The Sharp family was brutally murdered in their family cabin almost 40 years ago. To this day, it remains a cold case. The case was notoriously handled poorly and a ton of key evidence was missed… Much of the evidence now known came up 20-30 years later, after it was way too late.
Find out why American’s are still upset about the Keddie Cabin murders.
The Sharps
In the fall of 1980, Glenna Susan Sharp took her 15-year-old son John, 14-year-old daughter Sheila, 12-year-old daughter Tina, 10-year-old Rick and 5-year-old Greg resided in the Keddie Resort after separating from their father, John Sharp.
Just a Normal Day
A few months went by without incident. The family was enjoying their stay up in Keddie and adjusting to their new life. On April 11th, 1981, Sue and Sheila drove from Keddie to Quincy, California to pick up John and his friend, Dana…
Two Hours Later…
After two hours, John and Dana hitchhiked back to Quincy because they wanted to hang out with some friends. Sheila and Tina had plans to hang out with a family across the street later that night.
All Alone
Sue, Rick, Greg, and the boys’ friend Justin remained in the home that night. Tina went home around 9:30… Everything seemed to be fine.
That Morning
Sheila came home from her sleepover around 7 in the morning. When she walked in, she immediately saw the dead bodies of Sue, John, and his friend, Dana. They were all bound with tape and wire.
Where is Everyone Else?
Sheila was horrified. It was as if she walked straight into a nightmare. She went to try and find the others. She found Rick, Greg, and Justin alive and unharmed in the bathroom. Tina was missing.
Don’t Let The Boys See
Knowing that she needed to get help, but not wanting the boys to see the bodies, she left them in the bathroom and sprinted back to the neighbors home. She burst into the home and woke them immediately, telling them what happened.
Getting Help
Neighbor James Seabolt helped get Rick, Greg, and Justin out through the bedroom window of the bathroom they were in. He brought them to safety and immediately called the police… This is where things start to go terribly, terribly wrong.
A Bloody Scene
The murder scene was horrific. People who saw it remember how much blood there was… It seemed almost impossible to have that much blood splattered all over the room.
The Wounds
Sue was found laying on her side near the living room couch. She was nude from the waist down. A blue bandana was forced into her mouth, along with her underwear. Both gags were taped around her face.
Even More
Along with that, Sue had been stabbed in her chest while her throat was slashed. An imprint of the butt of a Daisy 880 BB gun was on the side of her head.
John and Dana
John had his throat slashed as well. Dana had been beaten in the head by hammers and was strangled by someone’s hands.
Time To Interview
The police got to work. Sheila and the Seabolt family were the first to be interviewed since they were first on the scene. None of them claimed to have heard any commotion during the night.
Missing Items
Sheila helped the police take inventory of the home. They noted that Tina’s jacket, shoes, and a shoebox of tools were the only things missing…
So, What Happened?
There was no sign of forced entry or anything broken around the home. There was a bizarre fingerprint that didn’t have a match on the handrail… But that was it. The cabin’s phone had been knocked out and the drapes were closed.
How Could It Have Happened…
The families were confused. Was this something that was pointed? Were they targeted? Was it just a bunch of psychopaths? Who could have done something so horrible?
Questions
The biggest question: How did John and Dana get back to the cabin? Did they hitchhike back after the party? They were identified at the party, and a woman even said that she drove them to the party as well… It was suspicious.
Murder-Suicide?
Naturally, the question of a murder-suicide was in the air. Did John and Dana have something against his mother? Did things go wrong? Did they bring people to the cabin? Since the two were tied up, it seemed like it wasn’t them, but that could have been a red herring…
Where Was Tina?
Another group was dispatched to try and find Tina. They had no idea where she could have gone or why someone would take her… She couldn’t have been in on it, that would be too sinister. She was their last hope in finding out the truth… They just had to find her.
Conflicting Stories
Justin, on the other hand, was telling conflicting stories of what happened. At first, he said that he dreamt the murders. Then, he said he saw them happen. He ended up going under hypnosis…
The Real Story?
While he was under hypnosis, Justin claims to have heard sounds coming from the living room while he was watching TV with Rick and Greg. When he went to go see what was going on, he was met with a troubling sight…
What He Saw
Justin said that he saw Sue with two men. One had a mustache and long hair, while the other had no facial hair and has short hair. They both had glasses on… But, he had no idea who they were.
John and Dana
After a minute, John and Dana entered the home. They were arguing with the men over something Justin didn’t catch. Suddenly, they began physically fighting. One of the men grabbed Tina, who had just walked in, and dragged her out the back door.
Descriptions
After this account, an article sketched out possible suspects. They were in their late 20s to early 30s, around six feet tall. One had black hair, the other had blond hair. They both had gold-framed sunglasses on.
Suspicions…
Some people began to suspect that there was some sort of drug trafficking ring going on, but the police quickly shut down that rumor. There were no drugs found in the area. There was another claim from a family friend…
Dana Stole…
Carla McMullen, a family friend, claimed that Dana Wingate stole a large quantity of LSD from local drug dealers. She wasn’t able to provide proof of the claim, so the police dropped it…
Serial Killers?
Some thought that serial killers Henry Lee Lucas and Ottis Toole could have committed the crimes. Unfortunately, all signs pointed away from them. Investigators were spending day and night on this investigation with no leads… Who murdered these people, and why? And where is Tina?
Failing at Their job
Since Tina was listed as abducted, the FBI was allegedly working on her case. 18 days after the crime, the FBI backed off the search, claiming that the Department of Justice was doing an “adequate job” and made their presence “unnecessary.”
Big Mistake
Many believe that this was negligence on their part. The police were not able to locate anything of Tina’s… Not even her scent. Tina was found, but not by police…
Three Years Later
It was three years and 11 days after the murders that Tina’s remains were found. A bottle collector found a portion of a human skull and a mandible at Camp Eighteen near Feather Falls in Butte County, about 100 miles away from Keddie.
It Was Tina
A year later, analysts were able to confirm that the remains were of Tina. Near where the remains were found, the police found a blue nylon jacket, a pair of Levi jeans, and an empty surgical tape dispenser. This lead to more questions than answers…
Bizarre Developments
Needless to say, investigators came up short on literally every suspicion that they had. In 2008, a documentary came out with some interesting details…
The Murderers?
A woman named Marilyn Smartt claimed that her husband, Martin, and his friend, John “Bo” Boubede, were the ones responsible for the murders. Her evidence is startling…
No Alibi
On the night of the murders, Marilyn said that she left Martin and Bo at a local bar at 11:00 pm to go to bed. Around 2:00 am, she woke up to them burning something in the stove. They wouldn’t tell her what it was… But, that’s not all.
Hated The Sharps
Marilyn claims that her husband hated Johnny Sharp “with a passion.” The documentarians interviewed a deputy who worked with Martin on the case, who said that Martin ended up clearing a polygraph test. Back then, polygraphs weren’t very reliable and were easy to lie on, but they were forced to go with it…
Martin and Bo
Unfortunately, there was no way to follow up on these claims. Martin died in 2000 of cancer. Bo died in Chicago back in 1988. He had major ties with Chicago organized crime and ended up becoming a victim of it. More evidence is still being uncovered…
New Evidence in 2016
In 2016, a hammer matching the description of the hammer that Martin said he lost was found in a pond. A hammer was used to bludgeon some of the victims on that fateful night. It was taken to a Special Investigator who was a local to Keddie at the time of the murders…
It’s Suspicious
Plumas County Special Investigator Mike Gamberg investigated the hammer and said, “… The location it was found… It would have been intentionally put there. It would not have been accidentally misplaced.”
Still Investigating
At the time that the hammer was found, Gamberg was investigating six other possible suspects. Then, more news came to light, which Gamberg admits was overlooked in the initial investigation which was absolutely detrimental…
Possible Confession?
The Sacramento Bee published an article about the murders in 2016. They claimed that Martin left Keddie a few days after the murders and fled to Reno, Nevada. He sent a startling letter to Marilyn…
Marriage struggles
The letter complained of personal and marital struggles. He finished the letter by saying, “I’ve paid the price of your love & now I’ve bought it with four people’s lives.” Apparently, the police at the time did not find that incriminating…
A Horrible Mistake
Now, Gamberg believes that the letter was overlooked and was never admitted as evidence, which is absolutely a mistake. He criticized the quality of the initial investigation by saying, “You could take someone just coming out of the academy and they’d have done a better job.”
More Evidence Against Martin
Martin met with a counselor frequently after the murders. The counselor said that he had admitted to the murders of Sue and Tina, but said: “I didn’t have anything to do with [the boys].”
Killing Tina
Martin admitted to the counselor that he killed Tina because he didn’t want her to point him out as a witness. He didn’t want to get caught. So, she had to die.
Still Trying
Unfortunately, those are all of the developments of the case. It very much points to Martin and Bo as the suspects, but the investigators did not do their jobs well enough to officially point the finger. Sheila Sharp is doing her best to bring justice to her family. The cabin has been destroyed, leaving nothing else to investigate.