Mystery couple murdered in South Carolina, 1976 - #3

I thought the police said they were not dumped there?? That They were killed where they found them.

From what I found the Grants truckstop in New Mexico was in Lupton NM, which in 1976 would have been on the famous route 66. I can see people that were travelling the country wanting to take a ride along rt 66. Maybe he picked them up as a souvenier. Some people collect match books. Maybe they started their travels on the west coast and were making their way back home. I-95 goes all the way from Florida, up through Maine and into New Brunswick Canada. There are many route 66 webites out their. I found one that is a Canadian Route 66 website, and interestinly there is also one from France, I couldnt read it though it was all in French, i need to go find it through google and get it translated.

I also found information on the KOA campgrounds from old newspaper articles from 75 and 76 where they were promoting something called the rent a tent program. w here people could just come and camp and really didnt need to bring much with them. They were also saying how cheap it was to stay there and listing all the cool things they had, like billiards, etc. I looked on koa website and there are 2 really close to Lupton NM and both are right along the old route 66 I dont know if they were there in 76.

Teresa Larson said:

I thought the police said they were not dumped there?? That They were killed where they found them.

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I think they were finished off where they were found. The final blow under the chin.
The first 2 shots may have been in the van they were in then the killer drove them to the secluded spot drug them out and shot each one once more just to make sure they were dead.

Im not sure if they were dead when they were shot under the chin, because it appears there is a trail of blood from the wounds. I didnt think blood would flow like that unless your heart was still beating.

I wish the DNA would come back at least then at the very least they could determine if they were brother and sister.

Would any of you that is good at comparing pictures and info please check out missing person from the Doe Network case file # 1654DFNJ, Jan Andre Cotta, age, hair, eyes and moles seem to match up with the South Carolina Jane Doe. Thanks!

Oops, this might help, its under index 107.

TinPan said:

Would any of you that is good at comparing pictures and info please check out missing person from the Doe Network case file # 1654DFNJ, Jan Andre Cotta, age, hair, eyes and moles seem to match up with the South Carolina Jane Doe. Thanks!

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Yes, I agree. the stats are very similar. The face in the morgue photo is more rounded but could be due to the trauma suffered from the gunshot wounds. I believe you should submit the info to the South Carolina coroner. Perhaps they've already made the comparison but you never know. I think the noses are strikingly similar. Also the teeth appear to be nice and straight as mentioned in Jane's description. I wonder if the coroner could tell if Jane had given birth as this girl was pregnant when she disappeared. Judging from the story it sounds to me like she could have run away with a boyfriend.

TinPan said:

Would any of you that is good at comparing pictures and info please check out missing person from the Doe Network case file # 1654DFNJ, Jan Andre Cotta, age, hair, eyes and moles seem to match up with the South Carolina Jane Doe. Thanks!

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I dont think the moles are in the right place

http://webdb.state.nj.us/cgi-bin/njs...y.cgi?mpid=311

They do look very similar - but Jan Andre Cotta had two fractures that I think would have been mentioned in Jane Doe's description - Jane's description basically says she "had no surgical scars".

It seems to me Jan Cotta was already ruled out. I don't have time to read through the whole thread now, and I don't know if she was ruled out officially, but I know it's been brought up before and somehow discounted.

It was a good potential match though...they do look alike.

Thanks all, didn't want to pass by it without you pros checking it out

Oh, I sure don't want to be included in that "pros" category!!! More like "blithering idiot category". :crazy: One of the things I treasure most about WS's, is the ability to discuss possible matches. I have always found the posters here to be insightful, respectful, and honest in their responses.

I was looking at some things, like they had eaten strawberries, i found 2 old fruit stands in Florence SC both on Palmetto st, Vaugh's which was a combo fruit stand and a grocery, they were also open until midnight in 1976. The other Byrds at 813 E Palmetto. I notice they are close to the Florence airport, I wonder if that was open in 1976?

Here is a link to the map to show where the fruit stand is from the place they were found, they would have been going back south from the fruitstand.

Based on the info about digesting fruit below, that would fit with the time it would have taken them to get to the place they were found
here is a map and below is info I found about the fruit stands, I wonder how far Lonnie Henry lived from the Fruit Stand?
Also at the bottom a month after they were killed one of the fruit stands was broken into and they stole fruit and beer????

http://maps.google.com/maps?q=809 E Palmetto St florence&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&tab=wl

Timing of digestion depends on what foods you eat and in what combinations, Most fruits that are acid(Oranges, strawberries and the like) will digest in 1 hr to 90 mins. Sweet fruit, like bananas and raisins take 3-4 hrs. Proteins 4 hrs veggies 2-3 hrs and most carbs 2-3 hrs. At that point it enters the colon and figure about 4 hrs longer

Jul 5, 1976
... COLD WATERMELONS COMPLETE LINE OF FRESH FRUITS HEALTH NEEDS GROCERIES ICE COLD BEER COLD DRINKS VAUGHN'S FRUIT STAND 809 E PALMETTO ST FLORENCE S C OPEN ...
FRUIT STAND Open Til 12 7 Days A Week 809 E Palmetto St YOU cover dollor of ..
COLD WATERMELONS COMPLETE LINE OF FRESH FRUITS HEALTH NEEDS GROCERIES ICE COLD BEER COLD DRINKS VAUGHN'S FRUIT STAND 809 E PALMETTO ST FLORENCE S C OPEN ... Related web pages

.

Florence Morning News (Newspaper) - September 8, 1976, Florence,...
Subscription - Florence Morning News - NewspaperArchie - Sep 8, 1976
... turntable valued at were reportedly stolen Byrd's Fruit Stand 1211 East Palmetto St was broken Friday night about worth of food products including fruit and beer

here is a link to someone commenting on the NP story from Canada

and then take a look at the comments someone made this point

I know a little about modern jewellery and several features of the design of the silver ring with 3 blue oval 'stones' make it quite distinctive.

Maybe thats why the originally only showed the other 2 rings of Janes
http://www.mylot.com/nr/viewframe.aspx?id=725235&url=http%3a%2f%2fxymphora.blogspot.com%2f2008%2f04%2fjock-from-canada.html&type=Blog

-- the fruit stand was investigated by the sheriff. They believe the couple may have visited a fruit stand owned by a local family that was adjacent to their farm on the Florence Highway. LE visited the location and the family members who staffed the fruit stand did not remember the couple.

-- as for the comments on that blog, I am not sure what they are trying to say. The ring with the three stones is not unique IMO. I remember that era well and I actually owned a ring very similar to that one. They were sold everywhere as the "trend" of that time was indian/turquoise/silver jewelry.

One more thing: there seems to be a lot of criticism of the LE handling of this case. Since we were not there and are not privvy to each and every peice of this case file, LE in this case should probably be cut a break and not have their competency called into question. Solving cases is not like a CSI episode. At times it is drudgery and thankless work. The focus should be on these victims first and foremost.

i agree rmf, touquoise / silver jewlery was sold everywhere then, it was the trend,
in the US anyhow.
you got to put the case in perspective as to the time.....in the 1970's, there was not
the tools available to LE then that they have now. there still could have been some
good ole boy issues going on then with the locals...
one thing that isn't the norm with gals of her age in the 1970's in the US, was the leg
shaving. i grew was a teenager then and that was a must as far as grooming. so i
think from that, they might have been not US citizens.
bluestarzz

Forgive me if this name has already been mentioned, I tried to search but found only found one link to her on here. Diane Marie Bourne, she went missing in March of 1976 from Canada.

http://www.websleuths.com/forums/showthread.php?t=64644&highlight=Diane+Marie+Bourne

rmf said:

-- the fruit stand was investigated by the sheriff. They believe the couple may have visited a fruit stand owned by a local family that was adjacent to their farm on the Florence Highway. LE visited the location and the family members who staffed the fruit stand did not remember the couple.

-- as for the comments on that blog, I am not sure what they are trying to say. The ring with the three stones is not unique IMO. I remember that era well and I actually owned a ring very similar to that one. They were sold everywhere as the "trend" of that time was indian/turquoise/silver jewelry.

One more thing: there seems to be a lot of criticism of the LE handling of this case. Since we were not there and are not privvy to each and every peice of this case file, LE in this case should probably be cut a break and not have their competency called into question. Solving cases is not like a CSI episode. At times it is drudgery and thankless work. The focus should be on these victims first and foremost.

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On point one maybe they checked out the wrong fruitstand if no one that worked the fruitstand rememberd them. I say this because I cant imagine a family/ side of the road fruit stand being open that much after dark. Based on how long it takes for strawberries to digest they probably ate them within an hour or so before being killed. If the shots were heard around 12 or 1 am (it I recall correctly) then they might have eaten them not any earlier than 11 pm that seems really late for a mom and pop fruit stand to be open. The DOE network still says witnesses saw them at a fruit stand, so maybe you are saying the WITNESSES that saw them at the fruitstand told police and they checked with the family but the family does not remember helping them.

BUT that doesnt mean they couldn't have went to more than one fruit stand.

point 2 I think they were trying to say the ring was unique based on the way it's made possibly. The silver looks thick and maybe older than the other 2. More primitive or something??? IDK

point 3 Yeah I dont agree with the comments RE: the LE on that blog, really the only point I wanted to show from that blog was the part about the ring being pointed out by the poster. I think they were kind of harsh about the investigation. Im sure there were policman that worked this case from day one that spent their entire lives with this case weighing on their minds.

loganone said:

Forgive me if this name has already been mentioned, I tried to search but found only found one link to her on here. Diane Marie Bourne, she went missing in March of 1976 from Canada.

http://www.websleuths.com/forums/showthread.php?t=64644&highlight=Diane+Marie+Bourne

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Thanks I dont think she has been mentioned. She does look alot like Jane Doe, The eye color is off but some people call hazel eyes brown and another person might call them green.

But the height and weight are both off. Unless she lost ALOT of weight from March until August, but her missing info does say she was losing weight due to having a baby.

They look alot alike to me but IDK

here is a side by side pic

I'm sorry if this has already been posted, but I was just skimming this thread

I read that they matched prints to a woman in CA?

I found this woman, she went missing from CA in May of 1976 she was going to meet a guy named 'Jeff' which I think can sound like 'jock' the stats are pretty close

http://www.theyaremissed.org/ncma/gallery/ncmaprofile_all.php?A200300245S