The armchair detective podcast

TADP Season 3 Episode 4 The unsolved murder of Pamela Webb

07.01.2019 - By Armchair DetectivePlay

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It was the summer of 1989 in a small New England town. It had rained the previous 3 straight days. Pamela Webb, a 32 year old woman from Winthrop Maine was getting herself prepared to make the trip up to Mason NH to visit her boyfriend, Josh Cloud.

Pamela had been working at Digital Equipment Corp out of Augusta Maine. Digital Equipment Corporation was a major American computer company from the 50s to the 90s. The company was later bought out by Compaq and then later purchased by HP.

She had met Josh Cloud while working for Digital Equipment Corp. Pamela was a well liked young woman and was known by her family and friends as being family oriented and also known for having a very strong faith and someone close to God.

Pamela packed up her blue 1981 C-10 Chevrolet pickup truck. She brought several items including her handbag, a Bible and her pet beagle. Today actually marks the 30th anniversary of the discovery of her truck at mile 30.4, southbound on the Maine turnpike near Biddeford ME. Unfortunately Pamela never made it to see her boyfriend Josh Cloud.

According to Pamela's turnpike ticket, she entered the roadway in Augusta at 9:52 pm on July 1 1989. What happened after this is uncertain. What's known is that her blue 1981 C-10 Chevrolet pick up truck was located, and she was no where to be found.

The disappearance of Pamela Webb from Winthrop ME had all the earmarks of foul play. There were two large blood stains found near the disabled pick up truck beside the southbound lane of the turnpike. There was also signs of unspecified struggle. The lead investigator in the case, Steven McCausland said the following “We are very concerned about her well being”.

Police also gathered clues from the scene and analyzed them at the Main State Police crime Lab in Augusta Maine. They also began soliciting potential witnesses to come forward. One of the samples analyzed at the crime lab was the blood stains that were found near the vehicle. Police wanted to be able to determine if the blood was that of Pamela Webb.

The subsequent searches for Pamela Webb were intensive. State police, game wardens and special search teams from the Brunswick Air Naval station were all involved in the searches as were several K-9 units. The searches spanned both sides of the Maine Turnpike and went all the way from mile 7 to mile 30 searching for clues in Pamela's disappearance. Pamela had left on July 1st which was a Saturday and her vehicle was located at approximately 2am the following day.

Law enforcement theorized early on that something happened to Pamela while she was changing her tire on the side of the road. During the searches there were 43 people from Brunswick, at least a dozen police state troopers, a dozen game wardens and three canine teams.

An all points bulletin was issued for Pamela Webb. She was described as slightly built, 5 feet 1 inches tall, with brown eyes and brown hair done in a french braid. She was also wearing a blue denim mini skirt, new white sneakers with pink decorations on them and a sweater like shirt of unknown color.

The search itself spanned a total of 23 miles. A total of 75 people told law enforcement that they spotted Pamela's vehicle in the breakdown late the night she disappeared. Others even called to report suspicious activities that happened to them. Unfortunately, the searches were unsuccessful. It was only 16 days after Pamela Webb disappeared that her body was finally recovered.

One such incident of suspicious activities was the ordeal a Cornish NH woman had suffered not long after Pamela disappeared. During this suspicious event, a Cornish woman was forced to stop her car on a quiet New Hampshire road. It was believed that this incident may be related to Pamela Webb's disappearance. Now remember, Pamela's vehicle had a flat rear tire.

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