← Crime Stories with Nancy Grace
Crime Stories with Nancy Grace
'COME HOME': HUSBAND FRANTIC, SAYS WIFE, SPECIAL ED TEACHER VANISHED OVERNIGHT
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- [00:00]
Nancy Grace
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Matt Mangino
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Nancy Grace
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- [02:06]
Sydney Sumner
Crime Stories with Nancy Grace Please come home. That is a desperate husband's frantic plea as his wife, a beloved special ed teacher, vanishes overnight. I'm Nancy Grace. This is Crime Stories. I want to thank you for being.
- [02:27]
Matt Mangino
With us A quiet day in Bronzeville turns into a nightmare. A local woman spends the day with her husband, laughing and bonding at home. By the next morning, she vanishes, never calling and leaving behind unanswered questions.
- [02:40]
Sydney Sumner
Something is way, way off. He is making desperate pleas for her return. I want you to hear Antwan Brown.
- [02:51]
Matt Mangino
I'm broke down. I don't know what to do. I did everything. I'm talking to people. We got people on it. We got people searching for it. I'm out of options. I don't know what to do. I don't know what to do, but just wait. Chicago PD Desperately searching for missing school teacher Linda Brown. Last seen Saturday morning. Linda misses a weekly appointment that day and isn't answering her phone. Linda's 5ft tall, 130 pounds, with brown hair and eyes. Last seen wearing a long, puffy black coat with shiny Ugg style BO Authorities searching the area where her blue Honda Civic, plate number CX 57470, located Wednesday afternoon. Anyone with information should contact Chicago PD SVU detectives at 312-747-8380.
- [03:39]
Sydney Sumner
That original sound of the husbands from our friends at Fox 32 Chicago. I want to break down what you were just hearing from Dave Mack, crime stories, investigative reporter. That was a lot of information. You got me drinking out of the fire hydrant right there. Too much, too fast. And as you know, Matt Mangino joining us in our all star panel tonight. He's a veteran trial lawyer and author of the Executioner's Tale, former district attorney. Every detail matters. For instance, when you argue to a jury, you can't just blurt everything out at once. It's too much, too fast. Every single fact matters. Matters. What was she wearing? I had one mom disappear in her pajamas. Okay, bs. I had one mom leave on foot. You remember Stacy Peterson? She's another mom that left on foot. There's her car. There's all her stuff. She's gone. I'm supposed to believe this woman in the cold goes out on foot and disappears and meets a lover down the street in the ice, in the snow? That did not happen. So every fact matters. What time she was last seen? What was she wearing? What's missing from the house? Are her shoes still by the door? Is her car there? Her keys? Her purse, her cell phone? See what I mean? Every fact matters, Mangino. Isn't that true?
- [04:59]
Matt Mangino
Oh, it's certainly true, Nancy. And you know, as you just indicated, the first place that you look is who was the last person to have contact with her. Who was the last person who saw her alive? And. And I. And you. You begin to build from there. So you get that information narrative and you start building from there.
- [05:21]
Sydney Sumner
The husband issuing desperate pleas over and over and over. Let's hear another one.
- [05:27]
Matt Mangino
Fox 32, if you watching this, please come home. Your family is missing you. I'm missing you. Your friends are missing you. Linda, we need you to come home, baby. Seriously need you to come home.
- [05:42]
Sydney Sumner
Again from Fox 32 Chicago, what do we know about the timeline you just heard Matt Mangino talking about? You pick it with the last person to see her. Actually, neighbors state that they saw her the morning she disappeared. So it's really not the husband. If we've got the timeline right, it's a little ambiguous. What does he have to say about the timeline?
- [06:06]
Matt Mangino
Listen, we watched the movie Friday night and she went to bed before I did. I stayed up a little later, she was in the bed when I went to bed. When I Woke up at 8:35, she was gone.
- [06:19]
Nancy Grace
Friday evening, Linda turns in early after a movie with her husband Antoine. Awake another hour, finding Linda sound asleep. When he gets in bed, 8:35 the next morning, Antoine wakes up alone. Assumes Linda is already to her acupuncture. But when it's been two hours with no word from his wife, Antwon calls, texts, no response.
- [06:41]
Matt Mangino
Everything was fine. Next morning I woke up, it was like 8:35, she was gone. No sign of her. I thought she went to acupuncture because she go to acupuncture on Saturdays.
- [06:52]
Sydney Sumner
From Fox 32 and ABC 7 Chicago. Joining us now, special guest Leslie Moreno, investigative reporter, Fox 32 Chicago, who's been on the case from the very beginning. Could you start with me, Leslie? Thank you for being with us tonight at the beginning, up to this point where the husband's issuing the frantic pleas. What, what do we know up to that point?
- [07:14]
Nancy Grace
So what we know right now is that the husband says that, you know, as you heard, they were watching a movie together on Friday night. He says that she went to bed early. When he woke up, he says that she was gone. He claims that he, you know, doesn't track her location. They don't have any cameras in their home. He did also say that she had an acupuncture appointment at around 89 in the morning. So he assumed that, you know, everything was normal and that he, that she went to that acupuncture appointment. So I guess what he's saying is that after calls and messages went unanswered, that's when they Started to get worried, and that's when family contacted police. So he thought, you know, she was in this acupuncture appointment that she was supposed to be at every Saturday.
- [08:13]
Sydney Sumner
Acupuncture every Saturday. Interesting. So he just assumed that's where she went. Did we hear Leslie, by chance? What was the movie?
- [08:23]
Nancy Grace
No, he did not say what the movie was. We also didn't ask. This was on Tuesday, I believe, the interview. You know, we're just asking him. He was very emotional. We were just trying to get some of the basic details. He did say that she took some sort of time off from school. She's a special ed teacher in Chicago. He did say that she took some time off, and that was set to return back to school on Monday. Obviously, she. She didn't return, guys.
- [08:54]
Sydney Sumner
The search is on now for a beloved special ed teacher, Sydney Sunroof joining us, investigative reporter with crime stories. Sydney, I need to clear something up. Mangina was right. You start with the last known sighting, the victim. Did the neighbors see her last that following morning, or was the husband the last one to see her?
- [09:20]
Nancy Grace
Well, it's a little bit ambiguous, but police reports say that Linda was last seen Saturday morning. So we've heard from the husband that the last time he saw her was when he got into bed with her that night. So we think that neighbors actually did see Linda outside of her home, possibly walking to her car, getting ready to go to that appointment.
- [09:44]
Sydney Sumner
Okay, everybody, this is a concern. Let me go to Brian Fitzgibbons joining us. He is the director of operations at USPA Nationwide Security. He leads a team of private investigators and searchers that look all around the world for missing people. Brian, without a timeline, an accurate timeline, that hurts. That hurts because you don't know where to start. For instance, Brian. I'm not naming the husband. True. I actually mean that. But I could rule him out. If someone had seen her, say, at the gas station next to the acupuncturist. Right. See, I could rule him out, but without my timeline, I really can't rule anybody out. And that's why it's very significant that the neighbors may have been the last one to see her fanning around outside as if she were getting into her car.
- [10:45]
Matt Mangino
Spot on. And what we can do is start to bracket this timeline. We know the time of that standing acupuncture appointment. We know the time that Mr. Brown says was the last time that he saw her. And if we can add something in between, was that a ring camera, which she was caught on, that gave us A description of her clothes? Was it a neighbor who physically saw her? Where did that description of what she was wearing come from? That's a key question right now in this investigation.
- [11:17]
Sydney Sumner
So if the neighbor didn't see her that morning, if it's not captured on Ring, which is a really good idea, we've got to fall back to the husband and the missing special ed teacher watching the movie the night before. Hey, Sidney Sumner, you and I have analyzed the Scott Peterson murder case, double murder case, many, many times. And remember, Scott Peterson kept saying that he and Lacey, his very pregnant wife, watched Martha Stewart at a certain time. And it was very critical to the timeline. And then as it turned out, that Martha Stewart and they even asked him what episode. And every episode was very memorable. So that's why I'm very curious as to what they were watching. Sydney, was it on tv? Was it something on Netflix where there's not a schedule? Did they actually go get a video and watch it? I find that hard to believe. But, you know, downloads are traced. I can tell if someone watched Dexter off of prime at 9 o' clock at night. That's when Lucy and I usually sink into Dexter. You can tell when something's downloaded, when it is watched, how many minutes it's watched. All of that is recorded. So I want to know that. I want to know what they watched, I want to know what time they watched it, and I want to figure out what time she went to bed. I want to look at her phone to see did she text anybody before she went to bed? When was she last active on social media? Did she get a phone call? Did she make a phone call? Do we know any of that? And again, I'm not naming the husband. I'm trying to create a timeline.
- [13:05]
Nancy Grace
At this point, we really don't have any of that information. But you're right, that is absolutely something police could look up using their home devices. The husband could absolutely provide that information if he's cooperating with investigators. And it sounds like Linda was in very close contact with family members. She has a sister, and that sister also grew concerned hearing nothing back from Linda in a matter of hours. So it sounds like she is very well connected and may well have been communicating right up until the time she went to bed.
- [13:39]
Sydney Sumner
Doesn't anybody have life? 360. When you don't hear from your spouse or your child for four hours, just look at that, see where they are. It's not hard. Okay, back to the moment. We have to analyze every single thing.
- [13:56]
Matt Mangino
Listen, I wasn't went past about 1:32 o'. Clock. I'm starting to, you know, wonder, like, what's going on. She haven't called me because she normally would call me and tell me where she going. She never did.
- [14:08]
Nancy Grace
We got in touch with Antwan to say, you know, how's Linda doing today? Have you talked to her at all? And then he was like, no, I was thinking that maybe she was with you. And I haven't seen her. Lisa, Linda's sister also concerned. By 2pm Lisa contacts Antwan to check on Linda. But Antwon was hoping his wife was with her. Antwan contacts Linda's acupuncturist and learns she missed her scheduled appointment. Neither Antwan or Lisa able to reach Linda. The family reports her missing to Chicago Police officers put out a BOLO for the missing woman and her car, a blue 2021 Honda Civic with Illinois plates.
- [14:48]
Sydney Sumner
From our friends at ABC 7 Chicago and WGN 9. Joining me now, in addition to the guests you've already heard from, Rhonda Ducare is joining us. The founder of Missing in American Network is to help find missing people and help families find missing people. Rhonda, thank you for being with us. Does nobody but me have Find My iPhone? Because you just hit that and it helps you find your iPhone. As a matter of fact, we've had cases just recently where iPhones and people were found by just doing the Find My iPhone app. Yeah, absolutely. I would have. The second that I woke up and my husband wasn't there, I would have been on Find My iPhone to see where he was. So I, it's, we look at it.
- [15:36]
Nancy Grace
Daily with our families.
- [15:37]
Sydney Sumner
So that's a, that's a great tool that all families should have. But I, one of the things that I wonder about that is did law.
- [15:45]
Nancy Grace
Enforcement do a ping on her phone?
- [15:47]
Sydney Sumner
They may know where she, where she went and where she was by pinging her phone. And so that's information that they have that we don't have. And so they might have a bigger, a better picture than we have at this point. Rhonda de Care joining us, Missing in American Network. You're projecting. You're projecting how you see the world onto this case. You said, which is dangerous, but you can't help it. I do it, too. You said if I woke up and my husband wasn't there, I would start calling him. Now, she had a weekly appointment with an acupuncturist, and he says he assumed she went there. And she did have an appointment, which she never made. But I'M the same way. For instance, if I walk in and one of my twins is not in their room or in the kitchen, I immediately call them. I try to find them. I try to find them first before I call them. But that's me projecting how I would react. And to Dr. Janie Lacey joining us, psychotherapist, CEO of Life Counseling Solutions, author of many books and host of the Resilient professional podcast on YouTube. Dr. Janie, thank you for being with us. I can't help but project what I would have done in that situation onto the facts. Why do we do that? Not everybody wants to track down a family member when they don't know where they are.
- [17:23]
Nancy Grace
Said it, Nancy, it's very normal that we project on what we would do in these situations. But until we are in that situation and until we know the family dynamics, we don't know what we're going to do. You know, this is what I would say about Antoine Brown. Like his behavior so far has been consistent with genuine with a genuine distraught spouse. Right. He's been publicly emotional, he's been cooperative with police and he's given some details. But a deceptive spouse typically controls the narrative more tightly. So that said, the spouse has always looked at closely in these cases and for good reason. Right, Nancy? So because statistically, intimate partners are the most common perpetrators when something happens to women. But what I would want to know is what was the state of their marriage? Was there any conflict? What does her phone and financial activities show about when she left? And did he have any unusual behavior that morning? But for right now, I don't see any red flags pointing to him. But I also don't have access to what investigators know. Time will tell.
- [18:22]
Matt Mangino
I'm terrified, man. I'm just shaking, man. I just need my wife home, man. Seriously, I need my wife home. Concern turns to fear when Linda still hasn't returned home Sunday. Though Antoine last saw Linda Friday night, neighbors say they spotted her Saturday morning near their home. Linda's purse with her wallet and phone are missing from the home. And her phone still rings when called. Family friends retrace the teacher's last known steps, hoping to discover some clue to her whereabouts, but don't find any leads. Authorities still haven't located her car either.
- [18:55]
Nancy Grace
She's in constant contact with me. She never leaves Antwan's side without him knowing where she's going. It's just not like her.
- [19:03]
Sydney Sumner
From our friends at NBC Chicago. Okay, wait. Well, let me understand something. Leslie Moreno joining us, investigative reporter, Fox 32 Chicago. She goes missing Saturday morning. Right. Isn't that right?
- [19:18]
Nancy Grace
Correct. Well, last time she was seen by her husband was Friday night again while they were watching that movie. And then she was officially reported, according to Chicago Police, on January 3rd, which is Saturday.
- [19:31]
Sydney Sumner
Okay, now hold on just a moment. Friday night. Neighbors say they spotted her Saturday morning near their home. So that would have been Saturday morning and she is reported missing When?
- [19:46]
Nancy Grace
On Saturday, January 3rd.
- [19:49]
Sydney Sumner
What time on Saturday?
- [19:51]
Nancy Grace
Police would not give us that information. They just said January 3rd.
- [19:55]
Sydney Sumner
Sydney Sumner, do you have any idea what time of the day she was reported missing?
- [20:00]
Nancy Grace
We know that she was reported missing Saturday afternoon. This was a few hours after Antwan and Lisa realized they can't get in touch with Linda. So she was reported that afternoon. And I assume, and this is just for, from hearing the context of everything that went on, that neighbors saw her early Saturday morning around the time that she would have normally left for that appointment.
- [20:23]
Matt Mangino
When Linda misses the first day of school after winter break, loved ones know something's wrong. Linda would never let her students down. That was her main thing is helping kids, that she loved it. She never missed a day at work. She always went and she always had a smile on her face. Positive attitude all the time.
- [20:43]
Sydney Sumner
From our friends at WGN9, that, Brian Fitzgibbons, is what we call routine evidence, not typical evidence as in ha ha, routine evidence of someone's routine. The fact that that following Monday morning, it was the end of the Christmas break, she was supposed to be back in school with her special ed class, very devoted, and she didn't show up. I mean, according to the sister, we hear that they're in constant contact, she and her sister right there tells me something is very wrong because that is routine evidence. The fact that she's not calling or texting the sister or responding to the sister. You can start the timeline right there if you don't have a better starting point. I mean, we've seen timelines start when a dog barks. And I'm referring to the Nicole Brown murder, Nicole and Ron Goldman, the neighbors heard the dog Akita in a quote, plaintive howl. And we believe that's when the dog discovered Nicole's body in the front yard. So timelines can start based on a lot of different things. But when she stops responding to her sister, I would say the timeline starts at least right there. What do you think?
- [22:12]
Matt Mangino
Absolutely, Nancy. And we've seen this in a number of cases that we've covered. Suzanne Clark, Nikki Changsailee, McCain, you know, the non response is, is a window to start identifying what were her last messages. And I did notice in one of the press conferences, I believe it was the husband said that her phone was on for a period of time.
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Matt Mangino
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- [23:33]
Nancy Grace
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- [24:03]
Matt Mangino
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- [25:02]
Sydney Sumner
Crime stories with Nancy Grace point about her not showing up to work on Monday. Back to Dr. Janie Lacey. Joining us, licensed psychotherapist and author and star of a hit podcast, Dr. Janey. A lot of times it's SOP, standard operating procedure that a husband and a wife, they argue. Boyfriend, girlfriend, any partners, they argue and one will storm off. That's not unusual. But when you then miss work, that's another layer of red flag activity. Explain that.
- [25:43]
Nancy Grace
You know, when I think about this particular case, Nancy, this is important because special education teachers, they are a unique breed, right? They're caregivers at their core. They're patient, they're selfless, they're deeply committed to the vulnerable population. And Linda's family said helping kids was her main thing and she loved it. So people like Linda often put others needs before their own. They show up even when they're struggling. The fact that she never missed a date of work tells me she had a strong sense of duty and identity tied to her role. So when someone like, when someone like this suddenly disappears, doesn't show up for work, doesn't call, doesn't follow her routine, it's a major red flag that something is very wrong. And this isn't someone who would just take off without telling anyone. This is someone who would push through her own pain to be there for her students. So. So that's what makes this so alarming. Linda's disappearance is completely inconsistent with, with who we know she, who we know her to be.
- [26:41]
Sydney Sumner
Nancy Missing in America Network founder, Rhonda Decair with us. Rhonda, I agree with everything Dr. Janey just said, because husband and wife, they can get angry at each other, argue, just get irritated and stomp off or not return calls or texts. Just leave me alone. Let me just simmer down. But her track record is she never misses work and then she misses work. That's a huge red flag. Would you agree? A lot of people go off the grid when they're angry at their spouse or they're just irritated or fed up or whatever. Not returning a phone call, that's not the end of the world. Not being on Live360, not having to find my iPhone on, okay, no big deal. This is America. You can go off the grid. But for someone that never, ever misses work to not show up the first Monday after Christmas break, she's gone. She's gone. Rhonda, I agree with you. Something is keeping her from being at work. There's a reason why she's not there. She wouldn't make that choice on her own. So I agree that it's very concerning. Rhyfus. Gibbons, this is your specialty, you and Rhonda's. What about it? Because to me, it means more that she didn't show up for work then that she didn't pick up the phone. I mean, people get fed up, they don't want to answer the phone. Some ME Are known to cut the phone off. Right. So not the end of the world. But not showing up for work, to me, right there, that tells me this woman is either being held hostage, she's been hurt, somebody has her, or she's dead. For her not to show up to work, with her work history.
- [28:31]
Matt Mangino
Yeah, there's certainly a hierarchy here where not showing up to work would be at the top of the list. Missing the appointment that was a standing appointment is also a big deal. Right? You know, there could be something going on that you don't respond to text for a day or two. You might have your phone off, et cetera. But missing these standing appointments in the routine is really something that jumps off the page here, and I think what's critical.
- [28:57]
Sydney Sumner
Okay, Fitz, Gibbons, you're right. I want you to expound on that. Because missing work, which she never did, Huge. But you're right. It dates back to Saturday. It dates back to that 9am appointment. At that time, she was gone in the wind because she never missed that acupuncturist appointment, or she would have called and canceled. She would not leave the doctor hanging in the wind.
- [29:26]
Matt Mangino
Correct. Yeah. And, you know, in isolation, missing the acupuncturist appointment may not mean anything, but when we add missing work the next Monday, we can really narrow that timeline down to say whatever happened, happened prior to that acupuncturist appointment. We can say that. Pretty confident.
- [29:43]
Nancy Grace
She's in constant contact with me. She never leaves Antwan's side without him knowing where she's going. It's just not like.
- [29:50]
Sydney Sumner
Hey, Kirk, NBC Chicago.
- [29:53]
Matt Mangino
Linda Brown, a devoted special education teacher in Chicago, spends her days caring for vulnerable children. Now, the woman known for always showing up suddenly disappears after leaving for a scheduled appointment on a Saturday morning and is never seen again. It's not like her to just disappear.
- [30:10]
Nancy Grace
Like, we don't know, you know, we.
- [30:13]
Matt Mangino
Got family, you know, I got family.
- [30:14]
Nancy Grace
You know, that are helping to look.
- [30:16]
Matt Mangino
And a lot of support. The teachers and everybody else is helping.
- [30:19]
Sydney Sumner
To look for her.
- [30:20]
Nancy Grace
Five days after Linda Brown is last seen, police locate Linda's car and begin searching the immediate area. Authorities do not release where the car was found to protect their investigation. Her family is extremely Relieved investigators have a lead, but still fear for Linda's safety, concerned she may need medical attention.
- [30:39]
Sydney Sumner
Okay, that was from our friends at NBC Chicago. You are hearing her brother in law speaking. Okay, Mangino, now I've got something. The vehicle. The vehicle has been found. I'm very curious, very curious why police are not releasing the location where her vehicle was found. It must be probative. It must mean something. For instance, example, when Shannan Watts went missing, pregnant, two little children, Bella and Celeste. Guess where they were found. Surprise, surprise. At the husband, Chris Watts, work location. He was in the oil business. And the bodies were found stuffed down cylinders at one of the Anadarko oil fields out in the middle of nowhere. Okay, now, who would have known about that? Him. So, for instance, if you find her car down a ravine behind the acupuncturist office, I'd look at him or somebody that worked there. I'd look at all the ring cameras and surveillance to see if someone, a vagrant, anyone in that area. And I just try to pick them up on video surveillance. So. See what I mean? If a car was there, it would indicate someone within the acupuncturist office or someone in that vicinity. If it was at a shopping center and I was parked right in front of the dollar tree, well, I'd look at people within the dollar tree. I pulled that video. So that's what I'm saying. I find it unusual that police are not releasing that unless that tells them their target. Because I would want the public to know, hey, she was parked in front of the dollar tree at this time on her way to acupuncturist. Did anybody see her? I would be putting out a BOLO pronto. Be on the lookout.
- [32:39]
Matt Mangino
Well, yeah, I agree with that, but unless they have a suspect in mind, and maybe they want to keep that information from the public because they want an opportunity maybe to talk to this person of interest to find out what they know without this information being available to the public. Was there blood? Was there other things that were found there? You know, was her purse still in the vehicle? You know, all these issues that might indicate that she was taking from that vehicle aggressively in some way, you know, so. So that this information not available to the public, but focused in on a specific person who might have harmed her.
- [33:24]
Sydney Sumner
Okay, I want to talk about the car. This is a plethora, a treasure trove information. Do you guys remember the Tara Grinstead missing teacher case? She was murdered. It was very hard to put that case together because the killers were Students that she had had many years before. And they met again by happenstance. And they killed her. But she was one of those people. Remember this Sidney Sumner? She kept her car completely pristine. You know those people, you get in the car, you think it's brand new, but it's three years old. But when her car was discovered in her garage, it was covered in mud.
- [34:08]
Nancy Grace
It was full of mud.
- [34:09]
Sydney Sumner
And the. Yeah, and the driver's seat, Sid, was pushed back. She was very particular.
- [34:16]
Nancy Grace
And she was so short.
- [34:18]
Sydney Sumner
Yeah.
- [34:18]
Nancy Grace
It made no sense.
- [34:19]
Matt Mangino
Yeah.
- [34:20]
Sydney Sumner
And the other thing, Sid, speaking of Tara Grinstead, when her mother took me through her home, Sid, it looked like a little jewelry box. It was completely perfect, like out of a magazine. Can I tell you something? The bed was askew. Some pearls had been broken and were on the floor. And there was something hinky about a lamp shade. Maybe it was tipped over or askew. But she was the kind of person that would never have left it like that. So let's think about her car. Sid, what are we going to get from the car? What do you know about where the car was? Was it wrecked? Was it out of gas? Did it have a flat tire? Do we know anything?
- [35:06]
Nancy Grace
Chicago police are keeping those details very close to the vest. They haven't even released where the car was located. We're not even sure if they've told her family the location. The husband is reporting that this car has been found and that police are not releasing that because they are still searching the immediate area for any sign of Linda, but we're not even sure if he actually knows.
- [35:31]
Sydney Sumner
Leslie Moreno joining us, investigative reporter, Fox 32 on this from the very, very beginning, where is Linda? Is there any word, official or otherwise, as to where her car was found?
- [35:46]
Nancy Grace
Yeah, so I texted both the husband and Linda's brother in law yesterday, as I do every day, to follow up, and I asked him if there was any update. They both texted me back right away to say that Linda's vehicle had been found. Obviously, what I do is I reach out to Chicago police to see if they could confirm that info. They did not have any updates. So as far as we know, what the family is saying, both the husband and her brother in law, is that Chicago police did find the vehicle. They said that they were not releasing the location of that vehicle because again, police are actively searching that area. They could not confirm whether what condition the vehicle was found in or whether any items were inside the vehicle. So, yeah, what we know right now is what family is telling us. It's unclear right now, if family even knows the location where that vehicle was found. But again, police are not confirming any of those details.
- [36:49]
Sydney Sumner
I find that very, very curious. You know, to Brian Fitzgibbons. What can we get from the vehicle? I mean, fingerprints, DNA? You hear Mangino talk about possibly blood. You can get a lot from that. And if it's got a nav system, remember everything we learned from the navigation system in the Alex Murdoch double murder trial in the murders of his wife Maggie and son Paul.
- [37:15]
Matt Mangino
Really?
- [37:16]
Sydney Sumner
We've got him down to the minute when he scratched off from the double murder crime scene. How fast he went when he slowed down, let the passenger side electric window down from his control area at the driver's seat, threw out Maggie's phone. Her phone was found at that, that spot. Then he lets the window up and hightails it to get an alibi at his mother. Mother's home about 30, 40 minutes away. She has dementia, so she can't testify one way or the other. You could tell when he parked, when he got out, when he got back in and went back to the crime scene, too. Oh, my stars. Find the bodies. So if she's got a nav system, I'm learning even more.
- [38:01]
Matt Mangino
Yeah. Three things that we're going to find from this vehicle. First, just the location that it was in is going to tell you. Add essential information to the story. Secondly, the digital evidence that could be recovered there. Like you're saying with the nav system, where did she go prior to parking that vehicle? The third thing is the physical evidence. The seat position, was it aligned with her height? Was there? Is there DNA evidence there? Fingerprints? Is there blood? Was somebody else in that vehicle that was not Linda Brown? And there's going to be quite a bit of information coming from this vehicle. And at 2021, it will have a nav system, so they should be able to get something from that.
- [38:41]
Sydney Sumner
Brian, do you remember the Teresa Hallbach murder? She was murdered by Steven Avery. He and his nephew assaulted her and murdered her. He then hid her car. She was a photographer and she got an assignment with, I got like the auto trader. And she went out to his salvage lot to take a photo. Okay, first of all, he came to the door in a towel. Bye. Bye. But she didn't want to go back. She went back because she needed the money. Her vehicle was found at the back of his salvage lot. And guess what was found. You mentioned DNA. It can be so subtle. Police found. Well, CSI found his sweat on the ignition, so can you even imagine? He's a Huge, hulking monster. Can you imagine him? In some ways, he reminds me of Rex Heuermann in their body type. Hunched over. She had a little bit of a compact car. Folding himself in there and hunched over, trying to make that car start so he could go hide it. And sweating. So his sweat was found on the ignition of the murder victim's car.
- [40:07]
Nancy Grace
Wow.
- [40:08]
Sydney Sumner
So when you say DNA, you mean DNA. It could be in any number of forms, right, Fitzgibbons?
- [40:16]
Matt Mangino
Yeah, absolutely. And often you'll find small hair follicles. Any piece of DNA can be found in that vehicle. And investigators are going to be learning quite a bit as they dig into that. It's not like her to just disappear.
- [40:35]
Nancy Grace
Like, we don't know, you know, we.
- [40:37]
Matt Mangino
Got family, you know, I got family.
- [40:39]
Nancy Grace
You know, that are helping to look and a lot of support.
- [40:42]
Matt Mangino
The teachers and everybody else is helping.
- [40:44]
Sydney Sumner
To look for her.
- [40:45]
Nancy Grace
Five days after Linda Brown is last seen, police locate Linda's car and begin searching the immediate area. Authorities do not release where the car was found to protect their investigation. Her family is extremely relieved investigators have a lead, but still fear for Linda's safety, concerned she may need medical attention.
- [41:04]
Sydney Sumner
NBC Chicago.
- [41:06]
Matt Mangino
Her husband, Antwan Brown, says the couple spends the night together watching movies, enjoying what appears to be a normal evening before going to bed early. By morning, Linda is gone.
- [41:17]
Nancy Grace
She is with contact with Antwan all the time. This is so out of her character to be missing. We're hoping that the detectives can maybe ping her phone if they eventually.
- [41:27]
Sydney Sumner
That from our friends at WGN9. And of course the public is weighing in with a multitude of conspiracy theories.
- [41:36]
Matt Mangino
Listen, but he said his wife is. Was missing on the way to an acupuncture appointment. Now, he said they had a quiet night together at home watching a movie before she went to bed early and she went to bed early. He Woke up at 8:45am and she was gone. Now remember that he woke up, she was gone, he didn't see her leave. I'm not a detective, but how we know what she was wearing if he Woke up at 8:45 and she was gone, how we know what she was wearing? How we know what she had with her? Yeah, I'm not saying that this man did it. I'm not saying, but. And again, if she has her phone with her and he said the phone is still ringing, can they just ping the phone and see what she is, get a general vicinity of where the phone is ringing at and whatnot? You know what I mean? He was the last person to seen Her. And unless she went to bed with her shiny ugg style boots on that.
- [42:31]
Sydney Sumner
From mental illness on Insta. Okay, again, the husband is not a target. Remember, neighbors say they saw her that morning when the husband says he was still asleep. However, that's a really good point. How in the. Hey, Rhonda Dacre does he know that she was wearing a puffy jacket and ugg boots if he last saw her in bed? Well, the answer to that question would be speculation. I mean, they could have cameras in their home that they saw her leaving.
- [43:06]
Nancy Grace
It could be a neighbor camera.
- [43:07]
Sydney Sumner
We don't know the answer to that. So answering that question would just be speculation.
- [43:12]
Nancy Grace
Somebody had to have seen her for.
- [43:13]
Sydney Sumner
Them to say that him or a ring camera or something. Well, you're right about that. Someone had to see her in that outfit. And to Matt Mangino, I mean, when you, when you first hear the argument goes, wow, how did he know what she was wearing if he just saw her in bed? She certainly didn't go to sleep in a puffer jacket and ugg boots. But Rhonda Dacre is right. A neighbor could have described what she was wearing. It's just that simple things are not always as they seem.
- [43:42]
Matt Mangino
Well, yeah, and, and that's, that's crucial evidence in this, in this case, because if someone did see her in the morning dressed with the puffy jacket and ugg boots, then that, that it is plausible that she, she left without him knowing. If he didn't provide that information, that description of what she was wearing in the morning, then obviously there, there is her leaving the house under her own free will with, with these clothes on that were described. You know, Nancy, we've seen this, you know, pleading spouse or parent over and over again in cases. And I think that that certainly doesn't, you know, add anything more to this case other than the fact that he's out there in front of the cameras talking about it. But, but I think some of the things that he says, you know, raise my antennas in terms of, of what exactly happened here and what his involvement in it is. Not everyone can be good at fantasy football and at Better. We understand that. That's why we're giving you $10 for free just for signing up. Download the Better app. Pick more or less on player stats, watch the games and win some cash. It's that simple. Better picks up Better picks available in 33 states, including Texas, California and Georgia. Download the Better app today. That's better B E T R and get a free $10, no deposit necessary. Must be 21 or older in a jurisdiction where Better Picks operates in terms of conditions apply. Better Picks Sports Just got better.
- [45:21]
Nancy Grace
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- [45:51]
Matt Mangino
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- [47:57]
Sydney Sumner
Grace Finney and it brings to mind another case. Again, of course, you can recall Scott Peterson would not go in front of the cameras. They had to drag him in front of the cameras to make him issue a plea to find Lacey Peterson, his wife. But also, I recall the Momta Bot. Momta Bot case. The mother of a little girl who goes missing. And when investigators and reporters came to his door, he opened the door like that much to speak to them. Let's see that.
- [48:34]
Matt Mangino
Like, you know, very good. Like, you know, since like two months. You know, like before that, you know, one time we had, like, some arguments because, you know.
- [48:41]
Sydney Sumner
Yeah, that's for our friends at WUSA9. I mean, it would seem to me, just naturally, Dr. Janie Lacey, that you would want all the press you can get in this case. You know, compared to mom to Bot's husband. He's out front and center asking for help.
- [48:59]
Nancy Grace
Exactly. And I think, you know, for the. For the family. Right. They need to keep working closely with police and share any details, no matter how small. And I think we also would suggest that they should probably be checking phone records, credit card activity. As we already talked about social media, anything that shows any type of digital footprint. But we think about anyone she may have confided in, a friend, a coworker, a therapist, and consider if there was any recent stressors or triggers or conversations that seemed off. So having all of this on front and center and to continue to communicate and to take the pressure, I think, for the community. Right. When we share photos and there's information that's widely available, someone may have seen her. Check dashboard cameras, doorbell cameras, security footage, you know, in Wicker park and Bronxville. And if. And if they saw a blue Honda Civic on a woman or a woman matching her description, to call the police immediately. So, so, so, Nancy, we know. What I would speak directly to is, you know, if Linda was watching. Right.
- [50:01]
Matt Mangino
Linda.
- [50:01]
Nancy Grace
To tell them that her family loves her and the students love her and to bring her back. So I think keeping that press and keeping it front and center is going to be so important because someone has to come forward at some point. We got in touch with Antwan to say, you know, how's Linda doing today? Have you talked to her at all? And then he was like, no, I was thinking that maybe she was with you. And I haven't seen her. She's in constant contact with me. She never leaves Antwan's side without him knowing where she's going is just not like her.
- [50:33]
Sydney Sumner
WGN9 and NBC Chicago.
- [50:36]
Matt Mangino
Panic deepens when Linda's blue 2021 Honda Civic is missing from the home along with her purse and credit cards, raising fears that something could be terribly wrong.
- [50:49]
Sydney Sumner
Major development in the case that the vehicle was found with purse and credit cards. What does that tell us? Was she driving the vehicle and what evidence can be gleaned from that vehicle? Right now? Unusual Cops not releasing where her car was found or what condition it was in. Was there a flat? Was it out of gas? Did she have car trouble? Was the hood up? Was it at the far end of a parking lot parked amongst a lot of cars? So many questions, the answers to which could lead to a suspect and of course, under scrutiny is the husband as he always is. That does not mean he's guilty at all. Questions being asked about him going to sleep and waking up and her being gone. Now, a lot of that is negated. A lot of the questions that you'd naturally ask about the husband is negated by the fact that some neighbors state they see her the following morning. And to you, Sidney Stumner, Crime Stories investigative reporter, you believe there's other information that gives credence to the husband's story?
- [52:05]
Nancy Grace
Well, Nancy, this is a teacher, Linda Brown. She wasn't expected at work for nearly two weeks. So that kind of leads you to believe. Okay, do I believe the story that he last saw her on Friday night or did she possibly go missing earlier than that? But we know that Lisa, the sister, doesn't get concerned until Saturday, and she says she's in constant contact with her sister. So it does lend some credibility to the story that everything was okay Friday night. She was okay up until Saturday.
- [52:40]
Sydney Sumner
Brian Fitzgibbons, what do you make of that?
- [52:43]
Matt Mangino
Yeah, that's certainly the first place. Right. But you know, we have good reasons to believe that she was alive and well on January 2nd. We have good reason to believe that at least a neighbor saw or had her recorded on a ring camera on Saturday, January 3rd. So, you know, I don't feel too much credence in the theory that she hadn't been heard from for weeks.
- [53:10]
Sydney Sumner
It's not the first time a wife has a doctor's appointment and never makes it. I'm talking about Chris and Shanann Watts.
- [53:17]
Nancy Grace
I'm calling because I'm concerned about a friend of mine. I dropped her off at her house at 2 in the morning last night because we were out of town together and we were on the way back from the airport and she's pregnant and I haven't been able to get a hold of her this morning. And I've gone to her house, and her car's there and stuff like that, but she won't answer the door, she won't answer phone calls, she won't answer text messages. And I'm just really, really concerned. And she had a doctor's appointment this morning, and. And she didn't go to it, And I'm just. I don't know what to do.
- [53:50]
Sydney Sumner
You can find her? Nicole Atkinson calling 911 about her friend because she was already dead, along with Bella and Celeste, her two little girls. Take a listen to her husband, Chris Watts, on body cam.
- [54:04]
Matt Mangino
She tell you anything about leaving? Moving out? Not moving out. I mean, last time talked to her was this morning. She said she's going to take the kids to a friend's house. And then she asked where she was going to be. And then I've texted her today. I've never heard anything. But the car's here. Carrier. Unless somebody came, picked her up. But the people that I know, nobody's heard from her, nobody's seen. Mm.
- [54:32]
Sydney Sumner
He was convicted. Leslie Moreno. Let me ask you this. Are we sure her purse and credit cards were in the car?
- [54:42]
Nancy Grace
We are told by the husband that she took her purse and her credit cards right before she went to her acupuncture appointment. Family has not confirmed whether those items were found in the vehicle that was found yesterday. Police, again, have also not confirmed that the vehicle was found, let alone what items were found inside. So right now, what we know is that the vehicle was found, and according to the husband, that she took her purse and her credit cards before she went to her acupuncture appointment, which he says is, of course, normal for her to do.
- [55:17]
Sydney Sumner
Let's spin that out. Let's take that to its logical conclusion. Brian Fitzgibbons, uspa. What does that mean? Her car is found, her purse and her credit cards missing. Her phone was still working, but we have no indication they were in her car when her car was found. What can we deduce?
- [55:41]
Matt Mangino
And at this point, law enforcement officials have not disclosed what evidence was collected from the vehicle. So at this point, it would be purely speculation to say what was or was not with the vehicle at the time that they found it. So we have to kind of hold back a little bit before determining.
- [56:03]
Sydney Sumner
Fitzgibbons, unless you know where she is right now, everything we're talking about is speculation. But you do know how to add one and one equals two, right? That's called deduction as a mathematical certainty. Unlike a mathematical certainty, if she drove her car, she had her purse and her ID with her, and it wasn't in her car. That means either she left voluntarily out of that car with her purse and credit cards or someone took them and disposed of them. Those are the only two choices, right?
- [56:47]
Matt Mangino
Correct. Absolutely. That's it.
- [56:50]
Sydney Sumner
They're not saying the person, credit card, were in the car.
- [56:53]
Nancy Grace
Car.
- [56:54]
Sydney Sumner
All right, so let's go with that. They were not in the car. What, if anything, can we glean from that?
- [57:07]
Matt Mangino
Yeah, bullet point number one would be, you know, did somebody else move this vehicle? That's where my first instincts would go is that, you know, she was separated from the vehicle with her personal items and that that vehicle was moved after whatever happened.
- [57:23]
Sydney Sumner
If you know or think you know anything about Linda's disappearance, please call 312-747-8380. Repeat, 312-747-8380. There is, based on the timeline, a possibility we can bring her home alive. We remember an American hero, Corporal Marcial Rodriguez, Citrus County Sheriffs, killed in the line of duty after 25 years, leaving behind his wife and two sons. American hero Corporal Marcial Rodriguez, Nancy Grace, signing off. Goodbye, friend.
- [58:11]
Matt Mangino
Do you actually know Ball? Well, come prove it with a free $10 from Better Picks. Download the Better app, Pick more or less on players to stats, watch the games, and win cash. It's that simple. Must be 21 or older. In a jurisdiction where Better Picks operates, terms and conditions apply. Better Picks. Sports just got better. Have you heard of this new Netflix series, His and Hers? This new mystery series stars Tessa Thompson as Anna, a journalist in Atlanta, and John Bernthal as Detective Jack Harper. When Anna catches wind of a murder in Dahlonega, the sleepy town where she grew up, she pounces on the case and searches for answers. Detective Jack Harper is strangely suspicious of her involvement, chasing her into the crosshairs.
- [58:50]
Sydney Sumner
Of his own investigation.
- [58:52]
Matt Mangino
It's a show that reminds you that small towns are often filled with the most secrets and no one is who they seem. Seriously.
- [58:59]
Sydney Sumner
With every twist, you're left wondering, can.
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Matt Mangino
You trust anyone in this town?
- [59:03]
Sydney Sumner
Can Anna and Jack trust each other?
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Matt Mangino
Or is one of them hiding something? The closer they get to each other, the closer they get to the truth, and we cannot wait to see how it unfolds.
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Sydney Sumner
Don't miss the suspense and the drama.
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Matt Mangino
Watch his and hers, now only on Netflix. This is Jacob Goldstein from what's yous Problem? When you buy business software from lots of vendors, the costs add up and it gets complicated and confusing. Odoo solves this. It's a single company that sells a suite of enterprise apps that handles everything from accounting to inventory to sales. Odoo is all connected on a single platform in a simple and affordable way you can save money without missing out on the features you need. Check out Odoo at o d o o.com that's o d o o.com well, the holidays have come and gone once again, but if you've forgotten to get that special someone in your life a.
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Sydney Sumner
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Matt Mangino
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Sydney Sumner
What do you have to lose?
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Matt Mangino
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Nancy Grace
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Sydney Sumner
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