high IQ, Shannon said, 21 00:01:21,965 --> 00:01:25,685 Speaker 2: genius level, so he was always smart, but as a 22 00:01:25,765 --> 00:01:30,085 Speaker 2: kid he struggled to focus. Jared was diagnosed with ADHD, 23 00:01:30,725 --> 00:01:33,965 Speaker 2: so their parents put him on Riddlin. Though the Riddlin 24 00:01:34,045 --> 00:01:37,085 Speaker 2: did seem to help Jared focus at school, his parents 25 00:01:37,085 --> 00:01:40,045 Speaker 2: believed that it was stunning Jared's physical growth, which meant 26 00:01:40,085 --> 00:01:42,725 Speaker 2: that Jared was always small for his age, so he 27 00:01:42,845 --> 00:01:45,685 Speaker 2: ended up being held back a year at school. Even 28 00:01:45,765 --> 00:01:48,565 Speaker 2: though Jared eventually caught up physically and grew to be 29 00:01:48,645 --> 00:01:51,725 Speaker 2: almost six feet tall, he always had kind of a 30 00:01:51,765 --> 00:01:55,405 Speaker 2: slim build. In every picture I see of Jared, he's 31 00:01:55,445 --> 00:01:58,845 Speaker 2: got this boyish face. He's got brownish blonde hair, and 32 00:01:58,885 --> 00:02:02,805 Speaker 2: blue green eyes. He's smiling in every single picture, which 33 00:02:02,885 --> 00:02:05,005 Speaker 2: goes with what Shannon said about him. She said he 34 00:02:05,045 --> 00:02:07,365 Speaker 2: was full of life and always the life of the party, 35 00:02:08,205 --> 00:02:11,845 Speaker 2: just a joy to be around. Jared graduated from Sersey 36 00:02:11,925 --> 00:02:14,725 Speaker 2: High School in nineteen ninety three, and because he'd been 37 00:02:14,725 --> 00:02:17,205 Speaker 2: held back a year when he graduated, he was actually 38 00:02:17,285 --> 00:02:20,485 Speaker 2: nineteen years old. He continued to live at home after 39 00:02:20,565 --> 00:02:23,805 Speaker 2: high school. Eventually he moved out of his parents' house 40 00:02:23,845 --> 00:02:26,805 Speaker 2: and started junior college in bb He got a job 41 00:02:26,845 --> 00:02:31,165 Speaker 2: at the Walmart distribution center, but then in nineteen ninety four, 42 00:02:31,525 --> 00:02:37,005 Speaker 2: Jared's problem started. He started using methamphetamines and his family 43 00:02:37,085 --> 00:02:40,925 Speaker 2: says that within a shockingly short period of time, Jared 44 00:02:41,005 --> 00:02:45,365 Speaker 2: was showing signs of serious addiction. Jared's dark time began 45 00:02:45,485 --> 00:02:48,285 Speaker 2: some time after fall semester started at college. 46 00:02:48,725 --> 00:02:51,405 Speaker 3: By the beginning of October, it was all over. 47 00:02:53,765 --> 00:02:56,805 Speaker 2: I'm Catherine Townsend. Over the past five years of making 48 00:02:56,845 --> 00:03:00,085 Speaker 2: my true crime podcast, Talent Gone, I've learned that there's 49 00:03:00,205 --> 00:03:03,285 Speaker 2: no such thing as a small town where murder never happens. 50 00:03:04,005 --> 00:03:06,845 Speaker 2: I have received hundreds of men messages from people from 51 00:03:06,845 --> 00:03:09,725 Speaker 2: all around the country asking for help with an unsolved 52 00:03:09,805 --> 00:03:13,885 Speaker 2: murder that's affected them, their families, and their communities. If 53 00:03:13,925 --> 00:03:16,125 Speaker 2: you have a case you'd like me and my team 54 00:03:16,165 --> 00:03:18,565 Speaker 2: to look into, you can reach out to us at 55 00:03:18,565 --> 00:03:21,085 Speaker 2: our Hell and Gone Murder line at six seven eight 56 00:03:21,365 --> 00:03:25,005 Speaker 2: seven four four six one four five. That's six seven 57 00:03:25,085 --> 00:04:13,365 Speaker 2: eight seven four four six one four or five. When 58 00:04:13,445 --> 00:04:17,605 Speaker 2: I announced this new podcast, multiple listeners reached out to 59 00:04:17,605 --> 00:04:18,885 Speaker 2: me about Jared Green's case. 60 00:04:19,605 --> 00:04:25,765 Speaker 1: I'm just calling in for justice for Jared. You might 61 00:04:25,845 --> 00:04:27,445 Speaker 1: have heard podcasts before, but. 62 00:04:28,405 --> 00:04:30,205 Speaker 2: There was a group of us that already. 63 00:04:30,085 --> 00:04:34,765 Speaker 1: I'm calling in about the case of Jared Green. He 64 00:04:34,885 --> 00:04:39,005 Speaker 1: disappeared from Sarcy, Arkansas on September thirtieth, nineteen ninety four. 65 00:04:39,725 --> 00:04:42,685 Speaker 2: I had actually heard from Jared's sister, Shannon Green, a 66 00:04:42,725 --> 00:04:45,165 Speaker 2: while back, and I knew this was one of the 67 00:04:45,165 --> 00:04:49,005 Speaker 2: first cases that I wanted to cover. At first, Jared's 68 00:04:49,045 --> 00:04:51,725 Speaker 2: family wasn't exactly sure what was going on with them. 69 00:04:52,165 --> 00:04:55,285 Speaker 2: Shannon said they were pretty clueless because she said her 70 00:04:55,285 --> 00:04:57,725 Speaker 2: parents had never dealt with that type of drug abuse before. 71 00:04:58,445 --> 00:05:01,405 Speaker 2: They did not know the signs to look for, and 72 00:05:01,685 --> 00:05:04,445 Speaker 2: they didn't know how quickly this kind of thing could 73 00:05:04,525 --> 00:05:05,885 Speaker 2: escalate or had to dangerous. 74 00:05:05,925 --> 00:05:09,565 Speaker 1: It was not long after he graduated high school, when 75 00:05:09,565 --> 00:05:12,285 Speaker 1: he was about nineteen, and that's when my mom found, 76 00:05:12,605 --> 00:05:15,125 Speaker 1: like I think she found pot in his pants pocket 77 00:05:15,245 --> 00:05:17,165 Speaker 1: that she was doing the laundry and she found it, 78 00:05:18,125 --> 00:05:23,085 Speaker 1: and it was a really fast kind of transformation when 79 00:05:23,085 --> 00:05:25,725 Speaker 1: he started doing that. That was when it was this 80 00:05:26,285 --> 00:05:31,805 Speaker 1: deep decline and the change in him became just obvious. 81 00:05:31,885 --> 00:05:34,685 Speaker 1: I dropped out of grad school and moved back home 82 00:05:35,685 --> 00:05:37,685 Speaker 1: because my parents were kind of like, we don't know 83 00:05:37,685 --> 00:05:39,805 Speaker 1: what to do, and I was so upset about it. 84 00:05:40,685 --> 00:05:43,205 Speaker 1: He was over eighteen. We couldn't force him into a 85 00:05:43,285 --> 00:05:46,125 Speaker 1: rehab It was terrible. We didn't know the extent really 86 00:05:46,125 --> 00:05:49,565 Speaker 1: of what. We were just so naive. I've said this before, 87 00:05:49,645 --> 00:05:52,725 Speaker 1: but like my parent you know, we were not exposed 88 00:05:52,765 --> 00:05:55,245 Speaker 1: to anything. My parents they they went to church. We 89 00:05:55,685 --> 00:05:58,005 Speaker 1: didn't drink, we didn't were We didn't you know, there 90 00:05:58,085 --> 00:06:01,845 Speaker 1: was all this very kind of sheltered life. We didn't 91 00:06:01,885 --> 00:06:04,725 Speaker 1: even know what was happening. I certainly had no idea 92 00:06:04,925 --> 00:06:08,445 Speaker 1: of the depths of the corruption and the drug scene 93 00:06:08,485 --> 00:06:10,925 Speaker 1: in Sursey. We had no idea about that at the time. 94 00:06:12,125 --> 00:06:15,125 Speaker 2: In nineteen ninety four, Jared was living at home, working 95 00:06:15,125 --> 00:06:17,565 Speaker 2: at the Walmart distribution center, and going to school. 96 00:06:18,325 --> 00:06:19,725 Speaker 3: He quit his job at Walmart. 97 00:06:20,245 --> 00:06:22,925 Speaker 2: Shannon said that at first his family thought this was 98 00:06:22,965 --> 00:06:26,045 Speaker 2: because his job was interfering with school, but the truth 99 00:06:26,245 --> 00:06:28,965 Speaker 2: was that Jared was using drugs and had gotten much 100 00:06:29,005 --> 00:06:32,245 Speaker 2: more heavily into them. Jared moved out of his parents' 101 00:06:32,245 --> 00:06:34,405 Speaker 2: house and in with a guy who lived down the 102 00:06:34,405 --> 00:06:37,685 Speaker 2: street from his family. The apartment that he moved into 103 00:06:37,925 --> 00:06:40,365 Speaker 2: was across the hall from a guy named Brandon Wheeler. 104 00:06:40,925 --> 00:06:43,845 Speaker 2: Now Brandon Wheeler was someone Jared knew from high school. 105 00:06:44,605 --> 00:06:48,125 Speaker 2: Living with Brandon Wheeler was his roommate Robert Webb. In 106 00:06:48,205 --> 00:06:50,965 Speaker 2: nineteen ninety four, Robert Webb was turning eighteen years old 107 00:06:51,005 --> 00:06:54,365 Speaker 2: and still a senior at Sarcey High School, Jared, Robert, 108 00:06:54,365 --> 00:06:57,805 Speaker 2: and Brandon all started hanging out. Brandon Wheeler was a 109 00:06:57,845 --> 00:07:00,805 Speaker 2: big guy. He was white, around two hundred pounds and 110 00:07:00,845 --> 00:07:05,085 Speaker 2: pretty stocky. Robert Webb was pretty much his physical opposite, 111 00:07:05,205 --> 00:07:08,525 Speaker 2: a lightmail and much smaller, about five foot one and 112 00:07:08,605 --> 00:07:11,485 Speaker 2: around one hundred and thirty five pounds. By the way, 113 00:07:11,525 --> 00:07:14,085 Speaker 2: in case it's not obvious, I'm giving physical descriptions of 114 00:07:14,125 --> 00:07:16,885 Speaker 2: these guys because they will become very important later when 115 00:07:16,885 --> 00:07:18,765 Speaker 2: it becomes clear that some of the people in this 116 00:07:18,885 --> 00:07:24,045 Speaker 2: case are using multiple aliases. These guys were all young, 117 00:07:24,525 --> 00:07:27,005 Speaker 2: but they were already moving into drug dealing, and police 118 00:07:27,005 --> 00:07:30,405 Speaker 2: suspected that Brandon and Robert were dealing drugs for some 119 00:07:30,565 --> 00:07:31,485 Speaker 2: very dangerous people. 120 00:07:32,645 --> 00:07:36,445 Speaker 1: Brandon was always like, he wasn't popular in school. He 121 00:07:36,605 --> 00:07:39,645 Speaker 1: was everybody thought he was kind of odd. I had 122 00:07:39,685 --> 00:07:43,805 Speaker 1: no idea until really when he moved into that apartment 123 00:07:43,925 --> 00:07:48,205 Speaker 1: that like Brandon was involved in the drugs, And still 124 00:07:48,445 --> 00:07:52,045 Speaker 1: we still didn't know what the drugs were like this 125 00:07:52,205 --> 00:07:56,045 Speaker 1: was it was still a mystery at this point. My 126 00:07:56,125 --> 00:07:59,605 Speaker 1: parents really still didn't know. I definitely didn't know what 127 00:07:59,725 --> 00:08:03,285 Speaker 1: was going on. He didn't tell us. He would hint 128 00:08:03,365 --> 00:08:08,045 Speaker 1: at some things. He would co about things, and my 129 00:08:08,165 --> 00:08:10,285 Speaker 1: mom would try to talk to him, but he didn't 130 00:08:10,285 --> 00:08:11,645 Speaker 1: want to tell us what would happen. 131 00:08:12,765 --> 00:08:15,845 Speaker 2: Jared and his roommate got evicted from their apartment, so 132 00:08:15,965 --> 00:08:19,125 Speaker 2: he moved back home with his parents. Robert and Brandon 133 00:08:19,245 --> 00:08:22,325 Speaker 2: ended up renting another house together in Sirce, North, Little Rock. 134 00:08:23,405 --> 00:08:25,925 Speaker 2: Brandon's parents lived in Surse, a few miles from while 135 00:08:25,925 --> 00:08:28,605 Speaker 2: he was running the house with Robert. It's important to 136 00:08:28,605 --> 00:08:30,805 Speaker 2: remember that when I talked to Shannon about her brother, 137 00:08:31,285 --> 00:08:35,045 Speaker 2: she's telling this story in hindsight, so it comes in pieces. 138 00:08:35,565 --> 00:08:38,085 Speaker 2: But one thing she does remember vividly is how fast 139 00:08:38,125 --> 00:08:38,885 Speaker 2: this all happened. 140 00:08:39,445 --> 00:08:40,645 Speaker 3: She says that. 141 00:08:40,565 --> 00:08:43,765 Speaker 2: Once Jared started hanging out with Brandon Wheeler and Robert Webb, 142 00:08:44,165 --> 00:08:48,805 Speaker 2: his descent into drug use was quick and extreme. What 143 00:08:49,005 --> 00:08:51,965 Speaker 2: she didn't know at the time was that Jared had 144 00:08:52,005 --> 00:08:55,405 Speaker 2: allegedly moved from just using drugs into helping Robert and 145 00:08:55,445 --> 00:08:58,765 Speaker 2: Brandon deal them. She later heard that he might have 146 00:08:58,805 --> 00:09:02,045 Speaker 2: been possibly involved in some other way, either in selling 147 00:09:02,165 --> 00:09:03,125 Speaker 2: or possibly cooking. 148 00:09:04,365 --> 00:09:08,805 Speaker 1: What I've heard is that Brandon and rob claimed that 149 00:09:08,885 --> 00:09:13,485 Speaker 1: he owed them seventy five hundred dollars and that they 150 00:09:13,525 --> 00:09:18,245 Speaker 1: would never let him pay them back. I do remember 151 00:09:18,325 --> 00:09:20,285 Speaker 1: him saying that he could never be free because they 152 00:09:20,285 --> 00:09:24,045 Speaker 1: would never let it be free. And I don't know 153 00:09:24,165 --> 00:09:26,965 Speaker 1: what the money was for. I assume it was probably 154 00:09:27,045 --> 00:09:30,445 Speaker 1: drugs that he was supposed to have either sold or 155 00:09:30,685 --> 00:09:33,685 Speaker 1: transported for him. I don't think he actually, I don't 156 00:09:33,685 --> 00:09:37,645 Speaker 1: think he ever dealt I don't know for sure. All 157 00:09:37,685 --> 00:09:40,765 Speaker 1: I know is what people around him have told me 158 00:09:40,885 --> 00:09:44,965 Speaker 1: that he didn't, but he was connected with people that 159 00:09:45,085 --> 00:09:50,205 Speaker 1: were and I think that someone had mentioned that they 160 00:09:50,245 --> 00:09:53,405 Speaker 1: were trying to introduce him because he was smart, that 161 00:09:53,485 --> 00:09:58,085 Speaker 1: they thought, well, he could be a cook, and that 162 00:09:58,085 --> 00:09:59,725 Speaker 1: that is, you know, one of the things that I've 163 00:09:59,765 --> 00:10:03,045 Speaker 1: heard that that that's kind of what they were planning 164 00:10:03,085 --> 00:10:03,445 Speaker 1: for him. 165 00:10:04,405 --> 00:10:07,725 Speaker 2: When Jared came back home after getting evicted, Shannon said 166 00:10:07,725 --> 00:10:10,725 Speaker 2: her brother had lost lots of weight. She also said 167 00:10:10,765 --> 00:10:14,685 Speaker 2: he was extremely paranoid. She said that her brother was scared. 168 00:10:15,925 --> 00:10:18,765 Speaker 2: Shannon describes how her brother's life started to fall apart 169 00:10:18,925 --> 00:10:20,005 Speaker 2: once he moved back home. 170 00:10:21,285 --> 00:10:24,605 Speaker 1: We could tell he was really like, he had lost 171 00:10:24,645 --> 00:10:26,885 Speaker 1: a ton of weight, He didn't look right. He was 172 00:10:26,925 --> 00:10:31,285 Speaker 1: extremely paranoid. I remember that one time I was on 173 00:10:31,285 --> 00:10:33,485 Speaker 1: my way out the door to church, I had got 174 00:10:33,485 --> 00:10:35,165 Speaker 1: a runner in my hose and I had to turn 175 00:10:35,245 --> 00:10:38,885 Speaker 1: back into the house to go go change. And I 176 00:10:38,925 --> 00:10:40,805 Speaker 1: came in like just busted to the front door, and 177 00:10:40,885 --> 00:10:42,685 Speaker 1: Jared was standing at the top of the staircase with 178 00:10:42,765 --> 00:10:46,765 Speaker 1: a gun drawn and like shaking because he was paranoid 179 00:10:46,965 --> 00:10:50,765 Speaker 1: about somebody coming in after him. And so there was 180 00:10:50,805 --> 00:10:53,085 Speaker 1: a lot of that where we were all kind of 181 00:10:53,085 --> 00:10:55,125 Speaker 1: on tender hooks, like we didn't know where he was. 182 00:10:55,205 --> 00:10:58,325 Speaker 1: He would go out and stay out until all hours, 183 00:10:58,365 --> 00:11:02,165 Speaker 1: and I stopped sleeping because if I didn't hear our 184 00:11:02,165 --> 00:11:05,725 Speaker 1: garage store open, I couldn't be comfortable because I was 185 00:11:05,765 --> 00:11:07,685 Speaker 1: afraid something was going to happen. Like we didn't know 186 00:11:07,685 --> 00:11:10,205 Speaker 1: what he was into. We didn't know what he was doing. 187 00:11:11,445 --> 00:11:11,605 Speaker 3: Now. 188 00:11:11,645 --> 00:11:13,845 Speaker 2: One of the most important questions in this case that 189 00:11:13,925 --> 00:11:17,685 Speaker 2: came up later was how much of this paranoia was 190 00:11:17,845 --> 00:11:21,205 Speaker 2: just the paranoia that goes with drug use, especially Matthews, 191 00:11:21,845 --> 00:11:26,085 Speaker 2: and how much might have been legitimate fear for his life. 192 00:11:26,205 --> 00:11:30,285 Speaker 2: That will become crucial later Jared asked his parents for help. 193 00:11:30,685 --> 00:11:32,765 Speaker 2: He told them that he needed to get out of town. 194 00:11:33,285 --> 00:11:37,125 Speaker 2: Then Shannon said, Jared did leave town for about a week. Now, 195 00:11:37,205 --> 00:11:40,005 Speaker 2: where Jared went during that time remains a mystery, and 196 00:11:40,045 --> 00:11:43,285 Speaker 2: it's something we're going to revisit. Shannon believed he was 197 00:11:43,325 --> 00:11:46,045 Speaker 2: going to see about a job in Tennessee, but then 198 00:11:46,285 --> 00:11:49,485 Speaker 2: after Jared came back, Shannon put a timeline together with 199 00:11:49,565 --> 00:11:52,605 Speaker 2: her dad to try and track his movement, and later 200 00:11:52,765 --> 00:11:56,565 Speaker 2: Shannon's dad found receipts from Jared's trip. They found out 201 00:11:56,565 --> 00:11:59,405 Speaker 2: he had actually been gone longer, close to two weeks, 202 00:11:59,805 --> 00:12:03,165 Speaker 2: and that he had actually visited Houston, Texas and Tuckerman, 203 00:12:03,285 --> 00:12:07,285 Speaker 2: Arkansas to see family, had been around to several places 204 00:12:07,325 --> 00:12:10,325 Speaker 2: they never knew about, and then one day, out of 205 00:12:10,365 --> 00:12:14,125 Speaker 2: the blue, Jared said he was coming home. At that point, 206 00:12:14,165 --> 00:12:17,405 Speaker 2: Shannon said he seemed to be more relaxed. He said 207 00:12:17,445 --> 00:12:21,085 Speaker 2: that everything was okay. He had been telling family and 208 00:12:21,205 --> 00:12:24,005 Speaker 2: friends that he owed Brandon and Robert a lot of money, 209 00:12:24,205 --> 00:12:27,685 Speaker 2: But after he came home, according to Shannon, it seemed 210 00:12:27,725 --> 00:12:30,605 Speaker 2: like whatever issues he had with these guys, he had 211 00:12:30,605 --> 00:12:34,885 Speaker 2: worked them out and made things right. So Jared returned 212 00:12:34,885 --> 00:12:38,005 Speaker 2: home after that trip out of town, but he wouldn't 213 00:12:38,045 --> 00:12:45,965 Speaker 2: be home for long. So this brings us to September thirtieth, 214 00:12:46,085 --> 00:12:49,885 Speaker 2: nineteen ninety four, the day Jared disappeared. On that day, 215 00:12:50,285 --> 00:12:52,845 Speaker 2: Shannon said, Jared woke up at around eight thirty am 216 00:12:53,005 --> 00:12:55,405 Speaker 2: and left the house for a while. He came home 217 00:12:55,485 --> 00:12:57,885 Speaker 2: later that afternoon and told his family that he had 218 00:12:57,885 --> 00:13:00,605 Speaker 2: been shooting skeek, which Shannon said would not have been 219 00:13:00,645 --> 00:13:03,565 Speaker 2: out of character for him. He brought back the skeet 220 00:13:03,565 --> 00:13:06,405 Speaker 2: shooting thrower and the rifle that he used and left 221 00:13:06,405 --> 00:13:09,885 Speaker 2: them at home. Then Jared made some phone calls that afternoon. 222 00:13:10,365 --> 00:13:12,445 Speaker 2: He left the house at around eight pm. That night, 223 00:13:13,725 --> 00:13:16,565 Speaker 2: he told his parents that he was meeting a friend 224 00:13:16,725 --> 00:13:19,925 Speaker 2: at the Sarce Country Club. Then he walked out the door, 225 00:13:20,485 --> 00:13:23,645 Speaker 2: out the driveway, got into his car, and drove off. 226 00:13:24,725 --> 00:13:28,325 Speaker 2: That was the last time Jared's family ever saw him alive. 227 00:13:30,725 --> 00:13:33,845 Speaker 2: Shannon later told reporter she has this flashback of Jared 228 00:13:33,885 --> 00:13:35,765 Speaker 2: walking in front of a TV and walking out of 229 00:13:35,805 --> 00:13:39,005 Speaker 2: the house, but she said that she was working at Hastings, 230 00:13:39,045 --> 00:13:41,805 Speaker 2: a local grocery store, at the time, so she can't 231 00:13:41,845 --> 00:13:44,605 Speaker 2: really remember whether the night she's thinking of was that 232 00:13:44,765 --> 00:13:49,805 Speaker 2: night or possibly another night. Either way, Jared never came 233 00:13:49,845 --> 00:13:53,125 Speaker 2: home for the next few days. His parents kind of 234 00:13:53,165 --> 00:13:56,405 Speaker 2: agonized over what action to take because they were torn. 235 00:13:56,885 --> 00:13:59,525 Speaker 2: They wanted their son home, but they were also worried 236 00:13:59,605 --> 00:14:03,325 Speaker 2: that calling the police could bring Jared unwanted attention, maybe 237 00:14:03,325 --> 00:14:05,045 Speaker 2: get him into trouble if it turned out he was 238 00:14:05,085 --> 00:14:08,485 Speaker 2: holed up somewhere involved in drugs. And at that stage 239 00:14:08,485 --> 00:14:11,685 Speaker 2: in Jared's life, it was not uncommon for Jared to 240 00:14:11,765 --> 00:14:14,325 Speaker 2: leave for a couple days, possibly to go stay with friends. 241 00:14:15,085 --> 00:14:17,605 Speaker 2: But when days went by and his family never heard 242 00:14:17,645 --> 00:14:21,085 Speaker 2: from him, they began to suspect that something was very wrong. 243 00:14:22,605 --> 00:14:26,485 Speaker 2: As you may know from listening to this podcast, one 244 00:14:26,645 --> 00:14:29,325 Speaker 2: theme that I go over over and over again is 245 00:14:29,365 --> 00:14:33,205 Speaker 2: the timeline, and in the beginning, police had very little 246 00:14:33,245 --> 00:14:37,005 Speaker 2: information about Jared's timeline. We do know that he was 247 00:14:37,125 --> 00:14:40,445 Speaker 2: planning on meeting his girlfriend that night. Now his girlfriend's 248 00:14:40,525 --> 00:14:44,725 Speaker 2: name is also Shannon, so to avoid confusion with Shannon, Jared's. 249 00:14:44,405 --> 00:14:47,045 Speaker 3: Sister, we're going to refer to his sister as. 250 00:14:46,845 --> 00:14:52,085 Speaker 2: Shannon and Jared's girlfriend as s Jared's girlfriend later told 251 00:14:52,085 --> 00:14:54,885 Speaker 2: police that she did talk to Jared that night. She 252 00:14:54,965 --> 00:14:57,885 Speaker 2: said when they spoke on the phone, Jared seemed irrational 253 00:14:58,285 --> 00:15:00,525 Speaker 2: and he wanted his girlfriend to leave town with him. 254 00:15:01,045 --> 00:15:03,285 Speaker 2: She said he was disturbed because he was acting really 255 00:15:03,325 --> 00:15:06,165 Speaker 2: out of character, so she told him that she was 256 00:15:06,205 --> 00:15:10,165 Speaker 2: going out with some girlfriends instead. She said that Jared 257 00:15:10,245 --> 00:15:14,165 Speaker 2: was super upset, crying, and that after she didn't go 258 00:15:14,245 --> 00:15:16,845 Speaker 2: with him that night, she never saw or heard from 259 00:15:16,885 --> 00:15:21,605 Speaker 2: him again. Over the next few days, Jared's family began 260 00:15:21,645 --> 00:15:23,045 Speaker 2: to get more and more worried. 261 00:15:23,805 --> 00:15:27,765 Speaker 1: So he went missing on September thirtieth, and he was gone. 262 00:15:27,925 --> 00:15:30,525 Speaker 1: And like I said before, like he would he would 263 00:15:30,525 --> 00:15:33,445 Speaker 1: go for overnight, go to Jonesboro, whatever, go stay with 264 00:15:33,485 --> 00:15:35,845 Speaker 1: his girlfriend. He wouldn't come home. He was, you know, 265 00:15:36,485 --> 00:15:39,165 Speaker 1: twenty years old, so he wouldn't always tell us he would, 266 00:15:39,245 --> 00:15:41,525 Speaker 1: you know, he would usually call or he'd usually show 267 00:15:41,605 --> 00:15:44,045 Speaker 1: up home the next day. So when he didn't come 268 00:15:44,045 --> 00:15:47,405 Speaker 1: home the first night, we weren't we were scared because 269 00:15:47,405 --> 00:15:49,285 Speaker 1: of what we knew was what was going on, but 270 00:15:49,365 --> 00:15:54,925 Speaker 1: we weren't fannicked. But when when you know, the next evening, 271 00:15:55,725 --> 00:15:58,845 Speaker 1: we don't haven't heard from him. And I was working 272 00:15:58,885 --> 00:16:02,045 Speaker 1: at Hastings of the time, and his girlfriend and she 273 00:16:02,165 --> 00:16:05,045 Speaker 1: hadn't seen or heard from him, and so that really 274 00:16:05,565 --> 00:16:07,885 Speaker 1: that was really scary. It's like, okay, wait a minute, 275 00:16:07,925 --> 00:16:10,205 Speaker 1: something is not right. So then we started calling people, 276 00:16:10,285 --> 00:16:14,685 Speaker 1: you know, we called the Wheelers, called Brandon and he 277 00:16:14,765 --> 00:16:16,605 Speaker 1: was like, no, we haven't seen Jared. Don't have any 278 00:16:16,645 --> 00:16:19,245 Speaker 1: idea where he's at. The normal panic that you go 279 00:16:19,285 --> 00:16:21,005 Speaker 1: through when someone goes missing, and you're like, okay, where 280 00:16:21,005 --> 00:16:23,765 Speaker 1: could they be? Don't overreact, this is you know, he's 281 00:16:23,765 --> 00:16:27,085 Speaker 1: an adult, He's probably somewhere. But when we still hadn't 282 00:16:27,125 --> 00:16:30,885 Speaker 1: heard on that third day, the panic had started to 283 00:16:30,925 --> 00:16:33,365 Speaker 1: set in. My parents were super scared because they didn't 284 00:16:33,405 --> 00:16:35,285 Speaker 1: want to get Jared in trouble, and we're afraid that 285 00:16:35,325 --> 00:16:38,165 Speaker 1: if they told the police what he was involved with, 286 00:16:38,205 --> 00:16:42,085 Speaker 1: he would go to jail. And so they were debating, 287 00:16:42,205 --> 00:16:45,245 Speaker 1: you know, what do we do. How do we best 288 00:16:45,285 --> 00:16:47,445 Speaker 1: help our son? Do we call the police? But you know, 289 00:16:47,485 --> 00:16:48,605 Speaker 1: they were just scared to death. 290 00:16:49,645 --> 00:16:52,485 Speaker 2: Then a few days after Jared went missing, one of 291 00:16:52,485 --> 00:16:56,005 Speaker 2: his friends, a guy named Mitchell Johnson, told Jared's family 292 00:16:56,045 --> 00:17:00,325 Speaker 2: that he saw Jared's car at the Walmart supercenter. Jared's 293 00:17:00,325 --> 00:17:03,925 Speaker 2: family had no idea that his car was sitting abandoned 294 00:17:03,925 --> 00:17:06,405 Speaker 2: at the Walmart supercenter and that it had been there 295 00:17:06,445 --> 00:17:10,365 Speaker 2: for days. Mitchell said that when he saw the car, 296 00:17:10,485 --> 00:17:13,285 Speaker 2: he pulled up and waited twenty or thirty minutes to 297 00:17:13,285 --> 00:17:15,365 Speaker 2: see if Jared would come out, but he said when 298 00:17:15,445 --> 00:17:18,725 Speaker 2: Jared didn't come out, Mitchell left the parking lot. 299 00:17:19,085 --> 00:17:21,125 Speaker 3: On October fifth, another. 300 00:17:20,805 --> 00:17:23,445 Speaker 2: Friend of Jared's, a guy named Jason, came to the 301 00:17:23,445 --> 00:17:28,045 Speaker 2: family home. Now Jason knew Jared from high school. Jared 302 00:17:28,085 --> 00:17:30,285 Speaker 2: had started going to Sarcey High in the eighth grade, 303 00:17:30,725 --> 00:17:34,245 Speaker 2: so he and Jason became friends. They also hung out 304 00:17:34,285 --> 00:17:38,125 Speaker 2: with another guy named Greg. According to the case file, 305 00:17:38,165 --> 00:17:41,245 Speaker 2: in the fall of nineteen ninety four, Jason was going 306 00:17:41,245 --> 00:17:44,925 Speaker 2: to college in Jonesborough. He lived with he and Jason's 307 00:17:44,965 --> 00:17:47,845 Speaker 2: mutual friend Greg, and during that time period they all 308 00:17:47,925 --> 00:17:50,405 Speaker 2: hung out together. Jared would come over to their house 309 00:17:50,405 --> 00:17:53,365 Speaker 2: and he would hang out with Jason and Greg pretty regularly. 310 00:17:54,565 --> 00:17:57,845 Speaker 2: Jared shared with Jason the fact that he was scared 311 00:17:57,885 --> 00:18:01,165 Speaker 2: of Brandon Wheeler and Rob Webb. He said he owed 312 00:18:01,205 --> 00:18:04,005 Speaker 2: a lot of money to Brandon Wheeler. Now I have 313 00:18:04,125 --> 00:18:06,885 Speaker 2: not seen the entire case file because technically this is 314 00:18:06,885 --> 00:18:11,125 Speaker 2: still an open case. However, Jared's sister Shannon, was able 315 00:18:11,165 --> 00:18:14,205 Speaker 2: to get some of the investigator's notes and she has 316 00:18:14,285 --> 00:18:17,925 Speaker 2: shared some of those with me. So those are invaluable 317 00:18:17,925 --> 00:18:20,365 Speaker 2: because I can see some of the steps that police 318 00:18:20,405 --> 00:18:23,045 Speaker 2: took and how frustrated some of the investigators were when 319 00:18:23,045 --> 00:18:26,285 Speaker 2: they were trying to make progress on this case. The 320 00:18:26,365 --> 00:18:29,525 Speaker 2: investigators at the time talked to some of Jared's friends, 321 00:18:29,525 --> 00:18:33,565 Speaker 2: and what they figured out was that Jared was telling 322 00:18:33,605 --> 00:18:37,365 Speaker 2: people Brandon Wheeler gave him a pretty large quantity of meth, 323 00:18:37,525 --> 00:18:41,245 Speaker 2: maybe around a kiloh to sell. But something went wrong 324 00:18:41,365 --> 00:18:44,405 Speaker 2: with this drug deal. Either the sale got messed up 325 00:18:44,565 --> 00:18:47,885 Speaker 2: or Jared did some of his own supply. Whatever the cause, 326 00:18:48,245 --> 00:18:51,285 Speaker 2: the end result was that Jared owed Brandon Wheeler around 327 00:18:51,285 --> 00:18:55,245 Speaker 2: seventy five hundred or eight thousand dollars and Jared couldn't 328 00:18:55,245 --> 00:18:59,885 Speaker 2: pay it back. Jason said that Jared owed him money too. 329 00:19:00,565 --> 00:19:02,885 Speaker 2: He said that he had given Jared around six hundred 330 00:19:02,925 --> 00:19:05,205 Speaker 2: dollars so that Jared could score some drugs a few 331 00:19:05,205 --> 00:19:10,365 Speaker 2: weeks earlier, but right before Jared went missing, Jason said 332 00:19:10,565 --> 00:19:13,805 Speaker 2: he needed his money back. So this is interesting because 333 00:19:13,845 --> 00:19:16,685 Speaker 2: we have yet another person who potentially was in a 334 00:19:16,725 --> 00:19:19,245 Speaker 2: monetary dispute with the victim at around the time he 335 00:19:19,285 --> 00:19:24,445 Speaker 2: went missing. Jason told Shannon, Jared's sister, that he started 336 00:19:24,445 --> 00:19:27,125 Speaker 2: calling Jared and asking him for his money back. He 337 00:19:27,165 --> 00:19:31,445 Speaker 2: said Jared didn't respond, and there was another crucial fact here, 338 00:19:31,565 --> 00:19:35,845 Speaker 2: which is that when Jared borrowed that money from Jason, 339 00:19:36,565 --> 00:19:39,525 Speaker 2: Jared gave Jason his gun as collateral and Jason was 340 00:19:39,525 --> 00:19:43,045 Speaker 2: supposed to hold the gun for him. After weeks of 341 00:19:43,125 --> 00:19:46,445 Speaker 2: not hearing back from Jared, Jason, who was still holding 342 00:19:46,525 --> 00:19:49,085 Speaker 2: Jared's gun, said he got a call out of the 343 00:19:49,125 --> 00:19:54,045 Speaker 2: blue on September thirtieth, the night Jared went missing. Jason 344 00:19:54,365 --> 00:19:57,445 Speaker 2: was the friend who Jared met at the Sarce country Club. 345 00:19:59,445 --> 00:20:02,445 Speaker 2: Jason later told police that he went to meet Jared 346 00:20:02,485 --> 00:20:05,085 Speaker 2: at the country club because he was concerned about his friend, 347 00:20:05,125 --> 00:20:08,485 Speaker 2: but also so understandably, he said he wanted to get 348 00:20:08,485 --> 00:20:11,645 Speaker 2: his money back. At first, it seems like he thought 349 00:20:11,765 --> 00:20:14,205 Speaker 2: Jared had called him because he wanted to return the money. 350 00:20:15,085 --> 00:20:18,445 Speaker 2: They arranged to meet at the country club on September thirtieth, 351 00:20:18,645 --> 00:20:22,725 Speaker 2: somewhere between around nine and ten thirty pm, but Jason 352 00:20:22,805 --> 00:20:26,445 Speaker 2: told police that after he showed up, Jared admitted he 353 00:20:26,525 --> 00:20:29,605 Speaker 2: didn't have his money, but he did tell Jason he 354 00:20:29,685 --> 00:20:33,765 Speaker 2: needed his gun back. Jason said Jared was scared that night. 355 00:20:34,525 --> 00:20:36,525 Speaker 2: He said Jared told him he was going to meet 356 00:20:36,525 --> 00:20:39,805 Speaker 2: Brandon Wheeler. He knew that he owed Brandon money and 357 00:20:39,845 --> 00:20:43,365 Speaker 2: he hoped to straighten situation out, but Jared told him 358 00:20:43,405 --> 00:20:47,005 Speaker 2: he wanted that gun for protection, so Jason told police 359 00:20:47,045 --> 00:20:49,405 Speaker 2: that he agreed to that. He said that he gave 360 00:20:49,485 --> 00:20:53,165 Speaker 2: Jared's gun back to him and kept Jared's wallet as collateral. 361 00:20:54,085 --> 00:20:56,725 Speaker 2: Jason said he continued to reach out to Jared over 362 00:20:56,765 --> 00:21:00,885 Speaker 2: the next few days. Jason explained to Shannon that Jared 363 00:21:00,965 --> 00:21:03,165 Speaker 2: told him that if he didn't have his money back 364 00:21:03,205 --> 00:21:05,925 Speaker 2: in a certain amount of time, that he Jay could 365 00:21:05,925 --> 00:21:07,765 Speaker 2: go to Jared's parents and ask them for the money. 366 00:21:08,325 --> 00:21:10,645 Speaker 2: So he said, on October fifth, that's what he did. 367 00:21:11,045 --> 00:21:14,365 Speaker 2: He showed up at Jared's family home and went in 368 00:21:14,405 --> 00:21:16,405 Speaker 2: to talk to his parents about getting that money back. 369 00:21:17,125 --> 00:21:20,125 Speaker 2: That same day was when Jared's father got the tip 370 00:21:20,285 --> 00:21:24,885 Speaker 2: about Jared's car being the Walmart parking lot, so Jared's 371 00:21:24,925 --> 00:21:28,005 Speaker 2: father drove over there to Walmart, and that's when he 372 00:21:28,045 --> 00:21:31,725 Speaker 2: found Jared's car. The door was unlocked and there was 373 00:21:31,805 --> 00:21:35,205 Speaker 2: no sign of foul play, but Shannon said her family 374 00:21:35,285 --> 00:21:38,525 Speaker 2: knew immediately Jared never would have left his car just 375 00:21:38,685 --> 00:21:42,925 Speaker 2: unlocked like that and walked away from it voluntarily. Over 376 00:21:42,965 --> 00:21:45,165 Speaker 2: the next few days, Shannon said she and her family 377 00:21:45,205 --> 00:21:48,205 Speaker 2: looked everywhere for Jared. They called all his friends, they 378 00:21:48,245 --> 00:21:51,045 Speaker 2: called the Arkansas State Police, and they called the FBI. 379 00:21:51,685 --> 00:21:53,325 Speaker 2: It turned out they had a relative who was in 380 00:21:53,325 --> 00:21:57,325 Speaker 2: the Drug Enforcement Administration, the DEA. He told them the 381 00:21:57,365 --> 00:22:00,285 Speaker 2: DEA authorities would not be looking very hard at a 382 00:22:00,285 --> 00:22:03,805 Speaker 2: twenty year old who was a legal adult and had 383 00:22:03,845 --> 00:22:08,605 Speaker 2: the right to voluntarily disappear. And unspoken in all this 384 00:22:09,005 --> 00:22:12,165 Speaker 2: is the fact that because Jared was known to have 385 00:22:12,205 --> 00:22:15,365 Speaker 2: a drug habit, that also played a role in the 386 00:22:15,405 --> 00:22:18,325 Speaker 2: authority's decision not to look for him as hard as 387 00:22:18,325 --> 00:22:22,125 Speaker 2: they would perhaps some others. Shannon described, while Jared sometimes 388 00:22:22,125 --> 00:22:24,005 Speaker 2: would drop out a site for a couple days, he 389 00:22:24,045 --> 00:22:28,525 Speaker 2: would never sever contact with his entire family. Jared also 390 00:22:28,645 --> 00:22:30,965 Speaker 2: took pride in his car, so it made no sense 391 00:22:31,005 --> 00:22:34,005 Speaker 2: the car would be left there abandoned like that. 392 00:22:34,005 --> 00:22:36,645 Speaker 1: That is not like him. He did not walk away 393 00:22:36,685 --> 00:22:39,525 Speaker 1: from that car, didn't leave it there like that. But 394 00:22:39,605 --> 00:22:42,805 Speaker 1: of course that's when the police were like, whatever, you know, 395 00:22:42,845 --> 00:22:46,005 Speaker 1: they really didn't. That's when the non investigation started. 396 00:22:47,205 --> 00:22:50,805 Speaker 2: Just hearing this set of circumstances in which Jared's car 397 00:22:50,925 --> 00:22:54,325 Speaker 2: was found. My instinct as an investigator is that someone 398 00:22:54,685 --> 00:22:58,125 Speaker 2: probably staged this crime scene, that someone else drove the 399 00:22:58,125 --> 00:23:01,645 Speaker 2: car there. Otherwise, why would Jared's keys be left there 400 00:23:01,805 --> 00:23:05,085 Speaker 2: under the seat of the car. Do you think the 401 00:23:05,125 --> 00:23:07,525 Speaker 2: car was driven there by somebody else? 402 00:23:08,725 --> 00:23:12,845 Speaker 1: I think so, because number one, my brother would never 403 00:23:12,965 --> 00:23:16,165 Speaker 1: ever leave his windows down his son news open. Ever, 404 00:23:16,245 --> 00:23:17,605 Speaker 1: he didn't even do that in front of our house. 405 00:23:17,765 --> 00:23:19,925 Speaker 1: Certainly weren't going to do that in the thing. 406 00:23:19,965 --> 00:23:23,365 Speaker 2: But we don't know who whoever did wanted that car 407 00:23:23,405 --> 00:23:24,525 Speaker 2: to be found in that parking lot. 408 00:23:25,445 --> 00:23:28,245 Speaker 1: Yeah, I'm certain, or they wanted somebody to take it. 409 00:23:28,885 --> 00:23:31,405 Speaker 2: If Jared met someone in that parking lot and got 410 00:23:31,405 --> 00:23:35,205 Speaker 2: into a car with them, either voluntarily or otherwise, the 411 00:23:35,285 --> 00:23:37,685 Speaker 2: keys would not be stashed under the seat like that. 412 00:23:38,045 --> 00:23:42,565 Speaker 2: They would be on him. And then after that, even 413 00:23:42,605 --> 00:23:48,565 Speaker 2: stranger things started to happen after Jared's family found his car, 414 00:23:49,045 --> 00:23:53,605 Speaker 2: Weird things started happening. On October ninth, Shannon's family got 415 00:23:53,645 --> 00:23:57,645 Speaker 2: a strange phone call. A few days after Jared went missing. 416 00:23:58,405 --> 00:24:01,365 Speaker 2: Someone called the police and pretended to be Shannon and 417 00:24:01,445 --> 00:24:05,725 Speaker 2: Jared's dad. Shannon says the mystery caller told police they 418 00:24:05,725 --> 00:24:10,165 Speaker 2: should stop investigating Jared's disappearance. This mystery caller said the 419 00:24:10,245 --> 00:24:14,045 Speaker 2: family wanted to try and investigate on their own. Shannon 420 00:24:14,085 --> 00:24:17,285 Speaker 2: said this never happened. She stresses her father never gave 421 00:24:17,365 --> 00:24:19,925 Speaker 2: up on looking for Jared. She said her dad was 422 00:24:20,085 --> 00:24:23,165 Speaker 2: constantly calling police to ask for case updates, as well 423 00:24:23,205 --> 00:24:26,165 Speaker 2: as bringing in any new evidence that he found. By 424 00:24:26,205 --> 00:24:29,765 Speaker 2: this point in the investigation, according to Shannon, pretty much 425 00:24:29,805 --> 00:24:33,285 Speaker 2: everyone police talked to about the case mentioned these two names, 426 00:24:33,525 --> 00:24:38,045 Speaker 2: Brandon Wheeler and Robert Webb. Police talked to Greg, Jason 427 00:24:38,125 --> 00:24:41,805 Speaker 2: and Jared's mutual friend. He admitted that the story police 428 00:24:41,805 --> 00:24:44,045 Speaker 2: had heard from some other people was true. He said 429 00:24:44,125 --> 00:24:46,405 Speaker 2: he and Jared had gotten a kilo of meth from 430 00:24:46,485 --> 00:24:50,885 Speaker 2: Robert and Brandon. Also, the name Mitchell Johnson came up again. 431 00:24:51,085 --> 00:24:54,085 Speaker 2: Now remember he was the guy who found Jared's car 432 00:24:54,165 --> 00:24:57,845 Speaker 2: abandoned at the Walmart supercenter. He told police that he 433 00:24:57,885 --> 00:25:00,965 Speaker 2: had taken Jared to North Little Rock, supposedly to pick 434 00:25:01,045 --> 00:25:04,045 Speaker 2: up a large quantity of drugs. He also said that 435 00:25:04,125 --> 00:25:07,645 Speaker 2: he knew about the death. Jared had talked to his 436 00:25:07,725 --> 00:25:11,085 Speaker 2: dad about Brandon Wheeler and Robert Webb, so Jared's dad 437 00:25:11,085 --> 00:25:13,085 Speaker 2: told police the same thing. A lot of other people 438 00:25:13,165 --> 00:25:15,965 Speaker 2: said that Jared was scared of these guys. He said 439 00:25:16,005 --> 00:25:19,205 Speaker 2: Jared had told them a sort of cautionary tale about 440 00:25:19,245 --> 00:25:21,725 Speaker 2: another guy who owed Brandon and Robert a lot of 441 00:25:21,765 --> 00:25:24,925 Speaker 2: money and couldn't pay it back. Jared told his father 442 00:25:25,165 --> 00:25:28,205 Speaker 2: that this person who owed the debt had been kidnapped 443 00:25:28,205 --> 00:25:32,125 Speaker 2: and blindfolded and taken to a remote location and basically 444 00:25:32,205 --> 00:25:37,005 Speaker 2: been beaten and tortured. Eventually, Jared said that person was released. 445 00:25:38,765 --> 00:25:41,645 Speaker 2: I've gone through some of the case file documents that 446 00:25:41,685 --> 00:25:44,645 Speaker 2: Shannon shared with me. I can't share everything, but with 447 00:25:44,765 --> 00:25:47,485 Speaker 2: her permission, I'm going to go back through the events 448 00:25:47,525 --> 00:25:50,605 Speaker 2: that followed September thirtieth, nineteen ninety four, the day when 449 00:25:50,685 --> 00:25:53,885 Speaker 2: Jared went missing. I would invite Helen Gone listeners to 450 00:25:54,005 --> 00:25:56,365 Speaker 2: listen closely because there are a lot of names here. 451 00:25:56,965 --> 00:26:00,325 Speaker 2: We're going to move away from Jared and his family 452 00:26:01,045 --> 00:26:04,365 Speaker 2: and go to North Little Rock to try and figure 453 00:26:04,365 --> 00:26:07,485 Speaker 2: out what was going on with Brandon Wheeler and Robert 454 00:26:07,485 --> 00:26:11,645 Speaker 2: Webb around the time when Jared went missing. On November ninth, 455 00:26:11,725 --> 00:26:13,885 Speaker 2: nineteen ninety four. I can see from these case file 456 00:26:13,925 --> 00:26:16,525 Speaker 2: notes that one of the officers from the task force 457 00:26:16,645 --> 00:26:19,285 Speaker 2: was interviewing people connected to the house that Brandon and 458 00:26:19,365 --> 00:26:22,965 Speaker 2: rob were renting together in North Little Rock. In my opinion, 459 00:26:23,485 --> 00:26:26,085 Speaker 2: I think that that house is key to this case. 460 00:26:26,965 --> 00:26:31,045 Speaker 2: The officers talked to a woman named Becky Alston, the housekeeper. Now, 461 00:26:31,165 --> 00:26:34,685 Speaker 2: what she had to say was very interesting to me, because, 462 00:26:34,765 --> 00:26:37,565 Speaker 2: as many of you might know, I really think that 463 00:26:37,605 --> 00:26:42,405 Speaker 2: people who clean someone's houses are definitely clued into a 464 00:26:42,445 --> 00:26:45,925 Speaker 2: lot of their darkest secrets. Becky had only been doing 465 00:26:45,925 --> 00:26:49,165 Speaker 2: that job for a couple months. Robert Webb and Brandon 466 00:26:49,165 --> 00:26:51,885 Speaker 2: Wheeler rented that house from their landlord, a guy named 467 00:26:51,925 --> 00:26:55,445 Speaker 2: Larry Williford and North Little Rock. They asked their landlord 468 00:26:55,445 --> 00:26:57,485 Speaker 2: if he knew of any good housekeepers, and he was 469 00:26:57,525 --> 00:27:00,405 Speaker 2: the one who recommended Becky. At the time, this seemed 470 00:27:00,445 --> 00:27:03,165 Speaker 2: like a win win for both parties. The guys got 471 00:27:03,325 --> 00:27:06,245 Speaker 2: a good housekeeper at a very reasonable right, and for 472 00:27:06,325 --> 00:27:10,325 Speaker 2: the landlord it's probably reassuring a trusted housekeeper can kind 473 00:27:10,325 --> 00:27:12,565 Speaker 2: of keep an eye on the property and also make 474 00:27:12,605 --> 00:27:15,805 Speaker 2: sure that two young guys living there won't completely trash it. 475 00:27:16,525 --> 00:27:19,125 Speaker 2: Becky charged seventy five dollars a week, and she said 476 00:27:19,245 --> 00:27:22,125 Speaker 2: Brandon and Robert would always give her a tip. Typically 477 00:27:22,125 --> 00:27:24,525 Speaker 2: they would give her one hundred dollars, always in cash. 478 00:27:25,245 --> 00:27:27,645 Speaker 2: Becky said she had a good relationship with these guys. 479 00:27:27,885 --> 00:27:30,765 Speaker 2: She said Brandon and Robert were always very cordial and 480 00:27:30,845 --> 00:27:34,285 Speaker 2: nice to her, But they were in an odd situation 481 00:27:35,205 --> 00:27:39,245 Speaker 2: because two very young guys. Remember Robert Webb was only 482 00:27:39,325 --> 00:27:42,405 Speaker 2: seventeen or eighteen years old, a senior in high school 483 00:27:42,405 --> 00:27:44,285 Speaker 2: at the time when all this was going down. With 484 00:27:44,485 --> 00:27:47,165 Speaker 2: a pile of cash would raise a lot of red flags. 485 00:27:48,245 --> 00:27:50,845 Speaker 2: The story that Brandon and Robert told their landlord and 486 00:27:50,965 --> 00:27:53,725 Speaker 2: Becky was that they were from wealthy families and they 487 00:27:53,725 --> 00:27:56,605 Speaker 2: were studying to be lawyers in Little Rock. But then, 488 00:27:56,645 --> 00:28:00,045 Speaker 2: of course Becky started to notice that Robert and Brandon 489 00:28:00,125 --> 00:28:02,845 Speaker 2: never seemed to go to class, so she kind of 490 00:28:02,885 --> 00:28:06,005 Speaker 2: was figuring out that their cover story wasn't true. This 491 00:28:06,045 --> 00:28:07,965 Speaker 2: is all, by the way, pretty much verbatim from the 492 00:28:08,045 --> 00:28:12,245 Speaker 2: investigative report from the case file. It was around August 493 00:28:12,325 --> 00:28:15,045 Speaker 2: or September of nineteen ninety four when Becky said things 494 00:28:15,045 --> 00:28:18,405 Speaker 2: were starting to change. She said that there was a 495 00:28:18,445 --> 00:28:21,725 Speaker 2: crawl space in the upstairs area where the guys would 496 00:28:21,765 --> 00:28:25,365 Speaker 2: throw dirty clothes in. She said sometimes she would get 497 00:28:25,405 --> 00:28:27,725 Speaker 2: into that crawl space to pull the dirty clothes out 498 00:28:27,725 --> 00:28:30,605 Speaker 2: so she could try to wash them, and when she did, 499 00:28:30,725 --> 00:28:35,845 Speaker 2: she found a stash of guns up there, she told police. 500 00:28:35,965 --> 00:28:38,685 Speaker 2: During this time, she was noticing more and more guns 501 00:28:38,725 --> 00:28:41,125 Speaker 2: which the guys were obsessed with. Apparently they would sit 502 00:28:41,165 --> 00:28:44,085 Speaker 2: around and watch videos of guns and people shooting all 503 00:28:44,125 --> 00:28:48,485 Speaker 2: the time, and not just hunting guns. These were things 504 00:28:48,525 --> 00:28:52,405 Speaker 2: like uzi's and semi automatic weapons, including one that Becky 505 00:28:52,445 --> 00:28:56,165 Speaker 2: said had a silencerr Now, we don't know what they 506 00:28:56,165 --> 00:28:59,725 Speaker 2: were doing with these guns, or whose they were, or 507 00:28:59,765 --> 00:29:01,525 Speaker 2: if they were planning to sell them or keep them 508 00:29:01,565 --> 00:29:04,445 Speaker 2: for that matter, but just using common sense, if a 509 00:29:04,445 --> 00:29:07,045 Speaker 2: gun has a silence on it, that's not something these 510 00:29:07,045 --> 00:29:09,005 Speaker 2: guys are going to use for deer honey. 511 00:29:09,885 --> 00:29:10,965 Speaker 3: Becky said that. 512 00:29:10,965 --> 00:29:15,485 Speaker 2: They always dressed very nicely, not like college kids. They 513 00:29:15,485 --> 00:29:19,525 Speaker 2: were wearing suits that looked expensive. She said they would 514 00:29:19,525 --> 00:29:23,085 Speaker 2: always carry concealed weapons when they left the house. There's 515 00:29:23,085 --> 00:29:26,285 Speaker 2: something else that's a little bit unusual here. Becky said 516 00:29:26,445 --> 00:29:29,845 Speaker 2: that she was the one who paid Brandon and Robert's 517 00:29:29,925 --> 00:29:33,205 Speaker 2: utility bills for them, the electricity bill, the phone bill, 518 00:29:33,365 --> 00:29:36,805 Speaker 2: the water, et cetera. Becky said typically the guys would 519 00:29:36,805 --> 00:29:39,165 Speaker 2: give her cash and she would make the actual payment. 520 00:29:40,245 --> 00:29:44,285 Speaker 2: From the interview with Becky, it seems like around September, 521 00:29:44,765 --> 00:29:47,565 Speaker 2: Robert and Brandon started to become a little bit quieter, 522 00:29:48,085 --> 00:29:52,925 Speaker 2: a little bit more paranoid. Both Robert and Brandon had 523 00:29:52,925 --> 00:29:56,125 Speaker 2: cell phones. Remember this was back in nineteen ninety four. 524 00:29:56,445 --> 00:29:58,965 Speaker 2: That was also something that was very unusual for a 525 00:29:59,005 --> 00:30:01,525 Speaker 2: teenager to have at the time. They also had a 526 00:30:01,605 --> 00:30:05,165 Speaker 2: landline phone. When Becky was discussing how paranoid they were 527 00:30:05,205 --> 00:30:08,485 Speaker 2: with the pl she said, every time the landline would ring, 528 00:30:09,005 --> 00:30:12,125 Speaker 2: they would look at the caller ID and then never answer. 529 00:30:12,805 --> 00:30:14,845 Speaker 2: Then they would call the person back and demand to 530 00:30:14,885 --> 00:30:16,925 Speaker 2: know who they were and why they were calling. It 531 00:30:17,005 --> 00:30:21,765 Speaker 2: was just a very paranoid atmosphere. Then another really odd 532 00:30:21,805 --> 00:30:26,365 Speaker 2: thing happened. In late September of nineteen ninety four. Becky 533 00:30:26,525 --> 00:30:29,165 Speaker 2: said that she was cleaning the apartment and she saw 534 00:30:29,205 --> 00:30:33,245 Speaker 2: a California driver's license with the name of Lance Wells, 535 00:30:33,805 --> 00:30:37,605 Speaker 2: but it had Robert Webb's picture on it. She said, 536 00:30:37,645 --> 00:30:40,205 Speaker 2: when she went back a few days later, the ID 537 00:30:40,605 --> 00:30:45,045 Speaker 2: was gone. At this point, I should back up and 538 00:30:45,045 --> 00:30:47,045 Speaker 2: we should explain a little bit more about what was 539 00:30:47,085 --> 00:30:49,645 Speaker 2: going on at the time with methamphetamines in the state 540 00:30:49,685 --> 00:30:54,245 Speaker 2: of Arkansas. At the time, meth was exploding in Arkansas 541 00:30:54,525 --> 00:30:56,685 Speaker 2: and around the South and the rest of the country. 542 00:30:57,365 --> 00:30:59,125 Speaker 2: A lot of the myth at the time was coming 543 00:30:59,165 --> 00:31:02,725 Speaker 2: from these super labs in California. They were controlled mainly 544 00:31:02,805 --> 00:31:06,365 Speaker 2: by the Mexican cartel In the earth only nineties, the 545 00:31:06,445 --> 00:31:09,765 Speaker 2: drug selling operations in Arkansas were evolving. According to a 546 00:31:09,845 --> 00:31:12,965 Speaker 2: report by the Department of Justice. Instead of drug dealers 547 00:31:13,205 --> 00:31:17,885 Speaker 2: using eighteen wheelers and these really elaborate operations, they started 548 00:31:17,965 --> 00:31:21,485 Speaker 2: using a lot of regular passenger cars that had hidden traps. 549 00:31:21,885 --> 00:31:23,965 Speaker 2: They would put the drugs in gas tanks or they 550 00:31:24,005 --> 00:31:27,605 Speaker 2: would have these hidden compartments. Then the dealers would use 551 00:31:27,645 --> 00:31:31,245 Speaker 2: regular people to transport the drugs from California to Arkansas 552 00:31:31,285 --> 00:31:36,405 Speaker 2: and beyond. So, thinking about these scenarios, Brandon and Robert 553 00:31:36,445 --> 00:31:40,525 Speaker 2: would definitely fit the bill. Two young, ordinary looking guys 554 00:31:40,565 --> 00:31:42,365 Speaker 2: who probably looked like they were on a road trip 555 00:31:42,565 --> 00:31:47,085 Speaker 2: would be the perfect people to carry these drugs. When 556 00:31:47,125 --> 00:31:50,365 Speaker 2: police were putting all this together, they showed Becky a 557 00:31:50,405 --> 00:31:53,685 Speaker 2: picture of Jared Green, and Becky said she recognized Jared. 558 00:31:54,405 --> 00:31:56,805 Speaker 2: She said she had seen him there in the apartment 559 00:31:56,845 --> 00:32:01,005 Speaker 2: with Brandon and Robert at least three different times. Becky said, 560 00:32:01,045 --> 00:32:02,805 Speaker 2: when Jared was at the house, and this is an 561 00:32:02,845 --> 00:32:07,485 Speaker 2: exact quote from the statement, she said, quote observed numerous 562 00:32:07,485 --> 00:32:09,525 Speaker 2: needle marks on his arm and stated that he was 563 00:32:09,525 --> 00:32:12,805 Speaker 2: wearing blue jeans and a short sleeved shirt. He appeared 564 00:32:12,805 --> 00:32:15,125 Speaker 2: to be very strung out and looking bad. 565 00:32:15,525 --> 00:32:19,005 Speaker 3: End quote. So we know that. 566 00:32:19,005 --> 00:32:23,125 Speaker 2: Jared Green owed Brandon Wheeler and Robert Webb money, potentially 567 00:32:23,125 --> 00:32:25,525 Speaker 2: a lot of money, and that these guys, according to police, 568 00:32:25,565 --> 00:32:29,485 Speaker 2: were drug dealers. But again, we have to go past 569 00:32:29,605 --> 00:32:32,245 Speaker 2: local rumor and we have to figure out exactly what 570 00:32:32,405 --> 00:32:34,845 Speaker 2: everyone was doing around the time Jared Green went missing. 571 00:32:35,565 --> 00:32:38,285 Speaker 2: And this is where the timeline gets very interesting. On 572 00:32:38,325 --> 00:32:41,445 Speaker 2: September twenty second, just over a week before Jared Green 573 00:32:41,445 --> 00:32:44,765 Speaker 2: went missing, Becky said, Brandon Wheeler told her he and 574 00:32:44,845 --> 00:32:47,285 Speaker 2: Robert Webb were leaving town. That they were going to 575 00:32:47,365 --> 00:32:49,725 Speaker 2: check on Robert's father, who they told her lived in 576 00:32:49,765 --> 00:32:53,725 Speaker 2: California and was really sick. Then, on the twenty seventh 577 00:32:53,725 --> 00:32:57,125 Speaker 2: of September, Robert contacted Becky again. He said they were 578 00:32:57,165 --> 00:32:59,605 Speaker 2: back in Little Rock. He asked if she could come 579 00:32:59,605 --> 00:33:01,965 Speaker 2: over and clean the house. On the twenty eighth, of September. 580 00:33:02,725 --> 00:33:04,925 Speaker 2: She went there on the twenty eighth and said neither 581 00:33:05,005 --> 00:33:08,605 Speaker 2: Brandon or Robert were home at the time. On September 582 00:33:08,605 --> 00:33:11,525 Speaker 2: twenty ninth, at around six am, Becky said she got 583 00:33:11,565 --> 00:33:15,005 Speaker 2: another call, this time from Brandon Wheeler. He asked her 584 00:33:15,005 --> 00:33:18,125 Speaker 2: to take care of their two dogs. Becky said that 585 00:33:18,245 --> 00:33:22,645 Speaker 2: this was not uncommon. Brandon Wheeler and Robert Webb had 586 00:33:22,725 --> 00:33:25,365 Speaker 2: two large dogs. When they were out of town. They 587 00:33:25,445 --> 00:33:28,965 Speaker 2: kept their dogs in the garage. Normally, when the guys 588 00:33:28,965 --> 00:33:31,445 Speaker 2: would take a trip, which normally they told her was 589 00:33:31,445 --> 00:33:33,925 Speaker 2: to California, they would ask her to come in and 590 00:33:33,925 --> 00:33:34,885 Speaker 2: give food and water. 591 00:33:34,765 --> 00:33:35,365 Speaker 3: To their dogs. 592 00:33:35,965 --> 00:33:39,325 Speaker 2: So presumably, if they're asking Becky to feed their animals 593 00:33:39,325 --> 00:33:41,845 Speaker 2: on September twenty ninth, they were making a plan to 594 00:33:41,925 --> 00:33:44,965 Speaker 2: leave town. Of course, we know September thirtieth, the next 595 00:33:45,045 --> 00:33:48,205 Speaker 2: days when Jared went missing, and after that day, Becky 596 00:33:48,245 --> 00:33:53,045 Speaker 2: said she never saw Brandon or Robert again. Becky also 597 00:33:53,165 --> 00:33:55,485 Speaker 2: described the atmosphere at that house. She said she would 598 00:33:55,485 --> 00:33:58,485 Speaker 2: see young women there, a lot young women who appeared 599 00:33:58,485 --> 00:34:01,085 Speaker 2: to be from around late teens to early twenties. She 600 00:34:01,125 --> 00:34:03,685 Speaker 2: said the guys would sit around and watch videos about guns, 601 00:34:03,725 --> 00:34:06,205 Speaker 2: which they seemed to be obsessed with and that she 602 00:34:06,245 --> 00:34:09,205 Speaker 2: saw other evidence of what could reasonably be construed to 603 00:34:09,205 --> 00:34:12,245 Speaker 2: be drug use, things like alcohol paths with drops of 604 00:34:12,245 --> 00:34:17,325 Speaker 2: blood on them. Police also talked to Larry Wilford, Robert 605 00:34:17,405 --> 00:34:22,405 Speaker 2: and Brandon's landlord. The landlord said that when they wanted 606 00:34:22,405 --> 00:34:24,845 Speaker 2: to become tenants, they gave him a similar story to 607 00:34:24,885 --> 00:34:27,565 Speaker 2: the one they'd given Becky. They said they went to 608 00:34:27,605 --> 00:34:29,645 Speaker 2: the University of Arkansas Little Rock, that they were going 609 00:34:29,685 --> 00:34:32,565 Speaker 2: to be lawyers. They were from San Francisco, California, and 610 00:34:32,605 --> 00:34:35,805 Speaker 2: they had wealthy parents. They wanted to pay in cash. 611 00:34:36,365 --> 00:34:39,325 Speaker 2: Larry agreed to rent these guys the house for eleven 612 00:34:39,365 --> 00:34:41,845 Speaker 2: hundred dollars a month, plus a fifteen hundred dollars deposit. 613 00:34:42,445 --> 00:34:44,845 Speaker 2: He did get a little suspicious because when he went 614 00:34:44,925 --> 00:34:47,405 Speaker 2: to do the tenantcy agreement, he wanted to talk to 615 00:34:47,485 --> 00:34:48,565 Speaker 2: Robert's parents. 616 00:34:48,965 --> 00:34:49,285 Speaker 3: He said. 617 00:34:49,325 --> 00:34:51,965 Speaker 2: When he drew up the tenancy agreement, he faxed it 618 00:34:52,005 --> 00:34:54,485 Speaker 2: over to someone who he was talking to, someone who 619 00:34:54,525 --> 00:34:58,005 Speaker 2: was claiming to be Robert Webb's father. But the landlord 620 00:34:58,045 --> 00:35:01,205 Speaker 2: said when he called that person back later with additional questions, 621 00:35:01,525 --> 00:35:03,685 Speaker 2: he said he was never able to contact them again. 622 00:35:04,245 --> 00:35:06,325 Speaker 2: So of course we can't be sit, but it seems 623 00:35:06,405 --> 00:35:09,725 Speaker 2: almost certain this was not Robert Webb's father. Much more 624 00:35:09,765 --> 00:35:12,565 Speaker 2: probably it was either Brandon or Robert or one of 625 00:35:12,565 --> 00:35:15,045 Speaker 2: their friends pretending to be his dad so they could 626 00:35:15,045 --> 00:35:17,965 Speaker 2: get into this apartment. I found something else on the 627 00:35:18,045 --> 00:35:20,205 Speaker 2: report that may or may not be interesting, but I 628 00:35:20,205 --> 00:35:24,205 Speaker 2: think is worth bringing up. So the landlord said Brandon 629 00:35:24,245 --> 00:35:27,605 Speaker 2: and Robert paid two thousand dollars to have the pool repaired. 630 00:35:28,085 --> 00:35:30,725 Speaker 2: They also had a satellite dish installed for around twenty 631 00:35:30,725 --> 00:35:33,845 Speaker 2: two hundred dollars. They only ended up staying at the 632 00:35:33,845 --> 00:35:36,725 Speaker 2: property for a few months, so I think the fact 633 00:35:36,765 --> 00:35:39,325 Speaker 2: that they put all this money into it right away 634 00:35:40,005 --> 00:35:44,125 Speaker 2: maybe should have been a red flag. The landlord said 635 00:35:44,365 --> 00:35:46,525 Speaker 2: that things seemed to be going well for a while 636 00:35:47,005 --> 00:35:50,845 Speaker 2: until late September. That's when the electricity got cut off 637 00:35:50,885 --> 00:35:54,605 Speaker 2: because Brandon and Robert hadn't paid their bill now around 638 00:35:54,605 --> 00:35:59,165 Speaker 2: that point, the landlord told police. Once the electricity got 639 00:35:59,165 --> 00:36:02,365 Speaker 2: cut off, and because they were all so late in 640 00:36:02,405 --> 00:36:04,565 Speaker 2: rent at that point, he started to get more concerned. 641 00:36:05,205 --> 00:36:08,765 Speaker 2: In the first week of October, Brandon and Robert came 642 00:36:08,805 --> 00:36:12,605 Speaker 2: to the landlord's house. They gave him a cashier's check, 643 00:36:12,685 --> 00:36:14,845 Speaker 2: for twenty two hundred dollars and said that was to 644 00:36:14,845 --> 00:36:18,125 Speaker 2: cover the rent for October and November. But at that 645 00:36:18,245 --> 00:36:20,845 Speaker 2: point something seemed to have unsettled the landlord and he 646 00:36:20,925 --> 00:36:22,885 Speaker 2: told them he was not going to rent to them anymore. 647 00:36:23,605 --> 00:36:25,725 Speaker 2: The next time the landlord said that he heard from 648 00:36:25,765 --> 00:36:28,445 Speaker 2: Robert was on October twenty first, when Robert called the 649 00:36:28,525 --> 00:36:31,405 Speaker 2: landlord to say that he and Brandon were moving out 650 00:36:31,445 --> 00:36:35,925 Speaker 2: and returning to California. Then the very next day, on 651 00:36:35,965 --> 00:36:39,965 Speaker 2: October twenty second, nineteen ninety four, police raced to the 652 00:36:39,965 --> 00:36:43,165 Speaker 2: scene of that rental house because it turned out that 653 00:36:43,485 --> 00:36:47,405 Speaker 2: just hours after Robert and Brandon were evicted, the house 654 00:36:47,685 --> 00:36:53,005 Speaker 2: was on fire. We'll have more on Jared Green's case 655 00:36:53,325 --> 00:37:02,485 Speaker 2: next time on Helen Gone Murder Line. Helen Gone Murder 656 00:37:02,525 --> 00:37:05,205 Speaker 2: Line is a production of School of Humans and iHeart Podcasts. 657 00:37:05,685 --> 00:37:08,885 Speaker 2: It's written and narrated by me Catherine Townsend and produced 658 00:37:08,885 --> 00:37:12,725 Speaker 2: by Gabby Watts. Music is by Ben Solee, and this 659 00:37:12,805 --> 00:37:16,965 Speaker 2: episode was scored and mixed by Miranda Hawkins. Executive producers 660 00:37:17,005 --> 00:37:20,925 Speaker 2: are Virginia Prescott, Brandon Barr, and Elsie Crowling. If you 661 00:37:21,125 --> 00:37:23,045 Speaker 2: have a case you'd like me and my team to 662 00:37:23,045 --> 00:37:25,445 Speaker 2: look into You can reach out to us at our 663 00:37:25,445 --> 00:37:28,605 Speaker 2: Hellingonge Murder line at six seven eight seven four four 664 00:37:28,885 --> 00:37:32,765 Speaker 2: six one four five. That's six seven eight seven four 665 00:37:32,845 --> 00:37:35,125 Speaker 2: four six ' one four five 666 00:37:43,845 --> 00:37:44,765 Speaker 3: School of Humans