Suspected serial killer may have abducted news anchor who vanished 30 years ago: doc

Yahoo

7 hours ago

Jodi Huisentruit was on her way to work in the early-morning hours of June 27, 1995, when she vanished. Thirty years later, a sheriff has wondered whether a suspected serial killer could have been involved.
The case of the missing Iowa news anchor is being explored in a new ABC News Studios documentary, "Her Last Broadcast: The Abduction of Jodi Huisentruit." It features interviews with Huisentruit's loved ones, investigators, and others closely connected to the case.
The film takes a deep dive into four persons of interest, including Wisconsin Rapids native Christopher Revak.
New Person Of Interest Emerges In Documentary On Decades-old Disappearance Of Iowa News Anchor
"I think anytime you have a case that's gone on for this long, certainly [the serial killer idea] is something that law enforcement thinks about or has maybe heard those theories before," Maria Awes, executive producer of the documentary, told Fox News Digital.
"I think in Jodi's case, there is an individual who is discussed in the program who is believed to be responsible for two murders – one in Missouri and one in Wisconsin. He has an extremely unique connection to Jodi's case in terms of … his one-time girlfriend, with whom he was on the outs with … was living in the same duplex as John Vansice, [a friend] who has long been a person of interest in Jodi's case."
Read On The Fox News App
"… Jodi was last seen, reportedly by John Vansice, at his duplex," Awes shared. "Could somebody else have seen her there, followed her, or tracked her down? That's one of the things we talked about in this film. I think there's always this possibility. The police don't know who did it. And I think there are some really interesting and compelling reasons to take a look at this new individual who is being mentioned here in this show."
In 2024, KCCI Des Moines reported that Iowa and Wisconsin investigators were focusing on Revak, who killed himself in a jail cell in 2009 after he was charged with the 2007 death of Rene Williams, a bartender at the Eagles Lodge in Ava, Missouri.
According to the documentary, police wondered whether Revak may have been connected to five different homicides within 14 years. Huistentruit's disappearance made their list of suspected cases that Revak may have been involved in.
"When I started working on the Christopher Revak case, he was my suspect in the murder of Rene Williams," Douglas County Sheriff Chris Degase told Fox News Digital. "I didn't think it was his first go around at it."
Follow The Fox True Crime Team On X
"I did a search [for] women abducted in bars," he shared. "It popped up that Deidre Harm was abducted in Wisconsin Rapids. I saw a composite drawing of the suspect, who was, no doubt, Christopher Revak."
Degase didn't rule out the possibility that Revak could have traveled to Iowa at one point.
"Obviously, [Jodi] wasn't abducted from a bar, but I just thought it was odd," Degase told Fox News Digital, who is also heard in the documentary discussing the Revak case.
Degase noted that, like Huisentruit, Williams has never been found.
"I don't believe in coincidences," said Degase. "I called the authorities out there and gave them the information I had."
When asked whether "suspected serial killer" was an accurate description for Revak, Degase replied, "Absolutely – I gave him that."
Degase stressed that he personally felt that Revak was a suspect worth looking into.
"Christopher Revak is deceased," said Degase. "He died in my jail. He hanged himself in my jail shortly after I arrested him. So, I don't know if they've completely dismissed him as a person of interest in the [Huisentruit] case. [But] I'm sure they've checked into it."
Sign Up To Get The True Crime Newsletter
In response to the persons of interest listed in the documentary, the Mason City Police Department told Fox News Digital in a statement: "MCPD continues to investigate Jodi Huisentruit's disappearance and hopes that the current information is able to produce useful leads that help bring some closure to the case for the family and our community. We have not discussed suspects or persons of interest with the media in the past and do not intend to start doing so now."
In the documentary, Mason City Police Investigator Terrance Prochaska pointed out that Revak's ex-girlfriend was not living at the duplex in question at the time of Huisentruit's abduction. She had moved out three months before Huisentruit went missing. However, a theory was proposed that Revak could have possibly tracked down his ex's former address and went looking for her in the area.
WATCH: PRIVATE INVESTIGATOR STEVE RIDGE EXAMINES JODI HUISENTRUIT CASE
"Until there's documentation to prove that Revak wasn't in Mason City when Jodi vanished, he remains a person of interest for police," said Awes in the documentary.
Awes told Fox News Digital that she doesn't lean on any specific person of interest. Her goal with the film, she said, was to help raise awareness of Huisentruit's disappearance in hopes it would spark fresh leads for investigators.
"… Certainly, people may form their own opinions," said Awes. "But what I do think is that all the persons of interest that are featured here, I think there are a lot of really strong, compelling bits of information that viewers will gravitate towards in terms of forming their own theories about what might have happened."
Huisentruit, a native of Long Prairie, Minnesota, was on her way to work as a morning anchor at KIMT-TV in Mason City, Iowa, when she vanished.
After the 27-year-old didn't make it to work by 7 a.m., Mason City Police were notified. Her vehicle was found at her apartment, along with a bent car key, her high heels and signs of a struggle.
To date, she is believed to have been abducted, but extensive investigations have failed to uncover any concrete evidence as to what happened or where her remains could be.
GET REAL-TIME UPDATES DIRECTLY ON THE True Crime Hub
"One of the things that always … resonated with me is that there are a lot of persons of interest related to this case that have been looked at over the years," Awes explained.
"I think it's easy to take a look at each individual and think, 'Of course, it must be this person. Look at all the different pieces of circumstantial evidence.' But then you also think, 'But what about this other person?' There are just a lot of people who, I think, warrant an investigation related to whether or not they could have been involved."
"I think what surprises me is just that there are a lot of folks who've been mentioned as a potential person who may be responsible, someone who has a missing link, a piece of information. . . . Somebody has to come forward with answers."
Awes noted that at the time, Huisentruit's apartment was dusted for fingerprints.
"Fingerprints were the thing back then," she said. "Sometimes that fingerprint dust can erode the ability to get DNA from things. But I think that what you have here is an opportunity to take advantage of … new testing techniques and new ways to potentially look at this evidence again."
And investigators are "extremely hopeful" to find out what happened to Huisentruit, she said.
"They have never lost hope," said Awes. "I think everyone feels like it is solvable. They just need that one missing piece. And I hope that someone watching this will have that piece of information they need to solve this case."
Awes also hopes the documentary will shed light on Huisentruit before she made headlines.
"She was a daughter, sister, colleague, friend – all these wonderful things," Awes said. "I think it's important to keep the memory of who she was alive. . . . If anyone out there knows anything, it's been 30 years. Please come forward with information to law enforcement. Let's get that information to the police so that we can hopefully solve this case once and for all."Original article source: Suspected serial killer may have abducted news anchor who vanished 30 years ago: doc