MT MT - Siobhan McGuinness, 5, murdered, Missoula, 5 Feb 1974 *killer deceased*

I ran across this article and don't recall ever seeing anything here on WS about it. Five year old Siobhan McGuiness vanished from the street near her house on February 5, 1974. Her body was found two days later east of Missoula in a ditch along I-90. She had been sexually assaulted, stabbed twice, and struck on the head. The following link is to a recent article about the continuing search for what happened to this little girl.

http://www.missoulian.com/articles/2008/05/01/news/local/znews03.txt

Two young girls went missing in the summer of 1973 in Montana. Their bicycles were found, but their bodies weren't discovered untl 1976. Both girls had been shot six times in the head. A police officer eventually confessed to the killings. I don't know if he was ever looked into regarding the McGuiness disappearance.

Bumping this up. I wrote an article about Siobhan for the True Crime Report:

http://www.truecrimereport.com/2008/09/her_name_was_siobhan.php

FWIW, the guy who killed the two girls -- Jessica Westphal and Karen Tyler -- was Karl Randy Bachman. He didn't fit the description of the suspect being sought in '74 for Siobhan's murder, and he was friends with a cop, not a cop himself, I think. In Siobhan's disappearance police sought a red-headed male between 18 and 20, 5'11", with a medium build. He may have been driving a Caddy with New York plates at the time.

I wonder if there is a connection between this little girl and Nyleen Marshall? Montana's a big state, so maybe not, but the little girls were around the same age and even looked a little bit alike. Their abductions were not that far apart, were they? Within 5-10 years?

SteveHuff said:

Bumping this up. I wrote an article about Siobhan for the True Crime Report:

http://www.truecrimereport.com/2008/09/her_name_was_siobhan.php

FWIW, the guy who killed the two girls -- Jessica Westphal and Karen Tyler -- was Karl Randy Bachman. He didn't fit the description of the suspect being sought in '74 for Siobhan's murder, and he was friends with a cop, not a cop himself, I think. In Siobhan's disappearance police sought a red-headed male between 18 and 20, 5'11", with a medium build. He may have been driving a Caddy with New York plates at the time.

Click to expand...

I ve lived in or near Missoula at various times in my life,this such a tragic case.
I always wondered if the 'red headed suspect' they mentioned wasnt Wayne Nance but I believe that they eliminated him on the basis of DNA
(Much to my surprise)

As mentioned in the article, my first thought was David Meirhofer...He was even considered a suspect in the Westphal/Tyler disappearances at one point, as he was known to have been in the area (reportedly buying farm equipment) within three days of their kidnapping.
Seems there were a few girls, like Robin Pettinato, who went missing in this time frame.

The killer may have actually been from New York.
That neighborhood in North Missoula is situated as such you could get off the interstate and back on in seconds.

Originally posted by: Boilly, moved here for discussion...
Siobhan McGuinness - 5 yrs old
Siobhan McGuinness, a bright and beautiful 5-year-old girl who disappeared from the streets near her Northside home on a February evening in 1974. She was found stabbed to death and sexually abused two days later in a snowy culvert.
http://www.missoulian.com/articles/2...al/znews03.txt
http://www.montanasnewsstation.com/G...&nav=menu227_4

I lived a about 100 miles from Missoula when this happened.
Tragic case.
That neighborhood is very close to the interstate though Missoula has had its share of local bizarre murders.
In the 70's and early 80's it was the stomping ground for serial killer Wayne Nance .
I seem to remember reading that DNA had cleared him in this case though.
It would be nice to finally have this one solved.

Here is another article on Siobhan's murder

http://www.truecrimereport.com/2008/09/her_name_was_siobhan.php

Let's get on this one!

Here is the announcement from Othram: After 46 years, Siobhan McGuinness's Killer Has Been Identified

I think we need to mark this thread IDENTIFIED/SOVLED

OFFENDER (DECEASED) - RICHARD WILLIAM DAVIS | Federal Bureau of Investigation

Aliases:
"Dick", "Nash", William Davis

Age 70 years old (at time of death)
Height 6'0"
Sex Male
Race White

Remarks:
Davis was known to smoke menthol cigarettes. He drove multiple vehicles, including: a Nash Rambler (driven in late 1960s), an Oldsmobile 98 (driven in early 1970s), a blue pickup truck (driven in late 1970s to 1980s), and a truck with sleeper cab (driven in early 2000s).

Davis was known to carry a folding knife and a handgun. He traveled cross-country, from New York to Alaska, but primarily resided in Pennsylvania, South Dakota, New York, and Arkansas.

Details:
Richard Davis was recently linked to the 1974 homicide of a five-year-old female abducted near her home in Missoula, Montana. The victim’s body was found approximately 10 miles east of her residence in a culvert near I-90 in Turah, Montana. She sustained trauma to her head, stab wounds to her chest, and had been sexually assaulted. Davis is also linked to the 1973 attempted abduction of an eight-year-old girl in Bath, New York.

Davis primarily resided in Pennsylvania in the early 1960s; South Dakota (Lead, Deadwood, and Rapid City) in the late 1960s; Bath, New York in the late 1960s to late 1970s; North Little Rock, Arkansas, in the late 1970s to late 1980s; and Cabot, Arkansas, from the late 1980s until his death in 2012. Davis also traveled extensively across the country to include, but not limited to: Alaska, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Washington, and Wyoming.

Davis held various jobs, to include working as a missionary on the Sioux Reservation in the early 1960s; working in the mines in South Dakota in the late 1960s; as a security guard at a winery/bar in Bath, New York, in the mid-1970s; driving a school bus in Alaska in late 1974/early 1975; as a security guard at the Arkansas School for the Deaf and Blind in the 1970s or 1980s; and as a truck driver in the early 2000s. Davis also volunteered at Big Brothers/Big Sisters in Arkansas in the late 1970s or 1980s.

Investigators are looking for similar cases Davis may be responsible for committing.

Submit a Tip:
If you have any information concerning this person, please contact your local FBI office or the nearest American Embassy or Consulate.

Submit an anonymous Tip online

Quite a Wolf in Sheep’s clothing...

https://www.fbi.gov/wanted/vicap/ho...hard-william-davis/vicap-davis-10-26-2020.pdf

I'm pleased that her family can have some closure but its devastating to me that this man lived his life and then passed away without being made accountable for his horrid crimes. I suspect there will be other victims unfortunately.

boomburger said:

I'm pleased that her family can have some closure but its devastating to me that this man lived his life and then passed away without being made accountable for his horrid crimes. I suspect there will be other victims unfortunately.

Click to expand...

Law enforcement is investigating, but its also why its so critical to solve sex assaults. For any one case you solve, there could be others that solve because of it.

A serial killer?

Bath Police to address 1973 cold case disappearance of Barbara Jean Aleksivich

rbbm.
Arkansas man identified as killer in cold case

Richard William Davis in 1973
SOURCE: FBI
'''Davis is also linked to the attempted abduction of an 8-year-old girl in Bath, New York, in 1973, according to the FBI.

Investigators are looking for similar cases Davis may be responsible for committing.

Davis lived in North Little Rock in the late 1970s to late 1980s and in Cabot from the late 1980s until his death in 2012, according to the FBI.

He worked as a security guard at the Arkansas School for the Deaf and Blind in the 1970s or 1980s and as a truck driver in the early 2000s. He volunteered at Big Brothers/Big Sisters in Arkansas in that same time period.''

Article from the Daily Mail with photos:

Cold case murder of Montana girl, five, is solved 46 years later with new DNA evidence | Daily Mail Online


"The identity of the suspect behind a cold case involving the abduction and murder of a five-year-old girl from Montana has been revealed 46 years later.

Siobhan McGuinness was five when she went missing on February 5, 1974, a few blocks from her Northside Missoula home. She was found two days later having been murdered and sexually assaulted.

Using modern day DNA technology, Missoula County Sheriff's Office cold case squad identified Richard William Davis - who died in 2012 - as the killer.

Davis' identification as the killer was found when crime scene DNA was uploaded to a public genealogy website. The same technology has been used to solve other cold case rapes and murders, including the case of the Golden State Killer."