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© EPD Cold Case
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In May of 2024, Elgin (IL) Police Chief Ana Lalley created the Elgin Police Department Cold Case Unit to take a fresh look at unsolved homicides and missing persons cases with the belief that dedicating resources and using new technology will help solve these cases. As part of this new unit, the Elgin Police Department launched a podcast dedicated to Elgin cold cases to seek information from the public.
Somebody Knows Something: The Elgin Police Cold Case Podcast was created by the Elgin Police Department and is recorded with assistance of WRMN 1410 in Elgin, Illinois. Detective Andrew Houghton, Detective Christopher Hall, and Detective Matt Vartanian of the Elgin Police Department Cold Case Unit host the podcast and take listeners along as they investigate missing persons and homicide cases in real time and seek justice for the victims and closure for their families. This podcast includes actual police interviews, re-creations, and information that has never been released publicly as the Elgin Police Department seeks assistance from the community.
Season 1, Where is Karen? follows Detectives Andrew Houghton and Matt Vartanian as they investigate the disappearance of 23-year-old Karen Schepers, who, along with her car, disappeared without a trace after a night out with co-workers on April 16, 1983.
Season 2, Elgin: The 1970’s follows Detective Andrew Houghton and his new partner, Detective Chris Hall, as they review five cold case homicides and one missing person case, all from the 1970s. Over the course of this season, they investigate the shootings of Guadalupe Alanis in 1971 and Maynard Chester Holley in 1975, the murder of 16-year-old Lori Bolger and the disappearance of 14-year-old Barbara Glueckert in 1976, the stabbing of Cayce Kyles in 1977, and the murder of Renee Tovar in 1979.
Season 3, Wyteria is Missing follows Detectives Andrew Houghton and Chris Hall as they re-investigate the disappearance of 45-year-old Wyteria Jones, who vanished from the Douglas Hotel in downtown Elgin in the fall of 1982. A new member, Detective Beth Sterricker, also joins the unit and Sergeant Matt Vartanian returns to assist with Wyteria's investigation.
Anyone with information on any of the cold cases discussed are encouraged to contact the Elgin Police Department via email at ColdCaseTips@elginil.gov or via phone at 1-847-289-COLD. A list of all cold case missing persons and homicide cases as well as additional information about the Elgin Police Department Cold Case Unit can be found at www.ElginColdCases.com.
DISCLAIMER: This podcast is based on information sourced primarily from police reports and media reports, but certain names and other identifying details may have been changed or altered for privacy and security reasons. While the events and cases discussed are based on real investigations, some aspects may be simplified for time and for narrative purposes. Voice actors may be used to read from statements or documents. All information presented is intended solely to inform and raise awareness. Hosts may discuss theories regarding the cases examined in this podcast, but such discussions are not intended to, and should not be considered by the listener to be, legal conclusions. All persons discussed are considered innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Listener discretion is advised.
Somebody Knows Something: The Elgin Police Cold Case Podcast was created by the Elgin Police Department and is recorded with assistance of WRMN 1410 in Elgin, Illinois. Detective Andrew Houghton, Detective Christopher Hall, and Detective Matt Vartanian of the Elgin Police Department Cold Case Unit host the podcast and take listeners along as they investigate missing persons and homicide cases in real time and seek justice for the victims and closure for their families. This podcast includes actual police interviews, re-creations, and information that has never been released publicly as the Elgin Police Department seeks assistance from the community.
Season 1, Where is Karen? follows Detectives Andrew Houghton and Matt Vartanian as they investigate the disappearance of 23-year-old Karen Schepers, who, along with her car, disappeared without a trace after a night out with co-workers on April 16, 1983.
Season 2, Elgin: The 1970’s follows Detective Andrew Houghton and his new partner, Detective Chris Hall, as they review five cold case homicides and one missing person case, all from the 1970s. Over the course of this season, they investigate the shootings of Guadalupe Alanis in 1971 and Maynard Chester Holley in 1975, the murder of 16-year-old Lori Bolger and the disappearance of 14-year-old Barbara Glueckert in 1976, the stabbing of Cayce Kyles in 1977, and the murder of Renee Tovar in 1979.
Season 3, Wyteria is Missing follows Detectives Andrew Houghton and Chris Hall as they re-investigate the disappearance of 45-year-old Wyteria Jones, who vanished from the Douglas Hotel in downtown Elgin in the fall of 1982. A new member, Detective Beth Sterricker, also joins the unit and Sergeant Matt Vartanian returns to assist with Wyteria's investigation.
Anyone with information on any of the cold cases discussed are encouraged to contact the Elgin Police Department via email at ColdCaseTips@elginil.gov or via phone at 1-847-289-COLD. A list of all cold case missing persons and homicide cases as well as additional information about the Elgin Police Department Cold Case Unit can be found at www.ElginColdCases.com.
DISCLAIMER: This podcast is based on information sourced primarily from police reports and media reports, but certain names and other identifying details may have been changed or altered for privacy and security reasons. While the events and cases discussed are based on real investigations, some aspects may be simplified for time and for narrative purposes. Voice actors may be used to read from statements or documents. All information presented is intended solely to inform and raise awareness. Hosts may discuss theories regarding the cases examined in this podcast, but such discussions are not intended to, and should not be considered by the listener to be, legal conclusions. All persons discussed are considered innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Listener discretion is advised.
22 Episodes
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Bonus Episode – Still MissingAs the Elgin Police Department Cold Case Unit heads into 2026 and prepares for Season 3 of Somebody Knows Something, Detectives Andrew Houghton and Chris Hall are taking stock of every open missing persons case in their files — and asking the public for help finding answers for families still waiting. The unit is also growing. Detective Beth Sterricker brings nearly two decades of Elgin Police experience to the team, and Sergeant Matt Vartanian — co-host of Season 1 — is back, this time overseeing the Cold Case Unit as part of his new role in the Major Investigations Division. Four people are still missing. Their families are still waiting. Franco Loyo was 61 years old when he walked north along N. Airlite Street in Elgin on the evening of April 19, 2023, and was never seen again. Listed as missing and endangered, his case will officially become a cold case in April 2026 — but his family isn't waiting for a label. Maynor Escalante-Martinez was just 16 — an unaccompanied minor placed with a sponsor family in Elgin — when he was reported missing on June 29, 2021, after allegedly leaving with a man claiming to be his uncle. He would be 20 years old today. Whether he left safely or not, no one has been able to confirm it. Chad P. Smith was reported missing in February 2021 after his family hadn't heard from him since December of 2020. Unconfirmed sightings have placed him on the south side of Chicago, but his whereabouts have never been verified. His mother is still in Elgin. She is still looking. Daren Wood was 24 years old when he stopped by his mother's east-side Elgin home in July 2017 and promised he'd be back in two days. He never came back. Eight years of investigation, including cross-referencing his case against unidentified remains in the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System, has yet to bring his family closure. There is one piece of good news. Willie Wilder, previously on the unit's caseload after disappearing in December 2021, was found alive in South Elgin in September 2025 — proof that these cases can be resolved. But behind the four open cases is a fifth that goes back even further. In the fall of 1982, Wyteria Jones was last seen near the Douglas Hotel in downtown Elgin and vanished. Hers is the oldest cold case missing persons investigation in the unit's files, and she will be the focus of the full Season 3 investigation launching in March. Someone out there knows something about each of these people. If you have information, contact the Elgin Police Department Cold Case Unit at ColdCaseTips@elginil.gov, call 847-289-COLD, or visit www.ElginColdCases.com.
In this final episode of the season, Detectives Andrew Houghton and Chris Hall from the Elgin Police Department Cold Case Unit lay out the investigation into Renee’s murder in 1979, release new information about the case, and discuss potential links between Renee’s murder and the serial killer group known as the Ripper Crew. They also close out the season and remember all 27 homicide victims from 1970’s Elgin.
On November 23, 1979, the day after Thanksgiving, Renee Cruz Tovar decided to stay home while her roommate went out on a date. The following morning, November 24, 1979, her roommate returned home and found Renee murdered in their apartment. In Part 1 of this two-part episode, Detectives Andrew Houghton and Chris Hall from the Elgin Police Department Cold Case Unit meet with family members and friends of Renee to learn more about her brief life and the impact her tragic death had on the Elgin community.
It was a warm, summer evening when 68-year-old Cayce D. Kyles strolled down an alley behind the Douglas Hotel in downtown Elgin on July 21, 1977. Moments later, he was attacked and stabbed to death less than a block from the Elgin Police Department. Detectives Andrew Houghton and Chris Hall from the Elgin Police Department Cold Case Unit revisit the Cayce’s case and seek information from the public in his cold case murder.
Detectives Andrew Houghton and Chris Hall from the Elgin Police Department Cold Case Unit continue their investigation into the disappearance of Barbara Glueckert as they meet with retired Mount Prospect Detective Mike Nelson who worked on Barbara Glueckert’s case for over two decades. They also speak with a listener who contacted the cold case tip line to report an experience she had with Thomas Urlacher when she was just 16-years-old in the early 1970’s for the first time in over 50 years.
1During “Season One: Where Is Karen?” Detectives Andrew Houghton and Matt Vartanian researched the previous tenant of Karen Schepers’ apartment, Thomas Urlacher. They found that while he was not involved in Karen’s disappearance, he was the prime suspect in the disappearance of 14-year-old Barbara Glueckert from nearby Huntley, Illinois on August 21, 1976. In Part 1 of this two-part investigation, Detectives Andrew Houghton and Chris Hall from the Elgin Police Department Cold Case Unit discuss Urlacher’s links to Karens’ case and meet with Barbara Glueckert’s family to learn about her and the impact that her disappearance has had on her family and on her community.
On the morning of June 22, 1976, 16-year-old Lori Jean Bolger left a summer driver’s ed class at Larkin High School to walk home to South Elgin, Illinois. She planned to meet friends to swim, but she never made it. Less than two hours after she left the school, two workers found her body lying in a grassy field near Randall Road in Elgin. Detectives Andrew Houghton and Chris Hall from the Elgin Police Department Cold Case Unit reopen Lori’s case file to discuss her life, her murder, and to seek answers in her case.
It was a cold, winter night when 47-year-old Maynard Chester Holley left his wife and children to head to work at the Yellow Cab Company in downtown Elgin on February 18, 1975. Hours later, he was murdered in the office as he sat dispatching taxis. Detectives Andrew Houghton and Chris Hall from the Elgin Police Department Cold Case Unit remember Maynard and review his case to seek new information.
On June 30, 1971, a 35-year-old foreman at the Woodruff and Edwards Foundry, Guadalupe Alanis, was murdered while working in downtown Elgin. Detectives Andrew Houghton and Chris Hall of the Elgin Police Department Cold Case Unit review Guadalupe’s case and discover that it has links to two other Elgin murders.
Detectives Andrew Houghton and Matt Vartanian from the Elgin Police Department Cold Case Unit make an announcement for Season Two and introduce a new detective, Chris Hall, as Matt is promoted and leaves the unit. Elgin Police Chief Ana Lalley also joins the episode to reflect on Season One and to discuss the future plans for the Cold Case Unit.
Detectives Andrew Houghton and Matt Vartanian from the Elgin Police Department Cold Case Unit reflect on the past 6 months of this investigation with Karen’s family, friends, and coworkers as Karen finally comes home and is laid to rest.
Detectives Andrew Houghton and Matt Vartanian from the Elgin Police Department Cold Case Unit wrap up Karen’s cold case investigation by detailing the final steps in Karen’s case and they discuss what they believed most likely happened to Karen on that fateful night in April of 1983.
Detectives Andrew Houghton and Matt Vartanian from the Elgin Police Department Cold Case Unit speak with Jacob Grubbs and Lindsay Bussick from Chaos Divers, the group which was instrumental in bringing Karen Schepers home, to talk about their organization, their experience in search and recovery, and their amazing work on Karen’s case.
Detectives Andrew Houghton and Matt Vartanian from the Elgin Police Department Cold Case Unit search the Fox River with the Illinois-based search and recovery team Chaos Divers and make a discovery almost 42 years in the making.
Detectives Andrew Houghton and Matt Vartanian from the Elgin Police Department Cold Case Unit move up their original Theory #6, that Karen and her car are submerged in a body of water, as new tips come in and new technology becomes available. They identify the routes that Karen would have likely taken, travel those routes, and follow-up on new tips about a car recently discovered in the Fox River.
Detectives Andrew Houghton and Matt Vartanian from the Elgin Police Department Cold Case Unit review multiple serial killers who were active in the Elgin area in the early 1980’s and travel to the Pontiac Correctional Facility to interview Brian Dugan, an Illinois serial killer who is serving a life sentence for three murders in the area, one of which has similarities to Karen’s disappearance.
Detectives Andrew Houghton and Matt Vartanian from the Elgin Police Department Cold Case Unit continue their investigation into Theory #2, that something happened at PM Bentley’s. As they review the case file, they discover that a former employee of PM Bentley’s was never interviewed, so they track her down and she reveals new information about a man who stalked her and her and her car in the parking lot and followed her home in the months leading up to Karen’s disappearance.
Detectives Andrew Houghton and Matt Vartanian from the Elgin Police Department Cold Case Unit travel to the site where PM Bentley’s was in 1983 with the owner as they investigate Theory #2, that something happened at PM Bentley’s. They discuss a witness who claimed he saw Karen with some bikers both inside and outside the bar and another witness who detailed her interaction with a man who allegedly claimed he was involved in her disappearance.
Detectives Andrew Houghton & Matt Vartanian from the Elgin Police Department Cold Case Unit interview members of Karen's family, her close friends, & her co-workers to get a sense of who Karen was as a person and to evaluate Theory #1, that Karen made a desperate choice to either run away or harm herself.
Detectives Andrew Houghton & Matt Vartanian from the Elgin Police Department Cold Case Unit begin their investigation into the 1983 disappearance of Karen Schepers by interviewing the people who knew her best, members of her family.
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hate when podcasts use names or almost exact names of already famous podcasts to gain footing, but whatever. try to be a little more clever. but it's important so I'll give it a listen.