No closer to the truth
December 29, 2009 | Miami News-Record (OK)
Author/Byline: Shelly Schultz | Section: News
Although the flowers marking the scene of one of Welch's most devastating tragedies have faded, the memories of the people lost on that fateful December night have not.
For a decade, Lorene Bible has woke up each morning hoping "today" is the day she learns the whereabouts of her daughter.
"I remember saying on the first anniversary of the girls disappearance that I did not want to be here 10 years from now," said Bible. "And, here I am."
Although she believes both girls are most likely dead, she still wants answers.
"Any clues to their whereabouts were lost during the first crucial hours," said Bible.
It was in the early morning hours of Dec. 30, 1999, that neighbors discovered the trailer house of Danny and Kathy Freeman engulfed in flames.
Bible s daughter, Lauria Bible, had spent the night at the Freeman home celebrating the 16th birthday of her best friend, Ashley Freeman.
What started as a terrible tragedy, soon became a grizzly nightmare for the Bible and Freeman families.
Once the smoke cleared, the remains of Kathy Freeman were discovered face down in the couple s waterbed. She had been shot.
The following day, the body of Danny Freeman was discovered just a few feet away from his wife s remains.
"Jay (Lorene s husband) found his body," said Bible. "He had been walked all over and no one noticed him."
Bible said Danny Freeman s body was discovered face up, with his shoulders lying in the doorway of the bedroom and his feet touching the waterbed.
The girls were never found.
The Craig County Sheriff s Department immediately turned the crime scene over to the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation.
The sheriff s department had a history with the Freeman family.
Less than a year earlier, on Jan. 8, 1999, Shane Freeman, the teenage son of Danny and Kathy, was shot to death on a rural Craig County road by a sheriff s deputy.
The young Freeman boy was accused of theft and was eluding authorities at the time of his death.
At the time of their death, the Freeman s were in the process of filing a civil lawsuit against the sheriff department.
Since the murders and disappearance of Lauria and Ashley, various theories have come and gone. Two men - both on death row in different states for murder - claimed they committed the crime.
Tommy Lynn Sells, a serial killer, told authorities he was passing through Welch in the early morning hours of Dec. 30, 1999, and claimed responsibility for the murders of Danny and Kathy Freeman and the disappearance of Lauria and Ashley.
Sells was convicted of the death of Kaylene Harris on Dec. 31, 1999, in Del Rio, Texas. Since then he has admitted to more than 80 murders.More convincing, has been a confession by Ottawa County native, Jeremy Jones. Jones claims he went to the rural Welch home of Danny and Kathy Freeman to collect a debt owed to a friend by Danny.
Jones claims he forced the girls from the home, after killing Danny and Kathy Freeman, and took them across the state line, shot them and threw them in an abandoned mine near Galena, Kan.
Authorities searched the area to no avail.
A former girlfriend of Jones claims he was with her at the time of the girls disappearance and he couldn t possibly be involved.
"I believe he knows who is responsible and he may have even been involved, but he didn t do it alone," said Bible. "I m certain one person could not have committed this crime."
Lorene says she just wants to know what happened to her daughter and her best friend.
"I have to keep the word out there and keep the search alive," said Bible.
A 10th anniversary prayer vigil will be held at 7:30 p.m., Wednesday, at the First Church of God in Vinita.
© Copyright 2009, Miami-News Record, American Consolidated Media, All Rights Reserved.
©2023 NewsBank, inc.
December 29, 2009 | Miami News-Record (OK)
Author/Byline: Shelly Schultz | Section: News
Although the flowers marking the scene of one of Welch's most devastating tragedies have faded, the memories of the people lost on that fateful December night have not.
For a decade, Lorene Bible has woke up each morning hoping "today" is the day she learns the whereabouts of her daughter.
"I remember saying on the first anniversary of the girls disappearance that I did not want to be here 10 years from now," said Bible. "And, here I am."
Although she believes both girls are most likely dead, she still wants answers.
"Any clues to their whereabouts were lost during the first crucial hours," said Bible.
It was in the early morning hours of Dec. 30, 1999, that neighbors discovered the trailer house of Danny and Kathy Freeman engulfed in flames.
Bible s daughter, Lauria Bible, had spent the night at the Freeman home celebrating the 16th birthday of her best friend, Ashley Freeman.
What started as a terrible tragedy, soon became a grizzly nightmare for the Bible and Freeman families.
Once the smoke cleared, the remains of Kathy Freeman were discovered face down in the couple s waterbed. She had been shot.
The following day, the body of Danny Freeman was discovered just a few feet away from his wife s remains.
"Jay (Lorene s husband) found his body," said Bible. "He had been walked all over and no one noticed him."
Bible said Danny Freeman s body was discovered face up, with his shoulders lying in the doorway of the bedroom and his feet touching the waterbed.
The girls were never found.
The Craig County Sheriff s Department immediately turned the crime scene over to the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation.
The sheriff s department had a history with the Freeman family.
Less than a year earlier, on Jan. 8, 1999, Shane Freeman, the teenage son of Danny and Kathy, was shot to death on a rural Craig County road by a sheriff s deputy.
The young Freeman boy was accused of theft and was eluding authorities at the time of his death.
At the time of their death, the Freeman s were in the process of filing a civil lawsuit against the sheriff department.
Since the murders and disappearance of Lauria and Ashley, various theories have come and gone. Two men - both on death row in different states for murder - claimed they committed the crime.
Tommy Lynn Sells, a serial killer, told authorities he was passing through Welch in the early morning hours of Dec. 30, 1999, and claimed responsibility for the murders of Danny and Kathy Freeman and the disappearance of Lauria and Ashley.
Sells was convicted of the death of Kaylene Harris on Dec. 31, 1999, in Del Rio, Texas. Since then he has admitted to more than 80 murders.More convincing, has been a confession by Ottawa County native, Jeremy Jones. Jones claims he went to the rural Welch home of Danny and Kathy Freeman to collect a debt owed to a friend by Danny.
Jones claims he forced the girls from the home, after killing Danny and Kathy Freeman, and took them across the state line, shot them and threw them in an abandoned mine near Galena, Kan.
Authorities searched the area to no avail.
A former girlfriend of Jones claims he was with her at the time of the girls disappearance and he couldn t possibly be involved.
"I believe he knows who is responsible and he may have even been involved, but he didn t do it alone," said Bible. "I m certain one person could not have committed this crime."
Lorene says she just wants to know what happened to her daughter and her best friend.
"I have to keep the word out there and keep the search alive," said Bible.
A 10th anniversary prayer vigil will be held at 7:30 p.m., Wednesday, at the First Church of God in Vinita.
© Copyright 2009, Miami-News Record, American Consolidated Media, All Rights Reserved.
©2023 NewsBank, inc.
No closer to the truth
December 29, 2009 | Miami News-Record (OK)
Author/Byline: Shelly Schultz | Section: News
Although the flowers marking the scene of one of Welch's most devastating tragedies have faded, the memories of the people lost on that fateful December night have not.
For a decade, Lorene Bible has woke up each morning hoping "today" is the day she learns the whereabouts of her daughter.
"I remember saying on the first anniversary of the girls disappearance that I did not want to be here 10 years from now," said Bible. "And, here I am."
Although she believes both girls are most likely dead, she still wants answers.
"Any clues to their whereabouts were lost during the first crucial hours," said Bible.
It was in the early morning hours of Dec. 30, 1999, that neighbors discovered the trailer house of Danny and Kathy Freeman engulfed in flames.
Bible s daughter, Lauria Bible, had spent the night at the Freeman home celebrating the 16th birthday of her best friend, Ashley Freeman.
What started as a terrible tragedy, soon became a grizzly nightmare for the Bible and Freeman families.
Once the smoke cleared, the remains of Kathy Freeman were discovered face down in the couple s waterbed. She had been shot.
The following day, the body of Danny Freeman was discovered just a few feet away from his wife s remains.
"Jay (Lorene s husband) found his body," said Bible. "He had been walked all over and no one noticed him."
Bible said Danny Freeman s body was discovered face up, with his shoulders lying in the doorway of the bedroom and his feet touching the waterbed.
The girls were never found.
The Craig County Sheriff s Department immediately turned the crime scene over to the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation.
The sheriff s department had a history with the Freeman family.
Less than a year earlier, on Jan. 8, 1999, Shane Freeman, the teenage son of Danny and Kathy, was shot to death on a rural Craig County road by a sheriff s deputy.
The young Freeman boy was accused of theft and was eluding authorities at the time of his death.
At the time of their death, the Freeman s were in the process of filing a civil lawsuit against the sheriff department.
Since the murders and disappearance of Lauria and Ashley, various theories have come and gone. Two men - both on death row in different states for murder - claimed they committed the crime.
Tommy Lynn Sells, a serial killer, told authorities he was passing through Welch in the early morning hours of Dec. 30, 1999, and claimed responsibility for the murders of Danny and Kathy Freeman and the disappearance of Lauria and Ashley.
Sells was convicted of the death of Kaylene Harris on Dec. 31, 1999, in Del Rio, Texas. Since then he has admitted to more than 80 murders.More convincing, has been a confession by Ottawa County native, Jeremy Jones. Jones claims he went to the rural Welch home of Danny and Kathy Freeman to collect a debt owed to a friend by Danny.
Jones claims he forced the girls from the home, after killing Danny and Kathy Freeman, and took them across the state line, shot them and threw them in an abandoned mine near Galena, Kan.
Authorities searched the area to no avail.
A former girlfriend of Jones claims he was with her at the time of the girls disappearance and he couldn t possibly be involved.
"I believe he knows who is responsible and he may have even been involved, but he didn t do it alone," said Bible. "I m certain one person could not have committed this crime."
Lorene says she just wants to know what happened to her daughter and her best friend.
"I have to keep the word out there and keep the search alive," said Bible.
A 10th anniversary prayer vigil will be held at 7:30 p.m., Wednesday, at the First Church of God in Vinita.
© Copyright 2009, Miami-News Record, American Consolidated Media, All Rights Reserved.
©2023 NewsBank, inc.
December 29, 2009 | Miami News-Record (OK)
Author/Byline: Shelly Schultz | Section: News
Although the flowers marking the scene of one of Welch's most devastating tragedies have faded, the memories of the people lost on that fateful December night have not.
For a decade, Lorene Bible has woke up each morning hoping "today" is the day she learns the whereabouts of her daughter.
"I remember saying on the first anniversary of the girls disappearance that I did not want to be here 10 years from now," said Bible. "And, here I am."
Although she believes both girls are most likely dead, she still wants answers.
"Any clues to their whereabouts were lost during the first crucial hours," said Bible.
It was in the early morning hours of Dec. 30, 1999, that neighbors discovered the trailer house of Danny and Kathy Freeman engulfed in flames.
Bible s daughter, Lauria Bible, had spent the night at the Freeman home celebrating the 16th birthday of her best friend, Ashley Freeman.
What started as a terrible tragedy, soon became a grizzly nightmare for the Bible and Freeman families.
Once the smoke cleared, the remains of Kathy Freeman were discovered face down in the couple s waterbed. She had been shot.
The following day, the body of Danny Freeman was discovered just a few feet away from his wife s remains.
"Jay (Lorene s husband) found his body," said Bible. "He had been walked all over and no one noticed him."
Bible said Danny Freeman s body was discovered face up, with his shoulders lying in the doorway of the bedroom and his feet touching the waterbed.
The girls were never found.
The Craig County Sheriff s Department immediately turned the crime scene over to the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation.
The sheriff s department had a history with the Freeman family.
Less than a year earlier, on Jan. 8, 1999, Shane Freeman, the teenage son of Danny and Kathy, was shot to death on a rural Craig County road by a sheriff s deputy.
The young Freeman boy was accused of theft and was eluding authorities at the time of his death.
At the time of their death, the Freeman s were in the process of filing a civil lawsuit against the sheriff department.
Since the murders and disappearance of Lauria and Ashley, various theories have come and gone. Two men - both on death row in different states for murder - claimed they committed the crime.
Tommy Lynn Sells, a serial killer, told authorities he was passing through Welch in the early morning hours of Dec. 30, 1999, and claimed responsibility for the murders of Danny and Kathy Freeman and the disappearance of Lauria and Ashley.
Sells was convicted of the death of Kaylene Harris on Dec. 31, 1999, in Del Rio, Texas. Since then he has admitted to more than 80 murders.More convincing, has been a confession by Ottawa County native, Jeremy Jones. Jones claims he went to the rural Welch home of Danny and Kathy Freeman to collect a debt owed to a friend by Danny.
Jones claims he forced the girls from the home, after killing Danny and Kathy Freeman, and took them across the state line, shot them and threw them in an abandoned mine near Galena, Kan.
Authorities searched the area to no avail.
A former girlfriend of Jones claims he was with her at the time of the girls disappearance and he couldn t possibly be involved.
"I believe he knows who is responsible and he may have even been involved, but he didn t do it alone," said Bible. "I m certain one person could not have committed this crime."
Lorene says she just wants to know what happened to her daughter and her best friend.
"I have to keep the word out there and keep the search alive," said Bible.
A 10th anniversary prayer vigil will be held at 7:30 p.m., Wednesday, at the First Church of God in Vinita.
© Copyright 2009, Miami-News Record, American Consolidated Media, All Rights Reserved.
©2023 NewsBank, inc.
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