← Going West: True Crime
Going West: True Crime
Morgan Nick: Stranger at the Baseball Field // 614
00:49:21
On a summer night in June of 1995, a young Arkansas girl was catching fireflies with a few friends when she vanished suddenly. Her friends reported seeing a mysterious man in a pickup nearby just moments before she disappeared, a tip which launched one of the largest searches in the state’s history. And eventually, a suspect with a disturbing history emerged in her case… This is the story of Morgan Nick.
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- [00:00]
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Host Daphne
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Host Heath
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Host Heath
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- [01:31]
Host Daphne
What is going on? True Crime fans, I'm your host.
- [01:33]
Host Heath
Host Heath. And I'm your host, Daphne.
- [01:35]
Host Daphne
And you're listening to Going West.
- [01:38]
Host Heath
Hello everybody. Thank you so much for tuning in. Hope you're having a great week. Big shout out to Kelly, Hillary, Andrew and Paula who all recommended this case. The disappearance that we're going to talk about today takes place during such a small time frame that I know is going to hit the hearts of a lot of you because it is so wild how this was able to happen. Who was really behind it all the time. It's so devastating. So don't forget to check out photos on our socials for this one, on Instagram, oingwestpodcast and on Facebook.
- [02:13]
Host Daphne
Yeah, just the opportunistic nature of this crime. The fact like, like you said, you know, that it, it took place in such a short span of time that you just couldn't imagine something like that happening.
- [02:25]
Host Heath
Exactly. It's just wild. So thank you guys for tuning in. Thanks for recommending it, guys. And without further ado.
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Host Daphne
Alright guys, this is episode 614 of Going West. So let's get into it.
- [02:43]
Host Heath
But first, because it's Friday, let's do our weekly rapid fire of what's happening in True Crime on the news. One of the biggest sentencing stories this week involves former Catholic priest, 57 year old Anthony Odiong, who on Tuesday, June 2, was sentenced to life in prison after being convicted of sexually assaulting over nine women in Texas as recently as 2024 who came to him for spiritual guidance.
- [03:14]
Host Daphne
Ew.
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Host Heath
Yeah. Prosecutors argued that Anthony exploited the trust parishioners placed in him as a religious leader, of course using his position of authority to manipulate vulnerable women into sexual relationships and abuse. Multiple women testified during the trial describing similar patterns of coercion and control. I mean, one survivor later described the experience as, quote, soul murder, which is a phrase that has become synonymous with the case. What makes this story especially disturbing is that prosecutors argued Anthony's greatest weapon wasn't really physical force, but, but rather faith itself. And even after his conviction, controversy erupted when a church bulletin reportedly asked parishioners to pray for him while making no mention of his victims, which just kind of reignited debate about accountability within religious institutions. Now, for anybody wondering how this would result in life in prison, it's because in the state of Texas it is a felony to abuse women when you're in a position of spiritual guidance. And there were so many women coming out against him. But luckily, he will never be able to target vulnerable women again.
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Host Daphne
On Wednesday, June 3, 2026, 36 year old Steven McCullough was sentenced to life in prison with a minimum term of 31 years for the murder of his pregnant girlfriend Natalie McNally in Northern Ireland. Natalie was 32 years old and 15 weeks pregnant when she was killed in her home in December of 2022. Prosecutors say McCollough believed that he had created the perfect alibi, a six hour YouTube gaming livestream that appeared to show him at home during the murder.
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Host Heath
Wild.
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Host Daphne
Yeah. But investigators later discovered the stream wasn't even live at all. It had been pre recorded days earlier. According to prosecutors, Stephen used the fake broadcast to leave home, travel to Natalie's house, commit the murder and return without raising suspicion.
- [05:26]
Host Heath
I really thought he had it.
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Host Daphne
He did. He even sent her texts acting concerned and even more chilling. After Natalie's death, he attended her wake comforting grieving family members and publicly acted as a supporter of while police searched for her killer. So don't be surprised if you hear this case on our bonus series this year since it happened in Northern Ireland.
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Host Heath
Oh, we're definitely covering that one. Also on June 3, 2026, Netflix's new three part docuseries, Michael the Verdict released. And it takes viewers back to Michael Jackson's highly publicized 2005 criminal trial where he was acquitted on all counts related to child molestation allegations. The series revisits the case through courtroom footage, interviews with journalists and legal experts, and a closer examination of the evidence that dominated headlines around the world more than two decades ago. And while the documentary isn't necessarily revealing major new information, it's already generating debate online as audiences revisit one of the most polarizing celebrity criminal cases ever tried. For many viewers, the series kind of raises the same question that has persisted since 05 how should the public evaluate a case where legal acquittal and public opinion remain so dramatically divided? And what really happened on Neverland Ranch? Well, that's all for today. So now to the episode. Get out of there. Okay. Come on. A summer night In June of 1995, a young Arkansas girl was catching fireflies with a few friends when she vanished. Vanished suddenly. Her friends reported seeing a mysterious man in a pickup nearby just moments before she disappeared, which was a tip that launched one of the largest searches in the state's history. And eventually a suspect with a disturbing history emerged in her case. This is the story of Morgan N. Morgan. Nick was born in West Germany on September 12, 1988. Parents Colleen and John. She was the oldest child, later joined by a brother named Logan and then a sister named Taryn. According to her parents, Morgan was shy and quiet and her role as a big sister was the most important of her life. Now, as you may be able to guess, Morgan was brought up in a military family. I say that I feel like every single time we talk about a military family, they're born in Germany. But after her parents had been traveling for about 10 years, they were ready to head home to the US and they settled back in Alma, Arkansas, which is located on the edge of the Ozark Mountains near the Arkansas river and the border of Oklahoma. After years of travel, Colleen wanted to spend as much time as possible with her children. So she actually started her own daycare which she operated out of their family home so, you know, she could always be home while she was working. Now, although Morgan was timid, she loved her friends. She enjoyed being an active member of Girl Scouts, and she's remembered as a quintessential girly girl. On June 9, 1995, the night of six year old Morgan's disappearance, the Knicks were headed to a little league baseball game. This was actually the game of one of their friends sons. So they were like going to support their friends. It's none of you know, Morgan nor her siblings were playing this game. It was just kind of Something that they could go out and do. So they were seated in the bleachers behind first base where Morgan sat next to her mom. And Colleen recalled that multiple kids asked her daughter to play, but explained, quote, she was a little bit on the shy side, a little bit quiet, and she didn't want to go play with them. She just wanted to sit with me. But shortly before the game ended, two children came back, eight year old Jessica and ten year old Ty, asking if Morgan wanted to catch fireflies with them. Now, initially Colleen said no because it was like 10:30pm at this point, again, Morgan is only 6 years old. But she relented and agreed to let Morgan go for a few minutes before they headed home.
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Host Daphne
Yeah, so for about 15 minutes, the three kids caught fireflies and played in the sandpit that was near the field. And then around 10:45pm the three of them decided to head back down to the bleachers because they had been up on this hill behind those bleachers and were ready to go back down there where their parents were seated. But Morgan just kind of paused for a moment in the parking lot near her mom's car to take off her shoes in order to dump out the sand that she had gotten stuck in her shoes. So Ty stopped and waited with her. But as she was tying up her laces, he headed off, assuming that she was just right behind him. He's a little boy, he's 10 years old. But by the time they made it back down the hill, Jessica and Ty were alone. When they reached the bleachers, Colleen asked where Morgan was and they informed her that she was still fixing her shoes up in the parking lot. So Colleen immediately headed over to find her. But Morgan was gone. Now, surprised by this, but assuming that she couldn't have gone very far, Colleen and some other of the parents began walking the perimeter of the baseball field, calling out her name. And they were shocked when the minutes ticked by and she failed to return. You know, at this point, panic is setting in fast. This was supposed to be a simple few minute period where her daughter is catching fireflies, hanging out with some other kids and just getting some social time in.
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Host Heath
And we will post photos so you guys can see the layout and also how rural this location is. You know, it's kind of at the edge of the city a little bit. There's a field around the baseball field. Like it's, it's very rural. So up on that hill, you know, other than the cars, it's just kind of like land.
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Host Daphne
Yeah.
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Host Heath
So even though she is on the premises. You know, of course her mom is like, well, where did she go then?
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Host Daphne
Obviously, when your child goes missing, like, even for a minute, you want to call in the National Guard, so to speak. So Colleen and John summoned the police, who descended on the area very quickly because, you know, it's like, it doesn't. It just didn't feel like something could have happened in that short period of time. And you're just assuming, oh, well, maybe she's. Maybe she's ran off and is like, hiding from her friends or she's just messing around. But then when they're searching this whole area and they can't find her anywhere, that's where the real fear, like, really starts to set in. So officers first asked to speak with little Jessica and Ty, who described that a white man with a scruffy beard wearing shorts had approached them and was talking to them before Morgan vanished, which
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Host Heath
is like the last thing they want to hear. What do you mean a man was talking to her?
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Host Daphne
Yeah, that would be like, a very terrifying thing to know, especially when you can't find Morgan. Now, they recalled that he had been in the parking lot smoking a cigarette and watching them while they were playing.
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Host Heath
Even freaking worse.
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Host Daphne
I mean, creepy. So the kids were also able to share what kind of car this guy was driving, which was a red pickup truck with a white camper that didn't quite fit. It was either too large or, like, too small to fit on top of the truck, which would prove to be an incredibly important detail in this investigation.
- [14:35]
Host Heath
Because Morgan was last seen on a hill above the baseball field, police officers focused on that area, removing empty bottles of soda and cigarette butts in an attempt to find the man who had been watching the kids that evening. Like, they're already trying to collect DNA in case this turns into something devastating and something that they hope it doesn't. And they also search the sand and dirt in hopes of finding tracks to identify who had walked there. Shockingly, it was only about a three minute window that allowed her to be taken. That is how fast this happened.
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Host Daphne
Yeah, that's all the time that this
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Host Heath
creep needed, which is usually how fast terrible things happen, especially with kids. I'm sure a lot of you parents can relate to that, where if you, you know, look away from your kid for one minute, they could be anywhere. Well, police came to the assumption that the man had likely seen an opportunity with Morgan. You know, the fact that she was left alone momentarily and he took it, scooping her up and taking off with her in his Truck that night brought a terrible thunderstorm, which dampened the search efforts and basically washed away potential evidence left behind at the crime scene. Her father, John, later remembered spending the entire harrowing night in a car just waiting for news or information. An urgent press conference was held to share what was gleaned about Morgan's disappearance. And the man's description was shared, as well as a description of his vehicle. Just to get it out to the public as fast as possible. Because although this is a devastating situation, it is really incredible that Jessica and Ty were able to give them at least a little bit of something. Because if neither of them saw this man or this vehicle, we would have actually nothing. Well, based on their recollections, an artist's rendering of 6 year old Morgan's abductor was shared as well, featuring a man believed to be in his late 20s or early 30s. Video footage from the game, which was originally captured by proud parent happily taking a video, was combed over carefully in hopes of identifying a suspicious person. Actually, on one of the videos, they found the truck that they believed was used to abduct Morgan. So they combed over footage from other games, too, and from a different game. They saw the truck there again and started wondering if this man was scouting for young victims at baseball games.
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Host Daphne
Well, one local man with a truck similar to that of the description was ruled out early on. But he was garnering so many tips and was stopped so frequently that he actually wrote a message on the back of his truck that he was not Morgan's abductor and to stop calling police with tips about his truck. He's like, come on, guys.
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Host Heath
God, that just goes to show you how big this story was in the area.
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Host Daphne
Oh, yeah. Which is why in the first week alone following Morgan's abduction, hundreds of tips poured in about various red pickup trucks all over Arkansas and even surrounding states. So some citizens took it upon themselves to hand search any red pickup truck that they came across in neighborhoods as well as parking lots. Four days after Morgan's disappearance, there was an attempted abduction at a laundromat in the area. And police thought that maybe these cases could be involved. Cause by the way, Alma only had about 3,600 residents at the time. And although it does have other towns that are around it, they're even smaller than Alma. So in their heads, the chances of two abductors being in their midst felt a bit unlikely here. So witness descriptions were taken and another composite sketch was circulated. You know, in case this mysterious man was connected to Morgan's disappearance. As more and more witness statements emerged from residents around Alma, the police were able to track the movements of the truck and the man that they believed to be Morgan's captor. And it turned out that he had been very active on the day that she was kidnapped.
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Host Heath
Yeah. A teenage girl recalls that before the game that evening, a red pickup truck pulled over and the driver asked if she wanted a ride downtown. She declined, but the driver continued to harass her as she walked away. Later that day, two young girls, just five and six years old, ran crying to their mom in their yard, having been scared off by a man in a red pickup truck passing by their house. How many creeps have a red pickup truck in this area?
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Host Daphne
I know. So this guy is just like literally like wandering around, scoping out the situation, trying to find opportunities in which he can abduct a child serially as well,
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Host Heath
like, just won't stop. Well, on Walnut street, which runs parallel to the baseball field, actually, a man in a red truck yelled at two 10 year old boys for playing in the street shortly before the game was slated to begin. And then about 10 minutes after Morgan was believed to have been abducted in a location near the Arkansas river in the area, a few teenagers spotted the truck parked along the side of the road. So this is just going to show you that other people are witnessing this truck as well. One of the teenagers in the car passing by the truck at the time claimed that they believed they had seen the adult man sitting in the driver's seat holding a child down in the front seat.
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Host Daphne
I mean, obviously just such a terrifying
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Host Heath
image, but it's just tough because, like, these are young teenage boys. They don't know what's going on. So it wasn't until after hearing the news of Morgan's abduction that they worried about what they saw. Like, for all they know, it's like a. I mean, not that this is okay necessarily, but like a dad, you know, kind of sure. Struggling with his child, I guess. I don't know, but they just didn't know.
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Host Daphne
But I think the, you know, the description of the red truck just coming into play with all of these scenarios, it does feel, especially again, in a town of only about 3,600 people, all these occurrences happening with this red truck is enough to really start raising alarms for everybody.
- [21:17]
Host Heath
Absolutely. The day after Morgan vanished, the teens, these two boys that saw this happen, even tried to take officers out to the location to show them exactly what had happened. But like we're saying, the storm was really bad. So the flooding was then really bad. And that area was partially underwater, so they couldn't return to it. Early on in the investigation, Morgan's father, John, felt that the public really turned on him because he stopped consenting to speak with the media, especially because both of Morgan's parents had been encouraged to get the word out about her disappearance. So at first, John was open to doing whatever it took to get eyes on his daughter's case. But after a local news anchor pushed him out of the way, telling him that no one cared to hear what he had to say because they only wanted to hear from Colleen, which is, like, so rude, by the way, he snapped back, quote, you know what? I don't like talking to you assholes either, and I'm not going to.
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Host Daphne
Good for you, John. You don't have to, you know, because there's. Whenever things like this happen, there's always a media frenzy. People. You know, the media can harass certain people sometimes. And John, he doesn't have to deal with that.
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Host Heath
No, but it's like, that's so rude that this happened to him in the first place. And they're like, we don't care about the dad. We want to hear from the mom. Like, what a weird. Yeah, this is just a bad person. And then it sucks because then John feels like he can't even talk to the media anymore to help with his daughter's case, and, like, he's being shut out and nobody wants to hear from him. So anyway, it's just. Yeah, it's a devastating situation. Then when you turn around and notice that people are, like, equating that to him being guilty, like, just stop.
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Host Daphne
Shame on you.
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Host Heath
Absolutely. Well, to that. To people believing that he was guilty or that, oh, well, then you must be involved. John replied, as long as they're talking about me, Morgan's name is still being out there. And if they want to talk shit about me and point their finger at me, so be it. As long as she's still being talked about, I don't care what they have to say about me.
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Host Daphne
In the aftermath of Morgan's disappearance, Colleen shut down her daycare and focused all of her time, energy, and efforts on finding her daughter. The FBI, who became involved early on, put up a $50,000 reward in hopes of determining the identity of her believed killer, since they did, unfortunately, feel confident that Morgan was deceased. And like we said, this story was really getting out there. Like, in the first month, the Arkansas State Police received over 3,000 tips, but none of these led them to Morgan. Well, Fast forward to 1996, a major confession came in and it was actually announced in the very same news broadcast covering the vigil that her family held to mark one year since her disappearance, the police announced the release of an affidavit revealing that a 36 year old local man had admitted to going to the baseball field to scout for a victim, abducting Morgan and sexually assaulting her. The next day, he supposedly woke up with blood on his clothing, which he then burned. After hearing about the kidnapping and knowing that the police would soon be on his trail, he admitted to police, I felt like I did it. So of course his home was searched and several items were removed, but he was not found to have any connection to Morgan and. And his confession was believed to be false, which is just so cruel and stupid. And I don't know why people do this, but for Morgan's parents, they were a bit relieved because they were holding out hope that Morgan was still alive. Even as the years passed, Colleen and John focused on raising their other children. And eventually they did wind up divorcing. And then Colleen started a passion project that she called the Morgan Nick foundation, which aimed to help other families struggling through the loss of children or navigating their children having gone missing.
- [25:32]
Host Heath
And while these efforts may have offered comfort and helped Colleen mitigate her grief, or at least I hope they did, finding answers was still at the forefront of her mind. Well, in time, another clear person of interest emerged after the arrest of a man named Charles Ray Vines, who was a prolific local criminal who had evaded capture for years. I mean, he was so active and feared in the area at the time that he became known as the River Valley Killer or the Arkansas River Valley Killer. And he is thought to have more potential victims than the two that he has been connected to. I'm actually going to tell you about a few really quick, but two of them were killed, the others were attacked. So this includes the rape and brutal beating of an 89 year old woman named Lily Jones, who was blind.
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Host Daphne
Who the fuck does that?
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Host Heath
I mean, this guy is so horrible, as you guys are about to find out, because on April 10, 1993, so two years before Morgan vanished, he again brutally attacked this woman in her home. Then on June 20, 1993, he murdered a different woman, 58 year old Juanita Wofford. Now, Juanita also lived alone and he had broken into both of their homes, you know, separately. They were both living alone. He broke into each of their homes while they were alone. But while Lily was beaten and survived, Juanita was stabbed to death. And raped. The scene of Juanita's murder was combed very closely. And although DNA profiling was still in its infancy, samples were taken in hopes of connecting the killer back to the horrific scene that he had left behind. Then on August 10, 1995, 74 year old Ruth Henderson was also sexually assaulted and murdered in what was described as a vicious and ruthless attack. Because like Juanita, Ruth had been stabbed mercilessly many times and was found dead inside her home. So the evidence was compared and left behind at both scenes were size 10 shoe prints and discarded cigarette butts. But it wasn't until 2000, when yet another similar crime occurred that the killer was finally taken into custody. In March of 2000, the stepfather of a 16 year old girl arrived home to find his stepdaughter as she was being sexually assaulted and stabbed repeatedly. So he attacked his stepdaughter's rapist and attempted murderer and then called the police, which is just, I mean, the fact that he happened to arrive home at that time and then he liked, you know, jumps on this guy.
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Host Daphne
Yeah. Can you even imagine just what would be going through your mind when you walk through the door and see something like that?
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Host Heath
Just absolutely horrible. Well, get this. This victim, this 16 year old girl was a classmate of the attacker's son at the local high school. So obviously, because thanks to this stepfather coming home when he did, this man was apprehended and not able to go on to do this to anybody else. And then it turns out that he knew of this 16 year old girl because she was in his son's class. Like oh my God. And all of this was occurring in the same area that Morgan Nick vanished.
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- [36:31]
Host Daphne
The DNA from the three attacks before her as well as the DNA from the rape of the 16 year old girl all matched. And the perpetrator was of course Charles Ray Vines. So like Daphne said, this connection was actually made in 2000. So five years after Morgan went missing and years after the other attacks and murders occurred in that area. Because Juanita Wofford was killed in Fort Smith which is only about 20 minutes from Alma, and Ruth Henderson was killed in Van Buren which is only about 10 minutes from Alma. So the same general area. Well, according to many who knew him, Charles was well liked in his community, which is kind of a shock. He was a family man with two children at home who enjoyed a quiet life and shared the spoils of his vegetable garden with his neighbors. So it's kind of like one of those things like btk, you know, they kind of come off like they're normal dudes.
- [37:23]
Host Heath
Exactly.
- [37:23]
Host Daphne
Little psychopaths on the inside. But I will say that his ex wife and two sons later reported enduring years of abuse. Now, given the nature of his crimes, Charles was quickly drawn into the investigation into Morgan's abduction because although many of his victims were older and even elderly women, the fact that his latest assault was on a 16 year old girl and that again they occurred in the same area, police were fearing the worst here. Now, retired police captain Brett Hartley explained that they even drove the same type of car, saying, I know for a fact that he had a red truck with a white camper because I used to drive by it and I know for a fact he owned one. Well, for his crimes, Charles was sentenced to three life sentences and lived out the rest of his life in prison. But to the frustration of the investigation, no evidence regarding Morgan could be linked to him. And when Charles was re examined as a suspect in connection with Morgan's case, which occurred In September of 2019, by the way, he was suffering from terminal cancer and was in a near comatose state. And then he died just a week
- [38:38]
Host Heath
later, which must have been really frustrating for investigators to feel like, well, doesn't it have to be this guy? He had the same car at one point yeah, you would think he's a vicious killer. He lives in the very same area. Like, it's so close.
- [38:52]
Host Daphne
It feels so close. But unfortunately they couldn't find any connection. But also, I'll say good riddance, Charles.
- [38:59]
Host Heath
Oh, absolutely. After his death, cadaver dogs were sent in to roam his former property. And they were also brought out to search the area near the river where those teens had spotted, spotted the red truck and the man with the possible child later on the night that Morgan was abducted. You know, cause what they're kind of wondering at this point is if it was Charles. Maybe he buried her body over there.
- [39:25]
Host Daphne
Sure.
- [39:26]
Host Heath
If he's involved with Morgan's disappearance, they're just, they're really trying here. But unfortunately, nothing of note was found. But Morgan's story got a new lease in 2023 when a documentary film crew examined the story for its four part docu series, Still Missing Morgan, then a past suspect re emerged based on a witness statement from nearly three decades earlier.
- [39:57]
Host Daphne
And that's so crazy that just because this docu series was made, they were able to go back and look at some previous people and they're like, hey, this guy's kind of peaking our interest.
- [40:08]
Host Heath
Love when that happened. So actually the subject of the tip was an elderly man with an unsettling history and a drinking problem. A man named Billy Jack Lynx. That is a serial killer name if I've ever heard one.
- [40:24]
Host Daphne
Oh, my God. There's actually this reminds me of a case that we covered. Bobby Jack Fowler.
- [40:29]
Host Heath
Oh. Huh. Wow. That was a while ago.
- [40:31]
Host Daphne
Bobby Jack Fowler and Billy Jack Links.
- [40:34]
Host Heath
So Billy spent most of his life in Van Buren, Arkansas. Again, that's only 10 minutes southwest of Alma. He was a World War II veteran who worked as an upholsterer for an airline in Texas for many years. He'd been married multiple times and had three sons, a daughter and two step kids, as well as over two dozen grandkids and great grandkids. But he was also known, like I said, for being a heavy drinker. So he had multiple DUI arrests under his belt. And only a couple months after Morgan disappeared on August 29, 1995, an 11 year old girl, her brothers and one of their friends were getting fries and Cokes at their local Sonic in van Buren, just 8 miles, or 12 kilometers from the baseball field where Morgan disappeared. And all these kids span the ages of 6 to 11, so they are very young. And Billy actually cruised by in his red pickup truck, the same one that was believed to be used in Morgan's abduction, Billy Jack Lynx pulled up to the kids and tried to engage them in conversation, but he was particularly interested in the 11 year old girl. Billy then offered the kids cash in order to lure her away from her brothers.
- [41:59]
Host Daphne
Ew. Disgusting.
- [42:01]
Host Heath
Disgusting. And he even managed to extract her, at least momentarily, and then offered her even more cash to go home with him. And the conversation grew sexual in nature. At which point she got spooked and ran to tell her brothers what had happened.
- [42:17]
Host Daphne
I mean, that is so crazy that he's. That he's offering kids money so that he can be the disgusting piece of shit pedophile that he is.
- [42:27]
Host Heath
It's weird that he thought that might work as well. Hey, here's some money. Can I take your sister off your hands? Can I take this girl?
- [42:33]
Host Daphne
Yeah.
- [42:33]
Host Heath
Ugh. Disgusting. So what they did because they were so creeped out by Billy Jack is they ran back into Sonic to call the police, but not before Billy panicked and fled, crashing his car into a pole before reversing and leaving the area. But thankfully, the crash left behind paint from his truck.
- [42:58]
Host Daphne
So in a lucky break for the police, a man saw the report of this occurrence the following day and shared that he had seen a man in a red pickup truck talking to a group of kids the night prior. He had been heading into his bank that evening when he viewed an older man speaking to a group of kids from the driver's seat of his truck. And thinking that it was somewhat strange, the man actually managed to take down a partial license plate number. You're a hero, by the way. Which he was able to give to the police after that.
- [43:29]
Host Heath
Yeah, because he's like, why is this old dude talking to a bunch of kids? This is a bad picture.
- [43:34]
Host Daphne
Yeah, this feels wrong. And this guy had the intuitive nature to say, I think I'm going to take down that license plate. And both the license plate number and the description match that of 71 year old Billy Jack Lynx. And remember, this discovery is happening that Same Summer in 1995. Now, the pole that he struck had damaged with paint that matched that of his red pickup truck. And the damage to his truck matched the scrapings on the pole. So detectives served him with a search warrant and noted that the hat and wallet in his car matched the description given to them by the 11 year old girl as well. Of course, when Billy was brought in for questioning, he denied any knowledge of the attempted sexual assault and abduction. And he also admitted that he had been drunk and couldn't remember everything that happened. Other than that, you know, he Pulled over to talk to some kids and then offered them some money, as if
- [44:34]
Host Heath
that's okay or normal in itself. Like, again, as an adult, you should never be pulling over or pulling up, rather, on some kids and talking to them. But it's like, yeah, well, I was pretty drunk. But, yeah, I talked to them. I offered them money. That's fucking weird.
- [44:48]
Host Daphne
Yeah. Your other. Your excuse for doing so is also breaking the law in a different way, you fucking idiot.
- [44:55]
Host Heath
It's also really weird and not okay.
- [44:58]
Host Daphne
Well, get this. In addition to his attempt to abduct and assault a child, Billy also had an outstanding charge from two years prior for the first degree sexual abuse of a child. But the sentence had been suspended pending good behavior. So he literally got off because of
- [45:17]
Host Heath
good behavior, which is so disgusting. There is no good behavior that can wash away the sexual abuse of a child.
- [45:24]
Host Daphne
No, absolutely not. And this was actually for the sexual assault of his own granddaughter at that. So this guy really is just an
- [45:35]
Host Heath
evil person, and this is the guy that they are going to, you know, potentially connect to Morgan's disappearance. Somebody who is capable of doing that. Well, his wife, who was also questioned in connection with Billy's criminal history, claimed that she couldn't stand her husband.
- [45:52]
Host Daphne
Don't blame you, girl.
- [45:53]
Ad Voice 2
Yeah.
- [45:53]
Host Heath
And she would leave any time he drank because she couldn't bear to be around him. And it wasn't until after he was accused of his granddaughter's rape that his wife finally filed for divorce. Billy was arrested and charged with sexual solicitation of a child, a crime of which he was eventually sentenced to six years in prison.
- [46:17]
Host Daphne
No, no. Throw him in a cell. Lock it up for life.
- [46:22]
Host Heath
Hang him. But here's the thing. Billy passed a polygraph examination about his connection to Morgan's disappearance back when he was questioned about it in 1995. And it seems that the possibility of his involvement was just kind of dropped after that.
- [46:41]
Host Daphne
Yeah, and this sucks, because we often talk about the fact that polygraph examinations aren't always accurate, but this police department is saying, oh, well, he passed a polygraph, so I guess he didn't do it.
- [46:53]
Host Heath
He passed. And there's, like, no evidence, even though he has the right truck and he's a sexual predator who lives in the area. I wonder if they just felt like their hands were tied, but, like, this is a pretty good guy to, like, stay on top of. Well, I will say as well, his car was searched for potential evidence. Impossible. Samples of blood and hair were removed, which is disturbing to say the least. But with the limitations of 1995 holding the investigation back. The evidence wasn't tested properly, and unfortunately, much of the evidence Originally collected In connection with Morgan's case Was displaced. But thankfully, in 2020, police were able to track down Billy's old truck, which had been sold to a new owner after having been impounded. The 1986 red Chevrolet Scottsdale pickup truck With a white camper shell Matched the description put forward by multiple people. Now, notably, one of the boys who had been yelled at by the man in the pickup truck on the day of Morgan's disappearance Noted that the truck was dented, and Billy's truck had also been dented. The car was actually sent to the arkansas state crime lab because the suspicion was so strong that it was related to Morgan's disappearance. A portion of the bench seat Was removed from the car, and again, it was found to contain blood. But even then, there wasn't enough blood to confirm its identity. Then, in 2021, the Alma Police department announced publicly Billy jack lynx was a person of interest in Morgan's case. They also found a green girl scout's t shirt that was said to be the same kind of t shirt that Morgan was wearing at the time of her abduction. And identical fibers were found embedded in the carpet. The FBI concluded that it was, quote, highly unlikely that the fibers Would come from anything other than that t shirt from that source.
- [49:16]
Host Daphne
Well, some have posed the theory that, based on the description from Jessica and ty, Remember, those were the kids that were with Morgan on the night of her disappearance, that maybe Billy's son Andy Was with him on the night of Morgan's disappearance, as the description they offered Was of a man in his late 20s or early 30s, which fit the description of Andy and not Billy, who was 70 at the time of Morgan's abduction. Jessica, who was later interviewed for the documentary still missing, Morgan, recalled, I remember him having some facial hair, but other than that, I really don't. There was no specific thing about him that super stood out. Like his father, Andrew lee lynx, or Andy also has a criminal record and specifically a record of sexual assault. He has, on two separate occasions, been charged with rape. In BOZEMAN, Montana, In 2023, the police
- [50:14]
Host Heath
reignited their efforts into the case In Morgan's case, of course, and informed the family that they had over 8,000 leads that they wanted to look into again, which is just. Oh, my God. On October 1, 2024, the police held a press conference to announce that the strand of hair Found in Billy's truck had been linked to Morgan Nick, which basically all but confirmed him to be her killer. Because how else would her hair have gotten there? But to the frustration of her family, who had waited nearly 30 years for answers, Morgan's alleged killer was already dead. Billy passed away on August 5, 2000, at the age of 75. So while they were reinvestigating him, they could never question him. Now, it's not publicly known if his son Andy was ever questioned in relation to Morgan's case, but we imagine that they at least tried to see if there was a connection there. And I don't know. Even though kids aren't the best at determining the age of an adult, the photos of Jack before he died show that he very much looked to be in his 70s, as he was. And he had, you know, whitish hair. And even though it was nighttime when Morgan was taken, I still just think it would be unlikely that Jessica and Ty would mistake him for someone their own parents age. Because Billy Jack was. Was old enough. I think I just called him Jack, by the way. I meant to say Billy Jack was old enough to be their great grandpa. Obviously we don't know why Billy would be abducting a six year old girl with his son, but considering Andy was in the age range, you know, that the kids claim the man was, it's just hard not to question it. Like, we already know that both Billy and Andy are sexual predators. So was Andy using his dad's car maybe? Or was Billy solely responsible after all?
- [52:15]
Host Daphne
Well, I think it's tough just knowing the fact that Billy was responsible for so many other situations in which he was basically caught red handed, you know, trying to give money to children and all these other things and the thing with his granddaughter. But it's also like, well, so was Andy. Andy was a bad guy too.
- [52:35]
Host Heath
Yeah, because like you're saying Billy was the one that was directly preying on little kids in that area around that very time.
- [52:44]
Host Daphne
Yes.
- [52:44]
Host Heath
So it more so lines up with his behavior versus Andy's behavior that happened later on in a different state. But it doesn't mean that Andy didn't do those things too and just maybe didn't get caught. But I don't know. It's so hard. Yeah.
- [52:59]
Host Daphne
And this guy was apparently wearing shorts. He had a scruffy bottle beard. They didn't mention the color of the beard. I feel like that as a 70 year old man, you'd probably have like a white or gray beard.
- [53:11]
Host Heath
And the fact that they saw him enough to know what his legs looked like, they would know if that was grandpa, you know, so that. That's why it's hard for me. Maybe he was wearing a hat, but they didn't say he was wearing a hat. They just said white man, scruffy beard, shorts. And then that he appeared to be. He was smoking a cigarette and appeared to be in his 20s or 30s.
- [53:32]
Host Daphne
Yeah. That does make it very, very tough, though.
- [53:36]
Host Heath
Colleen was disappointed that Billy never saw consequences for taking Morgan from them. She maintained, quote, he'll never have to stand and face justice here on earth for what he did to Morgan. He took her life, but he didn't take her voice. He didn't take her light that still shines through this foundation. Colleen also said our love for Morgan, her memories, her voice outlasted his life. The FBI has sought additional information about the potential crimes of Billy Jack Lynx, wondering if he has more victims and more crimes concealed in his dark past. If you have any information about the potential crimes of Billy Jack Lynx or the whereabouts of Morgan Nick, please contact the Alma Police Department at 479-632-3333. Thank you so much, everybody, for listening to this episode of Going West.
- [54:54]
Host Daphne
Yes, thank you guys so much for listening to this one. Would love to know what you guys think. Whether you believe that it was Andy or if you believe that it was Billy that was responsible. I have a. I have a pretty good feeling that one of those two guys was responsible, of course.
- [55:10]
Host Heath
Yeah, I agree. I just want to know so bad if police question Andy and, like, where he is today, because I know that he was. I think he was paroled in 2019 or something like that. So. Sorry, I should have re. Looked up that fact again, but I was just kind of trying to find him online and see if he's gotten into anything else. And it's. It's very tough because again, the police are saying Billy Jack links did it. They're not saying Andy did it, but they're pretty much saying Billy Jack did it. But I think that's just because of what they found in the car, and they know that it was his car truck.
- [55:45]
Host Daphne
And just how devastating this was, the fact that it was just a few shots, short, fleeting moments of a little girl catching fireflies. And some horrible piece of shit took advantage of that.
- [55:57]
Host Heath
So devastating. Again, if you want to see photos for this case, please head over to our socials. We are on Instagram at goingwestpodcast. We're also on Facebook and TikTok, so check us out and we'll see you guys again on Tuesday.
- [56:09]
Host Daphne
All right, guys, so for everybody out there in the world.
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Host Heath
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