Information links cases of missing Indian woman, Indian girl

Wednesday, June 20, 2012  

The mother of a man who is on trial for murder in Nebraska has come forward with information that links his case with that of a missing Indian woman and a missing Indian girl.

Sharon Bald Eagle was 12 when she went missing in 1984. She was from the Cheyenne River Sioux Reservation in South Dakota.

Karen Weeks was 28 when she went missing in 1987. She was also from a reservation in South Dakota but The Lincoln Journal Star did not say which one.

John Oldson is on trial for allegedly murdering Catherine "Cathy" Beard, a non-Indian who was 31 when she went missing in 1989. His mother said he received pages of a diary in the mail that mention Bald Eagle, Weeks, Beard and Jill Cutshall, a 9-year-old non-Indian girl who went missing in 1987.

"It's not easy reading," Ann Rasmussen said of the diary's contents, the Journal Star reported. "It's pretty disgusting."

The diary pages were allegedly written by a woman who is now in her 80s. They indicate her husband and his brother were responsible for kidnapping and sexually assaulting the victims.

The body of Beard was found in 1992. But Bald Eagle, Weeks and Cutshall remain missing.

Get the Story:
Suspect's mom releases info that points to others (The Lincoln Journal Star 6/20)