Serial Killer
If you were connected to me on Multiply then you might remember a blog I once wrote about a cousin of mine that was murdered at the age of 11. I was 15 when it happened. I attended her funeral but up until just recently I never knew what I am about to write....I discovered this information, not from my family, but by accident on the internet....I had been doing some ancestry research when I came across this, click here It had caught my attention because it had my cousin's name (Cheryl Ann Bolin) in it. So I clicked on it and read what appears to be like a blog of some sort. After reading this I clicked on the Find a Grave link which took me here. After seeing this I went back and did a search for my cousin's name and found her here. Doing all of this is how I found out that there was a suspect in my cousin's murder. All of these years I had thought that the police didn't have any suspects and that they didn't know who had killed her. In reading all of this and doing a bit more research I discovered that a man named John Richard Willoughby was or is a suspect in the murder of Cheryl and of another girl. (Terri Darlington) I also discovered that this man has been convicted of the murder of a woman who was an Indianapolis police officer. (Patricia McCaslin) I read transcripts of an appeal hearing of his conviction that I also came across while searching. Although this man was never arrested or convicted of Cheryl's murder, finding out that there was a suspect and that he is in prison sort of gives me some kind of relief/closure. People think that stuff like this will never happen to them...but it does happen and it doesn't have to be in big cities, it can be anywhere at anytime...if this man was able to kidnap and murder an Indianapolis police officer..Cheryl, Terri and who knows how many more there may have been, never had a chance....Cheryl was just riding her bike home from a sleepover she had at a friend's house...
R.I.P. Cheryl Ann Bolin.
How amazing that you stumbled across this while on the internet! I bet it was such a relief to know that the suspect in your cousins murder is behind bars. I can't imagine the grief and fear that you and your went through. Did you live close to your cousin?
ReplyDeleteIt really changes the way you let your children play..it only takes a split second for your whole world to change. She lived in Indiana and I lived in Illinois, so no not close.
DeleteWow! Just riding her bike! That's scary! I'm glad you found some answers and that it's brought some closure. Interesting that you found answers in the web. May she rest in peace. Hugs
ReplyDeleteYes just riding a bike, it only takes a split second for someone to be gone forever. Thank you.
DeletePeople are finding a lot of stuff on the internet, and for some it can lead to at least a small measure of comfort. How sad and tragic for all of her family, including you. I'm glad he is in jail and I hope he stays there forever. Rest in Peace, Cheryl Ann.
ReplyDeleteAmen!
DeleteToo bad they cannot try him and cook him for killing your cousin. It is mind boggling that a mass murderer like that can even exist. I hope he lives to be 110 in JAIL.
ReplyDeleteI would prefer that he be tortured and than hanged, but I guess jail will have to do.
ReplyDeleteI was not connected to you on Multiply directly, so never heard about this. I'm so sorry to hear about what happened to your cousin. Your post does illustrate some of the positives of the internet, in that it has given you valuable information you might never otherwise have found out about.
ReplyDeleteActually there are 6 suspects. I was her neighbor and I was there when they found her bike in the woods. I was only 9 when it happened. One suspect was my dad and another my cousin. The other 4 are other neighbors plus John Willoughby. If it was John Richard Willoughby and proved, it would remove a burden I carry in my heart. It has haunted me my whole life. I even hate the Red Cross to this day because of the way they treated us little kids when we and our parents where searching. God Bless You Cheryl. I hope and pray the person or persons who did this to you burn in a special extra HOT place in hell for child killers.
ReplyDeleteWould you be willing to talk more about this? I have been digging into Cheryl and a handful of other cases at this time in IN.
DeleteCarealot where did you live in indiana when this happened
ReplyDeleteI am sorry but I do not believe John willoughby is the person responsible for your cousins death, he may have been for the other two...but not Cheryl. I believe the police know that, and why they do not pursue information they have been given is beyond me. I wish I knew who the person was that commented on here that there were 6 original suspects and that their family was one. I myself share a connection to this case no one could possibly understand even though I never knew Cheryl nor was I even born when she died but I pray everyday for this case to be resolved and for the person or PEOPLE that were involved be brought to light. My deepest sympathy to you for the loss of your cousin
ReplyDeleteI was 14 when this happened. Also a neighbor. I remember the searches and my mother wouldn't let us walk those fields because she was afraid of what we might find. Her family were friends as well as neighbors. She was a regular at our home. This shattered all security and innocence because this was something that just didn't happen where we lived. I was asked 10 years later of my thoughts on what may have happened. I spoke very plainly about who I thought should be looked at. When asked why I told them that this person had made me feel very uncomfortable with what I felt was a little too much affection at the time. I felt so uncomfortable that I refused any further invitations for the family outings. When asked why I had said nothing back then, I simply replied that no one bothered to question a 14 year old. This person was at the top of the suspect list though at the time I didn't know that. Years later another suspect I was told was approached while in prison. I was told he signed a confession to close the case since he had nothing to lose as he was a lifer. However I knew this person as well. And knowing what I do about him, do not to this day think he did it. Simply because he was a bum and did not have the smarts or means to conceal or take her where she was found. I remember very clearly the look the detectives gave each other when I named who I thought did it. Will never forget it. To this day as I did then, I feel I know this person did it and has gotten away with it. They fed a simpleton information to sign off on it and close the case. RIP Cheryl...you are always remembered.
ReplyDeleteNot sure how you could say Willoughby is totally off the hook here he traveled that route a lot and was convicted of one murder and the other he was involved in no one knows him better then me or done the research like me don't let him of the hook yet
ReplyDeleteThey don't really have much to link Willoughby to the murder. Seems like beating a dead horse at this point.
DeleteInformation: http://fox59.com/2014/05/09/the-unsolved-murder-of-an-11-year-old-girl-still-haunts-police-parents/#axzz33t5DdH4k
ReplyDeleteThat Willoughby guy finished serving the murder sentence in June, 2015. He is now serving robbery and criminal confinement sentences and is due to be released no earlier than August, 2021.
ReplyDeleteI too was kidnapped on August 19th, 1975 but it was in the evening East of where Cheryl was taken. Also unsolved. I'm sorry Cheryl lost her life and think of her often! God knows what happened to us and I can only pray that it is in his plans that both of our cases are one day solved.
ReplyDelete43 years, 5 months and counting for that day!
RIP Cheryl Ann ��
Do you recall any details about the person who took you?
DeleteI grew up about 6 miles from where Cheryl was taken, and she would have been about a year older than me. I never heard of the case until it came across my laptop one day as a cold case of about 45 years ago. I didn't think anything of it then it came across again still I thought nothing and thought look at it later. Then on the way to town it came across the radio so now I thought wow I'm going to check it out. When I did, I was shocked! She sorts of looked like me at the time I was kidnapped, raped & was going to be left for dead but I survived. Lord was with me. I remember asking why he picked me. He said he just knew when he saw me. He said he just had to wait for perfect time. He told me he saw I had an overnight bag & he just knew he would get me. He kept talking to me like I was a little girl and called me that several times. He drove me several places & we was in Monrovia N Everett Rd and Hall everywhere all the way to Vigo County and back to blue bluff Rd. It was my 17th birthday in April of 1982. He had a plane ticket for out of state (TX) the next morning he told me by the time anyone found my body in the water he would be long gone and no trace back to him. Somehow I hit a nerve he cried told me to turn him in he had demons and had been doing this awhile I knew I wasn't the first. I told him I wouldn't do that because I felt if I said I would then he would have finished the plan. I never told anyone till I was almost 40. I wondered how many regretted not talking but I was to scared & ashamed. I was talking to a friend in 2015 told her about it and she looked him up and found he was living only 3 miles from me. He was a drifter from Indiana, Texas, & Ohio. He had raped another women in Morgan County and she was able to escape and had him arrested. I later found that women and my surprise she was a friend. Talk about shock. I went into local bar to wrap my head around all this and was approached by a stranger. I thought nothing about it I told him I just wanted to be left alone. He was asking me to meet his wife, and I refused he gave me the creeps. It was him after all these years he was still at it. I went to warn the people he lived with I found my friend and asked if I could use her name to police when I made a report. Then I got a call he died in a car crash. It was over. Then I find out about Cheryl now I have to wonder if he was the killer. He has a criminal history of assault on women I saw in the local paper but got away with it usually. The way everything came together, the fact we looked Cheryl, and I looked similar, the age, location, we both had overnight bags, drowning or left by water, in Vigo County & Monrovia, alone. I have reported what I know twice but nothing has been done. Not interview, call backs etc. I contacted Cheryl's parents, but they couldn't hear me or understand really and asked me to contact a detective which I did. Still no results. I feel sad for the parents and Cheryl I would love to be able to solve this case. It could be who they suspected IDK or he could have had an accomplice and I think he mite have because a few years ago I was at someone's home and they made a comment the home was haunted by Cheryl Bolin I said who but then they didn't want to say anymore. The person that used to own the home was a pedophile I heard and maybe he and this other man were involved the man that got me had family that lived just a few feet away from this home. He would have been about 20 years old at the time Cheryl went missing and he was 27 when he kidnapped me and early 30's when he got my friend. He died in 2015 in Indiana. You can contact my email at teresas465@yahoo.com if I can help maybe we can connect the dots.
DeleteMy sympathies to you and your family. Our parents sometimes, to protect us , do mot tell us certain things. Myself i had to learn much on my own. Learning that what my parents did tell me wasn't true. You see i am Terri Darlington brother. Believe me when i say , i know how you feel. Yes this suspect is guilty, however we will never het a conviction. He only received what i call a littering charge. Improper disposal of a body. A 1 year sentence. I truly would love to give you closure , i simply do not have that knowledge. I pray the family of Patricia can keep him from making parole as long as possible. Cheryl 11 , Terri 14 , Patricia 45 , all taken too soon. They will always be in our hearts. I dont know if you noticed , bu cheryl and terri were taken 1 month apart. I hope you find comfort and peace. Life can be cruel enough without carrying these burdens. May God bless you and your family.
ReplyDeleteJohn, I am so sorry for your loss. I was a friend of your moms many years ago when you were a toddler. Your sister and my daughter played together. Your mom and I went to beauty school together.
DeleteTerri and Patricia were found in the back of my family’s property. I was weeks away from being born when they found Patty bound to a tree behind my great grandmothers house. Terri was found years prior in the farmers cornfield butting up to our property. It now all belongs to the airport but I was devastated to finally find out about all of these murders...it’s so sad and I’m deeply sorry for the families involved!
ReplyDeleteMy name is Joe john willoughby his brother just passed away he was a police officer his self but I know one thing he might of made mistakes in his life but shouldn't be accused of something he hasn't done if you knew him you would know a good hearted guy but all these assumption are bullshit and shouldn't be made about him
ReplyDeleteHe is out of prison now maybe all you people who assume things might actually know a great man and wouldn't make anymore assumption about him
ReplyDeleteAnd ask him instead of talking shit about him but sometimes we do things we don't understand and just talk shit about something we don't know about
ReplyDeleteBefore anyone says anything about something read the autopsy report because a lot of people were question about this the police doesn't even know how she passed willoughby girlfriend was one of her. Best friend but he didn't do what he is being accused of so he should sue everyone for slander and see how things get changed really fast
ReplyDeleteMiss you Cheryl still praying everyday.
ReplyDeleteI just found out that John Richard WILLOUGHBY died Christmas Eve, 2021 ... as my sister said in telling me the good news, Willouhby woke up Christmas day in hell.
ReplyDeleteAMEN ROGER!
DeleteNancy just shared the amazing news.
Justice for Aunt Patty is finally complete!
May he rot where he belongs!
Fuck you
DeleteHe didn't kill her you are just assuming maybe you did it roger
ReplyDeletei was at the entire trial. He was scum and his family was scum. Hope the death was painful. hope he is tortured in hell
ReplyDeleteYour scum
DeleteYour lucky he's dead because your not man enough to. Say it to none of us pussy
ReplyDeleteWho was his brother who was a police officer?
DeleteHargy sharpe jr
Delete