10 Unsettling Cases From 'Unsolved Mysteries' Reboot

Patrice Endres worked at her hair salon in Cummings, GA, on April 15, 2004, whenshe seemingly disappeared.The short window for her vanishing is more perplexing. The Volume 1 episode is titled “13 Minutes.” Endres had two morning appointments. The second client left the salon at 11:27 am. Another customer called to change an appointment and spoke to Endres on the phone until 11:37 am. Another client called at 11:50 am; no one answered.

The case hasmany puzzling components.Endres's car moved from its usual spot, and her keys stayed in the salon. By the time the next customer arrived, no one was there. Police found missing money in the cash register and Endres's lunch uneaten. People who spoke to her recalled her being short or distracted, unlike her usual way.

In December 2005, Endres's remains surfaced behind a church in Dawson County, GA. This shifted focus from where she went to who killed her. She left behind her teenage son, Pistol Black, and her husband, Rob Endres, who was 20 years older and did not get along with Black. Family friends also said their marriage was troubled.

Focus on Rob Endres grew afterUnsolved Mysteriesinterviewed him for theUnsolved Mysteriesepisode on the case. He revealed he carried his late wife's skull and slept with her ashes. He also said he changed the locks on his home and kicked Black out 24 hours after Patrice Endres went missing.

Despite many theories, Endreshas reportedly been “thoroughly investigated.”Investigators have never charged her. Two serial killers were possible culprits, but they found neither likely responsible. Police hope Endres's wedding ring, missing from her remains, will surface and solve the case.

Tiffany Valiante was an 18-year-old high school senior in rural New Jersey during the summer of 2015. Aftera family partyValiante walked home, argued with a friend about her credit card, and then her mother confronted her about the card before telling her father. At that moment, Valiante vanished from the house. The family's deer camera showed her leaving at night. Less than two hours later, a train struck Valiante four miles from home.

The next day, New Jersey Transit authorities said her death was a suicide. Valiante's family, however,disagreed.The train engineers operating that night gave conflicting accounts of what they saw. Her family also found it suspicious that Valiante was missing much of her clothing, including her shirt, shorts, and shoes.

The Valiante family searched the woods themselves for answers. They found her headband and shoes along the path from her house to the train tracks. This path was far from the tracks. The family thought it was unlikely Valiante would walk on a gravel road for so long without hurting her feet. They also found an axe with red markings near the scene, but they lost it.

The Valiante family claims Tiffany was excited for college in the fall to play volleyball. They pictured her as a happy girl who would not take her own life. They theorize a car picked her up near the house. She was already dead then, and her killer allegedly put her on the railroad tracks. Some of Valiante's friends, however,reportedthat Tiffany might not have seemed happy. She broke up with her girlfriend just before she died.

TheUnsolved MysteriesThe episode ("Mystery at Mile Marker 45") omits some facts pointing toward suicide.According toThe Daily BeastBefore the credit card issue the night she died, Valiante stole money from her parents' bank account. Child Protective Services visited the home three times in 2014, and her mother admitted to punching her arm. Valiante came out as gay six months before her death, which her mother first called a phase. Friends said she felt lonely and distant before she passed.

Conflicting with the car pickup idea, a K-9 unit tracked her scent the whole route from her home to the train tracks.

Friends Carnell Sledge and Kate Brown met at the Rocky River Reservation in Cleveland, OH, around 5 pm on June 4, 2019. They were found by a park bench less than twenty minutes after arriving.both fatally shot.Though Sledge and Brown were friends for ten years, no one knows why they met that evening. Sledge's family said he planned to go to dinner at his grandmother's house (miles away) around the same time. People close to both victims guess one of them needed to talk.

Despite the event happening in a busy public place during the day, no one heard anything. A roofer in his car nearby did not hear anything. (Police say a silencer on the gun might have stopped the sound.) It is also baffling that neither Sledge nor Brown seemed to have enemies. Authorities do not even know who, if anyone, was the target.

Police still do not know the motive behind the 'Park Bench Murders'.

As the Volume 5 episode explores suspects, families discuss a random attack or a hate crime. Brown's last cell phone activity was at 5:08 pm, leaving only 14 minutes for a chance event.

Investigators have solid alibis for every candidate named—the nearby roofer, Sledge's ex, Brown's ex, and a man Brown dated the Friday before. The “Park Bench Murders” episode ends with more questions than answers.

Volume 3 episode“Body in Bags”The 2018 discovery of a sleeping bag in Ohio along I-75 opened the story. Police found a gruesome scene: inside lay the dismembered lower half of a human body.

Michigan. Around the same time, the family of 39-year-old David Carter worried about his location. Family and friends last saw Carter at his son DJ's football game Friday, September 28. Carter went to the game with his girlfriend of six months, Tamera “Tammy” Williams (pictured), but tension existed between them; they sat apart.

DJ expected to go to his father's house Sunday. Texts from Carter's phone showed he was sick. DJ went to the house anyway to get things. He met Williams taking out the garbage, but she reportedly ran back inside when she saw DJ. After this interaction, DJ followed her into the apartment for his items and asked Williams about his father. She said the supposedly sick Carter was out walking.

OnOctober 2Carter's family learned he missed three work days and went to his apartment. They found a blood stain under his bed and what looked like a bullet hole in his mattress. They filed a missing persons report. Ohio authorities later linked the sleeping bag body to Carter using a pit bull tattoo Carter had on his leg.

Investigators and Carter's family suspected Williams immediately, thinking Carter tried to end things. Williams claimed she hadn't seen Carter since that Sunday but showed no concern for his location or involvement in the search. Police caught Williams on October 5 but let her go due to lack of evidence. After Williams was released, police found a duffel bag and a suitcase along the highway with the rest of Carter's body. He died from a gunshot to the head. Williams fled.

The US Department of Justice seeks Williams regarding the case. She was last seen leaving the Neptune Hotel in New York in October 2018. A task force investigator said Williams has one feature: a large rose tattoo on her left shoulder.

James Barrier, known as “Buffalo Jim,” was alarger-than-lifeJames Barrier was a larger-than-life figure in Las Vegas for decades. He owned an auto-repair shop where he worked on celebrity cars and started his own wrestling school.

Crazy Horse Too, a strip club with mob ties and frequent police attention, sat between Barrier's shop and school. Owner Rick Rizzolo and Barrier clashed since the '80s; Barrier refused to give up property for the club to grow.

On April 5, 2008, Barrier's daughter, Jerica, said her father left for dinner with a friend and never came back. The next day, police found Barrier dead in a Motel 6 with a white powder on his beard. His death was ruledaccidentalHigh levels of cocaine in his body suggested a role in his death, alongside existing heart problems.

Barrier's daughters and many friends disagreed. They claimed he was clean years ago and noted no coke was in the room. A guest key card accessed the motel room minutes before Barrier checked in. His daughters found a voicemail from Lisa on his phone. Lisa later said she met Barrier about selling him a friend's motorcycle. She claimed she left after Barrier had a cocaine-induced seizure.

Crazy Horse Too owner Rizzolo, recently out of prison, was released from house arrest the day before Barrier died. Barrier had worked with investigators to help put Rizzolo away, alongside his own lawsuit against the club owner.

Her interview mentioned the death of 'Vegas Celebrity 'Buffalo Jim' Barrier was ruled accidental, yet some point to a long-running feud with a strip club owner.interview on 'Unsolved Mysteries', Barrier's daughter Jessica stated her father told her if he died, they would stage it as an overdose involving women. Lisa apparently worked at Crazy Horse Too. Also,In her interview, Barrier's daughter Jessica said her father told her if he died, they would stage it as an overdose involving women. Lisa apparently worked at the Crazy Horse Too.was all the money left in Barrier's wallet, which his daughters say is a known mob hit signal.The money left in Barrier's wallet was all the money left. His daughters claim this is a known sign of a mob hit.

In 2002, Joshua Guimond was a.He was a 20-year-old college student.Joshua Guimond attended St. John's University in Minnesota, seeming to have a bright future. On November 9, Guimond left his apartment with two friends for a poker party a five-minute walk away. Guimond vanished after being at the party for about half an hour to an hour. Some attendees thought he went to the bathroom instead of leaving, as the bathroom and exit went the same way, but this was the last time anyone saw him.

Guimond's friends noticed he was gone the next day, so a search began. Scent-tracking dogs followed Guimond's path home from the party, stopping near the campus's.As similar cases involving missing young men, alcohol, and bodies of water occurred, many guessed Guimond ended up in the lake.Many people thought Guimond ended up in the lake because many similar cases involved missing young men, alcohol, and bodies of water.

Two witnesses saw someone matching Guimond's description near the party in 2002. They saw the person leave and then turn around to find Guimond gone. Authorities searched the lake the next year, expecting Guimond's body to float in the warmer spring.

Authorities found evidence pointing to someone running an internet washing program on Guimond's computer after his disappearance in 2002. This occurred only once. Years later, investigators reexamined the data and found Guimond appeared to be posing as women on Yahoo Personals and chatting with men.

Investigators cannot confirm if Guimond met these men. Their best guess is that his disappearance connects to his secret online activity.

Volume 2Volume 2Episode “Death in Oslo” covers the story of the “Oslo Plaza Woman.” This unidentified woman died in her hotel room at the Radisson Blu Plaza in Oslo, Norway, on June 3, 1995.

Police ruled the death a suicide. However, the woman checked into the hotel using the fake name “Jennifer Fairgate.” She also registered a guest, “Lois Fairgate,” and appeared with a man, though no proof showed another person stayed in the room.Fifteen minutes laterKey card records show the woman left the hotel for twenty hours after checking in. Her movements during that time remain unclear. Both key cards were inside the room, and the door was double-bolted. A window was open, but the room was on the 28th floor, making it an unlikely exit.Unsolved MysteriesMary Ellen Deener was involved.

The woman checked into the hotel using the fake name “Jennifer Fairgate.” She also registered a guest, “Lois Fairgate.” She was seen with a man, though no proof showed another person stayed in the room.

Suspicious evidence in the room suggested someone staged the scene. Someone showered, but the room lacked toiletries; only a black briefcase with bullets was present.The gun's serial number had been professionally etched off. All clothing tags on the woman's clothes had been removed. The woman had no blood on the hand holding the gun, despite the blood splatters on the walls, which usually happen in suicides.The gun's serial number had been professionally etched off. All clothing tags on the woman's garments had been removed. The woman had no blood on the hand holding the gun, even though blood splatters covered the walls, typical of suicides.

Key card data showed the woman left the hotel for 20 hours after checking in. Where she went during this time remains unknown. Both key cards were inside the room, and the door was double-bolted. A window was open, but her room was on the 28th floor, making it a weak exit route.

A Norwegian intelligence officer, Ola Kaldager, featured on the episode. He theorizes the Oslo Plaza Woman was a secret agent executed. He suggests some evidence matches common spy cover-up tactics.

Mary Ellen Deener waswalking to get changefor the laundromat when the 14-year-old was assaulted and killed. A man named Lester Eubanks, with a long criminal record, confessed to the crime and received a death sentence in 1966.

In 1972, Eubanks's sentence became life in prison. His good behavior and his relationship with the guards at the Ohio prison earned him a spot in a program in 1973. This program let prisoners go Christmas shopping unattended in a mall. Eubanks never came back from his temporary furlough.

Volume 2 episode “Death Row Fugitive.”Unsolved MysteriesThe show tracks Eubanks's movements after he escaped from Michigan to California, where he lived with a girlfriend named “Victor Young,” to Alabama. His trail seemed to stop in 2003, but new interest from the series brought in tips.

In 2021, the US Marshals Service announcedthey believed Eubanksthen age 77, was in the Los Angeles area.

In April 2004, Alonzo Brooks went to a party in La Cygne, KS, about an hour from his hometown with some friends. Brooks did not know most of the 100 guests, but he seemed to have a good time.

His friends left the party one by one. One friend meant to give Brooks a ride home left for cigarettes and got lost, going home instead. He asked another friend for a ride, but a misunderstanding occurred. As the Volume 1 episode title references, “No Ride Home,” Brooksnever returnedfrom the party.

Brooks's family knew something was wrong the next morning when he did not return. Searching the area, they found his boots and hat on the road. They thought someone threw them out a moving car window. The FBI and divers searched the nearby creek for days, but they did not find Brooks.

About a month later, Brooks's family and friends got permission to search the area. In about 30 minutes, they found his body on brush by the creek.

Police first listed Brooks's death cause as “undetermined,” but his family suspected foul play. Localrumors swirledRumors suggested Brooks was targeted because of his race. Brooks was one of three Black men at the party, which occurred in a mostly white, rural area. Some accounts claim someone got angry at Brooks for talking to a white girl, or he fought with other guests.

In 2020, police dug up Brooks's body for another autopsy. In 2021, they changed his case classificationto a homicide.

The Season 3 episode “The Ghost in Apartment 14" is partially narrated by Jodi Foster. Foster moved into an apartment in Chico, CA, with her daughter on January 31, 2000. Foster describes strange things in the apartment, like lights turning off, a doll speaking without batteries, an imaginary presence her young daughter called “My Liz,” and repeated nightmares about a young woman and a couple.

Foster moved out after three months. He learned the apartment held Marie Elizabeth “Marliz” Spannhake, who vanished January 31, 1976. Spannhake walked home from a flea market.

In 1984, police found a lead in Spannhake's case. They got a call to the Church of the Nazarene. Janice Hooker felt troubled by her husband Cameron's past acts and wanted to confess them.

Janice got immunity. She told police she and Cameron drove in 1976, offering a ride to a young woman (likely Spannhake). When Janice tried to leave the car, Cameron put a sound-proof box over her head and took her home. There, Janice said Cameron tried to cut Spannhake's vocal cords so she couldn't scream, but Spannhake bled heavily. Cameron took Spannhake to the basement. Janice returned downstairs and found Spannhake dead. The couple then drove into the woods and Cameron buried her body that same day.

Janice also revealed.Spannhake was not Cameron's only victim. He abducted Colleen Stan in 1977. He kept Stan captive in a coffin-like box for seven years. One day, Janice told Stan she wanted to leave Cameron. The two women escaped the house while Cameron worked. After fleeing, Stan talked to family about what happened but did not tell the police, as Janice asked.

Cameron Hooker went to trial in 1984 for Stan's abduction. The court sentenced him to 104 years in prison. Investigators could not charge him with Spannhake's murder without her body. Kevin Hale said on Unsolved MysteriesChief Investigator for the Tehama County District Attorney, Cameron has parole. Authorities must conduct mental health evaluations to decide if he is still a “sexually violent predator.”

Cameron will likely stay in a mental health facility for an unknown time. Janice Hooker changed her name and is raising two children.