Who Cut a Hole Into Susie Jaeger’s Tent?

Hi Crime Junkies, I'm your host Ashley. Flowers. >> And I'm Brett. >> And today, I'll be taking you on a trip. through the mountains of Montana, where. a little-known serial killer went. undetected for years, despite his brazen. crimes. Murders he likely would have. gotten away with, had it not been for. the surprising investigative combo of a. mother's unrelenting determination for. answers, and this brand new thing the FBI was. developing. A little something that you might be. very familiar with now, but at the time,

no one had heard of, criminal profiling. It was still in its infancy at the time, but this would be one of the very first. cases where the FBI put their learning. to work to catch a serial killer, David Meierhofer. It's summer 1973, and 12-year-old Heidi Yeager wakes up to. a breeze on the back of her head.

She might have had this [music] brief. hazy moment where she embraces the. Montana mountain air, but then. she realizes that's all wrong. Yes, she's outside. She's camping with her. family, but she's inside a tent. There. shouldn't be a breeze. When she opens. her eyes, it is pitch black. So, she. starts to like feel around, and her hand. actually touches grass. And when her eyes finally adjust to the. darkness, she notices that there is this. >> [music]. >> gaping hole sliced through the back of.

her tent, and her little sister Susie, who had been sleeping right next to her, is gone. Now, Heidi doesn't hesitate. She runs to. wake up her parents in their nearby. camper. Bill and Marietta Yeager hurry out with. flashlights, hoping to see 7-year-old. Susie wandering their campsite. somewhere, maybe using the restroom. But. what they find causes even more panic. Susie's stuffed animals that she'd been. sleeping with are in the grass outside. the back of the tent near where the hole. was. Now, they figure she couldn't have.

been gone long. It's just after 5:00. a.m. now, and Heidi tells them that she. last laid eyes on her sister at 1:30. a.m. They'd both like woken up, chatted. for a little bit before then falling. back asleep. >> wake them? >> Not that she remembers, but it's. something that I've wondered about. because their parents had put them to. bed earlier before going to their camper. to sleep. So, I know that they were. asleep earlier. But, it seems unlikely. because it wasn't just Susie and Heidi. in the tent. Two of their brothers were. actually in there, too. You see, the.

Yeager family had an order about their. campsite. So, for this month-long. excursion that they were on from their. home in Michigan to Montana, the four. youngest kids slept in the tent. Their. oldest son, Dan, had a sleeping set up. in the family van. >> [music]. >> Parents, Bill and Marietta, have their. own camper. And even the grandparents, who were on this trip, they also have. their own sleeping quarters. And no one. else reported hearing anything strange. in the night. They all stayed asleep. until the family started waking them up. one by one to help search for Susie.

In the book, The Lost Child, which was. written by Susie's mom, Marietta, she. describes the moment that she saw. Susie's stuffed animals on the ground. and the hole in the tent. And Brett, I'm. actually just going to have you read. from this sentence so people can hear it. directly from her. It's at the bottom of. page 26. >> As I stumbled around the campground. searching, I was gripped by a terrible. sense of separation, panic, and. hopelessness in my inability to see.

I remember looking up at the black night. sky. >> [music]. >> and begging God to send the sun. The. darkness was unbearably frustrating. >> And in that moment, like desperate for a. logical explanation, Marietta and Bill. are asking Heidi if there was anything. inside the tent that Susie could have. used to cut the hole herself. But, of. course, there wasn't. And right away, Marietta knows in her heart of hearts. that someone has her daughter. She just. hopes that they haven't gotten too far.

Using flashlights, they all start. searching for Suzy around the. campground, even waking neighboring. campers, but there is no sign of Suzy. So, Suzy's dad and grandpa drive to the. closest town to alert police. The. Gallatin County Sheriff's Office and FBI. Special Agent Pete Dunbar out of the. nearby Bozeman, Montana office rush to. the campground. And right away, they see. what Marietta sees. [music]. They search every car and building and. question all the campers. A volunteer. search party forms to help look for.

Suzy. And as the crowd of helpful people. begins to grow, the Yaeger family. overhears something that must have made. them even more worried for their little. girl. One of the volunteers is talking to. another one. >> [music]. >> about the other child that was attacked. at that very campground while asleep in. his tent just a few years prior. So, Marietta goes right to law. enforcement and asks them about this. Like, what what are they talking about? And they confirm this is true. Five. years before, in May 1968, 12-year-old.

Michael Rainey was stabbed in his tent. at that same state park. He'd been on a. Boy Scout trip and was sleeping right. next to another kid. That case was never. solved. And now, this seems like way. more than just a coincidence that Suzy. went missing from the same place. >> Yeah. >> So, finding her might mean actually. solving two cases and preventing more, which makes the stakes all that much. higher. When the light of day begins slowly.

creeping in, the sun reveals one more. clue. Where Suzy's stuffed animals had. been, they can barely make out a. footpath [music] in the dew of the grass. leading away from the tent toward the. parking area. There's also a rock with. reddish-brown stains. This is by no. means comforting to anyone, and this. ramps up the urgency of the search. The FBI sets up a command center at the. campground. Authorities start working on. a bolo for Susie, and they rush Susie's.

sleeping bag, her stuffed animals, the. rock that cut part of the tent, all to. their lab for testing. And they also. widen the search area to include rivers, the local dump, and the nearby towns of. Three Forks and Manhattan, Montana, where they start going door-to-door. And. all of those efforts do result in some. suspect names being tossed around, mostly local oddballs. And any of them. who didn't have a solid alibi for the. early morning hours of June 25th were. brought in for questioning and.

polygraphs. They even dispatch police to. the Yager's home in Michigan to check. their house and mail to see if anyone. made any threats. And they go. door-to-door there to find out if any. neighbors had any information about. Susie or somebody who could be a threat. to her. But no matter how much or where. they search over the next several days, nothing is found. And mind you, this. case is getting some real headlines. around Montana, and Marietta is giving. local reporters interviews in case it. could help, thinking that someone out.

there had to know something. Her. desperate pleas just had to reach the. right person. It takes. >> [music]. >> five full days before the first big. development comes in. And strangely, it. comes to the Denver Field Office of the. FBI. >> Like Denver, Colorado? >> Yeah. They get a call at 7:00 p.m. on. June 30th from a man who says that he is. Susie's kidnapper. And he says, "Tell someone the ransom is. $25,000.". But he hung up without giving any more.

information. Where should they take the. money? When? >> Yeah. >> Now, no one knew if this was a hoax or. if they should be expecting another. call, but the phone didn't ring again. until July 2nd. This time, not in a. Denver field office, not actually in any. office at all. The phone rang at the. home of Gallatin County Deputy Ron. Brown. The thing is, Ron Brown isn't. home. Even though it's 11:16 p.m., he's. still out helping with Suzy's search. So, his wife, Jane, answers. And the man.

says to her, "The Denver FBI must think. I'm a crank. I'm raising the ransom to. $50,000.". And this time he gives real. instructions. He demands that the ransom. be put in a suitcase in small bills and. placed in the end stall of the men's. restroom at the Denver bus stop. >> The Denver, Colorado connection. >> We're back to Denver again. And this. time it feels legit because he says that. he can prove he has Suzy by telling them. something about her that a random.

stranger wouldn't know. He says that Suzy's fingernails, like on. her index fingers of each hand, are. humped a little, like slightly deformed. And this is true of Suzy. And it's also. true that a stranger wouldn't know that. I mean, it wasn't put on any of the. press bulletins about this case. Actually, Marietta writes in her book. that in the chaos and fear after Suzy. first disappeared, they were like giving. her description to the authorities and. stuff, but they had like totally. forgotten this detail about her. Like it. was barely noticeable, and Suzy was born.

with it. So, like I mean, literally, she's born with it and they never. thought about it anymore. So, this. caller, this is either someone who knows. Suzy, knows the family, and would place. some kind of like not some kind the. cruelest hoax on them, which seems. absolutely out of the realm of. possibility, or this is really the man who kidnapped. her. Once authorities are made aware of. this call, they send an urgent teletype. to the Denver field office to get. someone to the bus depot to do.

surveillance. They also launch a plan to. get some dummy bills together to fill a. suitcase because the Eggers don't have. just like $50,000 in cash sitting. around. But whoever was that called. never comes to the bus depot, never. picks up the cash, or I don't know if. they saw the police or what, but like. that pickup never happened. >> Never materialized. >> No. And in the time that the sheriff's. office is waiting, another crime in the area happens. And. actually, it's one that I've already. covered on my other show, The Deck.

20-year-old nurse Donna Lemen goes. missing after last being seen buying a. can of beer at a bar in Gallatin Gateway. on July 5th, 1973. So this is just 10. days after Suzy and 30 mi south of. Headwaters State Park. Now her case ends. up seeing slightly more resolution than. Suzy's, because within 4 days they end. up finding Donna's body on the banks of. the Snake River down in Idaho. And while. this [music] might pull on some. resources, take away from Suzy's case,

that investigation happens like much. smaller. It's much quieter as it plays. out. And honestly, the most distracting. part for police at the time is like they. start getting tips from locals. suggesting that maybe Suzy's case and. Donna's case are somehow connected, which doesn't make a whole lot of sense. to officials. Like the circumstances, the victims themselves, everything about. the two cases. felt very different. And none of the. tips had anything concrete to point to. They were all just basically saying like.

this is really a weird coincidence. Like. in such a small place having two cases. like this back-to-back. >> they not be connected? >> Right. But the investigators aren't. bringing the cases together. They have a. kidnapping right now, and all of their. effort is going into locating Suzy, hopefully alive. And the Yeger family is. doing anything they can to support. In. order to feel like they're doing. something helpful, they start. fundraising for actual cash, should the. kidnapper call back and want to follow.

through on the ransom demand. They also. make calls and organize a reward fund. for information. It's like the 1970s. version of GoFundMe. And Marietta writes. in her book that thanks to a major. donation from an anonymous person, they. actually do raise $50,000. >> [music]. >> So, they are quickly ready for a call. A call that just never comes. Cuz July becomes August, and as summer. comes to an end with very little in the. way of legit leads, the Yaeger family.

has to think about heading home. They have been living at the campground. this whole time, fueled by locals who. brought them food and other necessities. Marietta has a whole chapter in her book. titled God's good people about how nice. everyone was to them in their time of. need. But I can't imagine that feeling, like. packing up, that long drive back to. Michigan. I mean, on their way out west, everyone had been buzzing with. excitement for their family adventure.

Marietta had taken to doing a head count. after each pit stop. So, on the way. home, not only was the tone in the van. just sad, but Marietta's head count was. down by one. Montana had stolen their. youngest child, and they were returning. home without her. The other kids needed. to return to school. Bill has to go back. to work. Authorities assure them that they'll. still be working the case, though, and. they hatch a plan for the Yaegers to get. a tape recorder so that if they get any. calls from the kidnapper at home, they'll be recording. So, the Yaegers.

eventually settle into a new normal in. Michigan without Susie. But I don't know. that normal isn't the right word, cuz. Marietta barely leaves the house just in. case the kidnapper calls, like tape. recorder at the ready. >> [music]. >> And the house phone does ring constantly. with well-wishers and psychics even. offering visions, and Marietta answers. every single one. It is her job now, her. post, and she will not abandon it. But. on September 24th, her youngest son Joe.

calls from catechism class. He. unexpectedly needs a ride home. I guess. Bill's at work. Marietta, I mean, she's. at home on phone duty, but Joe is only 5. minutes away. So, that's the moment when. she rushes out to get him. And in the 10. minutes she is gone, the phone rings. Now, luckily, the oldest of the Yeager. kids, 16-year-old [music]. Dan, he is home and presses record. before answering the phone. And of course, this is the call.

It's the kidnapper. >> In the parks and forests you love, there. are stories waiting to be told. I'm. Delia D'Ambra, the host of Park. Predators, a true crime podcast that. reminds you sometimes the most beautiful. places hide the darkest secrets. Listen. now wherever you get your podcasts. >> The call from the kidnapper lasts only 2. minutes in total, and the recording no longer exists, but.

a transcript does. [music]. So, I'm going to have voice actors read. part of it so you can hear the exact. words that the man said. >> Now, you're Susie's brother, huh? >> Yeah. >> You'd like to know where she's at? >> Yeah, I would. >> Well, you're going to have to wait a. while. >> Why? >> You've had too much police and FBI. activity. You may think I'm a hoax, but I know. something about Susie that nobody knows. >> Oh? Why don't you tell us?

>> Okay. Fingernails of her first fingers are. humped. >> I know that. I mean, why don't you tell. us where she is? >> Because I can't hardly do that. It's a pretty dangerous situation, you. know. >> Well, can you just drop her somewhere. and let us pick her up? >> Do you want to come west quite a ways? >> Yeah, no problem there. >> Well, we'll make arrangements one of. these days, but for right now, you're. going to have to wait a while. >> Why do we have to wait? >> Cuz that's the way things have to be.

>> Why? >> Well, cuz a person does things like. this, he can't get caught. He's got to figure out ways not to get. caught. >> Just drop her somewhere a day ahead of. time and just leave that place. >> Yeah, sure. I don't want to drop her just for. nothing. Anyway, I just want to tell you to wait a while. You'll be contacted. It may be another week. It may be a. month or 2 months or so, but you'll get contacted. >> He's keeping them in like suspended.

torture. Maybe a week, maybe a month. This feels way less like finding a way. out and more like he's. screwing with. >> Like kind of screwing with them. >> I know. I mean, were they able to trace. calls like this back then, like in the. '70s? >> They actually were, but I guess in '73, this having it takes like a few weeks to. do, but the FBI finds a receipt of the. call through a phone company and traces. it to a payphone at a gas station diner. near Cheyenne, Wyoming. But by the time.

they get there in like October, I mean, not only is the guy not there, but like. so many people have used that payphone. >> Yeah, it's public. >> It's impossible to actually get like. usable fingerprints, and nobody reports. seeing any kidnapper-looking guys using. that particular phone. >> Great. >> Now, around this same time is also when. the lab results come back in of like all. the stuff they sent off to the FBI, but. all of that stuff is a dead end, too. No. prints on anything. Now, they do confirm. that the substance that they saw on that.

rock, that like reddish-brown stuff, that was human blood, but the sample. wasn't even suitable for any further. testing. And the only hair that they. collected from the sleeping bag turns. out to be consistent with Susie's. And. the cut didn't tell them anything either. other than it was cut with a sharp. instrument, which like. >> It was cut. >> So, there is nothing physical that is. going to tie back to their guy. And if. he was still looking for a way to let. Suzy go and get something out of it, he. hasn't found it because he never called. back like he told Dan he was going to.

So, the family endures the holidays. without Suzy. And the end of 1973 also. marks the end to any solid leads or. action in the investigation. And while. I'm sure nobody wants to say it out. loud, there is less and less hope of. finding Suzy alive. If they were to do. more searches, it would probably be for. remains. They just don't even know where. to look. But the truth is, remains are what they. would end up finding.

But in the strangest way possible. So, >> [music]. >> come February 1974, this is now over 7. months since Suzy's kidnapping. The. Gallatin County Sheriff's Office is. faced with another missing person's. case. Now, on its surface, this case. looks closer to Donna Lemon's. Remember. her? Than it does Suzy's case because. the missing young woman, Sandy Dykman, was 19 years old and living on her own. in Manhattan, Montana, which is like. this small town like 10 minutes from the.

state park. So, her dad, John Dykman, reported her missing on Monday, February. 11th. He said that Sandy hadn't been. seen since Saturday night. She wasn't. answering her door or her phone, and her. car, this little white Ford Cortina, was. missing. All of this totally not normal. behavior for his daughter. Now, Manhattan is a small town. So, deputies. taking this report are even familiar. with Sandy, who waitresses at the. bowling alley cafe. So, after they can't seem to find anyone. who knows where she is, the sheriff.

organizes a search for her and her car, which aren't anywhere in this small. town. So, their search has to expand to. the far-reaching corners of the county. Which is how Deputy Don Howton and Town. Marshall Ron Skinner end up at this old. abandoned ranch about a week after Sandy. was last seen. And as Don and Ron are. like walking around the property, something white catches their eyes in. the sagebrush. It's a pair of women's. underwear and they look like they've.

been recently worn. So, they bag the. underwear and continue their search to a. nearby barn where they have to force. their way inside. And peeking out from. under a tarp and some hay is Sandy's. little white car. Now, when Don and Ron approach, they're. like probably expecting to find Sandy's. body. But, the only thing they see when. they peer through the windshield is some. clothing. No sign of Sandy. Not even a. bloody crime scene. But, this is still. highly suspicious. So, they bring in.

reinforcements to process this place. over the next several days. And the FBI. and the rest of the sheriff's office. search almost every inch of the. property, the house, the barn, the. outbuildings. >> [music]. >> And it is just red flag after red flag. Both in what they find and in what. others bring to them. Like one day. during crime scene processing at the. ranch, this local guy shows up saying. that he found a woman's red blouse. nearby. And then they find more clothes. in a suitcase in Sandy's car, all of. which seem to belong to her, but they.

don't appear to have been packed up the. way that she would if she had left. voluntarily. And then in the abandoned. house, they find melted candle wax in. like various places. And they discover a. closet that looks as if it had been. nailed shut with a pile of feces in it. And a bloody whip is found in the barn. >> [music]. >> Or at least they think it's blood on. this whip. And then it's on February. 19th that they find bones in a burn pile.

near the old ranch house and scattered. around outside. They collect over a. thousand pieces of bone fragments, including some teeth. The picture that's. getting painted is that something very. bad happened to Sandy here. But, there was still a twist yet to come. for investigators. When the pathologist. and anthropologist review the biological. materials and bones from the ranch, they. conclude, without a doubt, that some of. the remains belong to Sandy Deitman.

Yes. Specifically, it's the teeth that. they compare and match to Sandy's dental. records. Here's the twist. Experts [music] say that not all of the. remains belong to Sandy. There were at. least two people who were reduced to a. pile of ash because some of the bones. belonged to a girl between the ages of. five and eight years old. >> Suzy. >> It is everyone's first thought, [music]. but they have nothing as definitive to. ID Suzy yet. But, if it's her, this is.

the biggest development Suzy's case has. seen in months. And it without a doubt. connects Suzy and Sandy's cases. And if. Sandy's killer is Suzy's killer, there. is one name that actually appears in. both investigations. David Meyerhoffer. David Meyerhoffer is a 20-something year. old lifelong Manhattan resident, a.

former Boy Scout and Marine who served. in Vietnam. And he is back home now. working as a self-employed carpenter in. town. And David is someone who is known. to them. This guy's always eager to. help. He's curious, constantly asking. the deputies questions about the. kidnapping investigations that they were. working when he sees them at the local. cafe. He was one of those local oddballs that. actually came up in Suzy's case. One of. the guys that witnesses told the cops. they should just look at early on. And.

they did, but David had been pretty. cooperative. So back then he's like kind. of annoying, but not really suspicious. But his name came up in Sandy's case, too, for two different reasons. One, he. is actually the local man who just. happened upon that blouse that he turned. over to police by the ranch. Mhm. And. two, apparently he had gone on a date. with Sandy just a few months ago. >> [music]. >> And when he asked for a second date, Sandy turned him down. >> Okay, so there's a connection to Sandy, but how does he connect to Suzy?

>> I mean, only by her bones, or probably. [music] her bones, being found with. Sandy, and Sandy being socially. connected to David. Like it's not solid, but it's something. >> Mhm. >> And they got to start somewhere. So. agents actually go and pay David a visit. at his warehouse in Manhattan, which is. only like a half block from where Sandy. lived. And he acts as if he has nothing. to hide. He agrees to even take a. polygraph test, and he passes. So the agents move on.

But there's nothing to really move on. to. The cases both just kind of hit a. dead end, and they only heat back up. because Agent Dunbar ends up going to. Quantico, Virginia, for this routine FBI. training that following spring. And he. happens to attend this session that's. being put on by some agents who have. psychology backgrounds. And they're. talking about this like brand new idea, how studying a crime scene could give.

insight into the killer themselves. And. with nothing to lose, Dunbar asked them. if they will take a look at Sandy and. Suzy's cases. >> Yeah. >> And they must see it as a worthwhile. challenge because they start to put. together a psychological profile of the. probable killer. They say that Suzy was. probably murdered within two days of her. abduction by a man who likely is white. and in his 20s. He has to be at least modestly. intelligent, they say. He's a loner, unmarried, and has little experience.

with women. They think he's a local guy, but has. military experience, and would be. physically fit. He most likely has. killed before, and from those murders, he's probably kept souvenirs. >> [music]. >> And he's likely the type that would try. to insert himself into an investigation. >> Which the blouse [music] hits two of. those, right? Like a souvenir and. inserting himself into the. investigation. >> Also, the calls taunting the Yaeger. family, >> [music]. >> actually they say he probably isn't even.

done doing that, even though it's been a. while. Like this is their like. prediction, if you want to say. They. think that he is going to call again, and they think it's going to be on a. significant date. So, with the 1-year anniversary of. Suzy's kidnapping coming up, agents work. with Marietta to make sure that she is. prepared. >> Wait, they know this is David, right? Like. I'm like checking everything off on the. whole profile. >> This is again, like profiling isn't. proven at this point. So, >> right? >> Not even that it's not exact, the feds.

are like. they're believing it. It's like these. local agents are like. It's almost like Brandis like hooey, right? It's like I have There's no way. you can know this. It's not a proven. thing, and so like. >> [music]. >> they're listening to them, and they're. willing to like, you know, be prepared, but they are less convinced because. >> [music]. >> in their mind, the thing that they know. is polygraphs. >> Right. David passed a polygraph. >> They are known in science, already. cleared him. >> But they're still they're going to move. along with the plan. They let the press have access to. Marietta for anniversary headlines, knowing that that might trigger the.

kidnapper to call her. And Marietta is. prepared to play her part, though she. has been haunted over this dream that. she had. Like it is so [music] vivid. She says it's like watching a movie. And in this dream, she says she sees. Suzy being taken from her tent, put in a. truck, and waking up afraid because. she's with a strange man, and the man. takes her somewhere, undresses Susie, and then strangles her before. dismembering her. But maybe it's just a.

dream. Maybe those bones of a little. girl they found aren't her little girl. They still haven't proven it. She has to. have hope, especially. as the phone rings on the morning of. June 25th, 1974. Now, only the. transcript of this has survived from. this call, and it is. heartbreaking to read. The caller asks. if it's Susie's mom that he's speaking. to. And when she says yes, he [music] says, "Well, I'm the guy who took her from you. exactly a year ago to the minute." He.

says that she's alive, but he can't give. her back because he's gotten used to. her. And Brett, I don't know how, but. Marietta keeps the kidnapper talking. >> [music]. >> for an hour. And in that time, he says. that he and Susie have been traveling. west and sightseeing. And Marietta is. like sobbing and begs the man to give. Susie back saying they will pay any. amount. But he says it's too late for. that because if he gives Susie back, she'll be able to identify him. But. Marietta says, "Like, no one is going to.

make a child testify. Like, you don't. have to worry about her identifying you. because it would never make it to court. >> would just never happen. >> Yeah, I can't believe she's able to. basically negotiate. >> I know. >> With this man. >> And at one point, she actually does call. his bluff saying that she doesn't. actually believe that he still has. Susie. She's like, "Prove it to me. Like, prove to me that she's alive.". But he can't. He says that he has been. using psychotherapy to wipe her memory.

And Marietta goes, "How are you. qualified to do something like that?". Now, he doesn't give a real reason, so. she switches tactics and she asks how he. knew that Susie was even in the tent. And he said that he'd been lurking. around the campsite that night, and he. had come by, heard her and her sister. talking, but then he waited till they. fell back asleep, and then he took [music] her. >> Okay, maybe we should add never go. camping to our like list of life rules. >> Honestly, putting your kids in a. different tent is one of mine. This is.

not the only time something like this. has happened, and something like this. even happens like in recent memory of. mine. Like it made headlines. It is. rare, but it is legit nightmare fuel. Keep [music] your kids. >> close. >> Camping, just because you're out in the. middle of nowhere, doesn't mean you're. out in the middle of nowhere alone. >> Right. >> So, this man tells Marietta that he has. been good to Susie, and that he took her. because he always wanted a little girl, which is. not what a mother wants to hear. And.

when Marietta asks where Susie is at. that very moment, he says that she is up. in his cabin sleeping. And when she asks. again if Susie's okay, the kidnapper. says yes, >> [music]. >> and talks about how he could never kill. a little girl like that. And like the. man even gets emotional on the phone. [music]. before hanging up. Now, investigators. study every detail of this call. This guy had a Western accent. There was. no background noise, but it sounds like. he's outside. And the FBI tries to trace.

the call, but for technical reasons, for. some reason like this time it doesn't. work. However, a few days later, they. catch a lucky break. Because this. Montana rancher notices a suspicious. call on his phone bill. Suspicious. because it was over an hour long and. placed at 3:25 in the morning. So, he. goes to the telephone company in Bozeman. to dispute the charge because he knows. like it's not his. >> "It's not my call.". >> I'm not paying for it, right.

>> And when the employee makes a copy of. the bill, she notices the recipient of. the call was William Yeager of. Farmington, Michigan. Remember, Susie's. case was huge there in Montana. She. recognizes the Yeager name immediately. She knows this is the father of the. missing girl. So, she reports it to. police. >> I mean, you said lucky break. This is like a one-in-a-million. chance of this happening. >> It's not even done. The odds get more. wild from here because the farmhouse. where this call was placed from, that.

ranch is right next to the old abandoned. ranch where the human remains and Sandy. Deikman's car had been found. Now, when. Agent Dunbar interviews the rancher, he. swears that his whole family had been. asleep when the call was made and he has. no idea how that call got made because. all the doors were locked so no one. could have come in and use their house. phone. And there wasn't even a break-in. or anything like that. But, come to think of it, the rancher had. recently seen some suspicious tire.

tracks out on some land where he had. another phone line. Now, it wasn't like. an actual phone receiver that you could. just like pick up and use. It would take. someone with know-how to be able to tap. into the line. But, it was a possibility. Now, he's not. thinking about that back then, but he. had been so bothered by the tracks on. their own that he had inspected them. closely and noticed that they were made. by a specific Goodyear tire. Tires that he knew were on the truck of. his former ranch hand, David Meyerhofer.

Agent Dunbar. doesn't want to jump to conclusions. >> I don't think anyone's doing any jumping. at this point. All roads are leading to. David. >> But, he doesn't want to go right to him. So, first, he goes to a manager of the local. phone company to figure out how someone. could have tapped into the phone line. Basically, he finds out it could be done. honestly with an ordinary phone as long. as the person was familiar with phone. lines and wires. And guess who has. telecoms experience from his military. service?

>> David. >> So, this convinces him enough that he. now needs to talk to David again. And he. wants to get right to the point. We know. David already passed one polygraph, but. Agent Dunbar convinces him to do another. one, this time using truth serum. >> Hello, 1974. >> I know. And by now, by the way, David. has a lawyer, but he doesn't stand in. the way. And Britt, he passes again. >> Again? >> Yes. So, they let David Meyerhofer. leave. And once again, Agent Dunbar is.

convinced that David is probably not the. man who killed Sandy and Susie. But. those FBI profilers, they are not so. convinced. They try to make local. authorities understand something about a. true psychopath. Like, those kind of. people can pass polygraphs all day long, even under the spell of truth serum. So, it's them who pushes Agent Dunbar. to keep at David. So, agents pay him. another visit the next day, asking if.

they can search his property. [music]. And David and his lawyer say, like, "Sure, have at it." Which shocks me, though, because [music] what agents find. is incriminating. >> [music]. >> and downright creepy. It turns out, David is a record keeper. Investigators. find a receipt timestamped for the same. day and location. Remember that first. call that was made to the Yeager house, like the one from the gas station diner. in Wyoming?

>> Yeah. >> There's a receipt. Next, they find sheets with blood. stains. Two unused Disneyland tickets, one of which is for a child. They find a. tube of lipstick. They find a little. girl's blouse [music] and a necklace. David also has cut out a ton of. newspaper articles, some about the. criminal investigations in which he's. now the center of, and others. that seem almost like a to-do list. And. there actually was one in particular. that stands out. There was this article.

about upcoming Girl Scout camps, their. [music] dates and their locations, including a hand-drawn map of Camp. Silver Cloud. Now, what's so interesting. about that is during the time when they. had been looking at David, there had. been an attack on two girls who were at. that camp. They were like on a walk in. the trails when this man jumped out at. them, tried to strangle one with a rope. before being scared off by the other. And they were never able to determine. who that guy was.

But now they're pretty sure they know. >> Yeah. >> Then there is the actual to-do list on. stationary labeled things to do today. And he wrote easiest ways to access the. camps and wrote things like densely. wooded and good cover. He even had a. check mark next to Camp Silver Cloud. Like dude. marked it off his list, which makes. [music] the next clipping that they find. scary. David had cut out a newspaper. photo of a little girl named Karen.

Smith, who was photographed fishing with. her dad. >> What was the date? >> So around the 4th of July, which means. they weren't too late. Karen Smith was. okay. And actually, even though this is. an old case, our reporter Emily got a. hold of Karen Smith and interviewed her. for this episode. She's a grandma now. living her best life, but she says she. was like 5 years old at the time. And. the FBI sent an agent to basically be. her bodyguard after this. Because keep.

in mind, David is not in jail. >> Yeah. >> This dude is free to roam. So she wasn't. allowed to go out to recess with her. friends, and this agent even crashed on. the family's couch. Basically. around-the-clock protection from David. Meyerhofer. >> Wait, like I I like knew he wasn't in. jail, but how is he not in jail after. this search? >> I couldn't tell you because. >> [music]. >> nothing in the case file tells me. But. Karen says she basically felt like she. survived a serial killer thanks to that. agent.

>> Yeah, but like. I'm sorry, in what world are bloody. sheets and a little girl's shirt, not to. mention a crime to-do list, honestly. >> like not enough to arrest this guy. >> Like like this kind of gets me. conspiratorial because like why did he. even let them search so easily knowing. what they would find? It's like it's. almost like he felt untouchable. >> what I was going to say. >> And for some reason he was. Apparently, David just like talks his way out of all.

of that stuff saying like, "Oh, those. sheets, those clothes, like those were. there when I bought the place." Now, I. don't want to make it sound like they. were just not interested in him anymore. They're still very interested. They just. I guess don't feel like they have an. airtight case. >> it's a to-do list. >> I know. So, they what they do next is. they arrange a voice lineup for Marietta. and Bill. Cuz remember, >> they talked to the kidnapper on the. phone. >> They separately ID David Meyerhoffer as. the man who had been calling their.

house. Still, police want [music] more. The FBI flies. the Yagers to Montana and arranges a. face-to-face meeting between Marietta. and David Meyerhoffer. Again, his lawyer. allows this because according to author. Ron Franscell, who wrote the book Shadow. Man, which was a valuable resource when. looking into this case, David's lawyer still genuinely believes. in his client's innocence. And David. says straight to Marietta's face that he. is not the man who abducted Susie. But.

Marietta knows in her gut, she like she. knows she was just face-to-face with the. guy who kidnapped her daughter. However, because he denies [music] it, they tell. her they can't do anything. >> I mean, what do you do? Like you come all the. way to Montana and they're just going to. like. let him walk out of there? >> I don't know how they went back the. first time and like to go back again to. not like knowing you know. >> Knowing you saw him. >> I I I don't know. I don't know. But they send them back to. Michigan. [music] And the FBI profiler.

says that if David is their guy, he will. want to regain power over the situation. He's going to call Marietta again soon. That's what they say. And they say in. the meantime they're going to be. surveilling him, watching his every. move. And they do a pretty good job. But. one day in late September, agents. somehow lose track of him. >> [music]. >> And of course, that's exactly when the. phone rings at the Yeager house. And. Marietta didn't come to play. When she accepts the long distance call, she gets right to it.

And she literally says, "Hello, David.". [music]. And listen, he tries to play dumb. Like, "Who's David? I don't know what you're. talking about." But Marietta is like, "David, I just sat across from you. I. know it's you.". But he won't admit anything to her. still. But he is still saying that he. has Susie. And he's saying that Susie is. safe. And so she says the same thing she. said all along, "Prove it.". And that's when the voice of a little. girl comes on the phone. and [music] says, "This guy, he's nice and I'm sitting on.

his lap.". Now, Marietta knows her daughter's. voice. >> [music]. >> Even after all this time, she would. recognize it. That was not her daughter. This call triggers an intense reaction. from authorities. They swarm Manhattan, Montana. But David's in the wind. Even. his lawyer doesn't have tabs on him. And. now that he seems to be on the run, the. county prosecutor agrees to an arrest. warrant. But within 18 hours, David.

reappears in town swearing that he's. just like been there the whole time. But. they find a piece of paper in his pocket. from the motel in Salt Lake City where. they determined that last call to. Marietta was made from. So now it's. over. And it's almost as if he wanted to. get caught. And when investigators go. back and tear apart his property looking. for more, >> [music]. >> they realize. they must have missed something the. first time. And the most damning piece. of evidence is actually packed away in.

David's freezer. David Meyerhofer's freezer is filled. with many normal things. Packages of. deer, elk, [music] frozen dinners. But. among them is a package wrapped in. butcher paper with the letters S M. [music] D S on the outside. And inside. is Sandy Dyckman's hand. Fingers [music] with nail polish severed. from the palm.

>> Wait, why didn't they find this when. they searched before? >> I don't know. [music] I guess this is. their first foray into the freezer. I. get the sense that like the first search. was pretty surface level. I don't know. if it's cuz they found a [music] decent. amount of stuff, they were like, "I. mean, I just really it's all out in the. open.". >> Maybe that's why he was fine with them. looking. Like, you know, they didn't. find it in the first search, what are. you going to find this time? >> Well, they have it now, and there is no. more talking his way out of this. situation. And David knows it now, too.

He tells his lawyer that he will confess. to killing Sandy. and little Susie. But if the state. agrees not to pursue the death penalty, he'll also tell them about two other. murders that he got away with. On September 29th, 1974, more than a year since Susie's. kidnapping, Agent Dunbar and the county. attorney sit down with David Meyerhofer. He admits abducting Susie from her tent. and taking her to his truck, >> [music].

>> and then to the abandoned ranch. He says. that he undressed her, but when he. started to sexually assault her, Susie. fought, so he strangled her. >> I mean, that's. just [music] like Marietta's dream. I. know. >> He says that he ended up cutting her up. and scattered the remains and then. burned them except for her head, which. he put in the outhouse. And they end up. finding it just like he said. This. monster tossed this little girl's head. into an outhouse, which happened to be. the one place at the ranch.

>> [music]. >> that they'd never searched. As for Sandy, he says that he went to. her apartment while she was sleeping and. [music] jumped on her, strangled her, tied her up, and put tape over her. mouth. He says that she must have. suffocated under the tape because while. he was packing her car, he came back and. just [music] found her dead. So, he took. her body to the abandoned ranch and. proceeded to conceal it in the same way. that he had Suzy's. Dismemberment. [music] and fire. Those two confessions.

weren't really a surprise to anyone. I. mean, even the dismemberment part, they. had kind of determined that based on the. remains that they had found. The next confession, though, that one. was a surprise. David said that he was. the person who killed Michael Rainey, [music]. the 12-year-old Boy Scout who was found. stabbed in his tent at the same state. park but five years before Suzy was. taken. >> That people were talking about when they. were searching for Suzy. >> The thing is, he gives no explanation. for this other than he wanted to take a.

kid. >> But he didn't take him. >> Exactly. It doesn't make much sense. And. then the fourth murder that he confesses. to is another curveball. Cuz it's not. like any of the other cases. And it was. one that they really hadn't even been. considering a homicide. It was the death. of a teenage boy named Bernie Pullman. back in 1967. So, Bernie had been on a bridge above. the river in Manhattan, Montana when he. was shot. And it had sort of been deemed.

an accident. Like maybe Bernie caught. like a wild or stray bullet from. someone's hunting rifle or something. And at the time, David was just a senior. in high school when that happened. And. he doesn't give investigators any reason. for that murder, either. Not that there. would like be a good one. And listen, Agent Dunbar asks David about a few. other missing and murdered Montana girls. and women, including Donna Lemon, but. David says he had no involvement in any. of the other cases they bring up. He.

even denies being the hooded guy who. tried to take the girls from Camp Silver. Cloud. >> Even though that was literally on his. like murder to-do list. >> Marked off. Which like to me makes. everything else he's saying like less. credible. And then he wouldn't even entertain the. idea of talking about cases outside of. Montana, even though he had lived in. California during boot camp and Vietnam. during his service. So, who knows if. David left a trail of cases in his wake. >> Wait, so [music]. who was the little girl on the phone?

>> This. This is what I'm like spiraling on. He. refused to talk about that, too. They. don't know if the voice Marietta heard. was. like a kid talking in real time. Maybe it was a recording. >> I mean, either way, doesn't that prove that he. was at one point time with another kid? >> That is still a mystery. They talked to people at least at the. hotel, right? We know he like calls. Marietta that time from a hotel in Salt.

Lake. And they said they talked to. people, but nobody remembered seeing. anything odd or like they don't really. point out him. So, they we don't know if. he was like even with a kid there. Was. he solo there? I lean more toward the. idea that this was maybe recorded. because he was only at a site for 18. hours. And I would assume that if. another kid went missing in that time. >> those two locations. >> It's also 19 like 70, right? Like I. maybe they don't know. like if something but like I don't know.

To your point though, when how he got. that recording, I don't even know. Where. is it now? Like, he would have had to have it at. the hotel. Like, maybe a recording makes. even less sense. Like, the thing is, I'm. fully convinced this man had more. victims that we just don't know about. Because remember the blouse and the. necklace and like the lipstick found at. his house? Here's the thing, Sandy and. Susie's parents were shown those items. and they say that they didn't belong to. their daughters. So, those are probably. souvenirs from other girls and women, which means there might have been hope.

to get answers for other families. Maybe. they could do some kind of like plea to. close out other cases that he was like. most certainly connected to, but that [music] never happened. Because just a few hours after his. confession, David's found dead in his. jail cell. He died by suicide. This man's method of murder was. essentially random, which is why it is. so astonishing [music] to me that FBI. profilers were able to peg him so well.

I mean, they predicted [music] the phone. calls. And you know, it might have been. partially luck, but it paved the way for. all of the criminal profiling that came. after this, because it made some of the. doubters respect their craft a little. bit more. You know, something that really bugs me. about these cases is that David only. called and taunted the Yaeger family. Like, he didn't, as far as we know, torment any of the other victims'. families with phone calls, and nobody.

seems to know why. And actually, in the. Donna Lemon case, like when they were. early on, like, "Oh, these are so. separate. They're not connected." I. think that was one of the reasons. why they never connected them or why he. wasn't considered a serious suspect, because he never called her family after. her murder. But then I go back to like, "Well, if he really only did that once. that we know of, >> would it matter if he did? Yeah. >> Like, why aren't we considering him in. Donna's case? We know David traveled a. lot. He was delivering machinery for his. dad's company.

>> [music]. >> He could have easily taken Donna to. Idaho where she's found and left her. there. >> And did they ever compare the stuff they. found at his place to Donna or like show. any of that to her family? >> That's the thing, like not that I know. of. No. >> [music]. >> And like I mean I I kind of get maybe. all these years later why people don't. You would You would think that he would. have taken Donna to the same abandoned. property that he took Sandy and like. Susie to. And maybe that's why they're. like, oh, well, they're found together. The other cases he confessed to were so. long ago. Like Donna was like at that. same time frame, he would have just. taken her there. But like.

I think that's saying like that's. looking at that like Yeah, sure, logically that makes sense. >> But that's not what we're dealing with. >> Right. We interviewed Ron Franscell for. this episode, the author of Shadow Man, and he reminds us that it is a waste of. time to try and apply logic and. reasoning to the actions of a. psychopath. But as a Crime Junkie, it's. hard not to think about these things. because somehow I think answers to other. cases. are in there [music] somewhere. Like, why Susie? Why then?

And who else? Marietta wrote in her book that in the. months leading up to their vacation that. summer, as she planned their trip to. Montana, she developed a healthy fear of. snakes and bears invading their. campsites. Never in her wildest dreams. did she think that a man on the hunt for. a child would be far worse than any. animal she could ever dream of. encountering. But in the end, Marietta forgave David.

She went on to become an advocate for. forgiveness and speaks openly against. [music]. the death penalty. >> No.