Crossing Tape

10. The mysterious death of Roland T. Owen


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In 1935 a young man was found bound, beaten and tortured in an upscale Kansas City hotel. With each step of the investigation, police become more and more baffled. How was his room locked from the outside while he lay dying on the inside, and yet no one was seen coming in or out of his room? Why was there no record of him anywhere police looked? What does a mysterious note of "Love forever, Louise" mean? And why was his mother receiving strange letters from Cairo, Egypt? This is the baffling unsolved case of Roland T. Owen aka Artemus Ogletree.


You can leave virutal flowers for Artemus here https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/172315577/artemus-w-ogletree


TRIGGER WARNINGSassault, torture, violent death, homophobia and sexual coercion


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For each victim I work to place flowers at their grave site, if their burial information is available. I do this by either driving there myself if I’m in the local area, or sending flowers via a delivery service. If you’d like to help offset the costs and in turn show your support for the victims, you can donate any amount through this link


If you'd like to get a hold of us, please visit us at www.crossingtapepodcast.com or email us at [email protected]. If you'd like to suggest a case, please do so here ⁠https://forms.gle/Gqv2h9Se4qm8yH9s5⁠ 


References:

https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1940/population-volume-1/33973538v1ch05.pdf 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murder_of_Artemus_Ogletree 

https://www.al.com/news/erry-2018/09/56ecbe55ac9479/the-mystery-of-what-was-in-the.html 

https://www.newspapers.com/article/38272844/artemus_ogletree_3_nov_1936_tue_p/ 

https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/167645421 

https://fox4kc.com/news/unsolved-murder-in-1935-the-unusual-guest-at-a-kansas-city-hotel/ 

https://kchistory.org/blog/mystery-room-1046-pt-1-roland-t-owen 

https://kchistory.org/blog/mystery-room-1046-pt-2-love-forever-louise 

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1938/01/08/the-homicide-squad-in-action 

https://www.buzzfeed.com/ryanbergara/the-ogletree-murder-is-one-of-the-creepiest-unsolved-cases

https://kansascitymag.com/news/longform/the-owen-case/

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/172315577/artemus-w-ogletree 

https://www.reddit.com/r/UnresolvedMysteries/comments/ujlfe5/in_1935_artemus_ogletree19checked_into_the_hotel/ 

https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-kansas-city-star-probst/132451377/

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Crossing TapeBy Arlo Productions