Adre'anna Jackson

Summary

True Crime All The Time Unsolved – Episode Summary Episode Title: Adre'anna Jackson
Air Date: July 20, 2026
Hosts: Mike Ferguson & Mike Gibson

Overview

This episode delves into the tragic unsolved case of Adre’anna Jackson, a 10-year-old girl who disappeared while walking to school in Lakewood, Washington, in December 2005. Months later, her skeletal remains were discovered in a vacant lot, only a mile from her home. While her cause of death remains undetermined, investigators continue to treat the case as a homicide. The hosts, Mike Ferguson and Mike Gibson, lay out Adre’anna’s story, the investigation, possible suspects, and the frustration that comes with the lack of closure in her case. The episode also covers the broader context of the area, Adre’anna’s family life, and law enforcement’s efforts – or shortcomings – in seeking justice.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

Adre’anna’s Background & Family Situation

• [05:24]

  • Adre’anna’s Early Life: Born September 25, 1995, in Tacoma, Washington. Youngest of four, with siblings far apart in age and living elsewhere.
  • Family Details: Mother, Yvette Gervais, from the Penobscot Nation; her father, John Federici, a former army private with a criminal record that includes theft, assault, and harassment.
  • Economic & Social Circumstances: The family struggled financially, Yvette was disabled, John worked odd jobs, and the family had contact with social services.
  • Domestic Violence Incident ([10:14]): Police were called in 2002 for abuse by John against Adre’anna; he pleaded guilty to a reduced charge, received probation, and minimal counseling. Yvette did not pursue a permanent restraining order, possibly not wanting to break up the family.

• Quote:
  “I think due to a number of different factors, but I definitely think this was domestic violence. I mean, you’re punching a young girl in the stomach, in the head, scratching her face, pulling her hair. First of all, what kind of man are you?” – Mike Ferguson [11:01]

---

Adre’anna’s Personality and Activities

• [06:34, 13:54]
  • Described as fiery but sweet by her mother; very social, creative, artistic, and independent.
  • Active in her community: Regular at the public library, loved raising guinea pigs, gardening, attending church on her own, and helping at local businesses.
  • Witness Testimonies: Neighbors and church officials described her as “delightful,” “helpful,” and busily involved in local social life, though she often played alone.
  • Parental Supervision: Yvette described herself as protective, keeping close tabs on Adre'anna's activities.

---

The Day of Disappearance

• [17:51]

  • December 2, 2005:
    • Heavy snowstorm the night before; school was canceled, but Adre’anna’s parents did not receive or see the closure notice.
    • Despite confusion, they sent her to walk the three blocks to school to see if it was open. She was last seen around 7:45am.
    • Critical Decision Point ([19:38]): Hosts question why a 10-year-old was sent out alone in such conditions, suggesting walking with her would have been safer.

• Quote:
  “Their thought was, well, we’ll send her to school and she’ll find out there whether classes are being held. I just found it odd.” – Mike Ferguson [19:50]

---

Initial Search and Police Response

• [24:19, 26:14]
  • Delayed Alarm: Parents only realized she was missing after she didn’t return at her usual time; first called 911 at 4:23pm after searching local spots themselves.
  • Intensive Community Search: Police, neighbors, and eventually search-and-rescue combed the area (one square mile), including ditches, empty houses, and American Lake.
  • FBI Involvement ([28:15]): Promptly engaged, used search dogs (which tracked Adre’anna’s scent to the water), and underwater search units.
  • Challenge of Sex Offender Presence: There were 51 registered sex offenders in the small Tilikum community, all questioned for alibis.

---

Key Investigation Developments

• [31:23, 36:57]
  • No Initial Suspects: Despite resources, there were no strong leads immediately.
  • Parental Scrutiny: Both parents were investigated, given polygraph tests (Yvette passed, John’s was inconclusive), and remained “not cleared.”
  • Physical Evidence: Police collected diaries, clothing, etc., from the family home.
  • Focus on Vacant Lot and Encampments: After months of no leads, two boys found human remains (later identified as Adre’anna) in a vacant, brushy lot popular with transient encampments and drug users.

---

Discovery of the Remains

• [41:01]
  • April 4, 2006: Human skull and spine found by two 9-year-old boys, Dominique Eason and Manny Peters, while playing.
  • Initial Disbelief: Boys' discovery was dismissed by the first adult, validated only upon showing an apartment manager.
  • **Her remains were only a mile from home and close to encampments. Construction activity possibly exposed her remains.
  • Evidence Collected: Hundreds of items (cigarette butts, cans, etc.) retrieved from the area. Identification confirmed via dental records ([41:46]).

---

Unusual & Troubling Witnesses

• [45:11, 48:58]

  • Spencer Grant: A frequent visitor to the lot, with a criminal record, claimed he discovered the remains weeks earlier but did not report it, saying he didn’t realize the significance or "didn't have time" to notify authorities.
  • **Grant told “15 to 20 people” but nobody called the police; explained his reticence as due to the area being a popular spot for smoking meth ([50:50]).
  • **Police viewed Grant and others from the encampment with suspicion but failed to tie anyone directly to the crime.

• Quote:
  “He can tell 15 to 20 people, but he can’t tell the police... That’s how much losing this girl did not mean to them.” – Mike Gibson [50:25]

---

Complications in the Investigation

• [52:05, 53:15, 54:19]
  • Medical Examiner’s Findings: Cause and manner of death listed as “undetermined” due to decomposition; the ruling made prosecution difficult.
  • Area Proximity to I-5 Freeway: Raised the possibility of a transient or out-of-town perpetrator.

---

The Serial Offender Lead: Terapon Adhahn

• [55:08]

  • Profile Introduced: Serial rapist with violent history, convicted of multiple child rapes, murder of 12-year-old Zina Linnick, and other horrific acts in the area and timeframe relevant to Adre’anna’s case.
  • Investigative Focus ([56:25]): Adhahn’s presence in the area at the time, connection to similar crimes, and subsequent deep investigation (property searches, DNA samples), yet no public link confirmed with Adre’anna’s case.
  • Sentencing: Adhahn received life for other crimes, with little incentive to confess to Adre’anna’s killing without a deal.

• Quote:
  “What a monster.” – Mike Gibson [60:40]

---

Recent Developments and Cold Case Efforts

• [63:04]
  • 2025: Case transferred to Washington State Attorney General’s Cold Case Unit focused on Indigenous missing and murdered women and children. Objective to re-examine with advanced DNA tools and canvassing.

---

Hosts’ Reflection and Notable Commentary

• [66:00]

  • Unresolved Narrative: Frustration at lack of resolution, especially regarding suspicion around Adre’anna’s father (given past violence) and the “monster” Adhahn.
  • Importance of New Technology: Hope for DNA or other evidence to provide answers.
  • Perennial Heartache for Family: Hosts express sympathy for Adre’anna’s family, with the lingering pain and the need for answers and justice.

• Quote:
  “I tell you, I would keep looking at this Adhan guy... he looks to me like he could have done anything. I wouldn’t put anything past this guy.” – Mike Ferguson [66:18]
  “It’s just sad this happened to that little girl, you know, you want her parents to know what happened and see justice delivered.” – Mike Gibson [65:08]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “First of all, what kind of man are you?” – Mike Ferguson, on John’s domestic abuse, [11:01]
• “If you’re not 100% sure, why not just go undetermined and then, you know, at least investigate it as though it could potentially be a homicide?” – Mike Ferguson [05:10]
• “I just found it odd.” – Mike Ferguson, on sending Adre’anna to school alone, [19:50]
• “He can tell 15 to 20 people, but he can’t tell the police... That’s how much losing this girl did not mean to them.” – Mike Gibson [50:25]
• “What a monster.” – Mike Gibson, referring to serial rapist/murderer Terapon Adhahn [60:40]
• “But we've seen time after time, this is what can happen when someone gets two months for raping a family member. Again, Gibbs, what type of message are you sending?” – Mike Ferguson [61:03]
• “You didn’t want us to come out there and bust that site and take away your… get your meth supply at.” – Mike Gibson, on why transient witnesses might avoid the police [51:18]

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Timestamps for Critical Segments

• Background & Domestic Abuse: [05:24]–[12:40]
• Community & Childhood Portrait: [13:54]–[15:53]
• Day of Disappearance & Parental Actions: [17:51]–[21:35]
• Initial Search & Police Response: [24:19]–[28:39]
• Discovery of Remains: [41:01]–[42:50]
• Witness (Spencer Grant) Interview: [45:11]–[51:18]
• Medical Examiner’s Findings: [52:05]–[54:19]
• Suspect Terapon Adhahn: [55:08]–[61:49]
• Transfer to Cold Case Unit: [63:04]
• Reflection & Closing: [65:08]–[66:45]

---

Tone and Style

The hosts balance factual, in-depth storytelling with candid, sometimes incredulous commentary—serious about the crime, but peppering the discussion with personal anecdotes and critical questions about decisions made by family and authorities. Their respectful yet frustrated tone reflects the unresolved pain and injustice at the heart of the case.

---

Summary

Despite an extensive investigation involving local police, the FBI, and now the state’s cold case unit, Adre’anna Jackson’s death remains unsolved. Key suspects—including her own father (with a record of violence) and serial predator Terapon Adhahn—remain just out of investigative reach, hindered by a lack of physical evidence and limitations imposed by Adre’anna’s advanced decomposition. The case is emblematic of the struggles faced in many child abduction and homicide cases: imperfect witness memories, marginalized victims, missed signals, and the ongoing anguish for families left behind. The hosts hope that renewed efforts and modern forensic advances may one day deliver the answers—and justice—Adre’anna deserves.

Transcript

[Mike Ferguson]

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[Mike Ferguson]

So there's no.

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[Jessi Perry]

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[Jessi Perry]

Hi, I'm Jessi Perry. And I'm Andy. Cassette. Welcome to Love Murder where we unravel the darkest tales of romance turned deadly. Our episodes are long form, narrative driven and deeply researched. Perfect for the true crime aficionados. Seen stories beyond the headlines like the chilling case of Blanche Taylor Moore, the so called black widow who left a trail of poisoned lovers. Or the shocking murders of Chad Shelton and Dwayne Johnson where family ties masked a sinister plot. Subscribe to Love Murder on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you listen.

[Mike Ferguson]

Hello everyone and welcome to episode 474 of the true Crime all the Time Unsolved podcast. I'm Mike Ferguson and with me, as always, is my partner in true crime, Mike Gibson. Gibby, how are you?

[Mike Gibson]

Good. What's up?

[Mike Ferguson]

What's up?

[Mike Gibson]

What's up?

[Mike Ferguson]

Oh, not much, man. I'm having a good week.

[Mike Gibson]

Are you?

[Mike Ferguson]

We got a lot of great episodes.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah. One of these pain pills?

[Mike Ferguson]

No, but you have said some very interesting things. Yeah, both on the TCAD that is out right now, which is on Susan, Monica. And this is just a wild story, one of the wildest ones we've done in quite some time.

[Mike Gibson]

Crazy.

[Mike Ferguson]

Authorities were notified that her handyman, Robert Haney, had been missing for a number of months. When they searched her ranch in rural Oregon, they discovered Robert's remains. But that was just the beginning. They discovered all kinds of strange things.

[Mike Gibson]

Oh, yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

And I don't even want to give it away because like I said, it is a wild story. So make sure you check that out.

[Mike Gibson]

Please do.

[Mike Ferguson]

But you did say some. Some very interesting things.

[Mike Gibson]

As I always do.

[Mike Ferguson]

Whether fueled by pain pills or not. I don't know. Let's go ahead and give our Patreon shout outs. We had Laurel.

[Mike Gibson]

Hey, Laurel.

[Mike Ferguson]

Julie P. What up?

[Jessi Perry]

He.

[Mike Ferguson]

Denise Walker.

[Mike Gibson]

Hey, thanks Waka.

[Mike Ferguson]

Roscoe the rescue.

[Mike Gibson]

Well, thank you so much, Roscoe.

[Mike Ferguson]

Paul Parmley.

[Mike Gibson]

What's going on, Paul?

[Mike Ferguson]

Josie Ann. G.C.

[Mike Gibson]

josian, maybe. Yes.

[Mike Ferguson]

And last but not least, Whitney. Lindsay Whitney.

[Mike Gibson]

I wonder if she has, like, the voice of Whitney.

[Mike Ferguson]

If we go back into the vault this week, we selected Don Black.

[Mike Gibson]

Hey, Don.

[Mike Ferguson]

You know, I would doubt it. Not nothing against Whitney, but very few people have that type of voice.

[Mike Gibson]

That is true.

[Mike Ferguson]

She was in A League of Her Own when it came.

[Mike Gibson]

Not in that movie.

[Mike Ferguson]

When it came to voices, she was

[Mike Gibson]

in a different movie than that.

[Mike Ferguson]

She was in the Bodyguard.

[Mike Gibson]

That she was.

[Mike Ferguson]

All right, buddy, are you ready to get into this episode of True Crime all the Time Unsolved?

[Mike Gibson]

I am.

[Mike Ferguson]

We're talking about the murder of Adriana Jackson. In December 2005, 10 year old Adriana Jackson disappeared while walking to school. Months later, her remains were found in a vacant lot. Adriana's cause of death is listed as undetermined, but investigators are treating her case as a homicide. And I like to hear that, Gibbs. We run into a lot of scenarios where they don't want to go with undetermined. They want to go accidental or something else, which kind of then shuts down any possible investigation.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah. At least coming out of the gate, they're doing it the right way.

[Mike Ferguson]

I think. So if you're not 100% sure, why not just go undetermined and then, you know, at least investigate it as though it could potentially be a homicide.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah. At least you have more options that way.

[Mike Ferguson]

Adriana Anita Federici Jackson was born on September 25, 1995 in Tacoma, Washington. Adriana's mother, Yvette Gervais, is a member of the Penobscot Nation in Maine. Her father, John Federici, is a former army private. According to the News Tribune, John has a criminal record for theft, assault, and harassment. John and Yvette met in Oregon and lived there before moving to the Tacoma area in the 90s in search of work. The two never married. Adriana was the youngest Of Yvette's four children, two of her children were grown. Yvette had a daughter in Colorado who was two years older than Adrianna. The kids knew Adriana, but they didn't see her often. In a creative writing class, Adrianna wrote that her favorite vacation was going to Colorado to visit her sister.

[Mike Gibson]

Oh, that's sweet.

[Mike Ferguson]

It is. You know, this was a sister that she didn't see very often. And so it sounds like she really cherished the. Those visits and the time that she got to spend with her.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah, sounds like they were very impactful.

[Mike Ferguson]

Adrianna and her parents lived in Tilikum, a neighborhood in Lakewood, Washington. In an interview with the News Tribune, Yvette described Adriana as a girl with a fiery personality who was also sweet. I got one of those.

[Mike Gibson]

Yes, you do.

[Mike Ferguson]

My youngest, she can get very fiery very quick, but she can also be the sweetest person in the world. It just depends on, you know, her mood and how somebody, I guess, comes at her. If you come at her the wrong way, you're going to get the horns.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah. You know where she gets that from right now?

[Mike Ferguson]

I have no idea. Yeah, I know exactly where she gets it from. You know, normally I'm. I'm a pretty sweet guy, but I can get fiery, ornery from time to time.

[Mike Gibson]

More times than you think.

[Jessi Perry]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah, I think that's true. One of Adriana's favorite things to do was go to the library in Tilica. She checked out several books at a time and joked that she was one of the best patrons of her library.

[Mike Gibson]

Go to library a lot?

[Mike Ferguson]

I did not.

[Mike Gibson]

No.

[Mike Ferguson]

Nope. Not growing up. Not in college. I don't even know where the library was in college, to be honest with you.

[Mike Gibson]

Not surprised.

[Mike Ferguson]

No, it's not surprising at all. I'm just wondering nowadays, with the Internet and just everything we have at the touch of our fingers, how many people are actually going to libraries nowadays?

[Mike Gibson]

That's interesting. I wonder what that number would really be today. I still. Some. I still feel like some people really enjoy having the book in their hand.

[Mike Ferguson]

There is something to be said for that.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

There's also something to be said for, like, the Kindles. Just the convenience of them and not having to have what I have, which is five different bookcases here to handle

[Mike Gibson]

all my books, because they take up space.

[Mike Ferguson]

They do.

[Mike Gibson]

And I'm sure, you know, if you get to the cost of it, the publishers are probably more in favor of the Kindles or the smart readers because it's, you know, less production.

[Mike Ferguson]

I Think they probably make more money.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

As far as, like, a profit margin, I don't know. Could be wrong about that. You know, a lot of people in the past used to go to the library, check out, like, books on tape. Oh, yeah, now. Now you can pretty much listen to whatever you want at any time. Adriana had also enjoyed raising guinea pigs for several years. Another one of her hobbies was gardening with her mother. Now, she grew up in a low income household. Yvette relied on disability benefits due to arthritis and past ankle injuries. John worked odd jobs, according to court documents. Adrianna's family was on the client list for the state Department of Social and Health Services, according to an agency spokeswoman. And police had responded to incidents at the family's residence. Officers came to the apartment on September 11, 2002, after neighbors reported hearing a girl scream. According to the police report, John's breath smelled of intoxicants. He denied that any physical altercation had occurred, but Adrianna had a mark on her cheek and a bump on her head. She told police her father pulled her hair, punched her in the stomach, and on the arm, struck her on the head and scratched her face. Adrianna was taken to the hospital for evaluation. John was arrested and charged with third degree assault of a child. A temporary restraining order was issued, but a permanent order was not granted because Yvette did not appear in court. In October 2002, John pleaded guilty to fourth degree domestic violence assault. Prosecutors lowered the charge because of problems proving the allegations and a belief that the victim was against prosecution. So we have out of the gate here what appears to be a pretty serious incident, although the repercussions against John don't seem to be all that severe.

[Mike Gibson]

Right.

[Mike Ferguson]

I think due to a number of different factors, but I definitely think this was domestic violence. I mean, you're punching a young girl in the stomach, in the head, scratching her face, pulling her hair. First of all, what kind of man are you?

[Mike Gibson]

Exactly? What is wrong with you?

[Mike Ferguson]

I think, though, one of the issues with some of these is, okay, the mom doesn't go to court regarding the permanent restraining order, most likely because she probably still wants to be with this guy. And how's that going to work if the three of them can't live in the same house because of a permanent restraining order? And then there was also talk about maybe Adriana was against prosecution. Yeah, I. There was no details about it. Now, was that her or was that somebody else talking her into it?

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah. Or afraid.

[Mike Ferguson]

Or afraid.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

Of what would happen if she actually went through with it. John failed to undergo required counseling, so he was put on probation until June 2004. He has declined to speak publicly over the years, but Yvette has done multiple interviews. In a 2006 interview with the News Tribune, she noted that there were also good times in their family and that Adrianna and John played basketball and kickball on the weekends and twice attended a father daughter dance.

[Mike Gibson]

You know you're going to have those moments and even a bad relationship, you're going to have good moments, too.

[Mike Ferguson]

But those don't excuse what he did.

[Mike Gibson]

Not at all. It's never okay.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yvette said her daughter was bright and likable, with a tendency to go exploring. According to Yvette, she'd often want to go traipsing off by herself, but we wouldn't let her. Their neighbors in Tilikum helped look out for Adrianna because they didn't have any other family nearby. One of those community members was David Anderson, the pastor at Tilikum Baptist. Anderson told A and E that Adrianna was a delightful girl wanting to help, desiring to please. Sunday school teacher Jean Olson recalled that she regularly saw Adrianna playing in the neighborhood, but she was often alone. Jean told the Seattle Post Intelligencer in another interview, I loved Adriana. She was a very sweet, charming, winsome girl. She was very artistic, very creative. Pastor David Anderson recalled how Adriana became his shadow and helped him work on cars. She took the bus to church every Sunday. She also helped out in the office at his business, Bill's Boathouse on nearby American Lake.

[Mike Gibson]

Sounds like she was doing a lot.

[Mike Ferguson]

Well, it does sound like everybody had nothing but great things to say about her. I mean, she took the bus to church.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

I mean, that makes it sound like her mom and John weren't going, so she went by herself.

[Mike Gibson]

She want to make sure she got to go to church that day. That's how she did it. When she wasn't doing that well, she's down at the boathouse working, helping out. She's over here helping out. Sounds like she was pretty social, busy,

[Mike Ferguson]

but she also seemed like a really good person.

[Mike Gibson]

Right.

[Mike Ferguson]

But I do want to go back to, you know, her Sunday school teacher saying that she saw her playing in the neighborhood a lot, but she was often alone. Now, I don't know what you make of that. Maybe she didn't have a lot of friends. Maybe she preferred to be by herself.

[Mike Gibson]

Could have been.

[Mike Ferguson]

There's no way to know for sure.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

According to Yvette, in the last year of her Daughter's life. Adriana fought for independence after seeing other children and out in the neighborhood at night. Her and I fought tooth and nail all the time. She couldn't understand why she'd see younger kids playing hide and seek after dark. And I get that, you know, if you're 9, 10 years old and you're seeing kids your age or younger, being able to do something you're not allowed to do, that's going to be tough.

[Mike Gibson]

It is.

[Mike Ferguson]

But we know that different parents have different parenting styles. You know, some people are, no, you're 10 years old. You don't need to be outside after dark. While other parents might be a little less hands on and say, no, you're fine. You know, it just depends on the parent.

[Mike Gibson]

It does. Everybody, you said everybody's different. I mean, then again, she's 10 years old, taking a bus down to the church. She's going over here to the boathouse. She's going over here. Seems pretty independent.

[Mike Ferguson]

It's a lot for a 10 year old, isn't it?

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yvette always kept an eye on Adriana, and if she was out of earshot, Yvette would go looking for her. She noted that Adriana typically stayed within a few blocks of her home. So I do get the sense, Gibbs, that at least according to Yvette, she was a pretty strict parent as far as not wanting Adriana to venture out too far away from home or go out at night.

[Mike Gibson]

Okay, yeah, it sounds like she. She knew where she was going to

[Mike Ferguson]

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[Mike Ferguson]

On the night of December 1, 2005, a snowstorm hit the area. School was canceled on the morning of Friday, December 2, 2005. Clover Park School District spokeswoman Kim Prentiss told the News Tribune that the district notified the Puget Sound Emergency Communication System, which alerts TV and radio stations about school closures. Between 4:30 and 4:45am Friday. The notice appeared on the 5am News broadcast. The district also used its automated phone message system to alert families. But Adriana's parents didn't have a landline phone in their apartment. They listed a neighbor's phone as their emergency contact, but no one answered the phone that morning, per the News Tribune. And you know that could be tough, right? If you're not watching the news and you don't have a phone, how are you going to know that school is closed now? My wife does not have that problem because if she even thinks that there might be a delay or school's going to be closed for her, she's glued to that scroll across the bottom. Just hoping, just waiting for her school to come up.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

Saying closed. She'll get up early and just drink tea in front of the television. I've seen it happen in hopes that

[Mike Gibson]

she could just go back to bed here.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah, exactly. Yvette recalled that it was a normal morning while Adriana got ready for the day. She and John watched the weather to try to figure out if school was closed. They decided to send Adriana to school to see whether classes were being held. And I thought this was a little strange.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah, I think it is.

[Mike Ferguson]

I'm going to be honest with you. If you're watching the weather, is there not, like I said, kind of a scrawl at the bottom, which has been a pretty long standing thing.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

Going back to when we were younger, I think, showing which schools are on a delay, which schools are closed. I don't know what. Whether they're watching that, wouldn't have that. But obviously according to them, they had no idea. So their thought was, well, we'll send her to school and she'll find out there whether classes are being held. I just found it odd.

[Mike Gibson]

It's very strange. I mean, if you feel like the weather's bad enough that she probably doesn't have school, why not just keep her home?

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah, I could understand that.

[Mike Gibson]

Or when I walk down with her so you can bring her back if school is closed.

[Mike Ferguson]

But Adriana left home around 7:45am she was last seen walking from her apartment on Wadsworth street southwest towards Tilikum Elementary. It was a three block walk that normally took her about five minutes. The route was lined by houses and apartments. She didn't have to pass through any woods or narrow alleyways. Yvette gave Adrianna a hug and told her to come right back. If school was closed, Adrianna promised that she would. I go back to something you just said, why not just one of them walk down with her? It's three blocks.

[Mike Gibson]

Why not walk with her five minutes down, five minutes back? Not that difficult.

[Mike Ferguson]

No, again, I'm not. I don't want to bad mouth them because I don't know the situation. It's just the things that are happening, I guess from my point of view don't make sense. I guess for what I would have done. Yeah, yeah. I'm not saying it's wrong. I just feel like I. Maybe I would have done it a little differently.

[Mike Gibson]

I mean, we're, you know, doing the old Monday morning quarterback thing. Yeah, but.

[Mike Ferguson]

Which is easy. Yeah, but I don't want to make it out as like they're bad people because of it. Now, when she didn't return, her parents just assumed school was open. Although school was closed, some employees were in the building that day. No one reported seeing Adrianna arrive in the morning.

[Mike Gibson]

So it sounds like she never made it down there.

[Mike Ferguson]

That's exactly what it sounds like. She also wasn't seen by the Fennel children who were playing in the snow across the street from the school in front of the Tilikum Baptist Church rectory. This was according to their father, Reverend Scott Fennell. I would have thought if she saw them, if she knew them, they probably would have said, hey, turn around, school's closed. Or now, maybe she didn't know them at all and they didn't know her.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah, but still, if you saw some kids out playing, you're probably thinking, pretty

[Mike Ferguson]

good chance school is closed. Yeah. Adriana's parents became worried when she didn't come home from school at her usual time. Their worry increased when they learned there was no school that day. Yeah, I know. For me, that's when panic would. Would set in. Now, now I get it, right? If you put your kid on the bus or your kid walks to school or you drop them off or whatever it is, you are assuming that if you don't get a call from the school, they're there and everything's fine.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

The problem is if there is no school that day, you're not getting a call from the school to say that she didn't make it because there ain't nobody there to make that call.

[Mike Gibson]

Exactly.

[Mike Ferguson]

And there's no reason to make it because she's not supposed to be there.

[Mike Gibson]

I'm also just a little surprised in this neighborhood that you don't hear kids outside playing, or if you even went outside for a minute, you might see some kids playing. Because I know when my kids were in school, I always knew when they didn't have school, because I could hear the kids outside playing out in the

[Mike Ferguson]

snow at 7 something in the morning.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah. I could hear him out there. I'm like, oh, yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

I said, if it was me, and I knew there was no school, I'm going back to bed. Yeah, I know my kids would have been the same way, but. And I get you.

[Mike Gibson]

And I certainly would know if I, like, went out at lunchtime and saw kids here and there at the. On the. You know, out in front of their houses playing with snow, or I'd be like, oh, the kids didn't have any school today.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah. But there was no mention that either Yvette or John went anywhere that day.

[Progressive Insurance Announcer]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

They searched for Adriana in some of her normal hangout spots. When they didn't find her, they called 911 to report her missing at 4:23pm and this is something similar, Right. That we see in many unsolved cases when somebody doesn't make it home at the time they're supposed to. There's not always a call to 911 right away. What we see is a lot of times parents go out on their own.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

To maybe places that they think their child might be. And then if they don't find them in any of those places, they come home and they make the 911 call. So I don't know that this is out of the ordinary at all.

[Mike Gibson]

No. I think, you know, you don't want to even believe that she's missing or she's lost. You just want to think maybe she went over to this friend's or she went over to, you know, the boathouse, or maybe she went over here, you know, because she didn't have school. But when you can't find her, then that panic sets in even deeper, and then that's when you got to make that call.

[Mike Ferguson]

When I also think that there's a. There's a part of people, they don't want to call 911 unnecessarily.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah. That's true.

[Mike Ferguson]

You know, you don't want to jump the gun and call and then she walks in the door and then you kind of look like an idiot.

[Mike Gibson]

You're the parent that overreacted.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah. So there's a fine line there of when do you make that call? Police officers and residents of Tilikum spent the evening searching for Adriana. They checked railroad tracks, ditches, parks, empty apartments, trailers, and abandoned houses. Tilikum is a small one square mile community, so it was very concerning when Adrianna was not found. One square mile. Still a bit to search, but I think when it comes to a community, it's not a. It's not a big place.

[Mike Gibson]

No, it's feasible to search that with the fair amount of people.

[Mike Ferguson]

As night approached and the temperature fell, the police called in the Pierce County Search and Rescue Service. On the night of December 3, 2005, the Lakewood Police called off the search for Adriana. Lakewood Assistant Police Chief Dave hall said, as quoted by the News Tribune, we haven't given up hope, but we've searched all logical and available places where this young girl could have gone. Authorities had also searched American Lake, which was several hundred feet from Adrianna's apartment building. However, divers found nothing in the water. So, yeah, it's only two days, but like we said, one square mile. They even had divers in the lake, at least according to the assistant police chief. They checked everywhere they knew to check. Police did note that there were 51 registered sex offenders in the neighborhood, and they were seeking alibis from all of them. Okay, I don't know how many people are in this town. In this one square mile town, 51 registered sex offenders could be a really high percentage. Seems like a lot depending on the population of the town. On December 5, it was announced that the FBI had joined the search and an underwater unit would search American Lake with sonar equipment. Detectives spent the weekend following up on leads. Two girls reported that they spoke with Adriana on the night of December 2nd at Woodbrook Middle School, located east of I5. But ultimately, nothing came of this tip. FBI divers searched the lake on December 6th, but found no signs of Adriana. What I will say, Gibbs, is that it does seem like they're not taking this search lightly.

[Mike Gibson]

No, it seems like everybody's trying to

[Mike Ferguson]

do their part and they've even had the FBI in, so it's not like they've turned away assistance from other agencies. Investigators did say that a search dog tracked Adriana's scent to the water on December 3rd. Yvette also noted that Adrianna liked to play near the lake.

[Mike Gibson]

Poor kid doesn't.

[Mike Ferguson]

Who doesn't like a lake? But this is concerning, right? A search dog tracking her scent to the water. The problem is they've already had police divers, FBI divers. There was talk of bringing in sonar equipment. They hadn't found anything yet. And then the FBI search ended on December 8th after finding no evidence that she was in the water. Police said no additional searches of the lake were planned unless they were given specific information that would necessitate a search. Detectives were also continuing to verify the alibis of the 51 registered sex offenders in Tilika. And I don't think that's a bad place to start.

[Mike Gibson]

Not at all.

[Mike Ferguson]

Now, because you're a registered sex offender, does it mean you're going to harm a child? Not necessarily. But obviously you've done something in your past to cause you to have to be a registered sex offenders, which allows

[Mike Gibson]

you to be open to these investigations. Yep.

[Mike Ferguson]

On December 10, it was reported that the Lakewood police had confiscated a boat and a dumpster from American Lake North county park as part of their investigation. Investigators were alerted to the boat by a witness who said it had been tied to a public dock for a couple of days and was out of place. The dumpster was found near the boat.

[Mike Gibson]

You had the dog tracker scent up till the lake, then stop. Maybe that's when she got in a boat or got put into a boat.

[Mike Ferguson]

Could be. Could possibly be. I'm kind of trying to figure out this dumpster. How big of a dumpster are we talking about? Yeah, like the dumpster out back of a store that would have to be picked up by, you know, those. The trucks that have the hooks. Hooks on them. And if so, why is it found by the boat? I don't know. It seems strange. Lt. Brett Farrar of the Lakewood PD said they collected the boat to leave no stone unturned, not because of anything suspicious. And I kind of feel like they don't have anything suspicious at this point other than the fact that she's missing.

[Mike Gibson]

Right.

[Mike Ferguson]

They don't have any real leads tips that they've been able to make anything out of. But it does seem like they're just doing anything and everything they can do to check on what they can, which is great.

[Mike Gibson]

I'm glad they're doing that.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah, me too. Investigators admitted they still had no person of interest or suspect. Police reported that John Federici told them he walked Adriana part of the way down the block before turning back on the morning of December 2nd. However, elements of his account changed in subsequent discussions and we questioned it. Right. Why wouldn't one of them walk her down there?

[Mike Gibson]

Three.

[Mike Ferguson]

Three blocks, Right. Five minutes. Well, now John's saying that he did walk her, but just part of the way. And then he turned back.

[Mike Gibson]

Why not?

[Mike Ferguson]

That makes no sense at all to me.

[Mike Gibson]

No, because if you're saying it's a five minute walk, why not just go the distance?

[Mike Ferguson]

You what? You turned back at what minute? 3. Or at a block and a half

[Mike Gibson]

or, you know, it looks like the school's probably open. Okay, I'll see you later.

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[Mike Ferguson]

Lt. Farrar said on December 9, as quoted by the Post Intelligencer. Where we're at is we have no strong persons of interest, but no one has been cleared either. Anyone who's had anything to do with this girl is being looked at. And I would have to thank Gibbs. John would be one of those people. Let's go back to the incident of domestic violence. You know, police have to know about it. Of course, it's on their radar, which means John has to be on their radar. And then he kind of gives this somewhat strange version of events where he walks Adriana part of the way to the school, even though it's not that far. And then he turns around and comes back.

[Mike Gibson]

I think, you know, both mom and dad are going to probably be on the radar for now.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah, until they're ruled out for sure. Family always is. On December 13, it was announced that the FBI would return to American Lake to use sonar to map the lake floor between Bill's Boathouse, Silcox island and Harry Todd Park. The week prior, agents searched the docks at the park and divers searched the surrounding water. You know, the one thing that I was just thinking about is it's December in Washington state. Not going to be warm. No.

[Mike Gibson]

It's going to be a little chilly out. Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

Can't imagine that. These divers are too comfortable. I know they have those wetsuits. They can be pretty insulated, but still got to be cold.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah, of course. I don't know how I'd feel about being one of those divers, though, to be. To recover, you know, you're going down there to recover somebody.

[Mike Ferguson]

Well, if they're in the water, absolutely.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

They're not going to be alive.

[Mike Gibson]

So I can't imagine seeing anybody, especially a child now.

[Mike Ferguson]

It would be tough. It would be hard for me because I don't know how to scuba dive.

[Mike Gibson]

No, you don't like water anyway.

[Mike Ferguson]

I don't mind water.

[Mike Gibson]

You won't even bathe.

[Mike Ferguson]

That's just a time thing.

[Mike Gibson]

Okay.

[Mike Ferguson]

I felt like my time is better spent in other ways.

[Mike Gibson]

Okay.

[Mike Ferguson]

Police asked the FBI to expand their search not because of any specific information, but because, according to them, we're just trying everything again. It goes back to my theory that they don't have much to go on. So they're just. They're trying to cover all their bases.

[Mike Gibson]

There's nothing wrong with that. You know, keep throwing things up on the wall, hope something sticks.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah.

[Mike Gibson]

If it doesn't, go find some other stuff to throw up in the wall maybe, or get somewhere.

[Mike Ferguson]

Well, I feel like if you don't have any specific leads or tips, there's really not much else you can do.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

Investigators renewed their plea for information and emphasized that no one has been ruled out. Lakewood police were still seeking the owner. They of the 14 foot boat abandoned at the public dock. It had no identifying numbers, name or brand. Okay. Little strange.

[Mike Gibson]

It is.

[Mike Ferguson]

In late December, Yvette Gervais expressed her frustration with the investigation and the fact that she and John remained suspects. She told the News Tribune, they've spent too much time on us. I think we're stuck in a rut. I wish I had a lead. Police said that both parents were given lie detector tests. Yvette passed, while John's test was inconclusive.

[Mike Gibson]

The old inconclusive.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah, it's one of those things where. Well, what does it really mean? Inconclusive? What does that mean? But it also might be why it was pretty hard for police to rule them out. Now, if they'd have both passed, would they have? Maybe. I don't know. Lt. Farrar noted, Nobody's going to be considered a suspect or cleared based solely on a polygraph. It's just another tool that we use. And I actually absolutely love that statement. Yeah, I don't think anyone should be conclusively cleared or conclusively considered a suspect solely based on a polygraph result. I just don't view them that way.

[Mike Gibson]

No, but I like using it as a reference.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah. I don't think it's a bad tool. It just can't be the end all be all. Police were continuing to interview anyone who knew Adrianna or her parents. They were also testing items seized from the family's residence, such as diaries and clothing. In her interview with the News Tribune, Yvette said she had talked to John and asked him some difficult questions and she didn't believe he had anything to do with Adriana's disappearance. She said, I've done my own resurvey of my house. I believe him. I really do. Now there probably is nobody that knows him better than her at this point in time.

[Mike Gibson]

And if she believes him, she believes him.

[Mike Ferguson]

But does she believe him because she wants to believe him. And I think that can happen when you're in a relationship with someone. Do you really want to believe that this person who's been in your life for X number of years could actually be responsible for the death of your

[Mike Gibson]

daughter and his daughter?

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah, I think it's a tough one. On December 22, the Lakewood Police searched the home of a friend of Adriana's parents. The man told Kiro TV that officers accused him of molesting Adriana, which he denied. Cadaver dogs also searched the neighborhood that day but found nothing. Okay, that's a little tough to go on TV and say that officers accused you of molesting this girl who's gone missing. This 10 year old girl. Let's not forget that.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah, 10 years old.

[Mike Ferguson]

Now the problem is we don't really know where they got their information from or how good it was. Additional searches over the next four months yielded no clues. On April 4, 2006, two boys playing on an undeveloped two acre property at 140 Sixth Street Southwest and 76th Avenue Southwest found a human skull and spine in a BlackBerry bush. The boys who found her were Dominique Eason and Manny Peters, both nine years old. They were hunting for snakes in the underbrush and instead found human remains. The boys ran to the first adult they could find, but that person didn't believe them. The boys had a feeling that the bones could be their missing classmate. In Adrianna So they ran to a nearby apartment complex and asked the manager to call the police. The manager went to look at the remains before calling the police. Officers determined the bones were human. Now, I get it. You got a couple of nine year olds saying something. Could it be hard to believe? I guess so. But to me, if they said they found human remains, I'm probably going to err on the side of them being truthful.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah, I think you have to. Right?

[Mike Ferguson]

Well, apparently not, because one person completely dismissed them.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah, I don't get that.

[Mike Ferguson]

On April 5, the police announced that dental records identified the remains as Adrianna Jackson. Adrianna's remains were found just one mile from her home and several blocks from Woodbrook Middle School, where two girls said they saw and spoke to Adrianna on the night of December 2nd. The site was also less than five feet from one of several encampments on the vacant lot one mile from her home. Yeah, and unfortunately we've done a number of cases where it turns out that, you know, remains are found in a very similar situation not far at all from where the person lived.

[Mike Gibson]

I mean, she's close, right? I mean, a mile from the house, not too far from her school either.

[Mike Ferguson]

And they've been searching for her for a while now. Police noted that construction workers had been in the lot clearing brush and excavating, which is what might have exposed and scattered the bunch. After the identification, Yvette Gervais sister spoke on her behalf and said she was in Colorado caring for her sick mother and was not up for interviews at that time. John Federici's neighbor David Jacobson told the News Tribune, he's been on pins and needles. I think it's going to kill Yvette emotionally. I think it'll kill John too. He loved that little girl so much. So I think some of that does help explain why maybe they weren't able to find her during the search. Sounds like it was a really densely wooded area, brush, stuff like that. And it was really due to this excavation that I think her. Her remains were uncovered, thankfully.

[Mike Gibson]

Right. I mean, if they didn't clear that lot, who knows how long it would have been before they would have found her.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah, it could have been a long time. The FBI's evidence response team spent 10 days at the site collecting hundreds of pieces of evidence, such as cigarette butts, empty soda cans and other trash. More of Adriana's bones were recovered from the site. At a news conference on April 10, officials released a photo and description of 44 year old Spencer Douglas Grant who was known to frequent the lot where Adriana's remains were found. Police emphasized that Grant was in jail when Adriana went missing, so he was not a suspect or person of interest in her death. However, officials heard he was familiar with the encampments around the lot and was aware of what was going on in the area. At the time of Adrianna's disappearance, Grant was serving a 335 day sentence for trespassing and was released on February 22, 2006. That is a heck of a sentence for trespassing. Seems like it.

[Mike Gibson]

Seems like it. But I wonder what was all involved in that.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah, we don't know the details, but that's almost a year for trespassing. Must have been a serious trespass. But I do want to go back to this lot and the talk of encampments. It makes it sound like there were people living in tents or some type of makeshift shelters around this area, and this guy Grant was one of them.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

Now they know he was in jail when Adriana went missing, but they're also collecting all of this evidence, and I think it's going to be really tough to figure out if any of it goes. Goes with the fact that she went missing, because you have all these people out there just kind of living on the land, I guess, and probably throwing their cigarette butts and their empty cans all over the place.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah, I think it's going to be kind of tough, but I guess collect what you can in hopes that you can use it down the road, maybe.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah. There's no harm in collecting at all.

[Mike Gibson]

Right.

[Mike Ferguson]

Except for time and paying people salaries,

[Mike Gibson]

but time and money.

[Mike Ferguson]

Police also announced that the reward for information had increased to $60,000 after the FBI contributed 50,000 on April 11. Julie Warren, the girlfriend of Spencer Grant, told the News Tribune that Grant found the skeletal remains in March, but did not call police to report the discovery. He found the Bones on March 10th or 11th. Grant wanted her to go to the lot to look at the remains and to see if it was the right size to be Adrianna Jackson. But she never did. Neither she nor Grant called the police because there didn't seem to be any time for it.

[Mike Gibson]

Any time for it. We were just so busy, we didn't have time to pick up the phone and call the police.

[Mike Ferguson]

That is such a strange revelation.

[Mike Gibson]

Very strange.

[Mike Ferguson]

So it sounds like he might have found her remains almost a full month, Gibbs, before these boys found them. He told his girlfriend about it. He wanted her to come see it. She didn't. But even so neither of them called the police, even if you didn't think it was her? Yeah, it's got to be somebody.

[Mike Gibson]

So just call the police. You don't need to leave your name. Just say, hey, found some. Let's call them bones over here. At such. Such address. Click.

[Mike Ferguson]

Now, Grant was back in jail on March 13, and she was heavily pregnant and gave birth on March 23. She hadn't seen or heard from Grant since April 1, when he left to look for one of his sisters. So maybe there's something to it there. You know, she literally gives birth less than two weeks after he finds these bones. Doesn't surprise me that she doesn't want to go look at him, but to not pick up the phone, I mean, I think it's fair to question that.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah, I think so, too.

[Mike Ferguson]

Investigators continued searching the lot for evidence, and 100 people gathered outside Adrianna's elementary school for a memorial. John Federici attended but did not speak to the crowd. And I really don't make much of that, to be honest with you. I think if this happened to my daughter, I don't think I'd be able to speak to a large crowd. It would be very tough.

[Mike Gibson]

Hard to pull up the words to put out there.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah. So I don't make anything out of stuff like that. Investigators ended their search of the vacant lot on April 14. They reported that callers had been contacting Crime Stoppers with sightings of Spencer Grant, but he hadn't been located. On April 18, detectives detained Grant for questioning. He was cooperative. Authorities planned to book him on outstanding warrants. After they finished questioning him on the 19th, he told the News Tribune he was surprised no one found the bones before he did. I don't see how no one couldn't see that body. It was in plain view. Somebody should have found her. He said he found the bones next to a cleared trail. When he first saw them, he thought it was a dog's skeleton. He used a stick to lift a branch, obscuring the remains, and saw a skull and spine. But he didn't think it was Adrianna. He explained, the skeleton was so far gone, I didn't think she would decompose that fast. I thought it was an older man because a lot of the teeth were capped. I didn't think it was her. I was hoping it wasn't her. Grant also claimed he thought he knew who killed Adriana, but refused to elaborate. Okay, we got a lot going on here.

[Progressive Insurance Announcer]

Yeah, we do.

[Mike Ferguson]

First of all, I just don't understand not calling the police to report the fact that you found what you believe are human remains that ultimately do turn out to be human remains. And he's talking about, well, I didn't think it was her. Okay, I get it. You didn't think it was her, but again, it's still somebody. Why not just call the police and let them handle it?

[Mike Gibson]

I don't get it. I really don't understand it.

[Mike Ferguson]

Unless he's out there doing something he shouldn't be doing.

[Mike Gibson]

Well, if he is frequently going to this lot, there's got to be some type of illegal activity going on.

[Mike Ferguson]

Well, and obviously he's got a criminal record. He's in and out of jail, it sounds like, but we don't know, other than trespassing, I don't know what else his record contained. And then there's this revelation, right, that he knows or he thinks he knows who killed Adriana. But I'm not going to elaborate on that.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah, what? Come on, now.

[Mike Ferguson]

If you know or think you know who did it, can you at least tell the police? It just seems to be something going on with this guy.

[Mike Gibson]

It's almost kind of like a game, maybe.

[Mike Ferguson]

He admitted he found the remains three weeks to a month before the official discovery, and he told about 15 to 20 people about it, but no one called the police.

[Mike Gibson]

He can tell 15 to 20 people, but he can't tell the police. Yeah, and then these people, for whatever reason, they didn't want to tell the police either. That's how much losing this girl did not mean to them.

[Mike Ferguson]

Well, he gave investigators the names of a dozen men and women who frequented the vacant lot, which was reportedly a popular spot for people to smoke meth.

[Mike Gibson]

There you go.

[Mike Ferguson]

So that might be part of the answer.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

For why he didn't want to call, for why none of these other people wanted to call. Because you're going to get asked, what are you doing out in this vacant lot? And you don't want to tell the police you're smoking methods. But then to me, you know, him saying, well, I didn't call because I didn't think it was her is probably not the most honest statement. It's more like, well, you didn't call because you're out there smoking meth and you didn't want to get in trouble.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah. You didn't want us to come out there and bust that site and take away your. You get your meth supply at.

[Mike Ferguson]

Grant also claimed he showed investigators bloody children's clothes during a trip to the lot. These clothes were collected, but Police noted they were not bloody. On April 20, a police official said they were looking hard at half a dozen people, including a man in the Pierce county jail. This man was an acquaintance of Adrianna's parents. Police spoke to him early in the investigation and again before he was arrested on April 13 for outstanding domestic violence warrants and. And for failure to register as a sex offender. Yeah, that is a guy you probably want to look at.

[Mike Gibson]

Need to look at.

[Mike Ferguson]

By late April, the Pierce county medical investigators had finished examining Adrianna's remains. Medical examiner Dr. John Howard was still awaiting reports from law enforcement and a forensic anthropologist before making his ruling on the cause and manner of death. On May 26, 2006, the Pierce county medical examiner declared Adrianna's cause and manner of death undetermined due to decomposition. Her death certificate states skeletal remains insufficient information to determine cause of death. And I get it, man. It can be tough with solely skeletal remains.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

To determine a lot. Now, we've seen it could have a broken hyoid bone that maybe would denote strangulation. You could have knife marks on some of the. The bones, maybe the rib cages. That might lead investigators to believe somebody was stabbed. But if you don't have any of that, well, you'd just be guessing.

[Mike Gibson]

Well, that's all you would be doing at that point.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah, and obviously, if the person was shot in the head, you'd have bullet holes in the sk. And things like that. But without all of that, I could see why it would be hard to determine. Authorities continued investigating Adriana's death as a homicide. However, the undetermined ruling not only makes solving her case more difficult, but it also makes prosecution more difficult if an arrest is made. And that does make sense to me. Obviously, if you had the cause of death is homicidal violence or something along those lines, that would be better for a prosecution down the road with it being undetermined. That would give the defense attorney or a defense attorney some ammunition. Right. To help better defend their client. Hey, they couldn't even determine at the time that this person was murdered. Now you want to try my client

[Mike Gibson]

for murder, but if it's undetermined. It's undetermined.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yes.

[Mike Gibson]

You know, it's better than, you know, some of these cases we do, they say it's suicide, but then they have to go back and change it to undetermined because it really wasn't suicide.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah, I'm with you. If you. You can't figure it out, then just mark it undetermined. I do believe it's Possible to change it to homicidal violence later on? Yeah, if there's some irrefutable evidence that comes in that points to that, I could be wrong, but I think that's possible. The location of the crime also complicated the investigation, according to Lt. Chris Lawler of the Lakewood Police. Per Fox 13 Seattle. We're right next to i5. Anybody could come off that freeway a predator. There's all sorts of suspects. It could be someone that she knew, could have been a sex offender living in the area. I mean, there's all sorts of information. In the summer of 2007, authorities began looking into the possibility that serial rapist Terrapondang Adhan was linked to Adrianna's disappearance. Adhan was charged with multiple counts of rape in Pierce County. The charges involved two underage victims. Prosecutors also planned to file aggravated murder charges against him for the July 4th abduction and murder of 12 year old Zena Lennick. Zena disappeared from outside her home in Tacoma on the night of July 4, 2007, during a fireworks display. Xena's father heard her scream and then saw a van driving off. He was able to get a partial license plate that led police to Adhan, who was arrested July 8, four days after he was arrested. Once prosecutors agreed to take the death penalty off the table, he led investigators to Zena's body. Zena was found in the Silver Lake area near Eatonville. She had been raped and died from a blow to the head.

[Mike Gibson]

So this guy has the M.O. to do this?

[Mike Ferguson]

Well, he's certainly capable of, of it. There's no doubt about that. Xena was 12, Adriana was 10. Both very, very young. Adriana was abducted in 2006. Xena was abducted and killed in 2007. So you know, the time frame, the, the area, all of that, while not exactly probably doesn't rule him out for sure, right? According to NBC Terrapan, Adhan arrived in the US from Thailand in the 70s after his mother married a soldier. He enlisted in the army in 1983 after graduating from an American high school in Germany. His Service ended in 1990 after he was convicted of incest for raping a female relative. He was sentenced to two months in jail and five years of counseling. He told his counselors he was sexually abused by an older brother growing up. Okay, I'm not sure about a conviction of incest for raping a female relative. I get it, it is incest, but it's rape, right? And you get two months in jail.

[Mike Gibson]

It's a slap on the hand.

[Mike Ferguson]

That's not even. That's like a whiff. That's like you went to slap this guy's hand and you missed completely.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

Adhan was considered a person of interest in Adriana's death because he had the day off work and was in the area at the time she went missing. Ken Spruill, former owner of the defunct tow company where Adhan was employed in December 2005, said the business was closed that day due to the weather. Lakewood police put up flyers with Adhan's photo throughout town asking residents if he had been seen in the area. Several residents said they had, but none recalled seeing him the day Adriana went missing. On July 4, 2007, he was charged with the kidnapping, rape and murder of Zena Lennox. He was also charged with the 1995 kidnapping and rape of a 21 year old woman and the repeated sexual abuse of a teenage girl who lived with him for several years. This guy was an absolute monster, really was. And a predator. On July 31, Lakewood detectives spent hours tearing apart a garden in his sister's backyard where he previously lived. Investigators drained a pond and removed topsoil. They also obtained a DNA sample from him. In February 2008, the Lakewood Police received test results from the carpet samples taken from the home where Adhan once lived, but they wouldn't speak on the results. On April 7, 2008, Adhan pleaded guilty to 15 crimes, including one count of aggravated first degree murder, first degree kidnapping and first degree rape for the July 2007 murder of Zena Linnick, three counts of first degree rape and one count of first degree kidnapping for the case of an 11 year old Tacoma girl abducted on the way to school in May 2000. After being raped, the victim was left in a secluded area on Fort Lewis. One count of first degree rape, three counts of second degree rape and three counts of third degree rape of a child for repeated sexual assaults of a teen girl who lived with him from 2003 to 2005. This girl reported that she was sexually abused up to 200 times and there were at least 15 instances where she was physically restrained and held down while Adhan raped her. The girl said the abuse stopped when she fled the home at age 16 after Adhan raped her at gunpoint.

[Mike Gibson]

What a monster.

[Mike Ferguson]

Finally, he pleaded guilty to one count of failing to register as a sex offender. He was sentenced to life in prison on May 2, 2008. You're right. Absolute monster. Life in prison. And this guy should never, you know, see freedom again.

[Mike Gibson]

Never.

[Mike Ferguson]

But we've Seen time after time. This is what can happen when someone gets two months for raping a family member. Again, Gibbs, what type of message are you sending? And it can only be one message. Yeah, I got caught, but the consequences aren't that bad, so I'll do it again. So there's nothing stopping me.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah, right.

[Mike Ferguson]

I just don't get it now. I get. I do get it was a different time, but it wasn't like it was the 1950s.

[Mike Gibson]

Right?

[Mike Ferguson]

Right, it was 1990. Two months in jail and five years of counseling. You have got to be shitting me. Yeah, that's how upset I am about that.

[Mike Gibson]

It's a joke.

[Mike Ferguson]

It is a joke. Or it would be a joke if he didn't go on to then hurt so many other people.

[Mike Gibson]

Right?

[Mike Ferguson]

I mean, what are we doing, man?

[Mike Gibson]

Probably why he was on probation.

[Mike Ferguson]

Man, that's got me fired up. So, once the deal was complete, investigators planned to request that prosecutors ask Adhan if he killed Adriana Jackson. They thought that with the life sentence, he would have nothing to lose and may be willing to cooperate. The problem is there don't seem to be any recent updates in regards to his possible connection to the death of Adrianna. It seems that authorities never publicly ruled him out as a suspect, and there are no announcements confirming he's linked to the case.

[Mike Gibson]

Why would he help? He's not going to help. Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

Is there anything in it for him? No. And do people do this when there's nothing in it for them? Normally not, no. In April 2025, the Washington Attorney General's missing and murdered indigenous women in person Cold Case Unit took over the case. The purpose of the Cold Case Unit is to assist federal, municipal, county and tribal law enforcement agencies and solving missing person and cold homicide cases involving indigenous people. Investigation begins when a local police agency or jurisdiction makes a request. Adrianna's case was forwarded to the unit in mid 2024. The team goes over the case file, then meets with the local agency to discuss next steps, such as identifying additional people to interview, canvassing locations, and potentially using DNA technology. Experts hope that the Cold Case Unit will utilize methods and technologies that weren't available in 2006 that could determine Adrianna's manner of death or that DNA could be found to identify a suspect. So as we wrap this one up, Gibbs, you know, as of right now, at the time we're recording this, 2026, Adriana Jackson's death remains unsolved and her cause and manner of death are still undetermined. And I get the Second part.

[Mike Gibson]

Right.

[Mike Ferguson]

They just don't have enough evidence to say one way or another how she died.

[Jessi Perry]

Man.

[Mike Ferguson]

There are a number of people who we talked about who could potentially be involved in what happened to her. This last guy was an absolute monster.

[Mike Gibson]

Sure.

[Mike Ferguson]

Was he abducted and murdered at least one girl.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

While she was on her way to school. And she was young, I think, like 12 years old.

[Mike Gibson]

Right.

[Mike Ferguson]

So in the same age range as Adriana. I think what's often frustrating with. With a case like this is, you know, they're really looking at this guy. They're looking at this guy and. And the papers are talking about him, and then there's just nothing.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah, then there's nothing after that.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah. So, you know, is it that they're still working on it? They didn't find anything and it wasn't worth reporting on. We don't know.

[Mike Gibson]

It's just sad this happened to that little girl, you know, you want her parents to know what happened and see justice delivered.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah. And again, you know, I hate to cast aspersions on the family, but I do understand why it would be hard for police to rule out John. You know, he has a criminal record. He has a criminal record against Adrianna.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah, he does.

[Mike Ferguson]

For domestic violence. And then he himself put him with her that morning for whatever reason, walking partway to the school, but then turning around and coming back. It seems strange. It doesn't mean he had anything to do with what happened to her, but it does seem strange.

[Mike Gibson]

So until you get certain answers, you're left with the unknown. Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

And you can't rule him out.

[Mike Gibson]

Right.

[Mike Ferguson]

It would be almost impossible, but at the same time, there's nothing that directly points towards him, or at least nothing that has been made known. Man, I. I tell you, I would keep looking at this Adhan guy.

[Mike Gibson]

Oh, for sure.

[Mike Ferguson]

He looks to me like he could have done anything. I wouldn't put anything past this guy. And I do think, you know, when they talk about, like, this new cold case unit and potentially using DNA technology that wasn't available back then, I mean, if they've got any DNA at all, then that's how they're going to solve this case for sure. But we don't know if they do or not.

[Mike Gibson]

So if they do, this will want

[Mike Ferguson]

to be able to keep an eye on, and we hope that it, you know, it gets solved sooner than later. But that's it for our episode on Adriana Jackson. We got a voicemail. You want to check that out?

[Mike Gibson]

Let's hear it.

[Mike Ferguson]

Hey, what's up, guys? It's testing, cat. I'm listening to the newest unsolved and gibby, you're kind of right. It is the Wild Thornberries. That little girl's name was Eliza. I believe he was from, like, Australia, and she had special powers to talk to animals. But you're semi right. It's a wild Thornberry. All right, guys, stay safe. Keep going. I love it when people say, you're right, and then they have to say, well, you know, you're semi right.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

Because you said the Wild Quizzenberries or something like that.

[Mike Gibson]

I was at the ballpark.

[Mike Ferguson]

I don't even think you're in the stadium.

[Mike Gibson]

Hey, I'm not gonna have you seen.

[Mike Ferguson]

I don't even. I don't even think you're playing the same game.

[Mike Gibson]

I'm not gonna argue with him. He's a badass who tats and cats.

[Mike Ferguson]

Oh, well, I haven't seen him, but

[Mike Gibson]

yeah, he's like one of those.

[Mike Ferguson]

I will take your word for it.

[Mike Gibson]

Jiu Jitsu.

[Mike Ferguson]

What? What is it? No, I think you said it correctly. I just. It came out so fast, I didn't hear it.

[Mike Gibson]

He's, like, a champion. And he's also a trainer.

[Mike Ferguson]

Okay, well, he's.

[Mike Gibson]

He's. He looks like he's a guy you would want on your side.

[Jessi Perry]

Yeah.

[Mike Gibson]

Not against you.

[Mike Ferguson]

No. Thanks for telling me before I say something bad about.

[Mike Gibson]

Also, like, you can tell he's, like, a really good guy.

[Mike Ferguson]

Okay.

[Mike Gibson]

From some of his posts that I've seen.

[Mike Ferguson]

Well, we need him on our side for sure. But no, I got a lot of people on Patreon saying, yeah, it was the Wild Thornberrys.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

I never heard of either one of these things you're talking about, so your

[Mike Gibson]

kids must not have watched them.

[Mike Ferguson]

I think it was. It might have been before my. My kids time. Because your kids are just a little bit older. Your oldest is a little older.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah. I want to say it was like the Rugrats grew up or something.

[Mike Ferguson]

I don't remember them watching Rugrats or anything like that.

[Mike Gibson]

They were.

[Mike Ferguson]

They were watching iCarly and all those shows.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah. I don't know.

[Mike Ferguson]

But yeah. Yeah. You know, you people will always find a way for you to be at least a little bit right, even if you're 100% wrong.

[Mike Gibson]

Yep. I'm at least I'm 100% right 60% of the time.

[Mike Ferguson]

60% of the time. It works every time.

[Mike Gibson]

Exactly.

[Mike Ferguson]

Sex Panther.

[Mike Gibson]

Wow.

[Mike Ferguson]

All right, buddy. That is it for another episode of True Crime. All the time. Unsolved. So for Mike and Gibby, stay safe and keep your own time ticking.

[Mike Gibson]

Sam foreign.

[Mike Ferguson]

Welcome to Pluto Foe if you know the name of the movie you'd like to see, just stream it for free on Pluto tv, where all your blockbuster favorites are landing all summer long. Catch Anchorman the Legend of Ron Burgundy.

[Mike Gibson]

Fantastic.

[Mike Ferguson]

The Matrix Trilogy. Welcome to the real world, Mean Girls.

[Jessi Perry]

Shut up.

[Mike Ferguson]

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[Mike Gibson]

I'm the king of the world.

[Mike Ferguson]

And so much more. For Showtime's press nothing. They're free 24. 7 that is so fast. On Pluto TV. Stream now.

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[Mike Ferguson]

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