Spragueville, IA Area Cold Cases

Name

Benjamin Roseland

Age

19

Cause of Death

Missing

Info

Around 10:30 p.M. Saturday, february 9, 2008, benjamin “ben” roseland left a friend’s house in the 400 block of 10th avenue south, clinton, iowa, to walk a few blocks to a hy-vee grocery store located in the 900 block of south 4th street. The 19-year-old never made it to the store.

Agency

Iowa

Name

Edwin Jacobs

Age

55

Cause of Death

Shooting

Info

Edwin harry jacobs, a 55-year-old veteran who served with the 1032 signal company during world war ii, was shot to death on sunday morning, january 2, 1972, near the izaak walton league clubhouse in clinton county, iowa.

Agency

Iowa

Name

George Leonard

Age

53

Cause of Death

Shooting

Info

George albert leonard, 53, a painting contractor and former elmwood dairy milkman, was shot to death in the early morning hours on saturday, november 28, 1981, while working his second part-time job at ‘the inn’ tavern in clinton, iowa.

Agency

Iowa

Name

Joshua Yoder

Age

4

Cause of Death

Hit And Run

Info

On may 3, 2005, 4-year-old josh yoder was struck by a hit-and-run driver in the 500 block of south 9th street in clinton, iowa. He died the following day at university hospitals in iowa city.

Agency

Iowa

Name

Judith Reed

Age

38

Cause of Death

Homicide

Info

Judith reed, 38, was engaged in an altercation outside the welcome inn tavern in goose lake, iowa, on thursday, december 26, 1974, at which time she was struck in the head. She was found dead in a friend’s home the following morning.

Agency

Iowa

Name

Louis Reed Sr

Age

53

Cause of Death

Shooting

Info

On thursday night, valentine’s day 1974, louis dale reed, sr., was killed by a 410 shotgun blast to the chest inside a shack at reed’s auto salvage, a salvage yard reed operated at 2800 liberty ave. On clinton’s south side. Reed also had a shotgun wound to his left arm.

Agency

Iowa

Name

Pamela Hinrichs

Age

19

Cause of Death

Shooting/Robbery

Info

Pamela rae hinrichs, 19, was shot during an apparent robbery of the amvets post no. 28 at 1317 s. 17th street in clinton, iowa, in the early morning hours on tuesday, january 13, 1981. According to reports at the time of the incident, the cash register and a nearby safe were cleaned out.There were no substantial leads, suspects or witnesses.The department of criminal investigation was called in to help solve the murder. John jutte, special agent in charge, said the case remains open until it reaches the courts.

Agency

Iowa

Name

Robert Clary

Age

48

Cause of Death

Shooting

Info

Robert m. Clary, 48, was shot in the chest at his clinton, iowa, mobile home sometime in the early morning hours on wednesday, september 29, 1982.Clary, a u.S. Army veteran who’d served in korea, was twice-divorced and lived alone at the rented 419-1/2 4th avenue south trailer parked next door to landlord jackie chadwick’s home.According to a clinton herald article published sept. 30, 1982, chadwick said she noticed clary’s door ajar early wednesday morning and went to check on him. Inside, she found clary’s fully-clothed body on the floor next to a blood-soaked chair and quickly notified the clinton police department.Clinton police said the death was reported about 7:30 a.M.

Agency

Iowa

Name

Steven Barrette

Age

20

Cause of Death

Undetermined

Info

Steven barrette, a 20-year-old army veteran, was killed on or around june 6, 1976 during a weekend camping trip. On tuesday evening, june 8, 1976, clinton police arrived at the barrette’s family doorstop to notify them steven’s body had washed ashore and been found near the mississippi river.Officials originally ruled barrette’s death an accidental drowning, though in late 2000 announced they’d developed new information that suggested foul play may have been involved. The hospital and barrette’s attending physicians hadn’t kept old x-rays or other medical records from his case, and the veteran’s autopsy records couldn’t be found.Armed with the new information, investigators exhumed barrette’s body in october 2000 from his grave at st. Irenaeus cemetery near eagle point park in clinton so a new autopsy could be performed. The second autopsy proved valuable and shed new light on barrette’s death.

Agency

Iowa

Name

Crystal Arensdorf

Age

20

Cause of Death

Missing

Info

Crystal ann arensdorf, 20, of dubuque, iowa, was last seen at approximately 2 a.M. On july 4, 2001, at knicker’s saloon in dubuque, iowa. Arensdorf had gone to the 2186 central avenue bar with friends and tried to find a ride to east dubuque, ill. No one saw her leave the bar, and she left her car, her keys, and her money behind. She did not show up for work thursday morning. Steven and david peacock — two former dubuque brothers who resided in mount horeb, wisconsin — were at the bar on july 4 and questioned several times in arensdorf’s disappearance. The brothers agreed to polygraph exams in april 2002, and authorities also seized and searched david peacock’s vehicle. The brothers were never charged in connection with arensdorf’s case.

Agency

Iowa

Name

Francis Rafferty

Age

58

Cause of Death

Homicide

Info

Francis john rafferty — a 58-year-old millworker — died of asphyxiation after burglars entered his dubuque, iowa home saturday night, feb. 8, 1964, and taped his mouth shut with electrician’s tape. Dubuque police chief robert o’brien said rafferty was tied up with telephone wire and, because his mouth was covered with tape, apparently choked on food he’d eaten earlier.

Agency

Iowa

Name

Hulda Fischer

Age

84

Cause of Death

Homicide

Info

On february 25, 1975, hulda fischer, 84, was stabbed repeatedly with a butcher knife and strangled in her maquoketa, iowa, home located at 418 north fifth street. Neighbors discovered her body when they went to check on her.

Agency

Iowa

Name

Jackie Shireman

Age

21

Cause of Death

Stabbing

Info

On saturday, jan. 4, 1975, at approximately 7:45 p.M., a customer at dubuque’s “marino’s meal on a bun” found waitress jackie shireman lying in a pool of blood in the walk-in cooler. The 21-year-old newlywed and sunday school teacher had been stabbed around 30 times with a pair of scissors. A trial returned no homicide conviction, and the case remains open. The following story about jackie’s murder aired on kwwl.Com channel 7 news on feb. 21, 2018. It details how jackie’s sister has never given up on solving her sister’s murder and how jackie’s death affected the family.

Agency

Iowa

Name

Kenneth Bouzard

Age

53

Cause of Death

Homicide

Info

In the early morning hours on friday, april 23, 1971, kenneth marvin bouzard was clubbed to death and then stuffed beneath a freight car in downtown dubuque

Agency

Iowa

Name

Kenny Johnson

Age

14

Cause of Death

Strangulation

Info

On saturday, october 10, 1987 around 8:45 a.M., an elderly fisherman discovered the body of a young white male lying on the sandy beach area near a floodgate in dubuque, iowa’s isolated maus park

Agency

Iowa

Name

Kevin Griebel

Age

36

Cause of Death

Missing

Info

Kevin lee griebel, 36, was reported missing to the jackson county sheriff’s office in maquoketa, iowa, on february 26, 2004. He was last seen in maquoketa

Agency

Iowa

Name

Marlon Barber Jr

Age

15

Cause of Death

Shooting

Info

On oct. 20, 2012, marlon barber, jr., a 15-year-old dubuque teen, was shot in the chest and stomach as he and his friends walked away from a party. He died soon after in the hospital. Another teen was hit by gunfire but treated at a hospital and released.

Agency

Iowa

Name

Paul Knockel

Age

53

Cause of Death

Missing

Info

On thursday, oct. 12, 2023, dubuque police responded to a report of a submerged vehicle in the mississippi river. Officials identified the vehicle as a 1981 mercury zephyr and stated the car belonged to paul joseph knockel, who’d been reported missing from dubuque on nov. 26, 1990. N november 1990, the dubuque telegraph herald reported that knockel last had contact with family members on monday, november 12 and that knockel’s car was last seen by a family member the morning of november 13, parked along u.S. Route 151 less than one mile east of the dubuque-wisconsin bridge near the “welcome to wisconsin” sign on the roadway’s south side.Knockel, a lifelong bachelor with no children, missed his usual thanksgiving dinner with relatives and they reported him missing the following monday after he failed to show up at a job at the swiss colony mail-order gift warehouse in monroe, wisconsin, dubuque police told the telegraph herald. Police also said knockel was last seen friday, november 17, driving along a highway in grant county, wisconsin.

Agency

Iowa

Name

Scott Althoff

Age

23

Cause of Death

Hit And Run

Info

Scott m. Althoff, 23, was killed in a hit-and-run homicide west of la motte near zwingle, iowa, on july 21, 2002.Althoff, a lifelong baseball player, had graduated just one year earlier from the university of dubuque with a degree in sports management.Althoff, who lived in eldridge but grew up in la motte, was walking on 300th street near zwingle when an unidentified vehicle struck him and then drove away. A passerby found althoff’s body early sunday morning, july 21, 2002.

Agency

Iowa

Name

Sherrie Martin

Age

8

Cause of Death

Shooting

Info

Sisters sherrie lee martin, 8, and victoria lynne martin, 4, were killed in an early morning fire on saturday, march 6, 1965, when someone set fire to the family’s dubuque, iowa two-story frame house.The girls’ mother, janet, escaped from the burning home about 3:30 a.M. But said she was unable to save her daughters. The girls were asleep on the home’s second floor when the fire broke out.Janet’s husband, donald c. Martin, a former national guardsman and marine corps corporal employed by the united states postal service, also had a second job and worked the second shift. After the fire, both he and his wife were admitted to the hospital for shock.Martin requested his daughters’ bodies be exhumed to prove his estranged wife had provided the accelerant that led to their deaths. Further investigation determined the fire had indeed been deliberately set and ruled it arson. Both girls’ deaths were then ruled homicides.

Agency

Iowa

Name

Victoria Martin

Age

4

Cause of Death

Shooting

Info

Sisters sherrie lee martin, 8, and victoria lynne martin, 4, were killed in an early morning fire on saturday, march 6, 1965, when someone set fire to the family’s dubuque, iowa two-story frame house.The girls’ mother, janet, escaped from the burning home about 3:30 a.M. But said she was unable to save her daughters. The girls were asleep on the home’s second floor when the fire broke out.Janet’s husband, donald c. Martin, a former national guardsman and marine corps corporal employed by the united states postal service, also had a second job and worked the second shift. After the fire, both he and his wife were admitted to the hospital for shock.Martin requested his daughters’ bodies be exhumed to prove his estranged wife had provided the accelerant that led to their deaths. Further investigation determined the fire had indeed been deliberately set and ruled it arson. Both girls’ deaths were then ruled homicides.

Agency

Iowa

Name

Theodore Hoerstman

Age

45

Cause of Death

Missing

Info

Theodore anthony “ted” hoerstman, a 45-year-old disabled adult, was reported missing to the dubuque police department in dubuque, iowa, on december 6, 1982. Hoerstman, initially listed on the iowa department of public safety’s missing person information clearinghouse, was removed from the site in 2011 and he is now presumed deceased. Date of date is listed as the same day he went missing.

Agency

Iowa

Name

Kenny Johnson

Age

14

Cause of Death

Ligature/Strangulation

Info

Agency

Dubuque Police Department

Name

Terry Johnston

Age

55

Cause of Death

Homicide

Info

A missing 55-year-old clinton county man, terry leon johnston, was found dead in the mississippi river wednesday, oct. 1, 1997, in princeton, iowa. Less then a week before he was murdered, johnston filed a police report naming people who had threatened to kill him and throw him in the river, his family says.

Agency

Iowa