Unsloved Mysteries that Boggle the Mind, Part Two

Whether the mystery is a murder or a disappearance, all of these cases remain unsolved. In this second part of "Unsolved mysteries that boggle the mind," four cases are examined with possible outcomes for an answer to each mystery.

Look at all the details in each case and see what your final conclusion is. Don't feel too bad if you have no decision, several of these cases have been unsolved for well over fifty years.

Jimmy Hoffa

James Riddle Hoffa was born on February 14, 1913, and disappeared July 30, 1975. This disappearance has been speculated about for over 30 years. As even more years pass, additional theories begin to surface about where his body really is.

Hoffa was born in Brazil Indiana, and served as the General President of the Teamsters Union from 1958 -1971, although he was incarcerated the last four years of his term. Just before his disappearance Hoffa was planning to sue to invalidate non-participation restriction to regain his power back in the Teamsters Union when he disappeared in 1975.

Incarceration

Jimmy Hoffa was convicted of attempted bribery and jury tampering in Chattanooga Tennessee in 1964. He was then sentenced to 15 years in prison. The next three years he spent appealing his conviction without success, and started serving his sentence in 1967. Frank Fitzsimmons was then appointed acting Teamsters president in Hoffa's absence.

On December 23, 1971 Richard Nixon commuted Hoffa's sentence to time served. Hoffa was released from prison with stipulations that he could not "participate in union activities for ten years." Jimmy was definitely not happy with this situation.

Disappearance

As Hoffa fought to get his power back in the Teamsters Union, he suddenly disappeared at 2:45 pm July 30, 1975.The last place Jimmy Hoffa was seen was in the parking lot of the Machus Red Fox Restaurant, in Bloomfield Michigan. He was due to meet with two mafia leaders: Anthony Provenzano from New York City, and also Anthony Giacolone from Detroit.

Speculation has been stated that Hoffa was lured to this site for a "bogus" meeting with the two mafia leaders. Jimmy Hoffa was then escorted into a car by three men who Hoffa was acquainted with. This is the last time Hoffa was ever seen again.

Investigations

In 2001, DNA placed Hoffa in the car of long time associate Charles "Chuckie" O'Brien, who was considered a close friend of Hoffa. Although O'Brien insists that Jimmy was never in his car, a notorious hitman known as "Tony the Greek" alias Donald Frankos, states that Hoffa was lured into the car by O'Brien.

Hoffa was supposedly then taken to a house which was owned by Anthony Giacolone: who Hoffa was scheduled to meet at the restaurant. It seems like Chuckie O'Brien managed to slip through the political cracks, as no indictments where ever issued.

Frankos claims that Jimmy Hoffa was killed by James Coonan and himself who was part of a three man hit team. Hoffa's body was reported to have been left in the basement of the house in a meat locker until a decision was made on what to do with the body. Frankos contends that a fourth hitman Joseph "Mad Dog" Sullivan then sealed the body "in an oil drum and buried it underneath Giants Stadium."

Then in July of 2003, convicted killer Richard Powell told authorities that a briefcase and a syringe were buried at the house of a home frequented by Frank Sheeran who was: a mafia hitman, Teamsters official, and also a friend of Jimmy Hoffa.

Theories

In 2004 Frank Sheeran began contacting a former prosecutor Charles Brandt who then wrote the book: "I Heard You Paint Houses" which is based on the confessions of Sheeran about the murder of Jimmy Hoffa.

Sheeran states that he lured Jimmy Hoffa to a house in Bloomfield Hills acting on orders from the mafia. He then drove Jimmy to a home in Detroit where he shot Hoffa twice and left the body behind.

The FBI checked out this lead and reported that there had been human blood on the floorboards, but the blood did not match Jimmy Hoffa's blood. It was later revealed that the DNA testing the FBI had done was destroyed when "the wrong kind of luminal was used to find the blood remains."

In 2006 Charles Brandt claimed on KLAS-TV Channel 8, that Jimmy Hoffa's body was taken from the murder scene and driven two minutes away to Grand Lawn Cemetery where he was cremated.

The last possible theory is in Philip Carlo's book: "The Ice Man" which was written about the contract killer Richard Kuklinski. In this book Kuklinski states that he and three other men met Hoffa at the Machus Red Fox, and when Hoffa entered the car he "knocked him out then put a knife in his head."

The Ice Man claims that the body was taken back to Jersey where he was buried in a 50 gallon drum. This drum was put into the trunk of a car which was "crushed into a block measuring 4' by 2'." Blocks like this one were sold to Japanese automobile manufactures as scrap metal, which would be used in the making of new automobiles. Perhaps Jimmy Hoffa is riding around somewhere over in Japan these days.

Black Dahlia

Elizabeth Short was born on July 29, 1924, in Boston. She was the third of five daughters. Her father, Cleo, who built miniature golf courses, parked his car on a bridge and disappeared in 1930.

Although suicide was suspected, Elizabeth found out later that Cleo was alive. She then lived with her father awhile in Vallejo, California. Soon after, Elizabeth moved to Santa Barbara in 1943, where she got arrested for underage drinking. Elizabeth would soon become known as the Black Dahlia, possibly as a play on the movie The Blue Dahlia.

The next three years Elizabeth lived in Florida and also Massachusetts. Short then returned to southern California to see an old boyfriend she had meet in Florida: Gordon Fickling. Most of the time Elizabeth stayed at hotels, boarding houses or private homes. Elizabeth never stayed anywhere longer than several weeks at a time.

The Murder

On January 15, 1947, the body of Elizabeth Short was found by Betty Bersinger as she and her 3-year-old daughter were bound for a shoe repair shop. Elizabeth's body lay in a vacant lot at 39th and Norton streets in Leimert Park, Los Angeles.

Short was severely mutilated and cut in two. Her face was cut from the corners of her mouth to her ears, and the body was drained of blood. Bersinger immediately called the police who arrived several minutes later.

When the police arrived at the scene it was crawling with reporters and spectators. Now evidence was quickly being destroyed. The body of Short seemed to have been posed in a seductive manner with her legs spread, and her arms raised over her head.

There were ropes marks on her wrists, ankles and neck. There was no blood on the ground or on the body of Short. Authorities estimated that the body had been cleaned and dropped in the vacant lot the night before.

Autopsy

The autopsy revealed that Elizabeth was 5' 5'' and weighed 115 pounds with light blue eyes and brown hair. The cause of her death was "hemorrhage and shock due to concussion of the brain, and lacerations of the face."

Elizabeth had been sodomized, and her sexual organs had been abused, but not penetrated. Most of the damage to Short had been done after her death. The autopsy also showed that Short's stomach contained human feces. Elizabeth was buried at the Mountain View Cemetery in Oakland California.

Investigation

Everyone who knew Short was treated as a suspect. Thousands of people were interviewed which "sometimes" led to inaccurate press coverage. Over 60 people confessed to the murder of Elizabeth; men and women both.

Several days after Short's body had been found a package "appeared" at the Los Angeles Examiner. Pasted newspaper letters read: "Have the Dahlia's belongings...Letter to follow." Inside the package were Short's Social Security card, birth certificate, photographs, and several claim checks for suitcases which were left at the bus depot.

An address book of club owner Mark Hanson was also in the package with several of the pages torn out. No fingerprints could be found on the package as it had been washed with gasoline to remove any prints.

Best Suspect

A possible killer had been revealed to John St. John an investigator who eventually took over Elizabeth Short's case. An informant revealed to St. John a tape recording which implicated a man by the name of Arnold Smith.

The tape stated that Short had come to Smith's hotel room to stay. According to Smith Short refused sex and liquor and Smith became very upset. He then drove Short to a house at East 31st Street, where he beat her into submission.

This tape is very gruesome, and gives details how Smith laid boards across a bathtub, and cut Short in two as the blood drained into the tub. Smith was also known as "Al Morrison." St. John checked out the background of Smith and it revealed Smith to be a "violent pervert."

A meeting was arranged between Smith and the informant but the meeting never took place. Just before the meeting Smith passed out while smoking in bed at the Holland Hotel and was burned to death. This fire destroyed incriminating evidence, photos, and belongings which belonged to Elizabeth Short. Any hope of solving this murder died in this fire.

Jack the Ripper

One of the most mysterious cases of all times is that of Jack the Ripper. Over 120 years ago five prostitutes were murdered in a one mile radius. This infamous name became popular from a letter signed in 1888 by someone who claimed to be the killer. These murders took place in the districts of Whitechapel, Spitalfields, Aldgate, and London.

The popularity of Jack the Ripper came at a time when the population was becoming literate, and the press was a demanding "force of change." The newspapers chronicled the latest activities of the Ripper, while the "political turmoil" of both the liberals and the social reformers used these crimes for their individual purposes. Jack the Ripper terrorized the city and gladly left his mutilated victims in plain sight.

The actual count of the women that Jack the Ripper killed will never be known, but most authorities agree that the "known" count is five. Listed below are the known victims of Jack the Ripper.

Mary Ann Nichols - August 31st 1888

Annie Chapman - September 8th 1888

Elizabeth Stride - September 30th 1888

Catharine Eddowes - Also September 30th 1888

Mary Jane Kelly - November 9th 1888

Method of killing

The "modus operandi" of Jack the Ripper was not fully understood until several years ago. Information shows that the Ripper and his victim probably stood face to face as the victim lifted her skirt, which left her hands occupied. This gave Jack time to attack and strangle the victim into unconsciousness, or more than likely death. Autopsies revealed that all of the victims were clearly strangled.

With no bruising showing on the back of the heads, the Ripper then laid the victims down, and cut their throats when these women were on the ground. Blood splatter shows that the pools of blood were "under the neck and head of the victim rather than the front, which is where the blood would flow if they had been standing up."

By reaching over the right side of the throat to cut from left to right, the killer would be shielded from most of the blood that was splattered. If the victim was already dead the blood would not be pressurized and the blood flow would be much less.

The Ripper made various mutilations throughout the murders, and in one case removed a kidney from the front rather than the side without damaging any other organs. Given the lighting, and also using one eye to watch for witnesses as he worked is pretty impressive. Everyone who examined these bodies agreed that the killer showed some expertise in using a knife.

Suspects

Countless articles, stories, research papers, books, and short stories have been written about the numerous suspected identities of Jack the Ripper. The latest theory on this case is from two years of research by Mei Trow who used police forensics, along with geographical and psychological profiling. His theory is explored on the Discovery Channel and names Robert Mann (morgue attendant) as Jack the Ripper.

Mann unlocked the doors for the police at the morgue, and was called as a witness to establish the death of the victims. Robert Mann has experience with dissection of the human body, and the anatomy. Also his psychological profile and family background matches the profile of Jack the Ripper.

The summation of the coroner on Robert Mann's testimony surmised that "It appears the mortuary-keeper is subject to fits, and neither his memory nor statements are reliable." Mann also undressed the body of Polly Nichols although being under strict orders "not to touch the body." Possibly this was to admire his handy work.

Possibly someday the true identity of Jack the Ripper will be discovered. Most of the files from the original cases were unfortunately lost or destroyed. Now it's up to technology to identify who Jack the Ripper really is.

Flight 19 (Over the Bermuda Triangle)

On December 5th 1945, fourteen Navy airmen and five TBM Avenger airplanes disappeared over the Bermuda Triangle. Then while searching for the "displaced" airmen a rescue PBM flying boat and 13 crewmen also disappeared in the Bermuda Triangle on the same day. What happened to all of these men and their aircraft is anyone's guess.

Lieutenant Charles Taylor was the flight leader for this training exercise with most of his 2,500 flying hours in this type of aircraft. The rest of the men in this exercise had a total of 300 hours of experience, and only 60 flight hours in the avenger.

The exercise

On the morning of the departure each aircraft was fully fueled, and was being pre-tripped when it was discovered that none of the aircraft had clocks. This was not considered a concern as it was assumed that the pilots all had some type of timekeeping device. After the late arrival of Taylor the weather was reported to be: "favorable, sea state moderate to rough" at the time of departure at 14:10.

Lieutenant Taylor was to supervise this exercise unless he determined that the crewmen had made an error. The aircraft were to negotiate a triangular course leaving and also returning to Fort Lauderdale. This exercise was to fly due east for 56 miles to Chicken Shoals where bombing practice would ensue. The squadron would then fly east another 67 miles where they would fly over Grand Bahama Island.

When the bombing exercise was completed at 15:00, the last bomb was dropped and permission was given to proceed on their first return maneuver. Approximately forty minutes later an unidentified transmission was received asking what their exact location was. Lieutenant Robert F. Fox then replied "I don't know where we are. We must have got lost after that last turn."

Lieutenant Taylor then replied that "both of my compasses are out, and I'm trying to find Fort Lauderdale." Taylor then stated: "I'm sure I'm in the keys but I don't know how far down and I don't know how to get to Fort Lauderdale."

Lost at sea

The NAS were informed by FT-74 that the aircraft were lost. They then advised Taylor to: "put the sun on his port wing and fly north up the coast to Fort Lauderdale." This transmission was never acknowledged.

Then at 16:56 Taylor was advised again to change his transmitter to YG. Yet again Taylor made no acknowledgment of this order. Several minutes later Taylor was heard telling his squadron to "change course to 090 degrees (due east) for ten minutes."

At 18:20 Taylor's last transmission was received. "All planes close up tight...we'll have to ditch unless landfall...when the first plane drops below 10 gallons, we all go down together." Now the sun had set, and the aircraft were estimated to be 200 miles out to sea.

Another version of the transmissions of flight 19 comes from an article in the 1973 edition of "Navel Aviation News: and this is what they report.

Approximately 15:45 Fort Lauderdale received a call from Flight 19 stating: "we cannot see land," and then "we cannot be sure where we are." Contact was lost for several minutes then another message was received.

"We can't find west. Everything is wrong. We can't be sure of any direction. Everything looks strange, even the ocean." Then the tower learned that the leader of flight 19 had handed over control of the exercise.

Twenty minutes later another voice states: "we can't make out anything. We think we maybe about 225 miles northeast of base..." The pilot rambles on incoherently then replies that last word ever heard from flight 19: "It looks like we are entering white water...We're completely lost."

The Search

Within minutes of this transmission a Mariner rescue flying boat was dispatched carrying 13 men. Ten minutes after the Mariner's departure, the rescue boat was also lost never to be heard from again. The Coast Guard, Navel ships, and numerous aircraft searched and found calm seas and clears skies for forty miles; nothing was ever found.

Over 250,000 square miles of ocean (and the gulf) were searched and not one piece of evidence was ever located. Finally after five days of searching the Navel Board of Inquiry was completed and issued this statement: "We are not able to even make a good guess as to what happened."

Was flight 19 and the rescue airplane abducted by an alien spacecraft in the Bermuda Triangle, or did they just slip into another dimension? Perhaps anyone's guess is as good as the next in this mysterious disappearance of 6 aircraft, and 27 men, on a clear sunny day in the Bermuda Triangle.