Help Me Hayley: Cold Case Files

Candy Rogers was just nine-years-old when she was abducted, sexually assaulted and strangled to death. The crime occurred in March of 1959 and changed the Spokane community forever. The case would go unsolved for decades until a determined detective connected with a Texas DNA laboratory. After 62 years, SPD was finally able to tell Candy's surviving relatives that they had identified her killer.

It's been one year since a Stevens County man vanished. Guy Geyer, 61, was renovating a home near Chewelah. His daughter says after the disappearance, they found his worksite at the residence oddly tidy with his expensive tools left behind. As the days since he vanished continue to stack up, his family fears investigators should not only be looking for Guy's remains, but also a potential killer. If you know anything about what happened to Guy, please call 509-684-2555.

Angel Dawn Wilson (Rice) was just 17-years-old when she vanished in Spokane, Washington. Her father recently passed away. He spent the last 14 years of his life consumed with the heartbreaking search for his daughter. Angel's best friend and brother continue to push for answers. If you know anything about what happened to Angel, please reach out to the Spokane County Sheriff's Office.

The FBI and local law enforcement held a recent press conference on the 40-year anniversary of the abduction and murder of University of Idaho student Kristin David. The 22-year-old was found dismembered in the Snake River. Her case is one of several that occurred in roughly the same area, around the same time, that remain unsolved. Has one person gotten away with multiple murders, or could the LC Valley have been home to more than one killer capable of unthinkable evil? It's a question that haunts the community decades later.

In June of 1981, 22-year-old Kristin David left Moscow, Idaho on her blue 10-speed. She was headed for the LC Valley. Witnesses reported seeing her speaking with a man in a brown van near Genesee. Days later, her dismembered remains were found in garbage bags in the Snake River. Her cause of death is a secret only kept by law enforcement and her murderer. An upcoming episode will dig deeper into this case, but we wanted to share the recent press conference on the 40th anniversary of Kristin's death.

It took a Spokane County jury less than two days of deliberations to convict Clay Starbuck of murdering his ex-wife Chanin in December of 2011. Prosecutors pointed to a shaky alibi, a switched-off cell phone, and a neck swab that was a partial match to male Starbuck DNA. Nearly a decade later, the Washington Innocence Project is involved and pushing to get never before tested evidence in the system. The Starbuck children have never wavered in their support for their father.

In April of 1996, 17-year-old Jeremiah Taraba was found hanging from a tree on Tubbs Hill. It was quickly labeled a suicide. More than four years after the death, his body was exhumed for autopsy. Still, his family and the many others who have looked into this case have far more questions than answers. Was this a tragic suicide, or a calculated cover-up?

In 2020, 24-year-old Makayla Young was stabbed dozens of times and nearly decapitated by a man she was dating. Anthony Fuerte entered a plea of guilty to the murder in April and will be sentenced May 24th. The family is asking anyone touched by this story to send statements for the judge to review prior to sentencing.

Sarah Q. Gardner was a beloved wife, mother, grandmother and community leader. That's what made her brutal murder so shocking. She was found stabbed nearly 50 times inside her Spokane beauty salon. No one has ever been arrested in connection to the homicide.

Ian Eckles went to Kittitas County to go turkey hunting with friends in May of 2020. Ian never showed up to meet them. While looking for clues, friends saw a man driving Ian's vehicle. A three-week search for that armed suspect, since identified as Jorge Alcantara Gonzalez, followed in what has been called the biggest manhunt in county history. Even though he was eventually found and charged with taking Ian's property, the investigation into Ian's death and search for his body continues.