Episode 367:

High-Fives With Both Hands

Missing Persons Case of Donald Boardman

Karen

Juan Pedro Martínez Gómez, "Missing Boy of Somosierra”

Georgia

Episode 367: High-Fives With Both Hands

This week, Karen covers the missing persons case of Donald Boardman and Georgia tells the story of the "Missing Boy of Somosierra,” Juan Pedro Martínez Gómez.

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Missing Persons Case of Donald Boardman

Missing Persons Case of Donald Boardman Notes:

Header Image Source: Photo by Inés Álvarez Fdez on Unsplash

Other Images:

1. Donald Boardman

 

"When an unidentified man's body was found on the edge of a creek in Marion County alongside Interstate 24 on Dec. 16, 1985, the temperatures had been above average for weeks.

A fisherman made the grisly discovery as he walked along the banks of a small spring branch adjacent to Ellis Road that feeds into Battle Creek north of South Pittsburg, Tenn.

The body had badly decomposed in the unseasonably warm weather and there were no identifying papers found or other leads to a name.

The man has remained unidentified for 32 years. He is considered a "John Doe."

Larry Davis, investigator for the 12th Judicial District Attorney General's Office, is trying to tie the three-decades-old cold case to a name and provide a resolution for a family somewhere who never knew what happened to their roughly 25- to 40-year-old son, brother or significant other.

Davis had the same job in 1985.

It was one of several of young white men's bodies found in the Southeast Tennessee region near interstates 24 and 75 in the 1980s, according to Davis and Times Free Press archives. Davis said at least a couple of those bodies, two found in Marion County about a year apart, might have been the victims of a common killer..."

Source: “Investigator still looking for clues in 1985 Marion County, Tenn., cold case death” by Ben Benton (Chattanooga Times Free Press) 2018

Juan Pedro Martínez Gómez, "Missing Boy of Somosierra”

Juan Pedro Martínez Gómez, "Missing Boy of Somosierra” Notes:

Other Images:

1. Juan Pedro Martínez Gómez

2. Somosierra, Spain (Maria Galan / Alamy) 

 

"On June 25, 1986, Juan went with his parents on a road trip. Juan’s father was a truck driver and was driving a large tanker truck of acid. The tanker crashed and while the bodies of his mother and father were located, Juan’s body was never found.

Did Juan survive the crash and then wander off? Was his body dissolved in the acid that spilled from the crash? Or was Juan handed over to settle a drug debt, as some have suggested, and then his parents killed?

The case of Juan Pedro Martínez is now known as “The Boy of Somosierra” and it is very well-known in Spain, although it is relatively unknown outside of its country of origin. What happened to Juan Pedro Martínez? Over 30 years later, we still aren’t sure, and we’re still searching for answers..."

Source: “Unsolved Mysteries — What Happened to Juan Pedro Martínez?” by Skylar Aries (Medium)

Karen's Episode Sources

  1. “Investigator still looking for clues in 1985 Marion County, Tenn., cold case death” by Ben Benton (Chattanooga Times Free Press) 2018
  2. “Tennessee woman's sleuthing helps identify Georgia man's body after 37 years” by Ben Benton (Chattanooga Times Free Press) April 30, 2022
  3. “Curious mom solves 3-decade-old case” by Keith Sharon (Nashville Tennessean) 2022
  4. “1985 cold case murder mystery solved by unlikely pair: Tennessee mom and Georgia police civilian employee” by Danielle Wallace (Fox 29) 2022
  5. “Advocates raise awareness of "silent epidemic" on National Missing Persons Day” by Juli McDonald (CBS News) 2023
  6. “Marion County Tennessee” 
  7. “Franklin County teacher helps crack 1985 cold case” (Tullahoma Tennessee News) 2022
  8. “Donald Boardman” (The Charley Project)
  9. “Dr. William M. Bass Collection” (University of Tennessee Knoxville)
  10. “National Missing and Unidentified Persons System”
  11. “Ben Benton” (Chattanooga Times Free Press)
  12. “Don Boardman” (Unidentified Wiki)
  13. “7News highlights missing persons cases on National Missing Persons Day” by Jade Moreau (KPLCTV) 2023

Georgia's Episode Sources

  1. “43. Like Magic” from Supernatural: 300 Horror Stories, Mysteries and Urban Legends by Cael Novak (pages 52-53)
  2. “And the Boy?” (Spain’s News)
  3. “Drug Trade for Europe Is Overwhelming Spain” by Paul Delaney (New York Times)
  4. “Interpol” (Wikipedia)
  5. “Juan Pedro Martinez Gomez, el niño de Somosierra.” (El Blog de Las Sombras)
  6. “Mysterious Disappearance: Juan Pedro Martinez” (We Just Nerd Here Podcast)
  7. “Tachograph” (Wikipedia)
  8. “The Case of Juan Pedro Martinez Gomez, Europe’s Strangest Disappearance” (Bizarre and Grotesque)
  9. “The Missing: Juan Pedro Martínez” by CJ Lynch (The Morbid Library)
  10. “El misterio de 'El niño de Somosierra' pervive 33 años después: raptado o disuelto en ácido” by Marina Ochoa (El Español)
  11. “Unsolved Mysteries — What Happened to Juan Pedro Martínez?” by Skylar Aries (Medium)