Unraveling the Veronica Falcone Mystery

Welcome back to the Gamery. We're here for some more unsolved case files. So in the last video, we completed Objective 1. We were able to reopen the case, and now we're trying to find Veronica's body. So in Bonus Envelope A, we receive these two documents. One from Special Agent Morgan Cantori, who is Joey Caruso's grandson, who is now investigating the case. So he received an email from Donnie Davidson, whose grandpa witnessed or saw Veronica Falcone's motorcycle the night she went missing. And he saw it at Wagner's Diner. So we were trying to dig around because that place is not on the map. And something sounded very familiar. So from the witness statement from Pearl Westbrook, who is the librarian, in her statement, she says that there's a Rosie Wagner who married her high school sweetheart, Harry Fletcher. And one day she was waiting tables at her daddy's diner. So we know that this diner is Rosie's dad. However, she's married to Harry Fletcher. So we were trying to see if Wagner Diner was either renamed or could be mistaken for another name or somehow linked to a Fletcher. So we looked on the map and we noticed that there is a Fletcher's Family Restaurant, number 20. So if you go back to the map, is actually within the one mile radius of the town center motors of where Veronica could have driven. We believe that Fletcher's family restaurant could have been the Wagner Diner that the grandfather of Davidson saw the motorcycle at. Okay that fits the bill. It's at the edge of this circumference. So now what do we do with this information? When you think you know the likely whereabouts of Veronica's body. Is this enough information to go off of? If her bike was there, something had to happen. Something had had... Something must have happened to her at that location. Because yeah, there's no more mileage. Yeah, it was one mile radius. So I think we have enough information to go to the website. All right, so let's go there. You'll need three separate items from the case to help investigators search for Veronica. Let's find her. Okay so which one of these is the map? Right? We're still using the map to verify the distance. Uh email and Witness statement of Pearl Westbrook. Yes. Right? Yes. Alright, here we go. Yes! Okay, you solved objective number two. Wagner's Diner is now Fletcher's family restaurant. Now open the envelope marked bonus envelope B to see if they found Veronica. Oh, okay there's a lot of stuff in this one. Alright, we don't need that either. So Donnie Davidson's email says the bike was parked at a place that was once called Wagner's Diner. Pearl Westbrook explains Rosie Wagner used to work for her daddy's diner and married Harry Fletcher. There's a place called Fletcher's Family Restaurant. on the map exactly one mile from town center motors nice booyah okay so who killed veronica when you know the killer's motive for murdering veronica falcone go to this page all right okay are you here for now we're almost there so here again morgan kim tory dear investigators i want to congratulate you on your excellent work pinpointing the area we should look for veronica falcone i'm very proud to say that we found her body it was buried in a shallow grave behind what used to be Wagner's dining room was later renamed Fletcher's Family Restaurant after Rosie Wagner's father passed it down to her and her husband, Harry Fletcher. Veronica's remains were just three feet down. Along with her body, we also found a.38 caliber bullet inside her skull. There were some other items too, including the threatening note my grandfather referred to. and no one believed so many years ago. I'm sure whoever wrote that red note wanted to shut his mouth about it since he told so many people in town that Veronica was investigating something and had received a death threat. Unfortunately, the remains have no lasting forensic evidence we can tie to any of the other suspects, but it's quite obvious Veronica was in the act of uncovering something big, something worth killing her to keep secret. But what were they hiding and why did Veronica Falcone have to lose her life for it? What was Veronica investigating? Not to find out. and I need your help. So it's interesting that the red note that they mentioned was found with her body. Yeah, someone was trying to bury the evidence. So what do we have here? So this is the medical report. Okay, the body is confirmed to be that of Veronica Valconi based upon approximate height and weight and the existence of a healed bullet wound that scraped the left tibia. That's exactly how Joey described. Okay, skeletal remains, bullet hole found in the back of the cranium indicating the cause of death was a close-range gunshot wound to the head. Entry hole of a bullet through the posterior right side of the head. Decomposition of remains too extensive to identify any internal injuries, although can be safely assumed severely debilitating brain damage. Gunshot wound to the head. Size and shape of the bullet hole fits with our assumptions that a.38 caliber was fired from the same gun. found with the body. The victim has been deceased or unable to give an accurate description other than the gunshot wound through the head that clearly appears to have been fired from the gun found with the corpse. Pretty sure no fingerprints. Wait so here's a picture. $10 bill. Oh this is what's in here. Let's put these side by side. Oh what is that? A hand. Field investigation report. Her body was buried near the edge of the forest and shall be about three feet deep behind Fletcher's Family Restaurant. The body I think holds almost a entirely leaving nothing but her skeleton items were found an old bank bag oh didn't uh evelyn's dad used to be a manager of a bank yeah there was a 38 caliber bullet found lodge in the front of her skull which made its entry through the back of her skull at close range. Markings on the bullet are consistent with a gun that was also found in the grave. Along with the body, we also found several items of significance, which have been taken into custody and photographed. Okay, action is taken. Following all standard procedures, the skeleton was carefully exhumed from its burial spot and sent to the medical examiner's office in Hartford. The film in the camera was relayed to our photo lab to see if the film is still salvageable. There was one salvageable image. A blurred hand. Okay. Okay, presumed to be the right hand of the individual who killed the victim. The bullet found inside the victim's skull was confirmed to have been fired from the gun found in the grave. The serial number of the gun was filed off, so we can't trace it. Is there a ring? There is a ring. It's the... It looks like a man's hand. It's the right hand. Okay, evidence. 38 caliber bullet matches the note. The revolver forensics confirmed this gun fired the... bullet the spy camera heavily corroded and smashed possibly with a rock trace amounts of Feldspar and quartz roll of film found inside the camera contains one salvage photo of a blurred hand presumably grabbing the camera a threatening note on faded red paper that reads falconing back off or I'll bury you with 38 through the back of your skull a single $10 bill 1934 a series hmm interesting why they would Yeah, that's why I'm trying to see where the... Oh, her money? Yeah. It's in the... There's this, right? Oh, yeah, but there's also a list. Oh, this is the same $10 bill. So E-111-21937H. Why is there multiple? Oh, is it counterfeit money? Maybe. I also remembered that in her note here, she was saying she was finally going to get photos before tomorrow's meeting. So the night... before she disappeared. She was trying to get photos of something. Maybe she was intentionally going to the diner or the family restaurant and someone said she might be investigating like family history. So something's going on. I don't know quite what. I think we got to keep going. Brown leather wallet with her driver's license and library card and also a lighter. So this is a right hand, right? Right. Does that mean? the person is right-handed she's right-handed joey caruso's right joey cruz right-handed this guy is right-handed oh she's left-handed and oh he's left-handed too let's just go into the other ones should we go to him first then she's right-handed stanley smithers single 358 nervous tics he works at the bank too oh he works at the bank. It's not looking good for you. And this one is Robin Falls Bank and Trust. Yeah, that's the one. He's been there for seven months. He owns a firearm. Bank carving, so he has some type of sharp tool. Pinning insects. Oh, they're not making this guy look good at all. Is it too obvious? On the day Veronica went missing, I saw her at her house around noon. but that was it. No clue what happened after that and quite frankly I don't care. I thought we could have had something special and if she hadn't been so stubborn she You would have seen it too, but I guess in reality she clearly was not the person I thought she was. She turned out to be downright disrespectful, rude, and didn't know her place. And she treated me like I was some kind of reprehensible worm. Women like that are bound to meet their end in any manner of highly unpleasant ways. but had nothing to do with it and I always get mother to bed around nine then retire soon afterwards so I wouldn't even have been awake between 10 and midnight."No corroboration though. What's this? Mrs. Ruby Jones. Oh okay so this is another witness. Okay so the neighbor. That day that Miss Veronica went missing was the day that very strange man Stanley Smithers came by her house and had a conniption fit. It was frightful. Come to think of it, he'd also been by a couple of other times before that. The first time he was below her bedroom window one night attempting to serenade her, which sounded a lot more like a mule in labor. The other time he left flowers on her porch, then did something to a tree in her front yard. Mr. Smithers and Miss Veronica's initials carved into the tree with a heart around it. Truly frightening. I never go to his line at the bank because, quite frankly, he makes my skin crawl. Something's clearly not right about that fellow. and it could surely be evidenced by the display he put on over at Miss Veronica's place the day she went missing. I heard a car pull up into the driveway next door and just happened to look over. When I saw it, it was Stanley Smithers. Anyhow, he went up on the front porch and banged on the door, kept getting louder and more forceful. Next, he started yelling and cussing and said he knew she was in there. I knew she was too, but you can't blame her for not answering. After that, he began peering in the windows and banging on those as well. Then he turned and went down the front steps. I thought it was going to be the end of it, but instead he went around the side and actually tried to open the door over there. Fortunately for Ms. Veronica, it was locked. That's when he ran back up onto the porch. I was getting frightened for her just watching. He yelled that if she didn't open the door, he was going to break the window and come in. At that time, her front door burst open and she came bolting right out. Before he even knew what hit him, she pushed him right down the front steps. Then she yelled down to him that she knew about Mabel Smith and she was going to find out what happened to her. So Mabel Smith... was a girl who went missing according to the librarian's witness statement. And then there was Mabel Smith who wrote a few poems that were pretty dark in nature. She went missing and was never found. Maybe she's still hiding. Then she yelled down to him that she knew about Mabel Smith and she was going to find out what happened to her. That's what she was investigating maybe. After that he came charging back up the stairs and grabbed her forcefully. She made some kind of move she must have learned in the war. but she easily got out of his grasp and kicked him hard between the legs he reeled around crying out like a wounded baboon and then she kicked him once more in the behind for a good measure that's when she went back into the house and slammed the door he screamed that she was going to regret this and staggered down the front stairs i distinctly remember him stopping on the way to his automobile to take a good long look at her motorcycle and now that i hear someone cut her brakes I bet anything he was the one who did it. I can also tell you that on the night in question, Joy Caruso showed up a couple different times at her place. She wasn't home either time. The second time he showed up, he spent the entire night in his truck parked in a driveway. Yeah, we know that already. Here's the interview with Smithers. Can you please state your name into the microphone? Stanley Bartholomew Smithers. No. Mr. Smithers, how did you meet Veronica Falcone? I'm a bank clerk at Robin County Bank and Trust. Veronica came in to sign some papers because she just inherited her grandmother's estate. I asked her to have a seat and went to get the manager. When she was leaving, I asked her if she'd like to go out and have a steak dinner at Sal's Steakhouse with me. And what did she say? Flat out no, as if she couldn't even be bothered to consider it. You can't really blame her. What I mean to say is the lady didn't even know you, but I take it this bothered you? No, well actually yes it did. It was quite rude. Not sure why you think it was rude? She brushed me off like I was a ball of lint. She needed better manners than that. We were meant for each other. I was her knight in shining armor. My goodness, I even offered to buy her a steak dinner. Excuse me, I need some water. Why did you think you were meant for each other? You knew just a little about her as she did about you. Sometimes you just know. She'd have known too if she'd quit being stubborn. The lyrics in Dearly Beloved sung by the great Fred Astor put it best. Oh gosh, I don't know this song. Oh my goodness. cartoon. Tell me that it's true. Tell me you agree. I was meant for you. You were meant for me. I see. Was that occasion the only time you asked Miss Falcone out? No, it wasn't. Why do that if you thought her both rude and lacking in manners? She needed to see we were meant to be together. So in other words, you wanted to force your will upon her? Nothing of the kind. She just needed to see things as I saw them. You know, Stanley, we found a letter you wrote inside her house, and I think drawing a sketch of the two of you holding a baby is a pretty sick way to try to woo a lady. Anything to say about that? That was private. I was simply foretelling her of our potential future together. together. Uh-huh. Can you tell me what your other encounters were with her were like? I brought a bouquet of forget-me-nots to her house, but no one answered the door, so I left them on the porch with a note requesting that she show me the proper respect I deserve and allow me to treat her to a steak dinner. I'm anxious to hear how that went over. She stomped into the bank, threw the flowers at me and said, just showing you the proper respect you deserve. Now leave me alone, then left. People had the audacity to laugh. She really needed to be taught a lesson. And did you teach her this lesson? I sure tried. The next day I went over to talk sense into her. I knocked and she didn't answer. But I knew she was home since her motorcycle was there. You did more than just knock. A neighbor said you were peeping into windows. I was not going to be ignored. I needed to talk to her. You don't do that by invading someone's privacy. Well, it got her to finally open the door. What happened then? She came bursting through the door and shoved me down the stairs. Then she screamed and cussed and told me to leave her the heck alone. So unladylike. I left after that, decided she wasn't worth my time. But you didn't leave after that. According to the neighbor, Miss Falcone told you... She knew about Mabel Smith and wasn't going to stop until she found out what happened to her. Know what she was talking about? No idea. Oh, then you stormed back up on the porch and grabbed her arm. Only she easily escaped and kicked you hard. And while you were reeling in pain, she kicked you again. You told her she'd regret it, and that's when you left. But before you did, you stopped at her bike. I think that neighbor should really mind their own business. Was it Ruby Jones? You know what I think, Mr. Smithers? You were obsessed with Miss Falcone, and it made you furious because she wanted nothing to do with you. So you made good on your threat and messed with a brake line on her bike. Trust me, that bluesy had it coming, but it wasn't me who did it. Tell me about Mabel Smith. You stalked her, too, back in high school. high school, remember? She ended up missing and they never found her. What did you do with her body, Mr. Smithers? This is ridiculous. I've never stalked anyone. Why don't you go ask Sheriff Shepard? He knows I had nothing to do with it. He was just a copper back then, but he was in charge of the search for Mabel. And even he said she probably just took off with some guy. I'd throw you in jail right now if I could. You better watch yourself, Mr. Smithers, because I'll be watching you like a hawk. Wait, that's key. Sheriff Shepard was also in charge of the case with a missing Mabel Smith. Yeah, we knew that. He was in charge. There is a common thread. He seems like a creeper. Yeah. Oh my goodness. Also more about him too is that he's not too fond of Veronica because he ignored Joey's call. Yeah he was like oh girl like her can you take care of yourself. And he also ignored the lady in the grocery store. Hudson's drugstore. Basically he's not he's a bad cop. Now you have to. And And he's Evelyn's uncle. You have to read this poem. Oh, gosh. My dearest darling Veronica, I'm feeling intense anger toward you right now, which I certainly do not wish to feel. However, you left me no choice in the matter. The deplorable manner in which you've been treating me is not in accordance with how a lady should treat a man, especially a man who wants to buy her a steak dinner. Just who do you think you are? Do you have some... I'm just going to go fast. Do you have some... Do you have some mistaken delusion which makes you think you're better than me? You need to be taught to show a lot more respect. Mother warned me about women like you. My dear, you need to understand that we belong together. How can you carry on with the low-life mechanic when you have such a perfectly decent gentleman caller as myself who strongly desires a future with you? Do you want to spend your life with a grimy blue-collar worker or do you want to be with someone making something of himself in the finance industry? To put it simply, you're the thief who's stolen my heart. It's up to you whether or not you should be punished for your crime. Perhaps someday we'll laugh about how very silly we were were when you tried to keep me at bay as we watched Stanley Jr. growing up before our eyes. But mark my words, Veronica, if I can't have you, then no one will. Ooh, it's not looking good for him. With all my love in my heart, Stanley. A poem for my Veronica. I am your destiny. You are my fate. I love you so dearly, but you're filled with hate. My lips need your touch, just like my harmonica. I sense that you feel the same. way Veronica. Soon you will see that you can't live without me. I mean that quite literally, you shouldn't doubt me. He's a pretty good artist. All right, who's this? Mildred? Again, she is left-handed. We know the photo is right-hand, but her motive is she was taking care of the grandma, hoping to inherit the house, but it went to Veronica. And now she's staying in some widow, a home for widows or something. boarding house. There you go. Okay. Wait, sorry. Who is she? She is Veronica's cousin. Employed by Sheriff Shepard. Oh. She also owns firearms. He owned one too, right? Stanley? Yes. On the night my cousin Veronica went missing, I was at the Crow's Nest boarding house. I'd lived in my grandmother's house for several years, caring for her around the clock until she recently died and Veronica inherited the entire estate, which was a complete injustice. So then I was out on the street and I had no other choice but to take up residence at the Crow's Nest. at the boarding house. That night we had some cold and tasteless potato soup for dinner and then I played cards with the only other resident at the time, Mrs. Newton. She's an elderly widow who stays in room three. We played for about an hour on so till about 10 o'clock. Then she fell fast asleep in her chair. I read for a while afterward then went to bed. I did not leave the boarding house all night. Well we don't really know. Well she has an alibi if this Mrs. Newton. 10 though in the boarding house. It's very close. So Crow's Nest is right next to the place. Boom! My name is Mrs. Fanny Newton and I'm a widow who rooms at the Crow's Nest boarding house. I've seen a lot of types come and go in that time, but none as uptight and miserable. Mildred Morehouse. So she doesn't like her either? Sure, we played cards and listened to the radio programs together. You've got to pass the long hours somehow. But that woman goes on non-stop about how unfair it is that her cousin Veronica, that lady spy, inherited her grandmother's estate instead of her. Bertha confided in me that Mildred never let her forget for a second that she was unselfishly giving up the prime years of her life to take care of a sick old lady. I was with Mildred for most of the evening on the night that poor girl Veronica disappeared, but I fell asleep in my chair playing bridge with her. Very unlike me, as I'm usually up well past midnight, but I started feeling groggy after I drank my tea. Almost forgot, I also do recall seeing Mildred at Bertha's old house the day Veronica went. missing okay it was around 10 a.m and i was visiting my nephew earl jones incredibly i saw her hop on veronica's motorcycle and onto the handlebars acting like she was revving the engine i called out to her and she jumped a mile in the air got off the bike and took off never even looked over at me so somehow she was in contact with the bike okay now this is the interview good afternoon to you miss please speak right into the microphone here and tell me your full name mildred morehouse and you are the deceased cousin is that correct yes it is first cousin cousins on my mother's side. Can you please tell me about your relationship with the victim? Were the two of you close? We were never close. Veronica always marched to the tune of a very different drummer. She didn't live around here growing up, but she and her mother always came up for Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving, as in thanks for giving me crummy relatives I have to endure for an entire day every year. Anyhow, I always thought she was strange, not to mention selfish, not very girlish at all. While I always helped out with the cooking and the dishes and everything else around the house, she'd always be outside shooting at soda pop bottles with her pellet gun. I hear that after your grandmother fell and broke her hip, you came to stay with her. Is that right? Yes, that's correct. I came to stay and never left. I took care of grandma for the best years only two living relatives she had. I thought she should move here and help out, but she decided to go play spy in the war instead. She had a duty to grandmother just as much as I did, but chose to put her own interests ahead of all that. You seem angry about her fighting in the war. As a matter of fact, yes, I am angry about it. I needed her help. While she was off having very unladylike exploits, I sacrificed the prime of my life caring for grandmother. I'm sure it wasn't easy for you, Mildred, but your cousin almost sacrificed her entire life numerous times for her country. Yes, well, good for her. And she was highly rewarded for it too, but was I rewarded for my years of sacrifice? No, I wasn't. Grandmother actually ended up leaving her house and the entire estate to Veronica. All of it should have been mine, not hers. I have a copy of the will right here. and appears she left you a few things. Oh, she left me a few things, all right. For one, her darned cat, Marmalade. That cat hates me, and Grandmother knew it too. Another thing she left me incredibly was her bedpan. Her bedpan, Captain, of all things. And after all I'd done for her, what'd she expect me to do with that? Use it as a candy dish? I've never heard of anyone willing a bedpan. I don't even know what to say to that. Exactly. Thankfully, the Sheriff and his wife took pity on me, and I'm working as their part-time housekeeper now. Gotta pay my board to Mrs. Sudbury somehow. Interesting. So I take it you were pertubed at Miss Falcone because not only did you feel put upon that she left you to tend to your grandmother, but she also inherited everything. Perturbed, Captain? Perturbed? That's an understatement. What's more, I was Grandmother's sole heir until Veronica came home a celebrated war hero. She changed her will almost immediately, said it was the least she could do for Veronica after she'd done so much for her country. What about everything I'd done for Grandmother? What about that? According to this copy of the will we found at the estate, it states that in the event of Veronica's death, you are to inherit everything. Did you know about that? Yes. Well, that seems mighty lucky for you, doesn't it, Miss Morehouse? It's not luck. I deserve it. So if it wasn't luck, then you know what I'd call it? I'd call it a very strong motive for murder. It drove you crazy that she left everything to Veronica, but now you have it all. don't you? I will not stand for this. Yes, I hated her, and yes, she took what was rightly mine, but I did not kill her. You thought Miss Balcony had no business inheriting what you believed was rightly yours, but you saw the loophole in the will. You didn't want to be left out in the cold after giving up the best years of your life. You worked hard all those years for your reward and had to watch it get handed over to Veronica on a silver platter, leaving you nothing but a silver bedpan. Of course you killed her. You thought you had no other choice. That is not true. That will be all, Miss Morehouse. I meant I was going to take her to court, not kill her. I told you, that will be all. Actually, I do have one other thing come to think of it. Miss Morehouse, just exactly how did your grandmother die again? Because I hear she was given- given a clean bill of health shortly before her death. She took too many of her pills. She was forever getting things mixed up. Just like she did with the will, she was getting rather senile, Captain. But since you knew that, wasn't it your job to make sure that kind of thing didn't happen? Okay, no more questions at this time. We'll be in touch. Interesting. So her position is housekeeper, right? For the sheriff. The will would go to her if Veronica died. Maybe, question mark, suspicion of cause of death for their grandma. Okay, there's a last will and testament of Bertha. I, Bertha Phyllis Grable, being of both sound mind and body, do hereby bequeath almost all my worldly goods and possessions, including my property. at 101 SpyGas Lane, the contents of my house, my 1938 Chevrolet sedan, and my bank accounts at the Robben County Bank and Trust to my beloved granddaughter Veronica Fontenot. I couldn't be prouder of her. There might not even be an America today if not for Veronica and her selfless deeds of bravery, while others in our family just sit back and did nothing. In the event of her untimely demise, I leave my estate to my other granddaughter Mildred Morehouse, and she's my only other living relative. To my granddaughter Mildred Morehouse, I leave my beloved cat Marmole. She's my only child. to take him into her home and love him as if he was her own. I also leave Mildred all of Marmalade's personal belongings, including his grooming brushes, his toys, and his bowls. I leave her all my makeup since Veronica simply doesn't need it. She's a natural beauty, but Mildred sure does. Wow. I also leave my luggage to make it easier for her to pack up all her belongings in a timely manner. The pot I always use to soak my feet in to help with all my boils. The bedding for her room because I doubt Veronica's... Veronica is going to want to sleep in that. And last but not least, my bed pad. It's been in the family for generations and I thought it would be an apt reminder of all she's done for me. Wow. If Mildred should like any other items from the house, she must pay whatever Veronica deems is a fair price for them. Wow. Brutal. Did not like her. So, that will be it for this video. Look out for the final video where we solve this case. And again if you like our content don't forget to give us a like and subscribe to our channel and hope to see you again in the gamery.

So he received an email from Donnie Davidson, whose grandpa witnessed or saw Veronica Falcone's motorcycle the night she went missing. And he saw it at Wagner's Diner. So we were trying to dig around because that place is not on the map. And something sounded very familiar.

So from the witness statement from Pearl Westbrook, who is the librarian, in her statement, she says that there's a Rosie Wagner who married her high school sweetheart, Harry Fletcher. And one day she was waiting tables at her daddy's diner. So we know that this diner is Rosie's dad. However, she's married to Harry Fletcher. So we were trying to see if Wagner Diner was either renamed or could be mistaken for another name or somehow linked to a Fletcher.

So we looked on the map and we noticed that there is a Fletcher's Family Restaurant, number 20. So if you go back to the map, is actually within the one mile radius of the town center motors of where Veronica could have driven. We believe that Fletcher's family restaurant could have been the Wagner Diner that the grandfather of Davidson saw the motorcycle at. Okay that fits the bill. It's at the edge of this circumference.

So now what do we do with this information? When you think you know the likely whereabouts of Veronica's body. Is this enough information to go off of?

If her bike was there, something had to happen. Something had had... Something must have happened to her at that location. Because yeah, there's no more mileage. Yeah, it was one mile radius.

So I think we have enough information to go to the website. All right, so let's go there. You'll need three separate items from the case to help investigators search for Veronica.

Let's find her. Okay so which one of these is the map? Right? We're still using the map to verify the distance.

Uh email and Witness statement of Pearl Westbrook. Yes. Right? Yes. Alright, here we go.

Yes! Okay, you solved objective number two. Wagner's Diner is now Fletcher's family restaurant. Now open the envelope marked bonus envelope B to see if they found Veronica.

Oh, okay there's a lot of stuff in this one. Alright, we don't need that either. So Donnie Davidson's email says the bike was parked at a place that was once called Wagner's Diner. Pearl Westbrook explains Rosie Wagner used to work for her daddy's diner and married Harry Fletcher.

There's a place called Fletcher's Family Restaurant. on the map exactly one mile from town center motors nice booyah okay so who killed veronica when you know the killer's motive for murdering veronica falcone go to this page all right okay are you here for now we're almost there so here again morgan kim tory dear investigators i want to congratulate you on your excellent work pinpointing the area we should look for veronica falcone i'm very proud to say that we found her body it was buried in a shallow grave behind what used to be Wagner's dining room was later renamed Fletcher's Family Restaurant after Rosie Wagner's father passed it down to her and her husband, Harry Fletcher. Veronica's remains were just three feet down. Along with her body, we also found a.38 caliber bullet inside her skull. There were some other items too, including the threatening note my grandfather referred to.

and no one believed so many years ago. I'm sure whoever wrote that red note wanted to shut his mouth about it since he told so many people in town that Veronica was investigating something and had received a death threat. Unfortunately, the remains have no lasting forensic evidence we can tie to any of the other suspects, but it's quite obvious Veronica was in the act of uncovering something big, something worth killing her to keep secret.

But what were they hiding and why did Veronica Falcone have to lose her life for it? What was Veronica investigating? Not to find out.

and I need your help. So it's interesting that the red note that they mentioned was found with her body. Yeah, someone was trying to bury the evidence.

So what do we have here? So this is the medical report. Okay, the body is confirmed to be that of Veronica Valconi based upon approximate height and weight and the existence of a healed bullet wound that scraped the left tibia.

That's exactly how Joey described. Okay, skeletal remains, bullet hole found in the back of the cranium indicating the cause of death was a close-range gunshot wound to the head. Entry hole of a bullet through the posterior right side of the head. Decomposition of remains too extensive to identify any internal injuries, although can be safely assumed severely debilitating brain damage. Gunshot wound to the head.

Size and shape of the bullet hole fits with our assumptions that a.38 caliber was fired from the same gun. found with the body. The victim has been deceased or unable to give an accurate description other than the gunshot wound through the head that clearly appears to have been fired from the gun found with the corpse. Pretty sure no fingerprints.

Wait so here's a picture. $10 bill. Oh this is what's in here. Let's put these side by side.

Oh what is that? A hand. Field investigation report.

Her body was buried near the edge of the forest and shall be about three feet deep behind Fletcher's Family Restaurant. The body I think holds almost a entirely leaving nothing but her skeleton items were found an old bank bag oh didn't uh evelyn's dad used to be a manager of a bank yeah there was a 38 caliber bullet found lodge in the front of her skull which made its entry through the back of her skull at close range. Markings on the bullet are consistent with a gun that was also found in the grave.

Along with the body, we also found several items of significance, which have been taken into custody and photographed. Okay, action is taken. Following all standard procedures, the skeleton was carefully exhumed from its burial spot and sent to the medical examiner's office in Hartford. The film in the camera was relayed to our photo lab to see if the film is still salvageable. There was one salvageable image.

A blurred hand. Okay. Okay, presumed to be the right hand of the individual who killed the victim. The bullet found inside the victim's skull was confirmed to have been fired from the gun found in the grave.

The serial number of the gun was filed off, so we can't trace it. Is there a ring? There is a ring. It's the... It looks like a man's hand.

It's the right hand. Okay, evidence. 38 caliber bullet matches the note. The revolver forensics confirmed this gun fired the...

bullet the spy camera heavily corroded and smashed possibly with a rock trace amounts of Feldspar and quartz roll of film found inside the camera contains one salvage photo of a blurred hand presumably grabbing the camera a threatening note on faded red paper that reads falconing back off or I'll bury you with 38 through the back of your skull a single $10 bill 1934 a series hmm interesting why they would Yeah, that's why I'm trying to see where the... Oh, her money? Yeah.

It's in the... There's this, right? Oh, yeah, but there's also a list. Oh, this is the same $10 bill.

So E-111-21937H. Why is there multiple? Oh, is it counterfeit money? Maybe. I also remembered that in her note here, she was saying she was finally going to get photos before tomorrow's meeting.

So the night... before she disappeared. She was trying to get photos of something. Maybe she was intentionally going to the diner or the family restaurant and someone said she might be investigating like family history. So something's going on.

I don't know quite what. I think we got to keep going. Brown leather wallet with her driver's license and library card and also a lighter. So this is a right hand, right? Right.

Does that mean? the person is right-handed she's right-handed joey caruso's right joey cruz right-handed this guy is right-handed oh she's left-handed and oh he's left-handed too let's just go into the other ones should we go to him first then she's right-handed stanley smithers single 358 nervous tics he works at the bank too oh he works at the bank. It's not looking good for you. And this one is Robin Falls Bank and Trust. Yeah, that's the one.

He's been there for seven months. He owns a firearm. Bank carving, so he has some type of sharp tool. Pinning insects. Oh, they're not making this guy look good at all.

Is it too obvious? On the day Veronica went missing, I saw her at her house around noon. but that was it.

No clue what happened after that and quite frankly I don't care. I thought we could have had something special and if she hadn't been so stubborn she You would have seen it too, but I guess in reality she clearly was not the person I thought she was. She turned out to be downright disrespectful, rude, and didn't know her place.

And she treated me like I was some kind of reprehensible worm. Women like that are bound to meet their end in any manner of highly unpleasant ways. but had nothing to do with it and I always get mother to bed around nine then retire soon afterwards so I wouldn't even have been awake between 10 and midnight."No corroboration though. What's this? Mrs. Ruby Jones. Oh okay so this is another witness. Okay so the neighbor. That day that Miss Veronica went missing was the day that very strange man Stanley Smithers came by her house and had a conniption fit. It was frightful. Come to think of it, he'd also been by a couple of other times before that. The first time he was below her bedroom window one night attempting to serenade her, which sounded a lot more like a mule in labor. The other time he left flowers on her porch, then did something to a tree in her front yard. Mr. Smithers and Miss Veronica's initials carved into the tree with a heart around it. Truly frightening. I never go to his line at the bank because, quite frankly, he makes my skin crawl. Something's clearly not right about that fellow. and it could surely be evidenced by the display he put on over at Miss Veronica's place the day she went missing. I heard a car pull up into the driveway next door and just happened to look over. When I saw it, it was Stanley Smithers. Anyhow, he went up on the front porch and banged on the door, kept getting louder and more forceful. Next, he started yelling and cussing and said he knew she was in there. I knew she was too, but you can't blame her for not answering. After that, he began peering in the windows and banging on those as well. Then he turned and went down the front steps. I thought it was going to be the end of it, but instead he went around the side and actually tried to open the door over there. Fortunately for Ms. Veronica, it was locked. That's when he ran back up onto the porch. I was getting frightened for her just watching. He yelled that if she didn't open the door, he was going to break the window and come in. At that time, her front door burst open and she came bolting right out. Before he even knew what hit him, she pushed him right down the front steps. Then she yelled down to him that she knew about Mabel Smith and she was going to find out what happened to her. So Mabel Smith... was a girl who went missing according to the librarian's witness statement. And then there was Mabel Smith who wrote a few poems that were pretty dark in nature. She went missing and was never found. Maybe she's still hiding. Then she yelled down to him that she knew about Mabel Smith and she was going to find out what happened to her. That's what she was investigating maybe. After that he came charging back up the stairs and grabbed her forcefully. She made some kind of move she must have learned in the war. but she easily got out of his grasp and kicked him hard between the legs he reeled around crying out like a wounded baboon and then she kicked him once more in the behind for a good measure that's when she went back into the house and slammed the door he screamed that she was going to regret this and staggered down the front stairs i distinctly remember him stopping on the way to his automobile to take a good long look at her motorcycle and now that i hear someone cut her brakes I bet anything he was the one who did it. I can also tell you that on the night in question, Joy Caruso showed up a couple different times at her place. She wasn't home either time. The second time he showed up, he spent the entire night in his truck parked in a driveway. Yeah, we know that already. Here's the interview with Smithers. Can you please state your name into the microphone? Stanley Bartholomew Smithers. No. Mr. Smithers, how did you meet Veronica Falcone? I'm a bank clerk at Robin County Bank and Trust. Veronica came in to sign some papers because she just inherited her grandmother's estate. I asked her to have a seat and went to get the manager. When she was leaving, I asked her if she'd like to go out and have a steak dinner at Sal's Steakhouse with me. And what did she say? Flat out no, as if she couldn't even be bothered to consider it. You can't really blame her. What I mean to say is the lady didn't even know you, but I take it this bothered you? No, well actually yes it did. It was quite rude. Not sure why you think it was rude? She brushed me off like I was a ball of lint. She needed better manners than that. We were meant for each other. I was her knight in shining armor. My goodness, I even offered to buy her a steak dinner. Excuse me, I need some water. Why did you think you were meant for each other? You knew just a little about her as she did about you. Sometimes you just know. She'd have known too if she'd quit being stubborn. The lyrics in Dearly Beloved sung by the great Fred Astor put it best. Oh gosh, I don't know this song. Oh my goodness. cartoon. Tell me that it's true. Tell me you agree. I was meant for you. You were meant for me. I see. Was that occasion the only time you asked Miss Falcone out? No, it wasn't. Why do that if you thought her both rude and lacking in manners? She needed to see we were meant to be together. So in other words, you wanted to force your will upon her? Nothing of the kind. She just needed to see things as I saw them. You know, Stanley, we found a letter you wrote inside her house, and I think drawing a sketch of the two of you holding a baby is a pretty sick way to try to woo a lady. Anything to say about that? That was private. I was simply foretelling her of our potential future together. together. Uh-huh. Can you tell me what your other encounters were with her were like? I brought a bouquet of forget-me-nots to her house, but no one answered the door, so I left them on the porch with a note requesting that she show me the proper respect I deserve and allow me to treat her to a steak dinner. I'm anxious to hear how that went over. She stomped into the bank, threw the flowers at me and said, just showing you the proper respect you deserve. Now leave me alone, then left. People had the audacity to laugh. She really needed to be taught a lesson. And did you teach her this lesson? I sure tried. The next day I went over to talk sense into her. I knocked and she didn't answer. But I knew she was home since her motorcycle was there. You did more than just knock. A neighbor said you were peeping into windows. I was not going to be ignored. I needed to talk to her. You don't do that by invading someone's privacy. Well, it got her to finally open the door. What happened then? She came bursting through the door and shoved me down the stairs. Then she screamed and cussed and told me to leave her the heck alone. So unladylike. I left after that, decided she wasn't worth my time. But you didn't leave after that. According to the neighbor, Miss Falcone told you... She knew about Mabel Smith and wasn't going to stop until she found out what happened to her. Know what she was talking about? No idea. Oh, then you stormed back up on the porch and grabbed her arm. Only she easily escaped and kicked you hard. And while you were reeling in pain, she kicked you again. You told her she'd regret it, and that's when you left. But before you did, you stopped at her bike. I think that neighbor should really mind their own business. Was it Ruby Jones? You know what I think, Mr. Smithers? You were obsessed with Miss Falcone, and it made you furious because she wanted nothing to do with you. So you made good on your threat and messed with a brake line on her bike. Trust me, that bluesy had it coming, but it wasn't me who did it. Tell me about Mabel Smith. You stalked her, too, back in high school. high school, remember? She ended up missing and they never found her. What did you do with her body, Mr. Smithers? This is ridiculous. I've never stalked anyone. Why don't you go ask Sheriff Shepard? He knows I had nothing to do with it. He was just a copper back then, but he was in charge of the search for Mabel. And even he said she probably just took off with some guy. I'd throw you in jail right now if I could. You better watch yourself, Mr. Smithers, because I'll be watching you like a hawk. Wait, that's key. Sheriff Shepard was also in charge of the case with a missing Mabel Smith. Yeah, we knew that. He was in charge. There is a common thread. He seems like a creeper. Yeah. Oh my goodness. Also more about him too is that he's not too fond of Veronica because he ignored Joey's call. Yeah he was like oh girl like her can you take care of yourself. And he also ignored the lady in the grocery store. Hudson's drugstore. Basically he's not he's a bad cop. Now you have to. And And he's Evelyn's uncle. You have to read this poem. Oh, gosh. My dearest darling Veronica, I'm feeling intense anger toward you right now, which I certainly do not wish to feel. However, you left me no choice in the matter. The deplorable manner in which you've been treating me is not in accordance with how a lady should treat a man, especially a man who wants to buy her a steak dinner. Just who do you think you are? Do you have some... I'm just going to go fast. Do you have some... Do you have some mistaken delusion which makes you think you're better than me? You need to be taught to show a lot more respect. Mother warned me about women like you. My dear, you need to understand that we belong together. How can you carry on with the low-life mechanic when you have such a perfectly decent gentleman caller as myself who strongly desires a future with you? Do you want to spend your life with a grimy blue-collar worker or do you want to be with someone making something of himself in the finance industry? To put it simply, you're the thief who's stolen my heart. It's up to you whether or not you should be punished for your crime. Perhaps someday we'll laugh about how very silly we were were when you tried to keep me at bay as we watched Stanley Jr. growing up before our eyes. But mark my words, Veronica, if I can't have you, then no one will. Ooh, it's not looking good for him. With all my love in my heart, Stanley. A poem for my Veronica. I am your destiny. You are my fate. I love you so dearly, but you're filled with hate. My lips need your touch, just like my harmonica. I sense that you feel the same. way Veronica. Soon you will see that you can't live without me. I mean that quite literally, you shouldn't doubt me. He's a pretty good artist. All right, who's this? Mildred? Again, she is left-handed. We know the photo is right-hand, but her motive is she was taking care of the grandma, hoping to inherit the house, but it went to Veronica. And now she's staying in some widow, a home for widows or something. boarding house. There you go. Okay. Wait, sorry. Who is she? She is Veronica's cousin. Employed by Sheriff Shepard. Oh. She also owns firearms. He owned one too, right? Stanley? Yes. On the night my cousin Veronica went missing, I was at the Crow's Nest boarding house. I'd lived in my grandmother's house for several years, caring for her around the clock until she recently died and Veronica inherited the entire estate, which was a complete injustice. So then I was out on the street and I had no other choice but to take up residence at the Crow's Nest. at the boarding house. That night we had some cold and tasteless potato soup for dinner and then I played cards with the only other resident at the time, Mrs. Newton. She's an elderly widow who stays in room three. We played for about an hour on so till about 10 o'clock. Then she fell fast asleep in her chair. I read for a while afterward then went to bed. I did not leave the boarding house all night. Well we don't really know. Well she has an alibi if this Mrs. Newton. 10 though in the boarding house. It's very close. So Crow's Nest is right next to the place. Boom! My name is Mrs. Fanny Newton and I'm a widow who rooms at the Crow's Nest boarding house. I've seen a lot of types come and go in that time, but none as uptight and miserable. Mildred Morehouse. So she doesn't like her either? Sure, we played cards and listened to the radio programs together. You've got to pass the long hours somehow. But that woman goes on non-stop about how unfair it is that her cousin Veronica, that lady spy, inherited her grandmother's estate instead of her. Bertha confided in me that Mildred never let her forget for a second that she was unselfishly giving up the prime years of her life to take care of a sick old lady. I was with Mildred for most of the evening on the night that poor girl Veronica disappeared, but I fell asleep in my chair playing bridge with her. Very unlike me, as I'm usually up well past midnight, but I started feeling groggy after I drank my tea. Almost forgot, I also do recall seeing Mildred at Bertha's old house the day Veronica went. missing okay it was around 10 a.m and i was visiting my nephew earl jones incredibly i saw her hop on veronica's motorcycle and onto the handlebars acting like she was revving the engine i called out to her and she jumped a mile in the air got off the bike and took off never even looked over at me so somehow she was in contact with the bike okay now this is the interview good afternoon to you miss please speak right into the microphone here and tell me your full name mildred morehouse and you are the deceased cousin is that correct yes it is first cousin cousins on my mother's side. Can you please tell me about your relationship with the victim? Were the two of you close? We were never close. Veronica always marched to the tune of a very different drummer. She didn't live around here growing up, but she and her mother always came up for Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving, as in thanks for giving me crummy relatives I have to endure for an entire day every year. Anyhow, I always thought she was strange, not to mention selfish, not very girlish at all. While I always helped out with the cooking and the dishes and everything else around the house, she'd always be outside shooting at soda pop bottles with her pellet gun. I hear that after your grandmother fell and broke her hip, you came to stay with her. Is that right? Yes, that's correct. I came to stay and never left. I took care of grandma for the best years only two living relatives she had. I thought she should move here and help out, but she decided to go play spy in the war instead. She had a duty to grandmother just as much as I did, but chose to put her own interests ahead of all that. You seem angry about her fighting in the war. As a matter of fact, yes, I am angry about it. I needed her help. While she was off having very unladylike exploits, I sacrificed the prime of my life caring for grandmother. I'm sure it wasn't easy for you, Mildred, but your cousin almost sacrificed her entire life numerous times for her country. Yes, well, good for her. And she was highly rewarded for it too, but was I rewarded for my years of sacrifice? No, I wasn't. Grandmother actually ended up leaving her house and the entire estate to Veronica. All of it should have been mine, not hers. I have a copy of the will right here. and appears she left you a few things. Oh, she left me a few things, all right. For one, her darned cat, Marmalade. That cat hates me, and Grandmother knew it too. Another thing she left me incredibly was her bedpan. Her bedpan, Captain, of all things. And after all I'd done for her, what'd she expect me to do with that? Use it as a candy dish? I've never heard of anyone willing a bedpan. I don't even know what to say to that. Exactly. Thankfully, the Sheriff and his wife took pity on me, and I'm working as their part-time housekeeper now. Gotta pay my board to Mrs. Sudbury somehow. Interesting. So I take it you were pertubed at Miss Falcone because not only did you feel put upon that she left you to tend to your grandmother, but she also inherited everything. Perturbed, Captain? Perturbed? That's an understatement. What's more, I was Grandmother's sole heir until Veronica came home a celebrated war hero. She changed her will almost immediately, said it was the least she could do for Veronica after she'd done so much for her country. What about everything I'd done for Grandmother? What about that? According to this copy of the will we found at the estate, it states that in the event of Veronica's death, you are to inherit everything. Did you know about that? Yes. Well, that seems mighty lucky for you, doesn't it, Miss Morehouse? It's not luck. I deserve it. So if it wasn't luck, then you know what I'd call it? I'd call it a very strong motive for murder. It drove you crazy that she left everything to Veronica, but now you have it all. don't you? I will not stand for this. Yes, I hated her, and yes, she took what was rightly mine, but I did not kill her. You thought Miss Balcony had no business inheriting what you believed was rightly yours, but you saw the loophole in the will. You didn't want to be left out in the cold after giving up the best years of your life. You worked hard all those years for your reward and had to watch it get handed over to Veronica on a silver platter, leaving you nothing but a silver bedpan. Of course you killed her. You thought you had no other choice. That is not true. That will be all, Miss Morehouse. I meant I was going to take her to court, not kill her. I told you, that will be all. Actually, I do have one other thing come to think of it. Miss Morehouse, just exactly how did your grandmother die again? Because I hear she was given- given a clean bill of health shortly before her death. She took too many of her pills. She was forever getting things mixed up. Just like she did with the will, she was getting rather senile, Captain. But since you knew that, wasn't it your job to make sure that kind of thing didn't happen? Okay, no more questions at this time. We'll be in touch. Interesting. So her position is housekeeper, right? For the sheriff. The will would go to her if Veronica died. Maybe, question mark, suspicion of cause of death for their grandma. Okay, there's a last will and testament of Bertha. I, Bertha Phyllis Grable, being of both sound mind and body, do hereby bequeath almost all my worldly goods and possessions, including my property. at 101 SpyGas Lane, the contents of my house, my 1938 Chevrolet sedan, and my bank accounts at the Robben County Bank and Trust to my beloved granddaughter Veronica Fontenot. I couldn't be prouder of her. There might not even be an America today if not for Veronica and her selfless deeds of bravery, while others in our family just sit back and did nothing. In the event of her untimely demise, I leave my estate to my other granddaughter Mildred Morehouse, and she's my only other living relative. To my granddaughter Mildred Morehouse, I leave my beloved cat Marmole. She's my only child. to take him into her home and love him as if he was her own. I also leave Mildred all of Marmalade's personal belongings, including his grooming brushes, his toys, and his bowls. I leave her all my makeup since Veronica simply doesn't need it. She's a natural beauty, but Mildred sure does. Wow. I also leave my luggage to make it easier for her to pack up all her belongings in a timely manner. The pot I always use to soak my feet in to help with all my boils. The bedding for her room because I doubt Veronica's... Veronica is going to want to sleep in that. And last but not least, my bed pad. It's been in the family for generations and I thought it would be an apt reminder of all she's done for me. Wow. If Mildred should like any other items from the house, she must pay whatever Veronica deems is a fair price for them. Wow. Brutal. Did not like her. So, that will be it for this video. Look out for the final video where we solve this case. And again if you like our content don't forget to give us a like and subscribe to our channel and hope to see you again in the gamery.

Transcript for:Unraveling the Veronica Falcone Mystery

Transcript for:
Unraveling the Veronica Falcone Mystery