Bloomington, WI Area Cold Cases
Name
Brian DietrichAge
30Cause of Death
MissingInfo
He’d planned to take his new baby daughter out trick-or-treating that october night in 1993. Brian dietrich — the son of [then] Clayton county sheriff verdean dietrich — was known for his biker lifestyle and “living off the land” in rural garnavillo, iowa, but made regular trips across the mississippi river to prairie du chien, wis., to sell ginseng.Agency
Iowa
Name
Charles JaegerAge
37Cause of Death
ShootingInfo
On august 29, 1984, charles jaeger, 37, was found in a pool of blood in his bed at his dyersville, iowa home, a bullet lodged in his brain. He was transported to the university of iowa hospitals and clinics in iowa city, where he was pronounced dead. The following article, which details jaeger’s case, was written by m.D. Kittle and published in the dubuque telegraph herald on april 20, 2008.Agency
Iowa
Name
Crystal ArensdorfAge
20Cause of Death
MissingInfo
Crystal ann arensdorf, 20, of dubuque, iowa, was last seen at approximately 2 a.M. On july 4, 2001, at knicker’s saloon in dubuque, iowa. Arensdorf had gone to the 2186 central avenue bar with friends and tried to find a ride to east dubuque, ill. No one saw her leave the bar, and she left her car, her keys, and her money behind. She did not show up for work thursday morning. Steven and david peacock — two former dubuque brothers who resided in mount horeb, wisconsin — were at the bar on july 4 and questioned several times in arensdorf’s disappearance. The brothers agreed to polygraph exams in april 2002, and authorities also seized and searched david peacock’s vehicle. The brothers were never charged in connection with arensdorf’s case.Agency
Iowa
Name
Francis RaffertyAge
58Cause of Death
HomicideInfo
Francis john rafferty — a 58-year-old millworker — died of asphyxiation after burglars entered his dubuque, iowa home saturday night, feb. 8, 1964, and taped his mouth shut with electrician’s tape. Dubuque police chief robert o’brien said rafferty was tied up with telephone wire and, because his mouth was covered with tape, apparently choked on food he’d eaten earlier.Agency
Iowa
Name
Jackie ShiremanAge
21Cause of Death
StabbingInfo
On saturday, jan. 4, 1975, at approximately 7:45 p.M., a customer at dubuque’s “marino’s meal on a bun” found waitress jackie shireman lying in a pool of blood in the walk-in cooler. The 21-year-old newlywed and sunday school teacher had been stabbed around 30 times with a pair of scissors. A trial returned no homicide conviction, and the case remains open. The following story about jackie’s murder aired on kwwl.Com channel 7 news on feb. 21, 2018. It details how jackie’s sister has never given up on solving her sister’s murder and how jackie’s death affected the family.Agency
Iowa
Name
Kenneth BouzardAge
53Cause of Death
HomicideInfo
In the early morning hours on friday, april 23, 1971, kenneth marvin bouzard was clubbed to death and then stuffed beneath a freight car in downtown dubuqueAgency
Iowa
Name
Kenny JohnsonAge
14Cause of Death
StrangulationInfo
On saturday, october 10, 1987 around 8:45 a.M., an elderly fisherman discovered the body of a young white male lying on the sandy beach area near a floodgate in dubuque, iowa’s isolated maus parkAgency
Iowa
Name
Lee RolfeAge
48Cause of Death
MissingInfo
Lee allan rolfe, a 48-year-old registered sex offender, disappeared from his rural garber, iowa home on april 13, 2008. He was reported missing to the clayton county sheriff’s office in elkader that same day. Lee allan rolfe (courtesy namus) lee allan rolfe (courtesy namus) officials described rolfe — aka “rolfey rolfe” — as a 5-foot-9 white male with blue eyes, brown hair, and weighing 230 pounds. Rolfe wears glasses, has a tattoo of yosemite sam on his upper left arm, and was on anti-depressant medication at the time of his disappearance.Agency
Iowa
Name
Lyman ElledgeAge
65Cause of Death
HomicideInfo
Lyman elledge, 65, was found bludgeoned to death on the front lawn of the barney wiskus home in colesburg, iowa, at about 7 a.M. On friday, september 28, 1951.Agency
Iowa
Name
Marlon Barber JrAge
15Cause of Death
ShootingInfo
On oct. 20, 2012, marlon barber, jr., a 15-year-old dubuque teen, was shot in the chest and stomach as he and his friends walked away from a party. He died soon after in the hospital. Another teen was hit by gunfire but treated at a hospital and released.Agency
Iowa
Name
Paul KnockelAge
53Cause of Death
MissingInfo
On thursday, oct. 12, 2023, dubuque police responded to a report of a submerged vehicle in the mississippi river. Officials identified the vehicle as a 1981 mercury zephyr and stated the car belonged to paul joseph knockel, who’d been reported missing from dubuque on nov. 26, 1990. N november 1990, the dubuque telegraph herald reported that knockel last had contact with family members on monday, november 12 and that knockel’s car was last seen by a family member the morning of november 13, parked along u.S. Route 151 less than one mile east of the dubuque-wisconsin bridge near the “welcome to wisconsin” sign on the roadway’s south side.Knockel, a lifelong bachelor with no children, missed his usual thanksgiving dinner with relatives and they reported him missing the following monday after he failed to show up at a job at the swiss colony mail-order gift warehouse in monroe, wisconsin, dubuque police told the telegraph herald. Police also said knockel was last seen friday, november 17, driving along a highway in grant county, wisconsin.Agency
Iowa
Name
Sherrie MartinAge
8Cause of Death
ShootingInfo
Sisters sherrie lee martin, 8, and victoria lynne martin, 4, were killed in an early morning fire on saturday, march 6, 1965, when someone set fire to the family’s dubuque, iowa two-story frame house.The girls’ mother, janet, escaped from the burning home about 3:30 a.M. But said she was unable to save her daughters. The girls were asleep on the home’s second floor when the fire broke out.Janet’s husband, donald c. Martin, a former national guardsman and marine corps corporal employed by the united states postal service, also had a second job and worked the second shift. After the fire, both he and his wife were admitted to the hospital for shock.Martin requested his daughters’ bodies be exhumed to prove his estranged wife had provided the accelerant that led to their deaths. Further investigation determined the fire had indeed been deliberately set and ruled it arson. Both girls’ deaths were then ruled homicides.Agency
Iowa
Name
Victoria MartinAge
4Cause of Death
ShootingInfo
Sisters sherrie lee martin, 8, and victoria lynne martin, 4, were killed in an early morning fire on saturday, march 6, 1965, when someone set fire to the family’s dubuque, iowa two-story frame house.The girls’ mother, janet, escaped from the burning home about 3:30 a.M. But said she was unable to save her daughters. The girls were asleep on the home’s second floor when the fire broke out.Janet’s husband, donald c. Martin, a former national guardsman and marine corps corporal employed by the united states postal service, also had a second job and worked the second shift. After the fire, both he and his wife were admitted to the hospital for shock.Martin requested his daughters’ bodies be exhumed to prove his estranged wife had provided the accelerant that led to their deaths. Further investigation determined the fire had indeed been deliberately set and ruled it arson. Both girls’ deaths were then ruled homicides.Agency
Iowa
Name
Theodore HoerstmanAge
45Cause of Death
MissingInfo
Theodore anthony “ted” hoerstman, a 45-year-old disabled adult, was reported missing to the dubuque police department in dubuque, iowa, on december 6, 1982. Hoerstman, initially listed on the iowa department of public safety’s missing person information clearinghouse, was removed from the site in 2011 and he is now presumed deceased. Date of date is listed as the same day he went missing.Agency
Iowa
Name
Kenny JohnsonAge
14Cause of Death
Ligature/StrangulationInfo
Agency
Dubuque Police Department