Sund/Pelosso News 5/27/99
JoAnn
Excerpts:
<http://www.modbee.com/metro/story/0,1113,83308,00.html>
Thursday, May 27, 1999)
Grand jury in session in sightseers' slayings
" A federal grand jury today will resume hearing testimony in
the slayings of three Yosemite sightseers. The FBI already has used the
grand jury to force more than a dozen witnesses to testify or face
potential perjury charges.
On the record, agents refuse to comment about the status of the
investigation into the grisly murders of Carole Sund and her daughter,
Julie, and family friend Silvina Pelosso.
The secret testimony is being heard in the federal court in Fresno."
JoAnn
"Is this life we're living
all part of a great design?"
JoAnn
Excerpts from Fresno Bee:
<http://www.fresnobee.com/localnews/story/0,1225,83185,00.html>
Yosemite witnesses again face grand jury
By Kimi Yoshino
The Fresno Bee
(Published May 27, 1999)
The FBI returns to Fresno today for another federal grand jury session
in the Yosemite sightseer murders, a case in which investigators say
they have been forced to rely on witnesses whose drug abuse may twist
their grasp of the truth. FBI officials have already used the grand
jury to force more than a dozen witnesses to testify or face potential
perjury charges.
On the record, agents refuse to comment about the status of the
investigation into the grisly murders......
Several grand jury witnesses have confirmed the probe is focused on
half-brothers Eugene "Rufus" Dykes, 32; Michael "Mick" Larwick, 42; and
other Modesto-area ex-convicts with histories of drug, weapons and sex
crimes.
"As we've narrowed our focus, we have had to interview a large number
of individuals involved in one way or another with the drug culture,"
FBI Special Agent Nick Rossi said. "We can rarely rely upon the word of
a single witness."
Rossi said many of the rumors circulating about the case are not
factual, but some may have a morsel of truth to them.
Among the witnesses who have testified are ****David and Maria
Ledbetter, Modesto**** siblings with close ties to Eugene Dykes. Maria
Ledbetter, 24, an admitted methamphetamine addict and Dykes' girlfriend,
told The Bee she has been questioned extensively about him by the FBI.
When she testified before the federal grand jury last month, a federal
prosecutor wanted to know whether she spent Feb. 17 and 18 with Dykes.
Ledbetter said that although she was with Dykes for much of February,
she does not remember seeing him on those days. ****Dykes was arrested
March 5 at her southwest Modesto home after a 21/2-hour standoff with
authorities.***
He finally surrendered but left behind a gun, a knife and a
****syringe*** that he had hidden, she said.
Maria Ledbetter and her sister, China, who also lives at the home where
Dykes was arrested, said FBI agents took a folding knife Dykes had
hidden.
Authorities did not find it in their initial search of the home but came
back for it days later. The FBI "wanted it badly," China Ledbetter
said.
*****Maria Ledbetter said she now believes Dykes "had something to do
with" the slayings. Part of that belief stems from a telephone call she
said she overheard between her brother, David, and a 17-year-old Modesto
girl, Amy Wallace,****
who once dated Dykes. ****David Ledbetter, 18, claims he taped that
conversation for the FBI-led task force investigating the murders.****
Although he said he turned over the tape, he is selling copies to
tabloid TV shows and other news reporters in exchange for cash, food or
hotel rooms. The Bee refused Ledbetter's request to buy the tape in
exchange for a hotel room and has not heard it.
According to Maria Ledbetter, ****Wallace tells David Ledbetter a man
bragged to her about murdering Carole Sund and Pelosso, keeping Juli
Sund alive and raping her repeatedly.***
The FBI will not comment on whether the contents of the tape are true
or even if the agency had David Ledbetter make such a recording.
****David Ledbetter, who has been subpoenaed to testify again today,
said Wednesday that he has been questioned previously about the tape in
front of the grand jury.****
***Amy Wallace also was called before the grand jury last month, but
could not be reached for a comment. She lives less than a mile from the
Modesto intersection where part of Carole Sund's wallet was discovered
Feb. 19.***
Others who have been called previously before the federal grand jury:
Johnny Nolan Jr. and Johnny Nolan Sr. The ***Nolans, ages 21 and 43,
have criminal records and live in Modesto four blocks from where Larwick
once lived.****
Modesto police arrested Nolan Jr. Feb. 26 on a parole violation.
***Mindy Bunch-Glover, 23, ofModesto, who said she was asked whether
she knew Dykes and Larwick. She also was questioned about her job at a
convenience store near Dykes' trailer in Empire****, a small town east
of Modesto.
Larry Utley, 41, of Modesto also has testified, but declined to comment.
Utley was one of several people arrested March 26 during a parole sweep
led by an FBI task force. Utley, a convicted sex offender, was picked
up on charges of failure to register as a sex offender, possession of a
nonnarcotic controlled substance and possession of a nonnarcotic
controlled substance for sale.
He has declined to comment, but associates - including the Ledbetters
and Angelia Dale - said he was an acquaintance of Dykes and Larwick.
Though the grand jury is meeting again today and can issue an
indictment, ****authorities say charges are unlikely to be filed this
week.*** "It's remarkable, when you look at it, all the pieces we've
been able to fill in," James Maddock, special agent in charge of the
investigation, told The Associated Press last week. "Every day we get
information that helps us refine our working theory."
#41305
JoAnn
<http://www.times-standard.com/mainhed/docs/1999/may_1999/may27_1999/sund_case.htm>
Eurekans quizzed in FBI probe
By Nate Ferguson
The Times-Standard
EUREKA— "While the FBI has mainly focused on the Central Valley for
its investigation into the deaths of three women sightseers, agents have
also been questioning people in Eureka.
The FBI appears to be ***comparing the belongings the women reportedly
had on their trip with items found during the investigation. ***
It also seems to be securing a timeline of events.
It marks the biggest apparent turn northward since shortly after the
trio was reported missing.
Sources interviewed think it's a sign the FBI is wrapping up its case.
Humboldt All-Star Cheerleaders coach Teresa Creech, a close family
friend and three members of the cheerleading team were questioned by
agents. Last week Creech said she was interviewed for three hours at her
home by two FBI agents.
Two weeks ago she was questioned by another agent over the phone. Creech
said the
***agents asked her what Carole Sund, 42, her 15-year-old daughter,
Juli, and family friend Silvina Pelosso may have taken on the
mid-February trip*** to Yosemite National Park.
The agents also
***copied videos of Juli cheerleading and goofing around in Stockton***,
just two days before the trio disappeared, said Creech, the girl's
former coach.
Creech said
***Juli mistakenly took her daughter's cheerleading shoes on the
trip.***
Jens Sund, Carole's husband and Juli's father, said the agents were
"poking around," wanting
***phone records and calling card numbers***
Sund and Creech both thought the FBI ****already had*** the information
they were asking for.
*****The FBI recently confirmed the trio was last seen at 10:30 or 11
p.m. on Feb. 15, rather than 7:30 p.m., as originally thought****.
But agents ***won't say what the women were doing or how agents obtained
the information***
Jens Sund said Carole, known for her organization skills,
***wouldn't normally be up that late and doubts she would have let the
girls run free*** at the Cedar Lodge in El Portal where they were
staying.
Other people in Eureka were also interviewed.
Carole Sund's mother, Carole Carrington, said her daughter's former
secretary was also questioned, but wasn't sure what she was asked.
"There has to be a reason for it," Carrington said. ****"I think they're
getting close (to solving it)," she said.***
Carole Sund's father, ***Francis Carrington, predicts charges will be
filed within 30 days***....although the FBI hasn't publicly made such
forecasts."
©1999 Times-Standard
Thursday, May 27, 1999; A1
JoAnn
<http://www.47tv.com/prd1/now/template.display?p_story=151668&p_who=kjeo>
Thursday, May 27,1999 - 12:48 PM ET
KJEO(KJEO) It's a murder case that shocked the nation...And it's a case
that is still unsolved despite a massive FBI investigation.
Authorities hope to soon know who killed Carole and Juli Sund and
Silvina Pelosso. The latest information centers around two men who are
already behind bars.
Mick Larwick told 47 ON YOUR SIDE NEWS almost two months ago that he was
innocent. But his denials haven't kept the FBI from continuing to
investigate him and they haven't kept his name out of the headlines.
But media outlets aren't the only ones pointing a finger at Larwick. In
his first meeting with the FBI, investigators showed mick a videotaped
statement by his half-brother Rufus Dykes. On the tape, Dykes tells
investigators that Larwick is responsible for the killings.
Larwick says he couldn't believe what he saw on the tape. As you know,
he vehemently denies any involvement in the murders.
Now it appears that Dykes, who pointed the finger at Larwick is the one
in the crosshairs of the FBI investigation.
Several witnesses called to the grand jury in Fresno are known
associates of Dykes. One of them,
*** Larry Utley owns a property in Modesto where Dykes was staying prior
to his arrest.*** It was at this house that Dykes routinely parked his
Jeep Waggoneer.
Authorities impounded the Jeep after pulling dykes over for a traffic
violation in February.
Now 47 ON YOUR SIDE NEWS has learned that evidence found on the body of
Juli Sund indicates that Dykes' jeep was the vehicle used to transport
her body to the spot whre it was found, near lake Don Pedro.
The possibility of Dykes' jeep being used to get rid of Julie Sund's
body doesn't necessarily mean that he drove the vehicle, but
investigators believe that two people or more are involved in the
murders. So far, no one has been charged in the case.
JoAnn
MAY 27, 1999-NOON))
((MICHELE))
"PLUS..AN I-TEAM INVESTIGATION ON THE MURDERED YOSEMITE SIGHTSEERS. STAY
WITH US..THE NEWS AT NOON..IS NEXT.
"IT'S BEEN MORE THAN 3 MONTHS SINCE CAROLE SUND, HER DAUGHTER JULI AND
FRIEND SILVINA PELOSSO DISAPPEARED AND WERE MURDERED WHILE ON A TRIP TO
YOSEMITE. NO ONE HAS BEEN ARRESTED..BUT..
AUTHORITIES SAY THEY'RE MAKING VERY GOOD PROGRESS ON THE CASE. AND TODAY
A FEDERAL GRAND JURY IS ONCE AGAIN TAKING TESTIMONY FROM POTENTIAL
WITNESSES.
I-TEAM REPORTER JON BAIRD HAS BEEN WORKING ON THE STORY FOR WEEKS..AND
HAS THE LATEST DETAILS. ((SOT FULL NEXT))
((TRK))
IT IS EVIDENCE FROM JULI SUND'S BODY THAT MAY PROVIDE CRUCIAL LINKS TO
THE KILLERS. AUTHORITIES FOUND JULI'S DECOMPOSED REMAINS OFF A HIKING
TRAIL NEAR DON PEDRO RESERVOIR.
THE I-TEAM LEARNED INVESTIGATORS DISCOVERED PHYSICAL EVIDENCE ON JULI'S
BODY. EVIDENCE THAT IS SAID TO LINK HER TO A CAR DRIVEN BY ONE OF THE
POTENTIAL SUSPECTS.
THE I-TEAM ALSO LEARNED MORE ABOUT THE CONDITION OF JULI'S BODY AND THE
WAY SHE DIED...BUT IS WITHHOLDING THAT INFORMATION AT THE REQUEST OF THE
FBI. ON HER DEATH CERTIFICATE, THE CAUSE IS SIMPLY LISTED AS "PENDING".
((STANDUP))
WE'VE ALSO BEEN TOLD THAT ONE OF THE POTENTIAL SUSPECTS MAY HAVE
CONFESSED TO TAKING PART IN THE CRIME. THE FBI REFUSES TO CONFIRM OR
DENY THAT.
((TRACK#2))
((NATS--RINGING))
AS WE REPORTED 3 WEEKS AGO, AUTHORITES HELPED RECORD A TELEPHONE CALL
BETWEEN A MAN WE'LL CALL "STEVE" AND A FRIEND OF HIS WE'LL CALL "ANNE".
ANNE IS SAID TO BE CLOSE TO ONE OF THE POTENTIAL SUSPECTS IN THE CASE.
ACCORDING TO STEVE...ANNE SAID THE SUSPECT RAPED AND KILLED CAROLE SUND
AND SILVINA PELOSSO ...TOOK PICTURES ...
AND GAVE ANNE A BOX CONTAINING SOME OF THE VICTIMS' POSSESSIONS. AND
ANNE TOLD STEVE JULI MAY HAVE KEPT ALIVE FOR SEX.
((SOT))
SHE WAS STILL ALIVE FOR AWHILE BUT THE OTHER TWO WERE DEAD AT LEAST A
WEEK BEFORE SHE WAS DEAD.
((TRACK#2))
IN THAT TAPED CONVERSATION ANNE TOLD STEVE ANOTHER SUSPECT WAS INVOLVED
THE MURDERS...AND THAT A THIRD SUSPECT BURNED THE CAR AND THE TWO
BODIES.
THE I-TEAM HAS SINCE LEARNED SUSPECT NUMBER TWO HAS AN ALIBI...CLAIMING
HE WAS HUNDREDS OF MILES AWAY AT THE TIME THE CRIME HAPPENED. HE IS NOT
IN CUSTODY.
{me here must be Utley}
AUTHORITIES REFUSE TO TALK ABOUT SPECIFIC PEOPLE.
BUT OTHERS HAVE DESCRIBED ONE OF THOSE QUESTIONED IN THE CASE AS
"SICK"...AND "FULL OF HATE". THE SAME MAN WHO RAPED THIS WOMAN SOME TIME
AGO.
((SOT))
IT'S LIKE LOOKING THROUGH A WINDOW WHEN YOU LOOK THROUGH HIS
EYES..BECAUSE YOU DON'T SEE ANYTHING. NO FEELING. NOTHING. NOTHING. I
WOULDN'T PUT ANYTHING PAST HIM OF WHAT HE MIGHT DO.
((TRACK#3))
BUT WHO REALLY WAS INVOLVED IN THE CASE OF THE MISSING SIGHTSEERS? A
GRAND JURY HAS BEEN HEARING TESTIMONY IN THE CASE ...AND THIS WOMAN WAS
SUMMONED TO TALK ABOUT HER BOYFRIEND. AUTHORITIES GRABBED HIM ON A
PAROLE VIOLATION.
((SOT))
HE CAME RUNNING IN...TALKING ABOUT POLICE WERE OUTSIDE. HE TOLD US TO
LOCK THE DOORS AND DON'T LET 'EM IN. WE JUST RAN OUT WITH OUR KIDS.
((END PART1)) ------------------ --
((MICHELE))
AFTER A STANDOFF, POLICE DID ARREST HER BOYFRIEND. BUT WHAT DID SHE TELL
THE GRAND JURY? FIND OUT ...TONIGHT AT SIX ON KOVR-13 NEWS.
(()
~~~I know most of this is a repeat, but we've got a head's up for
tonight at 6pm PDT.