New DNA evidence could help solve the decades old mystery. Did you see this curtain hanging in someone's house? After high school, he went to Bowling Green, where he majored in education with a focus in biology. Visitors had to enter their name, address and phone numbers in the book. What history do I have of inappropriate behavior with kids? He seemed excited about a new lead. The sketch was released to the public, and soon the tips started pouring in. ", I ask him about the sexual nature of the letters and he looks away. Why did you leave Ohio in 2003 without giving notice to your employer, For the most part, information on potential suspects has been revealed as, part of independent investigations. "Also, preference does not mean exclusivity. Two years later, he earned a Young Educator of the Year award for starting a science fair at the school. In the weeks preceding Amys disappearance on October 27, she had received several phone calls from an unknown man who knew almost everything about her life. In 2002, during a Sunday Mass at St. Angela Merici Catholic Church on Lorain Road in Fairview Park, he announced that he was the one responsible for what happened to Amy. As of 2014, her homicide remained unsolved. He's not homeless anymore. I ask. In 1990 when the body was found, forensic testing for DNA as we know it now and other trace evidence was not yet available. 2. Amy Mihaljevic Popularity . It's hard to tell what might be ailing Runkle, though, because, at 65, he could easily pass for 45. When she learned he was also living in New London, not far from where they found Amy, she called the Amherst police and then confronted Runkle directly. I know that one of the more well known people who cover this case (James Renner) likes DR as a suspect, and Im sure its with Renners full belief that DR fits according to evidence. This is a key piece of evidence police searched for when interviewing their many suspects. "That was a difficult time in my life," he says. But only a handful crossed paths with each of the girls the abductor attempted to seduce over the phone before successfully luring Amy to the shopping center that day - the clue upon which the entire case hinges, the one way in which the killer was careless. Renner, your stuff is interesting, but ad hominem attacks . As it happens, the soup kitchen is scheduled to serve free lunch in a half-hour. Runkle is an interesting suspect for many reasons. I pull the car over and hop out. Another angle is that this killer is toying with police. By James Renner on Wed, Nov 12, 2008 at 4:00 am. Submissions. New DNA results reveal Amys hair was on both items. Anything is possible." A couple hours later after no response, the Mihaljevics filed a missing persons report with the Bay Village Police Department. Thus, Amy found herself home alone every afternoon for about an hour before her brother Jason came home from school. Someone missed this curtain when it was gone - or at least noticed it was missing. At the height of the stranger-danger era, 10-year-old Amy Mihaljevic from Bay Village, OH, was abducted from the Bay Square Shopping Center on October 27, 1989. But there is so much more circumstantial evidence that says they are guilty than there is for any other "suspects". Amy and her friends were in . This student, Dan, said that he and his teacher communicated via letters a lot, which later turned sexual in nature. In 2006, it was revealed that before Amy was slain, many young girls around her same age had also received a similar phone call from an unidentified man, saying that hed help them buy their mother a present. Dean Runkle himself denies any involvement in the murder of Amy Mihaljevic and the FBI has never officially declared him a suspect. When would I have had time to kill her? James Renner, around the same age as Amy at the time, had been following the story about the cute little girl with the side ponytail. In the years since Amy's abduction, Maddie (not her real name) has been shown hundreds of photos of suspects. And I realized the nature center was in Bay Village.". "I didn't leave Ohio because of Amy," he says. She said she was going with a friend to the Bay Square Shopping Center. According to reporter James Renner, Dean Runkle is a possible prime suspect in the FBI investigation. Amy Mihaljevic is a famous Child murder victim. See pictures of the handmade curtain and blanket here. The latest update in the case is forensic testing of the one piece of evidence found with Amys bodya blanket that had been sewn into a curtain panel, found a few feet away from the body. Moments later, I pull up in front of the apartments, which are actually a dozen separate buildings surrounded by a chain-link fence. Real Name: Amy Renee Mihaljevic Nicknames: No known nicknames Location: Bay Village, Ohio Date: October 27, 1989 Amy Mihaljevic. Men with mostly shady pasts and weak alibis, vague connections to the suburban area, or those who have a history of sexual offenses are the ones who are included in the suspect list. What a stupid idea - thinking I would walk into a random fast-food joint and find him. Thankfully, though, a few people noticed him with Amy that day, and so a sketch of what he looked like was made. Mr. Runkle taught classes at the nature center and frequently volunteered there. Amy Mihaljevic disappeared on October 27, 1989. The lengths that Joseph went to hide his real name and the longevity of his identity theft led them to speculate that he was a dangerous fugitive. His denials of involvement in her abduction and murder notwithstanding, no other suspect has ever matched the facts of the case as closely as Dean Runkle. News of the other suspicious phone calls in the area spread around, and suddenly, no children went anywhere alone. But, they did classify that although he looked quite presentable, he didnt carry himself in a way that an accomplished or a professional person might. The calls all came at times when the children were at home, and the parents were typically at work. "There have not been many [photos] that have been this close," she says. There is new evidence in the Amy Mihaljevic murder investigation - a homemade curtain and a blanket found on the road where Amy's body was discovered in 1989. 2.1 Dean Runkle; 3 References; 4 Further reading; They know this.". He shrugs. He admitted he was a teacher at Amys middle school, but denied he had anything to do with the nature center. Some recognize him as a piano player in local bars, but these tips don't get me any closer. Amy . Friends of Amy said the caretaker paid special attention to Amy and was always saying hi to her while she was there for lessons. Most child molesters don't abduct and kill their victims, he notes. Amy Mihaljevic. Most of these killers are not stupid. According to Jason, for months and years after Amys disappearance, Margaret would do nothing but go to work, and then come home and barricade herself inside Amys room. "He would stare at me in class," says Kim Raeburn. Dean Runkle himself denies any involvement in the murder of Amy Mihaljevic and the FBI has never officially declared him a suspect. Amy passes her blue antique bicycle, which she peddled to school that morning, and heads east on Wolf Road. The three-hour special, premiering 9 p.m. Sunday on ID, takes a deep dive into the still-unsolved 1989 murder of 10-year-old Amy Mihaljevic, who lived in a town on the shores of Lake Erie. They walk together until they reach the shopping plaza a quarter mile down the road. What happened to the car you were driving in the Fall of 1989? This person wanted police to find Amys body. Runkle was a twin, but his sister died in 1950, when they were 6. How did Amy's life cross paths with the lives of three girls from North Olmsted she had never met? At that intersection is her killer. A teacher at Amys middle school had told police back in 1989 that he had never heard of the nature center and had nothing to do with the establishment. At the time of Amy's . Over time the letters became sexual in nature. By the time police made this connection, the log book had vanished from the nature center. All rights reserved. Initial evidence found at the scene suggested that she had been dumped there shortly after her abduction, maybe on the day itself. According to reporter James Renner, Dean Runkle is a possible prime suspect in the FBI investigation.Multiple witnesses say that he matches the man they saw with Amy the day she vanished. Amy Mihaljevic's cause of death was determined to be homicide by stabbing. So by definition, the 3 are still the "most likely suspects". New info and they are asking for help from the public. I can tell whatever I want to. At 2:10 p.m., on October 27, 1989, classes end for the fifth graders of Bay Village Middle. Most of these killers have what psychologists deem a thrill-seeking personality.. He walks over to see what we're talking about. All four girls, who received suspicious phone calls (with Amy being the last one), have visited it in the weeks before the abduction and may have written their names and phone numbers in a logbook by the front doors. The report of a missing child from their own neighborhood frightened every soul in Bay Village. Multiple witnesses say that he matches the man they saw . Thursday marks 33 years since Amy was taken from a shopping plaza in Bay Village. [emailprotected] Anyone with any information, call the FBI at 216.522.1400 or the Bay Village Police Department at 440.871.0773. As of 2014, her homicide remained unsolved. Blood was also found inside of her underwear. Several years after the murder, a man at a church service in a nearby town suddenly stood up and yelled out the words I killed Amy Mihaljevic. Some off-duty police officers happened to be in the congregation and immediately took the man into custody. Gold-colored fibers were found on Amy's body, according to the Ashland County coroner's file on the case. She did not tell the girls who she was waiting for, but she did tell them she received a mysterious phone call right after she got home from school from a man claiming to be a friend of her mothers. Birthday December 11, 1978. We know this perpetrator is both patient opportunistic, the play it safe type who allowed Amy to call her mom as to not raise suspicion, so why would he rush from his job to the abduction scene? He nods, unsurprised. Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Amy: My Search for Her Killer: Secrets and Suspects in the Unsolved Murder of Amy Mihaljevic at Amazon.com. Renner parked his car and confronted Runkle. I attempted to locate it in hopes of taking a sample of carpet that could be compared to the gold fibers found on Amy. 2 Suspects. In 2008, I learned of a man named Dean Runkle, who was once a teacher in the small Cleveland suburb of Amherst. According to reporter James Renner, Dean Runkle is a possible prime suspect in the FBI investigation. But I answered the FBI's questions, I took their lie detector test and they haven't done anything to me. Two of Amys friends immediately told police they had met Amy at the Bay Village Shopping Center shortly after school ended. Sunday, October 11, 2015. They also start taking trophies. Jason became concerned quickly and called his mother Margaret at work to ask where Amy was. The school doors open, and here comes Amy Mihaljevic, dressed in green pants and a pale green shirt with lavender trim. Renner never made contact until he was about to leave town. When Rax became a different fast-food restaurant, he continued frequenting the place as if nothing had changed. I begin focusing on the people I can tell are locals - the tanned man weaving palm-frond baskets, the musician strumming a guitar on a corner. I ask him how so much circumstantial evidence could line up against one person. He didn't say anything, just walked past me. She says Runkle and another teacher were discussing the pregnancy of an eighth-grader and which boy might have been the father. She had been stabbed twice in the neck and hit in the head with a . Person Of Interest. As word spread around the neighborhood, friends and family started coming over to the Mihaljevic house to make flyers and search for Amy. For their part, Bay Village police detectives do not consider Runkle as the only suspect in the case and continue to work all leads. She was born in Little Rock, Arkansas, and she later moved to a suburb of Cleveland, Ohio. For more information, please see our See pictures of the handmade curtain and blanket here. The third girl took horseback riding lessons at Holly Hill Ranch, the very same ranch that Amy took lessons from. It was a tragic year for the Runkles; the family's first home burned to the ground too. Renner pressed him for any information about Amys murder, but Runkle walked away. The girl had been sexually assaulted years earlier, and thankfully did not fall into the mans trap. She jogs a little to catch up with Olivia Masiak. he says. Bay Village, . She was known for being a Person. Kids no longer answered phone calls. Feeling like police never investigated the local nature center lead after the log book disappeared, Renner began his own investigation. Hes a suspect who looks good from a standpoint of circumstantial evidence, but when we need concrete evidence it all falls apart. Amy Renee Mihaljevic (December 11, 1978 - October 27, 1989) was an ten-year-old American elementary school student who was kidnapped and murdered in the U.S. state of Ohio in 1989. It was a crowded plaza filled with adults as well as middle and high school students who would frequent the Baskin Robbins after school. AMY MIHALJEVIC - 2021 UPDATE! So, take a look. And, because he was in the suburban Ohio area in 1989, authorities think that he can be behind Amys death. Family Life. Investigators said she was stabbed to death. Send a News Tip. But with each attempt the killer refined his pitch, until, finally, he called Amy and she agreed to meet. Residents of Bay Village lived on edge for years after Amys disappearance and murder. It also gave him PTSD. Birth Sign Sagittarius. ", And though most victims of child abuse know their attackers, when a child is killed, often it's at the hands of a stranger who has gone outside his safe zone. Amy Renee Mihaljevic (December 11, 1978 - October 27, 1989) was an elementary schoolgirl who was kidnapped and murdered in the U.S. state of Ohio in 1989. Facts About Amy Mihaljevic. "I said, 'I know you're the one who killed Amy,'" she recalls. Amy Mihaljevic disappeared on October 27, 1989. Runkle says he doesn't ever remember being physical with his female students, either. In 2018, officials announced that they were following a potential link between Joseph Newton Chandler III and the murder of Amy Mihaljevic. As I'm considering how to enter the compound, a man walks across the street in front of me. How much time would that give DR to rush out after work, find a pay phone or some other way of calling, then make the call? I quickly began to see why this man was on the FBI's list of priorities. He arranged to meet Amy after school that day to help her buy a gift for her mom for a work promotion. Some of them just came to our attention recently. The FBI, currently offering an up to $25,000 reward for any information, has never let this case go cold. Elish believes anyone who can identify those items, the curtain especially, will help solve this case. The curtain is homemade, and was originally Avocado green. Ten-year-old Amy was lured from her Bay Village home on Oct. 27, 1989, to a shopping center at Dover Center . inappropriate behavior and unwanted physicality? The police also released a letter to all households with school-age children asking if they had received any mysterious phone calls similar to the one that lured Amy out to the shopping center. He was very touchy." Sept. 21, 2021, 5:41 PM PDT. We know where Amy was abducted. Margaret still left work immediately and returned to her house, but Amy wasnt there. She waits outside, standing on a bench, twirling around a pole, her head down. How often did you visit the Lake Erie Nature and Science Center? Police responded to the Mihaljevic house almost immediately, and began interviewing Amys family and friends over the next few days. Today, he's a consultant for the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. A homeless man says he thinks he has seen Runkle at a soup kitchen on Flagler Avenue before, but that was years ago. Unfortunately, what looked like a slam dunk case ended up fizzling out. Cleveland newspaper reporter James Renner investigated Mihaljevic's murder case and concluded that a teacher named Dean Runkle should be viewed as a prime suspect. Richard Holbert. When I ask him if he could have used the logbook at the nature center to gather phone numbers for girls in North Olmsted, he says he's done talking and begins to walk away. The curtain is incredibly unique and likely homemade. "I'm meeting someone," says Amy. No sign of him, of course. Amys body was only ever found because her killer wanted it that way. Runkle liked to tell boys sexual jokes, says Derek Chase. (MINDSHOCK TRUE CRIME PODCAST CLIPS)Examining the "NEW" suspect, and "NEW" evidence being reported in February . "I know I'm their top suspect. Powered by WordPress.com VIP. He had a few girls he was extra close to, like the girl who sat in front of me. Mother, Laura Smith, and Boyfriend Arrested in Toddler, Julian Madera's Death/ deputies say 21-year-old Landon Broussard showed up to his grandmother's house, carrying the badly bruised, naked body of the 3-year-old boy. Your email address will not be published. The girl became frightened and immediately hung up the phone. But what motivation could this man possibly have to lie to police during their investigation in 1989? The first place I stopped was a chain restaurant that Runkle reportedly frequented in Ohio. Under interrogation, the suspect began softly muttering random words in no particular order. Multiple witnesses say that he matches the man they saw with Amy the day she vanished. He was an eccentric teacher from the beginning. Cleveland Taco Week returns on Monday, April 10th. . Several students say they were invited back to Runkle's apartment after school. Thousands of tips have come in throughout the years, but no one has ever been arrested. "Yeah, I wrote a lot of letters. Last weekend, I paid him a visit. Over three decades after the kidnapping of 10-year-old Amy Mihaljevic in northeast Ohio, local police said this week that newly-discovered DNA on a blanket and a curtain could be the key to solving the decades-old cold case. Turning the corner, he says, "I have nothing to confess to.". "If you do become a violent guy, you better be victimizing strangers," explains Lanning. Very close. "When you're dealing with human behavior," warns Lanning, "you're not dealing in absolutes. He also photographed his students regularly, developing the negatives himself. If youre interested in learning more about Amys case, please check out James Renners book about this case Amy: My Search for Her Killer now available on Audible. The handyman was brought in for questioning, but was quickly eliminated as a suspect once his alibi was corroborated by multiple people. Two witnesses said they saw Amy that day with a man who would now be in his mid-50s or early '60s. Police considered it another dead end. For more info about Amy's case, you can read through the blog I've devoted to it since 2006. Margaret immediately became alarmed and decided to leave work early. Only a few times has she told investigators that the man in the photo could be the same one who led Amy away. Read more about this topic: Amy Mihaljevic, Suspect, Confession, alas, is the new handshake.Richard Dean Rosen (b. "It was more than creepy; it felt like an animal noticing you walk into a room. BAY VILLAGE, Ohio (WOIO) - Nearly 32 years after her murder, there's a new clue in the Amy Mihaljevic case. One of them spots the girl spinning around the pole, seemingly without a care in the world. Privacy Policy. Amy was just 10 years old when she was kidnapped and stabbed to death. Other students of Runkle have since testified that Runkle engaged in sexual misconduct with them in the form of inappropriate touching and rides in his car to and from his apartment.
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