Around 1980 Portal North Dakota John Doe

In 2016 a skull was turned into Sheridan County Sheriff's Office. The skull was found in an outbuilding in or around 1980 in Portal, North Dakota.

John Doe was an Asian Male.

SOURCES:
NamUs

Murder of Russell Turcotte

In 2002 Russel Turcotte was enjoying a free spirit lifestyle in July he began to make his way from his week-long hippie gathering in Brainerd, Michigan to his home state of Montana to attend a family member's wedding. He would hitchhike his way there and on July 12th Russel would make it to Simonson's Gas Station in Grand Forks, North Dakota. He would call to ask for a money order so that it would help him get back sooner. He was supposed to go to the Western Union to pick it up, but he never did.

On November 5, 2002, Russel's body would be found about 100 miles away in a tree row located ten miles west of Devil's Lake and half a mile north of U.S. Highway #2. His cause of death was blunt force trauma to the back of the head. His nearly nude body was covered with brush. It was believed that he'd been dead around the time he went missing to early August.

Some believe that the ball was dropped in this case. Russel was Native American a search for him took 3 months and not 3 hours to get off the ground and only a dozen police officers were used for it instead of over a 100. It is possible that he was a victim of serial killer Joseph Edward "Jet" Duncan III, who targeted young men.

SOURCES:

North Dakota Attorney General

Unsolved Mysteries 

Roots Web

Great Falls Tribune November 7, 2002

XL Country August 18, 2021

Montana Right Now March 28, 2022

Disappearance of Kevin Gerald Mahoney

On October 2, 1993, 25-year-old Kevin Mahoney was last seen in north Fargo, North Dakota. He left his friend's house after a party and was supposed to walk to his brother's apartment south of Moorhead, Minnesota. It's unknown if he made it or not due to his brother being out of town, but no one had seen him in the following days. His family would soon report him missing.

He was close with his family and would keep regular contact with them. No one had heard anything from him and it was uncharacteristic of him to leave without warning. Foul play is suspected in this case.

There was a rumor that he got into a fight with a man from Detroit Lakes Minnesota, but this was never substantiated. A month after his disappearance a woman claimed to have seen him at Rick's Bar in Fargo, but this was never confirmed. 

Kevin is a white male and was 25-years-old at the time. He's 5'9" and 155 to 165 lbs. He has long, straight brown hair and blue eyes. 

SOURCES:

NamUs

Doe Network

Charley Project

Valley News High October 1, 2021

1980's Portal, North Dakota Doe

 Possibly in or around 1980, a skull was found in an outbuilding of a family farm in Portal, North  Dakota. The skull was handed over to the Sheridan County Sheriff's Office in 2016. 

The skull belonged to an Asian male. 

SOURCES:

NamUs

Murder of Ronald S. Johnson

 On November 6, 1994, Ronald Johnson's body was found frozen in a water-filled ditch about five miles northwest of Dunseith, North Dakota.  He had been assaulted and placed in the ditch which resulted in him dying from hypothermia. 

SOURCES:

North Dakota Attorney General

Murder of Clifton Wendell Marsh

In 1981 68-year-old Clifton Marsh lived in Hope Michigan and was retired and liked to travel in his camper. He was on his 29th trip by September of  1981 for a fishing trip to British Columbia, Canada. In the early morning of October 1, 1981, he was parked in his camper at a rest are along Highway 2 approximately 7 miles east of Devils Lake, North Dakota.

Later that day his body was found on the bank of a nearby pond. He had been shot in the head. His camper was still there. His broken eyeglasses and blood evidence were found. It's believed that around 1:30 a.m. Clifton was lured out of his camper. He would be shot twice in the head while beside the front left wheel, this is where his glasses were found. Blood evidence showed that his killer tried to drag him into the camper unsuccessfully and decided to drag him to where he was found.

The dipstick to the pickup's engine was lying on the ground near it. The hood was closed and the valve on the front left tire was off. It's unknown if the killer had done it before the murder, or was a conscious attempt by them or if there was another reason.

It was likely the motive for the murder was a robbery. At the time though Clifton was not carrying much money in his wallet. It would have been only $20 to $80. They left the rest of his possessions untouched, but Clifton did have $700 in his camper. 

SOURCES:

North Dakota Attorney General

Find a Grave

The Bismarck Tribune October 2, 1981

The Bismarck Tribune November 8, 1982

Murder of Joseph Anderson

 On September 12, 1991, 69-year-old Joseph Anderson went to the Ducks Unlimited Banquet. This would be the last time anyone saw him alive. Police were notified at 1:35 p.m. on September 16 of a suspicious car in the Gladstone Inn parking lot in Jamestown, North Dakota. The car appeared to have bloodstains and a foul odor and may have been there since September 14th.

It was Joseph's 1979 Buick Riviera and inside the trunk was his body. He was only in his underwear and was wrapped in a green sheet that was later found to be from his home. It's either unstated or unknown what his cause of death was. But due to his stomach contents, it's known he died within hours of eating at the banquet. His home was investigated, and it didn't seem to be disturbed. 

Joseph was a self-made man and was successful in business. He invented and pattened a hay grinder. He began manufacturing it in Minot in 1966 and moved the Haybust Manufacturing plant to Jamestown 3 years later. At the time he was employing 100 people. At the time he was looking at opportunities outside of North Dakota.

SOURCES:

North Dakota Attorney General

The Jamestown Sun

Murder of Daniel Erick Johnson

On June 27, 1974, the body of Daniel Johnson was found around 7 miles north of the Minot Air Force Base and around 300 ft east of Highway 83 near the entrance of Glenburn, North Dakota. He had been shot three times. 

SOURCES:

North Dakota Attorney General

Murder of Lora Jean Dugan

Image credited to Billings Gazzette. It's of Laura Jean Dugan's necklace

14-year-old Lora Jean Dugan was last seen on April 7, 1972, when she ran away from home. She had an argument with her mother before stomping out of the house. Lora got on the bus but didn't go to school. Instead, she handed a friend her books and walked off towards I-94 in Huntley, Montana. She told them she planned on hitchhiking to Lame Deer, Montana or St. Paul, Minnesota. This was the last time anyone saw her alive. 

On April 30, 1972, her body was found approximately 3 miles southwest of Medora, North Dakota. The area she was found in was 250 miles away and it's unknown what she did before her death. It took until May for her to be identified. 

She was only wearing a jacket when she was found. There was evidence her hands were bound at one point. The stab to her stomach was not what killed her, but her killer strangled her to death. There is a possibility she was sexually assaulted. Her necklace that's pictured above was found hanging on a branch on a tree nearby. She had died between April 7 to April 21st. 

It is unknown what Lora had done in the time before her death. 

SOURCES:

North Dakota Attorney General 

Billings Gazette 

True Crime Diva

Great Fall Tribune

Disappearance of Gerald Clifford Bartlett

Image of him as a child

Gerald Clifford Bartlett who also went by "Cliff or Dutch" was last known (by census record) to be in Devil's Lake, North Dakota in July of 1925. There isn't much known about the case. Cliff was 21 years old at the age and was a white male. He was around 5'8"-6" and around 150- 200 lbs. He had Strawberry blonde hair and blue eyes.

The original photo

SOURCES:
https://www.namus.gov/MissingPersons/Case#/24452

Murder of Larry Jo Phebus

In October on 1962 14 year old Larry Jo Phebus was living in Tioga, North Dakota with his older brother Chester Phebus and friend Sam Wallace. He had moved from Petersburg, Indiana to live with the two. All three of them were living in a travelers motel, and Chester worked at an oilfield job.

On October 20, 1962 Sam and Chester went on a double date to watch a movie in Willston. They left Larry Jo home alone, and when they got back there was no sign of him. It was strange because whenever Larry Jo would leave he always left a note, so that they wouldn't worry. There was no note left at the motel room.

Chester started his search by asking friends of Larry Jo if they had seen him. He also went and asked people both from Ray and Tioga if they had seen him, but no one had. The last time anyone saw him was that Saturday. On Monday October 22, 1962 Chester told the police that Larry Jo was missing.

Larry Jo was known to hitchhike between Ray and Tioga, but never hitchhiked for over 30 miles. Thinking it could be possible though Chester had contacted his family in California, Illinois, and Indiana to see if Larry Jo had shown up. He never did and never would. On March , 1963 his body was found in a grain field near Alexander, North Dakota on Mar 28, 1963.

On March 28, 1963 Farmers were removing rocks from their field near Alexander, North Dakota when they found a body of a boy. It was obvious that before death the boy had suffered. Larry Jo was found nude with cord wrapped around his wrists and feet tied and neck. He had been strangled to death and sexually assaulted.

SOURCES:
https://attorneygeneral.nd.gov/public-safety/cold-cases
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/13837070/larry_phebus_murder/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/13837206/murder_of_larry_phebus/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/13837279/larry_phebus_murder/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/13837289/larry_phebus/
https://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GSln=Phebus&GSfn=Larry&GSbyrel=all&GSdy=1963&GSdyrel=in&GSob=n&GRid=25324384&df=all&