Page 93 of The Girl from Devil's Lake
Chapter 53
Bisbee, Arizona
Monday, December 11, 2023
Back at the department, Joanna did the scheduledsit-down interviews, one after another. The questions each time were almost identical, and it occurred to her she could have done just one, but the various network news stars had to have their allotted screen time. Once those were over, it was close to four and still raining, so, at the last minute, the decision was made to bring the press conference inside and into the largest space available—the public lobby. That meant there was enough room for people, but not enough for chairs, and the mic-filled lectern ended up being positioned directly in front of the photo of Joanna with her wagonload of Girl Scout cookies. That image quickly went viral.
“Good afternoon,” she said, when it was finally time for her to speak. “I’m sorry about the weather and the crowded conditions, but I’m glad you’re here. We need your help. Many of you were here earlier today for the arraignment of a local resident, Mr. Stephen Roper, on two charges of murder in the second degree. But here’s the problem. In the course of investigating his two most recent crimes, we came to believe he wasn’t a first-time offender. When we took him into custody, we discovered what turns out to be his trophy case—a cigar box filled with small items taken from his various victims. By our count, the total comes to ninety-nine.
“During police interviews, he has acknowledged committing twelve homicides that we currently know about. Details on those cases will be released once we ascertain all relatives of the victims have been notified. Mr. Roper arrived in Bisbee from Minnesota in the seventies and taught at Bisbee High School for decades before retiring in 2002. Disguising himself as a law-abiding citizen during the school year, he evidently spent the summers prowling the country, hunting for potential victims.
“Mr. Roper’s crimes have a definite signature: He strangled his victims and left their fully clothed bodies in nearby rivers, lakes, or reservoirs. None of the bodies showed signs of sexual assault, but in each case he took a small token from the victim. Whenever tokens or trinkets were unavailable, often in the case of prostitutes, he kept track by making an X on a piece of paper in an old cigar box. There’s a total of twenty-three X’s—nameless victims where we have no way of connecting Roper to their deaths. But for the seventy-six items we do have, that’s where you come in.
“Families of murdered victims never forget their lost loved ones. Everything about those deaths is imprinted on each of their hearts. For example, today we’ve connected an ivory-handled switchblade knife to Amanda Hudson of Grand Forks, North Dakota; a red bandanna to the death of Michael Young of Shiprock, New Mexico; a piece of yellow ribbon to the kite belonging to nine-year-old Calvin Dobbs of Beaverton, Oregon, who disappeared from the seashore in Cannon Beach.
“We have a whole collection of shoelaces—fifteen in all—that were found in Mr. Roper’s cigar box. We know that one of those belonged to one of our current victims, Xavier Delgado, and we believe another is most likely connected to a seven-year-old girl named Lisa Daniels who went missing from Seattle’s SeaFair Hydro races in 1983 and another to Lucianne Highsmith of Calloway County, Missouri, who died in 1977. Having a crime scene with a missing shoelace may not seem like a big deal, but if other details of crimes match up with Stephen Roper’s modus operandi, thosecould allow us to find answers for other grieving families even decades later.
“So please, when you go back home, talk this up. If some of these details ring bells with one of your readers or listeners or viewers, please feel free to put them in touch with my department. Our contact information is listed on the press release. Now are there any questions?”
“You said he ‘acknowledged’ committing several other crimes. Will he be prosecuted for any of those?”
“Mr. Roper is currently seventy-eight years old. This morning he pled guilty to two counts of second-degree homicide. The standard sentence for second-degree murder in Arizona is ten to twenty-five years. Mr. Roper is not in the best of health. One twenty-five-year sentence would most likely be a death sentence as well, so I doubt he’ll be prosecuted for other offenses, but at least the families will have answers.”
“Is it true he was your English teacher here at Bisbee High School?”
“Yes,” Joanna answered. “My senior year. He gave me a B+.”
“But you didn’t see anything off about him back then?”
“No, to all intents and purposes he was an upstanding citizen.”
“Will we be able to see the evidence from the cigar box?”
“Yes,” Joanna said. “My CSIs have set up a display in our crime lab, and digital photos of those items will be available upon request.”
“I can see why he’d kill a little kid from Mexico, but why the reporter. What’s her name again?”
“Marliss Glenda Shackleford,” Joanna replied. “I believe she was following up on some aspect of the Xavier Delgado story. In the process she let him know he was under suspicion. After getting away with murder all this time, I think the very thought of being apprehended drove him into a state of blind panic.”
Hands were still waving with more questions, but Joanna shut it down. “I’m sorry,” she said. “That’s all for now. I apologize that we had to do this under such adverse circumstances, but again, if anytips come in to you as a result of your reporting on this matter, please be sure to pass them along to us. Thank you.”
She left the public lobby and headed for her office. Being in the limelight wasn’t her favorite role, but under the circumstances, she felt as though both her parents, even her mother, would have been proud.
Chapter 54
Bisbee, Arizona
Tuesday, December 12, 2023
On Tuesday morning, Joanna was at her desk workingon Marliss Shackleford’s eulogy when her phone rang with a caller ID number in Grand Island, Nebraska.
“Sheriff Brady here,” she said.
“I’m Tom Malloy, the sheriff of Hall County, Nebraska. Saw your piece onGood Morning Americatoday. You guys happen to find a green barrette in that asshole’s trophy case?”
Once retrieved from the evidence room, the green barrette led back to a girl named Wendy Adams who had disappeared from the Nebraska State Fair in August of 1991. Because she was too small to ride the roller coaster, her two older sisters had left her alone while they took their ride. When it was over, Wendy was gone. And once again, after seeing the barrette, Roper confirmed he was responsible.
“Thanks so much,” Sheriff Malloy said, once Joanna gave him the news. “But there’s one more thing before you go.”
