Buried Bones Podcast – "The Freeway Phantom Murders PT 2"

Release Date: March 4, 2026
Hosts: Kate Winkler Dawson (journalist), Paul Holes (retired cold case investigator)
Podcast Network: Exactly Right & iHeartPodcasts

Episode Overview

This episode continues the exploration of the chilling, unsolved case of the Freeway Phantom—a serial killer who targeted young Black girls in Washington D.C. and Maryland in the early 1970s. Kate and Paul revisit the known victims, dissect investigative efforts of the era, discuss prime suspects (including Robert Elwood Askins), and reflect on the challenges that hinder progress in resolving the case. Using both period and modern forensic perspectives, they consider links, contradictions, and the legacy of fear and trauma left by decades of unanswered questions.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Summary of the Case So Far

• Victimology & Pattern

  • Young Black girls (ages 10–16), abducted while on foot (e.g., running errands), generally found clothed but often shoeless.
  • Bodies dumped near roads—sometimes in proximity to where previous victims were discovered.

    "He's really not hiding the bodies. He's doing what I call a dump and run with these bodies...there is a chance that he's really wanting these bodies to be found." – Paul (05:57)

  • Notable redressing of victims, evident sexual motivation (confirmed or suspected sexual assaults), communication with victims' families (e.g., victim allowed to call home).

• Escalation & Details

  • The timeline between disappearance and discovery of bodies began to shrink, suggesting increased killer confidence, risk-taking, or urgency.

    "It feels like they're getting closer, but how many more kids are going to have to die for them to figure out who is doing this." – Kate (04:47)

  • Notable: More details emerging in later cases, e.g., make and color of suspect’s car.

2. Fifth Victim – Brenda Denise Woodard (Nov 16, 1971) [(07:31–13:04)]

• Discovery
  • Found off Route 202 near Prince George’s County Hospital.
  • Fully clothed but with clothes in disarray (inside-out sweater, missing buttons, misplaced wig).
  • Wig discarded nearby; Paul maps the possible movements of the perpetrator based on body and wig locations.

    "He dumps her body. As he's driving away...he's going, 'oh, shit, her wig is still in here.' Now he comes up to that median, dumps it off, and then continues on." – Paul (11:28)

• The Taunting Note
  • Handwritten note in coat pocket: "This is tantamount to my insensitivity to people, especially women. I will admit the others when you catch me—if you can. Freeway Phantom."

    "I'll admit to the others when you catch me, if you can. So that's a challenge." – Paul (13:33)

  • Link to the Zodiac killer suggested—public taunting and craving of notoriety.
• Handwriting Analysis
  • Debate whether Brenda herself wrote the note under duress; missing school notebooks.

    "Handwriting comparison is one of those really loose types of, if you want to call it a science...I'd want to see her examples of writing." – Paul (22:22)

3. Victim Profile Shift: The Murder of Brenda Denise Woodard

• First apparent deviation from established pattern: Brenda Woodard (age 18) physically fought back—defensive wounds, broken neck, was stabbed (likely by a left-handed person, per wounds).

  "She fought. There's a lot of force being used during this combat between her and the offender...she's probably the most physically capable of all the victims so far in this series." – Paul (20:14)

• Forensic analysis found both Black and Caucasian hairs—but may be explained by investigator contamination.

4. Investigative Efforts & Criminal Profiling (23:08–25:46)

• Period criminal profiling suggested a sociopath, possibly suffering recent trauma or with an absent father figure—conclusions Paul finds too generalized to be operationally useful.

  "All these characteristics that they're saying about this freeway Phantom is something that's internal. Nothing I can use to narrow the suspect pool." – Paul (24:39)

• Renewal in public and law enforcement pressure; increased FBI involvement.

5. Sixth Victim – Diane Denise Williams (Sept 6, 1972) [(26:38–34:01)]

• Found near where earlier victims were discovered.
• Wet clothing, strangulation, presence of semen, green synthetic fibers.
• Case overlap: Diane had just visited her boyfriend, left on a bus, witnessed getting off at an unusual stop with "two hoodlums."

6. Fiber Evidence and Investigative Links

• Persistent presence of green synthetic fibers (now believed to be bath mat fibers, not car upholstery as previously suspected).

  "If they're saying it's a bath mat, then I believe that." – Paul (55:00)

• Importance of fiber uniqueness and risk of cross-contamination.

7. Green Vega Gang Theory (34:34–39:46)

• Police explored involvement of the "Green Vega Gang" after prison informant “Fatsy” implicated gang members (and described crime scene details).
• Paul and Kate express skepticism: Possibly a fabrication for a plea deal. No solid evidence aligns the gang’s profile or practices with the Freeway Phantom’s MO.

  "I'm not buying this at all...I've literally seen authorities during interviews feed those details to the person." – Paul (36:54)

8. Prime Suspect Focus: Robert Elwood Askins (39:54–65:01)

Background & Offenses

• Linked due to proximity (St. Elizabeth’s Mental Hospital) and history of violent offenses—dating back to the 1930s.

• Notorious for misogynistic violence, multiple killings and assaults (stabbing, poison, strangulation).

• Pattern of abductions, forced bathing/cleaning of victims, and in at least one assault, making the victim write a self-incriminating note.

  "There’s some overlap with the previous cases...the taking back to a residence, you have the sexual assault, the cleanup, forcing her to take a bath, and then forces her to write a note." – Paul (42:42)

• Crucial Differences:

  • Later attacks on older victims; survivors.
  • Assaults occurred after the Freeway Phantom’s known crimes—age and timeline present some doubts.

• Detective Davis’s investigation yielded circumstantial, but not definitive, links (e.g., Askins was left-handed, off work during killings, and had a legal doc containing the word “tantamount”).

  "I'm not blown away by that [finding the word 'tantamount' in docs] as an item of evidence." – Paul (54:11)

9. Missed and Lost Evidence; Ongoing Frustration

• As of 2001, at least 95 suspects identified but no resolution.
• Reward still offered; most crucial physical evidence lost or destroyed, leaving few leads for new forensic testing.

  "Without that objective physical evidence...you can sit there and develop circumstantial cases...and you'll be wrong." – Paul (61:01)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Victimology:

  "It's not unusual to find offenders that committed similar types of crimes...you have to find something that ties them to the Freeway Phantom cases." – Paul (50:00)

• On Old-School Profiling:

  "Pretty specific without being specific at all." – Kate, on vague profiles and suspect psychology (24:21)

• On Evidence Integrity:

  "We ended up finding evidence from old cases when our property room had to do a complete inventory...That is the type of effort that would be needed." – Paul (62:30)

• On the Toll of Unresolved Cases:

  "It has an impact on the people that are working the case...you know, the professionals that are actually working these cases just like this Detective Jenkins, I'm sure this has had a massive impact on her as a person." – Paul (65:05)

• On the “Denise” Theory:

  "Almost all have Denise in their names...So there is a lot of theory, of course, running around in the 70s that he has a fixation or a trigger around the name Denise. How would he know these girls’ middle names?" – Kate (57:39)

Segment Timestamps

| Timestamp | Segment/Content | |:-------------:|:-------------------| | 02:56 | Brief recap, case summary by Paul | | 03:19–05:57 | Review of victim pattern and escalating circumstances | | 07:31–13:04 | Detailed discussion of Brenda Woodard & taunting note | | 20:14–22:22 | Analysis of victim resistance and forensics | | 23:08–25:46 | Profilers & psychological speculation | | 26:38–34:01 | Discovery and investigation of the sixth victim, Diane Williams | | 34:34–39:46 | The Green Vega Gang theory | | 39:54–65:01 | Deep dive on Robert Elwood Askins as a suspect | | 57:39–58:36 | The “Denise” name theory among the victims | | 60:57–65:52 | Evidence loss, lack of closure, and its impact |

Theories, Challenges, and Unanswered Questions

• Main Suspects Explored:

  • Gang theory dismissed due to lack of psychological match and plausible methodology.
  • Askins remains strong if circumstantial candidate due to MO overlap, but timeline, age, and lack of evidence are problems.

• Challenges for Modern Investigators:

  • Destruction and loss of physical evidence is the chief obstacle to closure.
  • Open status of the case blocks researchers and the public from viewing official files.

• Enduring Community Trauma & Hope for Justice:

  • Lasting legacy of fear, pain, and frustration for DC’s Black community.
  • Ongoing (if slim) hope that modern forensic technology may one day allow for new breaks in the case.

Episode Takeaway

Kate and Paul illuminate just how confounding and frustrating the Freeway Phantom case remains: an elusive, calculating predator; plausible—but never certain—suspects; and a legacy complicated by institutional failures to preserve evidence and prioritize Black victims. Their message is clear: only diligence, luck, and perhaps future forensic breakthroughs keep hope alive for closing this dark chapter.

Next Week: A new case on Buried Bones.