The Trail Went Cold

October 27, 2006. Sacramento County, California. While performing his overnight patrol duty for the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Department, 38-year old Deputy Sheriff Jeffrey Mitchell sends a message to dispatch that he has pulled over a white Chevrolet van with no plates in a rural area. Minutes later, a clicking noise is heard on the radio and Jeffrey is soon found dead on the ground behind his patrol car, as it turns out he had gotten into a violent struggle before he was shot in the head with his own service revolver. Twelve hours later, a white Chevrolet van containing the bodies of 43-year old Allan Shubert and 28-year old Nicole Welch is found in the Cosumnes River over 20 miles away and it is determined that they succumbed to carbon monoxide poisoning. Over the years, law enforcement explores the possibility that Allan and Nicole’s deaths are connected to Jeffrey’s murder, but no conclusive answers can be found. On this week’s episode of “The Trail Went Cold”, we explore the bizarre murder of a police officer and the deaths of two other potential victims which have gone unsolved for two decades.

So you have any information about this case, please contact the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Department Cold Case Homicide Unit at 916-874-5057 or their tip line at 916-874-TIPS (8477).

Join us on Sunday, September 6 at 8:00pm ET for an online streaming marathon where we will be watching classic segments from “Unsolved Mysteries”. You can enter our screening room by clicking on this link.

Additional Reading:

https://www.cbsnews.com/sacramento/news/wife-of-murdered-deputy-speaks-out/

https://www.kcra.com/article/11-years-later-deputys-murder-remains-unsolved/14770313

https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/unsolved-jeffrey-mitchell-murder-sacramento-17382062.php

https://www.abc10.com/article/news/crime/unsolved-california-who-killed-sacramento-co-sheriff-deputy-jeffrey-mitchell/103-749ae7ae-ad48-44ca-a27f-62eeeb8c81b6

https://www.abc10.com/article/news/crime/unsolved-california-wife-of-murdered-deputy-shares-her-hope-for-justice-and-how-she-keeps-jeffrey-mitchells-legacy-alive/103-9e1af8e8-984b-4c1a-b69f-ec7cc64b9e85

https://www.sacramentodsa.com/the-fallen/deputy-jeffrey-mitchell/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/649554054/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/631192523/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/631196359/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/631196601/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/637956019/

https://corruptionexposer.blogspot.com/2013/10/corruption-and-sacramento-sheriffs.html

“The Trail Went Cold” will be appearing at AdvocacyCon, which is taking place at the Albuquerque Convention Center in Albuquerque, New Mexico on September 11-13, 2026. To get a 10 % discount on tickets, please use our specialized promo code, “TRAILCOLD10”, by visiting https://www.advocacycon.com/.

“The Trail Went Cold” is on Patreon. Visit www.patreon.com/thetrailwentcold to become a patron and gain access to our exclusive bonus content.

The Trail Went Cold is produced and edited by Magill Foote.

All music is composed by Vince Nitro.

October 8, 1976. Benton County, Indiana. A farmer discovers a large cardboard shipping box in his cornfield which contains the body of an elderly woman who has been shot through the head. Since the victim cannot be identified, she remains a Jane Doe and is nicknamed “The Box Lady of Benton County”. Nearly 50 years later, genetic genealogy finally identifies the victim as 69-year old Jane Hart, who lived in Chicago around the time of her death, but the identity of her killer and the motive for the crime remain unknown. On this week’s episode of “The Trail Went Cold”, we explore the unsolved murder of Jane Hart, a former Jane Doe whose recent identification has also brought up more questions than answers. In addition, this episode will also explore the story of a Jane Doe from Benton County, Arkansas who was found murdered in 1990, but was identified three decades later as a 28-year old victim named Donna Sue Nelton. Special thanks to listener Shane Beneke for narrating the opening of this episode.

if you have information on the murder of Jane Hart, please contact the Benton County Sheriff’s Office at (765) 884-0080. If you have any information about the murder of Donna Sue Nelton, please contact the Benton County Sheriff’s Office Criminal Investigation Division at (479) 271-1009. 

Additional Reading:

https://unidentified-awareness.fandom.com/wiki/Jane_Hart

https://dnadoeproject.org/case/benton-co-jane-doe-1976/

https://www.bentonreview.com/articles/popular-podcast-discusses-benton-county-cold-case/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/105870898/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/262897187/

https://www.jconline.com/story/news/2019/07/13/body-exhumed-reopening-76-cold-case-woman-found-box-benton-co-cornfield/1702057001/

https://www.jconline.com/story/news/local/2026/07/15/benton-county-jane-doe-identified-after-almost-50-years/90932141007/

https://www.jconline.com/story/news/local/2026/07/18/dna-match-leads-to-identity-of-jane-doe-50-years-later-benton-county/90955165007/

https://ancestors.familysearch.org/en/LC2F-HZJ/mary-gole%C5%A1-1888-1945

https://dnasolves.com/articles/benton-county-donna-sue-nelton/

https://unidentified-awareness.fandom.com/wiki/Donna_Nelton

https://www.nwaonline.com/news/2022/nov/01/texas-company-key-to-identifying-benton-county/

https://www.nwahomepage.com/news/benton-county-ids-three-cold-case-homicide-victims/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/207571824/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/1117407730/

“The Trail Went Cold” will be appearing at AdvocacyCon, which is taking place at the Albuquerque Convention Center in Albuquerque, New Mexico on September 11-13, 2026. To get a 10 % discount on tickets, please use our specialized promo code, “TRAILCOLD10”, by visiting https://www.advocacycon.com/.

“The Trail Went Cold” is on Patreon. Visit www.patreon.com/thetrailwentcold to become a patron and gain access to our exclusive bonus content.

The Trail Went Cold is produced and edited by Magill Foote.

All music is composed by Vince Nitro.

January 26, 1980. Nantucket, Massachusetts. The brother of 49-year old Margaret Kilcoyne wakes up and discovers that she is missing from her vacation home, even though her car, coat and winter boots have been left behind. Prior to her disappearance, Margaret had completed a scientific research breakthrough at her job in New York City, but was also displaying erratic behaviour to suggest she was suffering from mental health issues. Over one week later, some of Margaret’s personal items, including her wallet and passport, are discovered in a swamp area about a mile from her residence, though the authorities suspect the items may have been planted there following the original search effort for her. While Margaret’s brother believes that she chose to end her own life by walking to a nearby beach and drowning herself in the Atlantic Ocean, other people associated with the case suspect that something else happened, but no trace of Margaret is ever found. On this week’s episode of “The Trail Went Cold”, we travel to the island of Nantucket to explore what is considered to be the area’s most famous mystery.

If you have any information about this case, please contact the Nantucket Police Department at (508) 228-1212.

Additional Reading:

https://nantucketcurrent.com/people/nantucket-s-greatest-unsolved-mystery-the-disappearance-of-dr-margaret-kilcoyne

https://charleyproject.org/case/margaret-mary-kilcoyne

https://garyholmes76.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/kilcoyne-story.pdf

"New York Magazine" (April 14, 1980)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1xzBW2WEKCY

https://www.newspapers.com/image/842021871/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/438533635/

“The Trail Went Cold” will be appearing at AdvocacyCon, which is taking place at the Albuquerque Convention Center in Albuquerque, New Mexico on September 11-13, 2026. To get a 10 % discount on tickets, please use our specialized promo code, “TRAILCOLD10”, by visiting https://www.advocacycon.com/.

“The Trail Went Cold” is on Patreon. Visit www.patreon.com/thetrailwentcold to become a patron and gain access to our exclusive bonus content.

The Trail Went Cold is produced and edited by Magill Foote.

All music is composed by Vince Nitro.

April 26, 1970. East Pikeland Township, Pennsylvania. While on a weekend camping trip with his Boy Scout troop, eleven-year old Terry Bowers is discovered dead inside his sleeping bag after having been stabbed four times during the early morning hours. Even though Terry was sleeping outside and there were nearly 30 other people at the campsite, no one reported seeing or hearing anything unusual and the murder weapon cannot be found. An extensive investigation turns up some leads, but no solid suspects, so Terry’s murder is never solved and the motive for the crime remains unclear. On this week’s episode of “The Trail Went Cold”, we explore the death of Terry Bowers, one of the most perplexing child murders you’ll ever find.

If you have any information about this case, please contact the Embreeville station of the Pennsylvania State Police at (610) 486-6280 or Pennsylvania Crime Stoppers at 1-800-4PA-TIPS (1-800-472-8477).

Additional Reading:

https://6abc.com/post/47-years-later-boy-scouts-death-remains-a-mystery/1917203/

https://www.inquirer.com/news/new-clues-emerge-1970-boy-scout-murder-its-still-mystery-20121205.html

https://www.inquirer.com/philly/hp/news_update/20121205_Scouts___perversion_files_.html

https://www.dailylocal.com/2017/04/21/update-reward-fund-now-at-51000-in-darby-boy-scouts-unsolved-murder-in-1970/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/184980133/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/176220027/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/176225072/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/198240054/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/198240158/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/198240163/

https://vimeo.com/reviews/ff8cd0e7-43b7-49fb-b653-6c2bed451d9e/videos/354919148

https://twistedpodcast.libsyn.com/episode-225-murder-of-terry-bowers

https://twistedpodcast.libsyn.com/episode-226-murder-of-terry-bowers-part-2

“The Trail Went Cold” will be appearing at AdvocacyCon, which is taking place at the Albuquerque Convention Center in Albuquerque, New Mexico on September 11-13, 2026. To get a 10 % discount on tickets, please use our specialized promo code, “TRAILCOLD10”, by visiting https://www.advocacycon.com/.

“The Trail Went Cold” is on Patreon. Visit www.patreon.com/thetrailwentcold to become a patron and gain access to our exclusive bonus content.

The Trail Went Cold is produced and edited by Magill Foote.

All music is composed by Vince Nitro.

June 6, 1993. Windsor, North Carolina. After a Be-Lo supermarket closes for the night, a gunman emerges from a hiding spot and forces the two employees - 47-year old manager Grover “Bud” Cecil and 36-year old casher Joyce Coburn Reason - to hand over $3,000 from the safe. The gunman then orders the employees and four members of an after-hours cleaning crew - 48-year old Johnnie Rankins, 40-year old Sylvester “Tony” Welch”, 48-year old Thomas Hardy and his 50-year old brother Jasper Hardy - to the back of the store, where they are bound and stacked on top of each other before they are shot. While Bud, Joyce and Johnnie are killed, the other three victims survive and provide a description of the perpetrator, but he is never tracked down or identified. On this week’s episode of “The Trail Went Cold”, we explore an horrific and baffling crime known as the “Be-Lo Murders”, which has gone unsolved for over 30 years.

If you have information about this case, please contact the Windsor Police Department at (252) 794-3111 of the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation at 1-800-334-3000. 

Additional Reading:

https://www.ncsbi.gov/Divisions/Cold-Case-Investigation-Team/Unsolved-Homicides/Be-Lo-Murders-(1)

"Closing Time: The 1993 Be-Lo Murders" by Jeb Bohn

https://www.wavy.com/news/cold-case-files-tuesday-is-30-years-since-gruesome-windsor-be-lo-murders/

https://wcti12.com/archive/be-lo-killer-remains-unidentified

https://www.roanoke-chowannewsherald.com/news/rumors-spread-of-arrest-of-windsor-be-lo-murderer-b0f9453d

https://www.dailyadvance.com/bertie/news/local/windsor-police-respond-to-rumors-of-be-lo-suspect-arrest/article_0990b5ad-c075-40ba-9524-294b0d80fcbb.html

https://www.wral.com/archive/2004435/

https://scholar.lib.vt.edu/VA-news/VA-Pilot/issues/1994/940607/06070332.htm

https://www.newspapers.com/image/656191012/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/1007689848/

“The Trail Went Cold” will be appearing at AdvocacyCon, which is taking place at the Albuquerque Convention Center in Albuquerque, New Mexico on September 11-13, 2026. To get a 10 % discount on tickets, please use our specialized promo code, “TRAILCOLD10”, by visiting https://www.advocacycon.com/.

“The Trail Went Cold” is on Patreon. Visit www.patreon.com/thetrailwentcold to become a patron and gain access to our exclusive bonus content.

The Trail Went Cold is produced and edited by Magill Foote.

All music is composed by Vince Nitro.