The injury to the left cheek was from close range, nine to twelve inches away. Edward Harold Bell, in prison for murder, responds to a theory from two investigators that he might be a serial killer responsible for numerous murders of young women in and around Galveston in . Unfortunately, prosecutors could not develop DNA samples or evidence to corroborate his claims in the letters and he was never charged with any of the murders.
His father was an oil field worker who frequently moved his family to various towns surrounding the Houston area. Rita Brestrup, a sister of victim Maria Johnson,also believes he was responsible for taking the life of her sibling in 1971. He asserted that he had made up his admissions in order to receive the death penalty when he was interviewed for the documentary The Eleven in 2017. He had been living there with a teenage girl. Bell contends in three points that the evidence was legally insufficient to support . She says that he was strong and very special to all of them. Bell v. State. Her bones were found in a reservoir mingled with those of a missing Houston girl, Gloria Ann Gonzales, 19. Sue went into the bathroom in the master bedroom to finish getting dressed. He died a suspect in . Enter Edward Howard Bell, a convicted killer serving a 70-year prison term for a murder of a Marine who tried to stop him when he exposed himself to a group of young girls. He claimed that it started with his father, but continued on with scoutmasters, a cousin, and his three ex-wives. When they opened up the back door of the police car, she immediately knew that he was Larry's killer. All four girls hung out close to Bell's apartment. She believes he expected her to plead with him not to do anything. Sue had always considered herself strong and self-reliant . Edward Harold Bell was convicted of murder and sentenced to 70 years in prison for the death of Larry Dickens. 11:17 GMT 27 Sep 2011. She then saw him fire at something on the ground. Bell remains the lead suspect at this time and it is very hard for me to believe he is innocent. On August 24, he went out to cut the lawn. Crime News is your destination for true crime stories from around the world, breaking crime news, and information about Oxygen's original true crime shows and documentaries. She vanished after taking a driver's ed class in Houston. However, one is speculated to be Brenda Jones, who vanished from Galveston in 1971. In 1998, Bell wrote several letters to prosecutors in Galveston and Harris county, claiming that he had killed eleven teenage girls between 1971 and 1977. She then knelt beside him, held his hand to her face, and watched him die. He also invested in a surf shop that they were known to visit. June 10, 2021. As Newsweek points out, Edward Harold Bell confessed to 11 girls, but like Hedrick, he was never charged due to a lack of evidence. O P I N I O N . Bell, 72, is serving 70 years for the 1978 murder of Larry Dickens, a Marine who confronted Bell after he exposed himself and began masturbating in front of a group of girls in Pasadena. That guy was Larry Dickens, who was attempting to stop Edward Harold Bell from exposing himself to children. v. THE STATE OF TEXAS, Appellee . He claimed that he was responsible for the 1971 murders of Debbie Ackerman and Maria Johnson, and provided details as to where their bodies were dumped and how they were killed, according to The Houston Chronicle. [2] After graduation, he found work as a licensed diver and married his first wife in San Marcos, with the newlyweds then moving to western Texas, where they had three children. Sign up forOxygen Insiderfor all the best true crime content. He was previously married to Esther Williams. Throughout this time, he made a living through giving dive trips to American tourists and gold panning. But in September 1984, the illusion of small-town security was shattered for a local couple, "Sue" and "Bill". She lives in fear that he is going to come back for her or hurt someone else. Brenda Jones went missing from Galveston in 1971. He gave the remaining victims their initials, hair color, and the year they were murdered. [4] In order to avoid prosecution, he was interned at the University of Texas Medical Branch for further treatment, where he continued to romance underage patients. However, she did not hit him. Edward Michael Bell - IMDb Gloria Gonzales, whose bones were discovered near to Colette's in October 1971, is thought to be another. One girl was the thirteen-year-old daughter of a Lubbock police officer. Marias death impacted my life more than any other single event. On April 20, 2019, he died from heart failure at the Wallace Pack Unit, aged 79. Texas Killer Dies, Leaving Open Questions About 11 Slayings , updated Children. The Subject Of This Netflix True Crime Doc Is Now Guilty Of Murdering His Wife & Son, Morgan Doughty Filed A Lawsuit Against The Murdaugh Family, Heres How To Watch The Alex Murdaugh Trial Live, Sophie Turners Joan Charts The Rise Of A Famous British Jewel Thief, Get Even More From Bustle Sign Up For The Newsletter. Just three months before Ackerman and Johnson disappeared from Galveston Island, so did two Webster 14-year-olds named Sharon Shaw and Rhonda Renee Johnson. Today these girls may finally rest in peace because their killer has gone to hell, one investigator wrote after hearing the news of Edward Harold Bell's death. According to reports, Harris County prosecutors never looked into the allegations and misplaced the letters from him. [9] At his June trial, Bell's attorneys attempted to argue that the killing was done in self-defense, claiming that Dickens was an "unstable" who had threatened to kill him in the name of Jesus. She had been an investigator on the case in recent years. In the interview he stated the girls wanted him to have sex with them because they were tired of the younger boys. Join others and make your gift to Houston Public Media today. They were last seen accepting a ride from a man driving a white van; he happened to own one at that time. Their bodies were found in a river in 1976. Houston Public Media is supported with your gifts to the Houston Public Media Foundation and is licensed to the University of Houston, . He claimed that he was unaware of the other victims' names. The pair was able to uncover circumstantial evidence that linked Bell to the crimes, but found no definitive proof. 0. Kimberly Rae Pitchford, 16, disappeared after taking a driving class before her body was found in 1973. **Please note** If you are already signed up for the newsletter, you do not need to sign up again. Real Name: Edward Harold Bell Aliases: Butch Wanted For: Murder, Indecency with a Child Missing Since: October 1978 Details: Bryan, Texas, is the type of place that people have in mind when they dream of escaping the big city. The case was featured on a 1992 episode of Unsolved Mysteries that also earned Matthew McConaughey his first TV acting credit for playing Dickens in the re-enactment of the crime. He named Debbie Ackerman and Maria Johnson, two 15-year-old Galveston "surfing girls" who vanished after hitchhiking, as two of the victims from 1971. Debbie Ackerman and Maria Johnson disappeared from Galveston on November 15, 1971. Shockingly, Bell was not done; he went back to his truck and retrieved his high-powered M1 rifle. As he got in it and drove away, she fired and hit it. In 1972, two middle school students, Georgia Greer and Brooks Bracewell were last seen at the Dickinson store. 'Fool, this is the heavyweight champion': D.C. broadcaster Harold Bell BELL Edward Harold | Serial Killer Database Wiki | Fandom Years after their deaths, the series reports that a man named Edward Harold Bell penned a letter to authorities claiming that he had allegedly been brainwashed into killing two of the girls. Ariel Ackerman, the wife of Debbie's brother, Daniel, told The Police News, "In the wake of this . However, no charges were ever filed against him in theirs or any other cases. Why did you kill my brother?!" HAROLD EDWARD BELL MAY 14, 1939 - JUNE 29, 2006 Howard Edward Bell was of Cherokee decent. Edward Harold Bell, in a Texas prison cell for the cold blooded killing of 28-year old Larry Dickens in 1978, denied a request by The Police News for an interview in connection with the murders of Debbie Ackerman and Maria Johnson in 1971. . She ran to him as Bell turned around and drove off. Advanced Search These unverifiable claims and allegations introduced doubt into these alleged confessions, but many investigators and detectives involved reportedly believe that Bell is responsible for what he claims to be. Edward Harold Bell. Edward Harold Bell 'The Eleven' - Jack The Ripper Forums - Ripperology Instead, for the next 14 years, Bell roamed coastal towns in Mexico and Central America, guiding dive trips and living aboard a sailboat. Both confessed to killing women in this area. Michael Lloyd Self | Unsolved Mysteries Wiki | Fandom At that same time, his mother, Dorothy Lang, was standing at the kitchen window. Bell, who is up for . Edward Michael Bell was born on 19 March 1935 in the USA. However, two victims are believed to be Rhonda Johnson and Sharon Shaw, who vanished from Galveston a few months before Debbie and Maria. HAROLD BELL Obituary (2021) - West Palm Beach, MA - New York Times Show 6 article text (OCR) THE SPOKESMAN-REVIEW 6 Fri., April 27, 1945. Age 42. Now serving a 70-year sentence for murdering a Houston-area Marine vet in 1978, Bell has come forward asking for immunity and ready to plead on the murders of as many as 11 young girls in the Houston-Galveston area in the early to mid 1970s. Edward Harold was born in month 1838, at birth place, to Edward Harrold and Maria Harold (born King). Russian Roulette. Neighbours welcomes back Ian Smith, Melissa Bell and Annie Jones for reboot Check out never-before-seen content, free digital evidence kits, and much more! Edward Howard Bell Texas True Crime Blog She forced the intruder from the bathroom and then drove him out of the house at gunpoint with a gun from her nightstand. Harris County medical examiner's records reveal Kimberly Pitchford, a sixteen-year-old, didn't return home after a driver's ed course. "I was going to let the state kill me," he said. Clarke & Staples Funeral Homes - Robert Edwin Tomlinson Gallery. By
[3], "Deaths in Custody | Texas Justice Initiative", "Texas killer's death leaves unanswered questions in girls' slayings", "Relatives unsure of killer's claim in Texas deaths", "Brutal asesino en serie viol a 15 nias", "Investigators Think They Know Who Killed Eleven Girls Around Galveston In The 1970s", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Edward_Harold_Bell&oldid=1131805328, This page was last edited on 5 January 2023, at 21:17. They were last seen accepting a ride from a man driving a white van; he happened to own one at that time. Bell's first documented arrest occurred in 1966. Lise Olsen, Investigative Reporter, Houston Chronicle - Houston Chronicle "When I'm a free man out in the street, I can tell you about [the letter]," he said in a recent sit-down for the docuseries. [2] There, he became acquainted with Doug Pruns, a surfer who made custom boards out of his shop based in the area, who allowed him to become a silent partner in the business, despite his reservations about his friend's behavior. The Great Gatsby. She said that she did not know. A Houston Chronicle reporter spoke with Bell in July and September of that year. Prisoner Edward Harold Bell has retracted his confession. The City of Galveston is putting up $70,000 for a project in the downtown cultural arts district and another $30,000 for a project that could go anywhere in the city. Among other business activities, he was prospecting for gold on land he owned near Panama City. [7], Despite several investigations into his claims, Bell was never charged with any other murder besides Dickens'. Bell, a convicted killer serving 70 years for a 1978 slaying near Houston and who was under investigation in the unsolved deaths of several missing girls has died after collapsing at a Texas prison. Search in titles only Search in Other Serial Killers only. In an interview, Pruns said he once visited a property where Bell kept horses, raccoons, various critters, and a travel trailer painted to look like a red caboose. Holding many offices in the Masons, teaching country western dancing, participating in motorcycle events, mem Who Is Edward Harold Bell? 'The Eleven' Killer Has The - Bustle [2], In 1966, Bell was arrested for exposing himself to a pair of little girls in Sudan, for which he was interned at the Big Spring State Psychiatric Hospital. Despite the violent nature of the crime against Dickens, Bell's bond was set at $125,000. He has given a chilling confession from his prison cell where he is serving a 70-year sentence for the murder of a former Marine in 1978. Senior investigators in Galveston have believed for a long time that Bell was behind more crimes but prosecutors have not pressed charges because they do not believe they have enough evidence. Two other victims are believed to be fourteen-year-old Georgia Geer and twelve-year-old Brooks Bracewell; they were last seen in 1974 and found in 1976. And he claims he was brainwashed to do it. No physical evidence was found to link him to the other crimes. All eleven potential victims linked to Edward Bell were found at the Killing Fields. Obituary of Edward Harold Koontz | Field Funeral Home He got out and walked toward the children. When asked about the letters he wrote in 1998, Bell said he was suicidal and wanted the state to execute him; he supposedly made it all up. His marriage finally ended, as did contact with his children. Edward Harold Bell v. State - CourtListener.com Bell graduated from the City College of New York and led a successful career in real estate development before teaching at GSAPP. In the A&E series, Bell denied having "killed anybody," including Dickens. In 2017, A&E released a documentary series called. When the trial date came about, Bell did not appear. In January 1985, the Texas governor's office released a roster of the state's most wanted criminals. Bell, a convicted killer serving 70 years for a 1978 slaying near Houston and who was under investigation in the unsolved deaths of several missing girls has died after collapsing at a Texas prison. Elizabeth Edwards "collapsed in a ball" in an airport parking lot and tore off her shirt in a fit of anger, the witness said. Mrs. Edwards was dying of cancer and had previously discovered her . Just three months after Ackerman and Johnson disappeared from Galveston, so did two fourteen-year-old Webster girls named Sharon Shaw and Rhonda Johnson. She turned toward him, saw that he was holding a large hunting knife and he slashed her with it. Man admits to killing as many as 11 girls across Southeast Texas He has yet to stand trial for the shocking murder that took place on August 24, 1978. Apr 20, 2019. Suzie Bowers went missing from Galveston in 1977. Credit: Texas Monthly The Eleven: On the trail of a serial killer. After living on a ranch in Terlingua for some time, Bell, who worked as an itinerant pharmaceutical salesman, sold the ranch for an office in downtown Houston. In Memoriam Harold Bell - Columbia GSAPP Bell's case is far more complicated than it initially may seem. Five murders occurred in 1971 and six more occurred from about 1974 to 1977. Download it once and read it on your Kindle device, PC, phones or tablets. In 1994, he appealed his conviction, but it was upheld. Four months passed without further clues to his identity. As Dawna crossed the street, she saw the man lean over and shoot the gun at something on the ground.