Cheyann Klus went missing on December 2nd, 2017. She remained a missing person for nearly three years before her body was discovered in a drainage pipe in Chalamont Park in May 2018, in the immediate vicinity of where her car had been found. "There was some evidence we were looking at that was found at the scene when she initially disappeared that bothered us," Hudson said. Ebby Jane Steppach was born March 31, 1997 at 6:30 a.m. She died October 25, 2015, the day her car was abandoned at Chalamont Park in West Little Rock. Isolated Japanese family keeps sisters body at home in Press J to jump to the feed. likeawolf 4 yr. ago My motto in general for life problems She was really rebelling and fighting, fighting back and storming out, Laurie said. Many personal items were strewn about the car, including Ebbys phone, wallet and contact lenses. [4] Later that evening, when Steppach's mother, Laurie Jernigan, and stepfather attempted to reach her by phone, they got no response; her stepfather suspected she had gone to retrieve the video of her rape. The search to find her lasted until May 2018, when her remains were found in a drainpipe in Chalamont Park. The event was held by H.A.L.O.S. In the News - Published on May 19, 2022 Dr. Phil devotes his platform to shine a light on the 2015 disappearance and subsequent death of 18-year-old Ebby Steppach; a story that dominated national news. Family Member, Friend or Colleague of a Guest. Our cold case unit is comprised of seasoned investigators who have retired as active members of the Little Rock Police Department. Did Dr Bob drink before he died? $18 SIM-only plan. Ebby Jane Steppach (March 31, 1997 October 25, 2015)[2] was an American woman who disappeared under mysterious circumstances in Little Rock, Arkansas. In 2015, Ebby Steppach was sexually assaulted at a party, and disappeared days later. Hudson obtained maps of the drainage pipes from the city and took a team back down to Chalamont Park, where they sent cameras down drainage pipes. Investigations, which is dedicated to locating missing and trafficked children, and T.H.O.R.N., an international anti-human trafficking organization that works to address the sexual exploitation of children. It was hard for all of us.. On October 27, Ebby's 2003 Volkswagen Passat was discovered by security guard, Guy Hooper, abandoned in a parking lot near a wooded area in a neighborhood park named Chalamont Park. Throughout the evening, cell phone records showed Ebby sent text messages to men she had implicated in her rape, threatening. The Disappearance of Nguyet Thu Wiki Phung, Case Update: Brittanee Drexels Remains Discovered After 13 Years, Suspect Charged, The Disappearances of Tina & Bethany Sinclair. Later, they basically admitted that the beginnings of the case were mishandled (without actually admitting it, of course). Ebby opted to move out and bounced around between staying with friends and her older brother, Trevor. Ebby was a young woman with big dreams and a fiery personality, who loved her family and had a big heart for those less fortunate. They have the names of the guys she claimed assaulted her, but no formal investigation of them has been done as far as I know. When she was 18 years old, Ebby started acting contrary to how those around her expected. She saved her money and worked hard to buy really nice makeup, Laurie said. I moved to Little Rock in the summer of 2015 and remember seeing Ebbys missing posters everywhere that fall. But no matter what happens, I have peace. Even though her grandparents were the last family to see her, they werent interviewed for a year and a half after she disappeared. When she found out that the remains were found so close to her car, and could have possibly been found much sooner, she was angry. May 22, 2019 1 year since Ebbys remains were recovered. And she never showed up at the police station. Just when I thought she had it down, you know, she didnt. Family: Ebby Steppach's Death is Being Investigated as a Homicide. The 4 men implicated in her rape were interviewed by police, but there have been no formal searches of their cell phones for further evidence. In May 2018, Ebby Steppach's body was found in a drainpipe in her hometown of Little Rock, Arkansas, more than two-and-a-half years after the 18-year-old high school senior disappeared. Plus, hear from Debi, Ebbys paternal grandmother, who has never spoken to the media because she says so much of the media got her granddaughters story wrong. [3] Days before her disappearance, she had accused four men of gang-raping her at a party she had attended. "There was some evidence we were looking at that was found at the scene when she initially disappeared that bothered us," Hudson said. And the minute we could do so, on October 26 in the middle of the night, we filed a report.. Upcoming on In Pursuit. Their names, obviously, have not been released. Her body was found was. The nightmare only continued for Ebbys family as they noticed mistakes they said police had made from the beginning and believed her case was not being taken seriously. They first entered the top drain, near where the car was found, and hit an obstruction approximately 70 feet down. Ebby Jane Steppach had dreams of becoming a cosmetologist. She said she was outside his house, but when he went outside, she wasnt there. But Ebbys family and friends had already taken matters into their own hands and began passing out fliers across town, hoping someone had seen her. Cops took 5 years to arrest them. TM & 2023 Peteski Productions, Inc. 2023 CBS Interactive Inc.. a Paramount company. Ebbys family contacted everyone they knew and anyone they thought may have been in contact with Ebby. So Ebbys mom and stepfather, Michael, told her she needed to behave in a respectful manner or she needed to move out. Her phone records also indicate she stopped opening messages that night a major red flag. I have peace knowing neither Ebby or Trevor are alone. General. Steppach had recently attended a private school, but the following year she attended a government-funded school. Yikes just looked into this one. Searches were conducted of the park and the woods near where the car was discovered, but no evidence was found. Create your free profile. In May 2018, the FBI and the LRPDs Cold Case Unit (led by experienced detective Tommy Hudson) teamed up with Little Rocks Public Works to begin excavating drainage pipes at Chalamont Park. I think the most frustrating part, as most would agree, is that the most obvious place where her remains would be, were never searched. When I got the case, there were things that werent done that shouldve been done on the front end, Hudson said, explaining that interviewing key witnesses and checking surveillance footage had not been done. Her disappearance ended 4 years ago when Little Rock police found Ebby's remains in a drainpipe, 60-feet from where they found her car at the beginning of the investigation in 2015. https://storiesoftheunsolved.com/2019/02/02/the-murder-of-ebby-steppach/, https://www.arkansasonline.com/news/2018/may/31/report-of-smell-dismissed-in-15-2018053/?page=2, https://www.thv11.com/article/features/one-year-later-the-search-for-justice-in-ebby-steppach-case-continues/91-beb932ec-171e-481a-83a8-068ac173a8e2. Detective Bruce Maxwell has access to all of Hudsons work on the case and they are in constant contact. That was the last time anyone heard from her. Steppachs family released a statement on Wednesday after her remains were positively identified. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser. The family would like to thank all of you who have supported efforts to find Ebby, the statement read. He told Dateline that mistakes were made early on in the case before he was brought on to help solve it. After she told him "I'm fucked up," the phone call ended. [4] On October 21, 2015, Steppach missed school. In 1991 a woman was found dead by suicide in a hotel. She worked two part-time jobs as a teenager, saving every dollar so she could buy nice, expensive makeup. But as time passed, they became more and more worried. It was determined she had been there since her car was found three years prior. Her stepfather meticulously photographed the inside of the car and her belongings, just in case. Photo provided by Ebby's mother Laurie Jernigan. Will Ebby Steppach ever get justice after police botched her case? Four days after her disappearance, her car was found in West Little Rock's Chalamont Park. They then went in the other way and hit another obstruction about 130 feet in. Searches of the woods in the park were undertaken, but no sign of Steppach was found. She wanted Michael to go to the police with her to report the incident. This would later be increased to $50,000. Ebbys mother Laurie told Dateline she was devastated to see Hudson leave, but is hopeful that Maxwell will solve the case and finally get justice for Ebby. Together, they will continue to work on any new developments in this case.. He initially hesitated to take the case, but once he saw the shotty investigation he knew he had to do something and began tracking Ebbys final movements. The next evening around 5:30 p.m., Ebby called her brother, Trevor, and told him that she was in her car, but didnt know where she was. [4] In an attempt to bring publicity to her case, Steppach's mother and brother Trevor appeared on Dr. Phil in December 2017. Arkansas Online series about Ebbys disappearance: https://www.arkansasonline.com/ebby/, Stories of the Unsolved blog post: https://storiesoftheunsolved.com/2019/02/02/the-murder-of-ebby-steppach/, Arkansas Online article about police mishandling evidence & acting inappropriately: https://www.arkansasonline.com/news/2018/may/31/report-of-smell-dismissed-in-15-2018053/?page=2, THV11 follow up one year after remains were found: https://www.thv11.com/article/features/one-year-later-the-search-for-justice-in-ebby-steppach-case-continues/91-beb932ec-171e-481a-83a8-068ac173a8e2. They are thankful for the life they got to share with her and ask for continued support and prayers as they work through this difficult time, the statement read. So Ebbys mom and stepfather, Michael, told her she needed to behave in a respectful manner or she needed to move out. I think a young woman was seen speaking with a young man by the park security. They changed Ebbys status to a missing person and, along with her family, handed out flyers across town. Detectives remain tight-lipped about the case and have not revealed how Steppach died, only classifying it as a homicide. There was no doubt it was her.. We were told that we couldn't file a police report for 12 hours, Laurie said. It was the last time anyone ever heard from Ebby. She later texted the men implicated, threatening to report them to the authorities. But her family told local media they believed she was in danger. Tommy Hudson with the Little Rock polices Cold Case Unit said the case is considered an open homicide investigation. When she wasnt at her grandmothers house [the following day], thats when thing started to get like, Well, where is she?,' Steppachs stepdad, Michael Jernigan, told the station at the time. On October 24, she texted her stepfather to inform him of the rape and to say she wanted to go to police about it. Ebbys case is now in the hands of Tommy Hudson, a retired Little Rock detective who works on only a handful of older cases. The claim had come from a family friend, who had searched the park not long after Ebby went missing. [13], In 2017, her case was profiled on the podcast The Vanished. So they turned to the police. And the burden of being the last person to talk to Ebby.. To help spread word of the case, Laurie appeared on Dr. Phil. Her bones were found last Tuesday in a park drainage pipe in a Little Rock suburb, steps from where her car was discovered after she disappeared. So they turned to the police. That was when they discovered Ebby's remains just 60 feet from where her car had been found. If the police weren't interested, or perhaps not motivating the dogs well, they are also less likely to find anything. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. 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