Missing Welch Girls /// Part 1 /// True Crime Garage | Forensic Files

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a chair, grab a beer. Let's talk some true crime. This is True Crime Garage and this is the case of the missing
Welch girls. [music] [music] >> [music] >> Laura Bible is described as 5'5 in tall,
130 lb with [music] brown hair and hazel eyes. Ashley Freeman is 5'7 in [music] tall,
145 lbs with dark blonde hair and blue eyes. [music] She has a scar on the upper left side of
her forehead. [music] Both are Caucasian females and were 16 years old at [music] the time of their
disappearance. They have been missing since December 30th, 1999 from Welch, Oklahoma.
They are both classified as endangered missing. This is true crime garage. This is the case of the missing Welch
girls. [music] >> [music] >> The Freeman family lived in a trailer home outside of Welch, Oklahoma. And the
family consisted of parents Danny and Kathy Freeman and their 16-year-old daughter Ashley. On December 29th, 1999,
the family was celebrating Ashley's 16th birthday. Yeah. And like a typical thing, she's going to have her best
friend spend the night, and her best friend is Laura Bible. Yes. They are both 16 years old by this point. They
are lifelong friends. Both were very good students. Ashley was a basketball player. Laura was a cheerleader. And
both of them were very well-liked. So Ashley and Laura went with Kathy Freeman, who took the two girls out to
dinner. Some have stated that they went to a Pizza Hut. Others said that it was Big Bill's barbecue, but regardless,
they go out to dinner that evening. They also picked up feed for the Freeman's livestock and water from Cathy's mom's
house. After dinner, they went to their local Walmart store. There, Ashley met her boyfriend, Jeremy Hurst. Jeremy gave
Ashley a silver chain with a heart-shaped pendant that also contained her birthstone. This was her birthday
gift. And then after the Walmart, Kathy, Ashley, and Laura all went back to the Freeman's home and Jeremy joined them as
well. Laura already spent the night the night before at the Freeman's house, but
since it's getting dark, they're going to stop by her family's house to see if it's okay if she spends the night again.
Yeah, it was it was going to be for one night. Turns into two nights because Laura's parents do not let her drive
after dark. She's already driving by this time. Her car is parked at the Freeman house. Now, they drop by just to
make sure it'll be okay because it's well after dark by this point >> and we can assume that they're on winter
break at at this point. Now, back at the Freeman home, Jeremy Hurst, the boyfriend, he says that while he was
there, he didn't think anything was abnormal. He didn't see anything out of place. Uh, he says that he left the
Freeman home around 9:30 p.m., but Danny, the father, he had some relatives there at the Freeman home. And one of
the relatives said that Jeremy left closer to 10:30 p.m., so about an hour later than Jeremy remembers.
>> Yeah. But as we know with eyewitness accounts, they can be off by a little bit. Both of the girls the next day had
things that they had to do. Ashley was going to take her driver's test, and Laura had scheduled a dentist
appointment for the following morning. Well, the following morning around 5:30 a.m., a passing motorist reported a fire
in the vicinity of the Freeman's trailer. >> Mhm. When fire and police first responders first showed up to to find
the trailer ablaze, they put out the fire and inside on the bed they found the body of a female. They would learn
that this is the body of Kathy Freeman. And they learned that she was not killed
by the fire. She had been shot in the head before the fire. >> So now we have a dead mother and we have
a missing father and we have the missing two teenagers. >> Yes. >> Laura and Ashley. the sheriff's
department, they're going to start investigating and they have a theory. They immediately have a theory and their
theory is that Danny Freeman probably lost it and he shot his wife. He set the trailer on fire and he took off with
both of the 16-year-old girls. >> No, he he was known to have a temper >> and he had a few run-ins with the
sheriff's department. We'll get to that in a minute. The next day, Lur's parents, Jay and Lorine Bible, they are
at the scene of the fire and the murder, and they are looking amongst the rubble
for clues regarding the girl's whereabouts. >> Mhm. >> They see the Freeman family dog. This is
a Rottweiler. So, a very big dog. And the dog is kind of laying on a collapsed portion of the trailer. And around the
dog, or as some have suggested, underneath of the dog, Jay spots something. And it's clear to Jay that he
is looking at the dead body of a man, the body of Danny Freeman. >> Always been super fascinating to me how
in tune with the world and surroundings dogs are. >> Well, the the crazy thing here is that
Laura Bible's parents, they could tell that Dany did not die as a result of the fire either because as they described
it, and quote, he did not have anything from the upper teeth all the way to the top of his head. That portion of the
face was totally gone. >> Jesus. >> Now, the first question >> gunshot blast >> to the to the face. Yes. And the first
question that we have to ask ourselves is how did the police and the firefighters miss the body of Danny? You
know, and does this make you think that they could have overlooked the bodies of
the two 16-year-old girls as well? >> Well, and then obviously that the public has access to this crime scene. Yeah, we
have a situation where the Bibles were up there looking for clues about their daughter and her friend. And the thing
is here the once they call and report that they found the body of Danny, they get a little push back from law
enforcement stating that, you know, we've been over that crime scene and you must be mistaken. Well, what took place,
I guess, is that, you know, >> yeah, we're mistaken. We just saw a guy with his face blown off.
>> They they showed up and they put out the fire. And this probably took a good deal
of time. But after that, once they're looking amongst the the rubble and the debris, they find the body of of Kathy.
>> They fail to find Danny's body, but they leave the crime scene around 5:30 to
6:00 p.m. that night. Now, keep in mind, it's the winter months, so it's getting
dark about that same time. There was a good chance that they may not have found it uh
>> just due to time by the Right. So by the time they get the fire out, you know, the sun is setting and they
find the one body, but so let's not, you know, jump down law enforcement's throats too quick. Maybe it's like,
well, now it's dark. We're just going to stop. We'll start again in the morning.
>> Exactly. But I don't think they planned on starting again in the morning because
they released the crime scene. They they they leave the area. >> Well, that's that's an error.
>> That's irresponsible. Now the Now the Bibles are up there looking for stuff. They find Danny. And
>> we're also talking about a very very small community. >> Extremely remote area as well. It's like
6 600 people live there. >> Yeah. So I mean let's just say under a thousand. We know for sure under a
thousand. >> Mhm. So the Bibles are up there looking. And now once they get push back from law
enforcement, uh law enforcement wants to take the crime scene back. However, by this point, the Bibles are up there with
a bunch of their friends and family that are assisting them looking through the debris, and they're actually lifting up
heavy objects, you know, refrigerators, beds. Uh they're looking for anywhere that these girls might have hid and
maybe passed away in the fire. >> Oh, hold up a second. That's definitely not what they're thinking. They're
thinking if they died in that house, it's not from a fire. They were murdered just like the other two victims.
>> Well, and they're also freaking out because all of the cars are still there in front of the Freeman home. And we're
talking about a big stretch of land, too, you know. So, there's a lot of area and ground to cover when you're when
you're conducting the search. But one thing that I found interesting was that the Bibles had said to law enforcement,
you know, all of the cars are still here. Have you checked the vehicles? They claim that that law enforcement
tells them, "No, we we didn't we haven't checked the vehicles yet." And of course, you know, the Bibles and and
their family members and friends are there wondering, "What kind of search is this?" You miss Danny the first day.
>> And then you've not even thought to check the vehicles. Could these girls be in the vehicles? Could they be in the
trunk of one of these cars? Well, I mean, again, let's not jump down law enforcement too much because you're
you're there with your friends and family touching all the debris. >> That's a crime scene. There's two
murdered victims and you just contaminated that. So, good luck. You know, if you do find somebody
responsible, good luck having enough evidence to convict them. >> Well, let's talk about Danny's runin
with the law real quick, right? Uh, and to do this, we're going to have to introduce Shane Freeman. Shane was a was
Ashley's older brother, >> deceased now. >> Yeah. And we'll have to go back in time
a little to tell this story. Um, in 1998, Shane was experiencing behavioral problems. The family was ordered to
participate in a counseling program. This was after Shane stole his uncle's pickup truck. Now, I do want to be kind
of clear here because I've heard this story a few different ways. Unless Shane was out stealing multiple vehicles. Um
I've heard it reported that he had stolen the uncle's truck or he had taken the grandparents vehicle. Right.
>> Um maybe it's the one one and the same. I don't know. But for whatever reason,
he took this vehicle. >> That's what teenagers like to say, borrowing. >> Yeah. And now there's there's another
story that has a few different uh perspectives, let's say, on it. Um, regarding this vehicle being stolen,
Danny calls it in and he reports his son Shane as missing at the same time that the vehicle is reported as stolen.
>> Mhm. >> Now, Shane is picked up for this. Now, during this situation, the Shane has been abused. Okay. It's
obvious to the deputy that that arrest him that that Shane has been abused, >> physically abused, like beat up.
>> That's one way that the story goes. The other way that the story goes was that
Shane was at school and a school counselor or a coach had noticed that his his buttocks area was was bleeding
and he was extremely bruised up. Uh to the point where it wasn't just, you know,
>> well, that's >> it wasn't just mom or dad with a little discipline to to straighten Shane out.
It was it looked like an obvious beating type situation. And like we said before,
the father Danny was known to have a temper. So maybe his parenting was getting a little out of control.
>> Yeah. And this was not the only situation where we saw his temp temper flare up. Um back in 1985,
>> well, hold on. We're assuming it was Danny that was disciplining him too hard
or maybe just being a drunk and beating his child. >> Well, what are we assuming here? We're
assuming that it was Danny because he would be charged with with child abuse in the situation. And what what law
enforcement would contend that that this was excessive force that Dany had used where Danny is saying, "No, you you're
taking a family situation and you're blowing it way out of proportion." >> Um, but again, this is not the first
time that his temper has got him into trouble because back in 1985, he got Danny got in trouble for beating up his
father-in-law. they had some kind of what sounds almost like a minor disagreement gets, you know, gets crazy
and out of hand and Danny ends up getting charged with that. >> And that's the evidence of Danny having
a temper problem. >> Yeah. And after Danny is charged with abusing his son in 1998, Shane does not
want to return to his parents' home. He ends up staying briefly with the with Ashley's family, with the Bible family.
And in early January 1999, the Bible family filed a complaint with authorities stating that Shane took some
of Laura's belongings and her money, and that he also stole several of the Bible's firearms. Well, you know, no
good deed goes unpunished. Come to our house, steal our stuff. Yeah. He takes he takes some of Laura's money. He takes
the firearms. Now, the police are looking for Shane, and he ends up taking another vehicle. This is somebody in the
Freeman family. And while he's out on the run, well, he This is very strange. >> When he takes the other car,
>> Mhm. >> he does again, he doesn't steal somebody else's car. He he takes one of his own
family members' cars. >> Correct. And while the while the law enforcement are looking for him, he he
tries to pull over a female driver and the the female does not believe that this person is a sheriff or a police
officer. um you know, he's he's 19 years old. Uh he probably doesn't look anything like law enforcement.
>> And she calls 911 and she reports the situation stating that, you know, there's this guy saying he's he's law
enforcement trying to pull me over. I'm not going to pull over. I'm going to drive somewhere where I feel safe before
I pull over. Well, interesting too because cell phones aren't really super popular in 99
>> and police are already looking for this guy. >> Mhm. >> So, what ends up happening is the the
vehicle that he has taken it it eventually breaks down and law enforcement locate him on the side of a
road when they encounter him. They, you know, they're they're doing the traditional things, but keep in mind
Shane's got firearms with him by this point, >> right? And they know he does. >> Yeah. because their report is stolen.
>> He had told some people, you know, friends and whatnot, that he was suicidal and that he was thinking about
doing suicide by cop. >> Well, in this situation, >> suicide by cop. >> Yes. >> And in this situation, he ends up
reaching for the gun. There's two different stories here. One story is that he pulled the gun on the officer.
The other story is that he was reaching for the gun. What ends up happening is that the officer shoots Shane and he
kills him. >> And what will be disputed though is what was the interaction between the officer
and Shane. This is Oklahoma law enforcement officer David Hayes. He shot and killed Shane on January 8th, 1999.
Now, the incident was investigated and Hayes's actions were found to be justified. David Haynes acted in
self-defense. The Freeman's believed that Shane was attempting to run away from Hayes at the time of his death.
Several of their family members believed that the autopsy results proved that Shane was killed as he he his back was
turned to the officer, >> right? So, the bullet entry would have been in Shane's back.
>> We can't say that for certain. What we can say is that the family members believed that his back was turned, that
the incident was investigated, and it was ruled to be a justified shooting. Now, this is what's going to bring on
this whole kind of thing that's going on between Danny Freeman and law enforcement because he believes that his
son was murdered by the police. Now, Danny reportedly inquired about the location of David Hayes's residence.
This was one month after his son was killed. Investigators apparently believed that Dany was planning some
kind of revenge uh against Shane's death. The Freeman's claimed that several officers vehicles were parked in
front of their trailer after after he had inquired about their residence. The way that I've heard that this has gone
down was that that Danny would go and he would park his vehicle in front of the officer's home. Mhm.
>> And he would kind of follow around his family members from time to time. And this is, mind you, like we said, this is
a small town. There's not a lot of people there. These things don't go unnoticed.
>> And so what ends up happening is we have a situation where it looks like Danny
might be harassing law enforcement or their families. And then the Freeman's believe that in turn law enforcement
starts harassing them by parking their vehicles in front of the Freeman home. Well, right. Obviously that law
enforcement has they have to protect themselves and they have to protect their family.
>> On the flip side of things though, Danny just lost his son. >> And even if it was based off his own
actions that he, you know, wanted to have suicide by a cop or or, you know, he was I'm going to pull out a gun and
they're going to shoot me or maybe he's just going to pull out the gun to shoot out the officer. He he lost his son, you
know, and and so that grief is a lot to deal with. I mean, you shouldn't go around harassing people, but it's like I
I kind of feel for him on that on that angle. Now, law enforcement, they start following Danny basically everywhere
he's going, maybe looking for any reason to pull him over or give him a citation
or arrest him for something. Uh but he believes that he's being harassed by this point to the point where he informs
his brother as well as other family members stating that if anything ever would were to happen to me
>> um you know look at the sheriff department they're the ones that that are harassing me. And you know, he also
gave a statement that he said to the fact that when he was uh in some kind of verbal altercation with law enforcement
that they had told him that they could do whatever they wanted to him and Danny's family. There was nothing that
they could do to stop them. >> Right. Well, and >> but this is secondhand. You know, we
don't know that this this interaction actually took place or those exact words were said. Well, we've all been pulled
over by, you know, some jack wagon officer, right? That's just running their mouth, you know, over nothing. So
whether or not a police officer was in an altercation, you know, verbal altercation with Danny and he's saying,
"Hey, we'll do whatever we want. We are the law. Yeah, I am the law." Whatever it is, that doesn't necessarily mean
that they are responsible for these deaths. Well, we have this situation though here, Captain, where two months
after the death of Shane. Now, Danny Freeman, he's got to go on trial for the child abuse charges. And this takes
place in March of 1999. The jury ended up, they deadlocked on this situation because they asked the
judge if they could order Dany to attend counseling rather than to send him to jail or to prison,
>> right? >> Uh the judge says, "No, you can't do that. This is this is the sentence. He's
he's either guilty and he's going to face these charges and get sentenced in this way or he's not guilty. And I think
this is a tough thing for the jury to to make a call on here because we got a we
got a case where we don't have the number one witness, the the the the kid that was was supposedly abused. um we
don't have him there to testify as to what took place in that situation and now you have to question a parent's you
know where's the line when you discipline your child. Um, so what they end up stating is that they he's
acquitted of these charges because they wanted to send him to counseling, but the judge would not allow it. After the
death of Kathy Freeman, her father and mother, they were telling people that, you know, Danny, not only did he have
this bad temper, but he was also abusive to his wife and to both of his children.
Um, so this leads us to some of the early theories in this case. One of those theories being that after years of
physical abuse, Ashley with the help of her friend, they shoot the parents with one of the parents' own guns with their
guns and they flee the area. The next theory is very similar to that, but that the two girls left town with two men or
boys that that may have assisted them in the attack on Ashley's parents. The third theory that we should discuss here
is the police killed Danny and then his family and set the fire to destroy evidence. Theory number four is that law
enforcement wasn't involved and Dany was targeted due to drug activity. Theory number five is that the girls were the
actual target, that the motivation for the attack was abduction, and that the parents were killed and the fire was set
just to simply hide evidence. And the final theory is that someone that knew the family had killed and abducted the
girls. The this would be any example that you can imagine, but you could also consider possibly the boyfriend Jeremy
Hurst who was there that night as well as relatives of Danny's that were at the trailer that night. So, those are the
the six theories that they're working off of early into this investigation. I think we kind of need to look at this
evidence to point us in the right direction and what theory makes the most sense. Let's get into that right after
this quick beer break. [music] [music] All right, we're back. Cheers, mates. Make sure you support our sponsors cuz
they support us. All right, let's get to this evidence. >> Yes. So, we both we know that both Danny
and Kathy had died of a result of gunshot wounds. >> Mhm. >> The medical examiner determined that
Danny's right collar bone had been fractured prior to the fatal shot. The coroner also determined that Kathy died
approximately 5 a.m. that morning. And of course, investigators believe that the fire was intentionally set in an
attempt to destroy evidence of the crimes. Now, regarding the family itself, regarding the Freeman family in their
home, Lorraine Bible told reporters that Ashley Freeman had been saving her money
to purchase her first vehicle when she turned 16 in December of 1999. Lorraine said that she believed that Ashley had
accumulated $1,200 in her savings account. Now, Jeremy Hurst, the boyfriend, >> said that Ashley actually didn't have a
savings account. Um, but Ashley had told him that she had saved between $3,000 and $4,000 for her first vehicle. She
was employed part-time at Rosco's, which is a convenience store in Welch. Uh Jeremy went on to say that that you know
she didn't have a bank account and she kept her money sealed in Tupperware in a Tupperware container in the family's
freezer. Authorities were unable to locate any evidence of the cash after the fire.
Lorraine stated that Ashley and Dany had been arguing earlier in the month regarding the vehicle. You know, she
wanted to purchase a certain vehicle. He had a different one in mind and they were not agreeing. We've all kind of
been there. You know, the teenager has earned their own money. They want to make their own decisions with their
money and you know, dad is disagreeing with her. >> Well, some of that could just be telling
a tall tale >> as well. You know, like, well, first of all, you're telling your friend's
parents, well, I got a savings account. Well, where's the evidence of that, you know, now that they're missing? And then
on top of that, you're telling the boyfriend, well, you got you got three to four grand, which where's the
evidence that he had any money? >> Um the the other thing here, too, which I want to kind of talk about this for a
little bit because because it's very unclear. Now, the authorities at some point disclosed that there were rumors
that Ashley had been sexually abused, but they were unable to confirm these rumors.
the father. >> That's why I wanted to talk about this because it nowhere does it claim to
state by who, you know, could it have been could it have been her father, her her brother? Could it have been a family
friend or or you know, somebody at the school, >> right? >> Um, when you say sexually abused, you
know, your your your imagination wonders immediately who could it be? But we don't have anybody to point the finger
at. The other thing I I kind of thought about here in this situation was we have
you have a whole you know this town of 600 people and a day goes by where the town the people of the town they're
under the belief that the father killed the mother abducted his daughter and her
friend. >> Well, is that long enough? That's got to be long enough for the the people in the
town to start, you know, talking about these rumors. Well, if he abducted those two girls, he must have been sexually
abusing her. Um, and I I wonder if I think it's a little irresponsible of law enforcement to say that there were
rumors of this. Um, but we're unable to confirm these rumors. >> Again, a very small community. So, not
probably the best or most advanced law enforcement unit in the in the world here. And that's causes a lot of
problems because one, you leave the crime scene without knowing how many victims are there.
>> And then then you don't close off that crime scene and you allow people to come
in there and contaminate it. And then on top of that, now we got this third thing
where you're creating rumors, >> right? And and you're you're fueling the fire really is what you're doing. And
and you know, >> but you're creative mo you're creating a motive. And what I'm saying is that the
birth of those rumors could very well be that because they didn't discover Danny's body until the following day.
>> Well, and right, but that's if those rumors are established then or if they're established after. Because if
you establish that, oh well, there's rumors that she was uh sexually abused. You're creating a motive on why the
girls would want to kill the parents. Mhm. >> And I feel like whoever is establishing,
look, I've said it before, there's been several cases that we covered and oddly people will establish alibis, they're
creating their own alibi. And when somebody starts creating their own alibi, that to me, that's a a sign of
guilt, right? >> Mhm. And so it's odd that on the other side of the spectrum when people are
creating a narrative for motive for you to look at some other individual, >> right?
>> And to me that's a shade of guilt. So you're what? To be clear, what you're saying is that the the sheriff's
department by stating that there's there are rumors of her being sexually abused
that that's almost creating an alibi for the sheriff's department because you're
presenting a whole different theory that does not involve the sheriff's having committed any crimes.
>> Correct. And first of all, it's just very irresponsible that you're stating, well, there's rumors. You don't state
rumors. You're the law enforcement. State facts. State evidence. >> I wish we knew exactly how this went
down. And I'll tell you why. Because could it be something as simple as as the sheriff's department's being
interviewed. They're asked by a reporter, "Hey, there there have been rumors that Ashley was sexually abused."
And the sheriff simply says, "We have heard those rumors." >> Right? And that changes the whole
>> then you have somebody later going on the record stating that the sheriff's department says that there were rumors
of her being sexually abused when really they're just acknowledging that they have heard those rumors. I I see what
you're saying with them establishing an alibi. I don't know that it's that for me because for me it for me it seems
like there was opportunity if that kind of stuff was going down um with how close Ashley was with Laura. They spoke
on the phone all of the time and it seems to me like Loren uh Laura's mom seemed to know a lot of what was going
on in the Freeman household. >> Well, she knew what she was told. >> Mhm. And there was also that that
mandatory counseling that took place as well re regarding um the situation with Shane. So, what I'm getting at is I
think there was opportunity for that to come out where I I feel like these are rumors that were just kind of created by
the town's people during that time period that they felt that that she was abducted by her father. And we know how
these rumors go, right? It's it's like the the never-ending game of telephone. Now you got 600 people involved where if
I say, you know what, I bet you he was sexually abusing her and that's why he took her and abducted her and then 24
hours later we find out. Poor poor Danny, he died, too. You know, he was murdered and he was killed, too. We know
that's not true, but that doesn't immediately put out the fire on those rumors. >> Well, okay. So, answer me these couple
questions. One, how does how did his collar bone get broken? >> Right? >> Like, do we know? I mean, is that
reported? Uh, this case is difficult to cover because there wasn't it's such a small town and such a small community
that there's just not a lot of, you know, information as far as it goes on the internet.
>> So, the way >> but how but because there's multiple ways that that could have been broken. I
mean, it could have been that collar bone could have been broken. It's not too difficult to break a collar bone.
>> No, >> it could be broke by a fist. It could be a butt of a shotgun. Um, and then what
what is the evidence that points of what kind of guns were they killed with? >> Right. Well, they've not the law
enforcement has not disclosed what kind of gun they were shot with. >> Of course,
>> that they've they've held that back. As well as they have admitted that there
was an accelerant used to start the fire. This wasn't an accidental fire that happened after the fact.
>> Uh, they know that an accelerant was used, but they've also not stated what what in fact that was. Now the thing
here is if you were to be considering that the girls did it uh or were involved in it, you know, we have okay,
we have a situation where the Freeman's they had a lot of firearms in that home.
They could have under that sit situation or scenario, they could have been killed
with one of their own firearms. Well, and the other problem there is they're avid hunters and the gun laws were
different also back then. So, how many guns were in the house that were weren't registered?
>> I mean, there'd be no way of knowing cuz cuz the two people that would know, >> they're dead.
>> Yeah. >> So, if there was a shotgun missing, we wouldn't know. So, if you have if you
get the ballistics, right, if you if you're trying to test to to confirm if they were killed with one of their own
firearms, you wouldn't be able if that firearm was not found in that home. You couldn't confirm that one of their own
firearms were used because you would assume that if you didn't find it, that it was either taken from the scene or
that the perpetrators brought their own firearms with them. Let's talk about the
the Freeman the house real quick. Okay, so the Freeman's trailer, it did not have running water. Um, it was primarily
heated by a wood burning stove that was located in the living room. Um, the family, as you had said, was described
as avid hunters, uh, and outdoor enthusiast who enjoyed living in a remote location. This was a very remote
location. The trailer was equipped with a telephone and electricity. Uh there were numerous firearms stockpiled inside
the home and Ashley assisted with hunting food. The family would go out and sometimes hunt their own food food.
Danny enjoyed walking outside on their property behind the mobile home. Uh he was a collector of arrowheads. Um and
his relatives stated that he had an extensive collection of items that he had found that were rumored to be
valuable. Here's another one of these rumors, >> but we don't you don't have >> Well, that's causing a motive of the
idea that somebody came in to break into the house to steal valuables and they killed two people in the process
>> and possibly stealing the cash that uh young Ashley was keeping in the freezer,
>> which I would argue that that is more likely to happen if you live in a remote
area. I know that's going to sound maybe a little strange to some people, but I'm
serious. It's like when especially if you I've lived you know my house >> You're exactly right. You are exactly Go
ahead. Sorry. >> But you know my house was out of the city a little bit and if somebody's
coming on to my property to steal something, it could end up very bad for for me or them.
>> Mhm. >> So that that's all I'm saying is if you and you also it's such a small town that
you'd go well they're an avid avid hunter. If I'm going to rob this person, we know how this is going down. This is
this is this is robbery by force. >> Mhm. >> And again, but then that also goes with
the creating the motive because if he has drug activity, then maybe it's like, well, uh, you know, he has a bunch of
guns, maybe he has some drugs there, maybe he has some drug money there, you know.
>> Yeah. And we should talk about this drug activity because there's there's several
>> Yeah. So it's not just rumor, >> right? There's there's a lot of different stories about what drug
activity could have been going on in in the area. So, it's believed that Danny was himself a drug user. Um that
>> Well, but there's different kinds of drugs. >> Yeah. And it's believed it's it's pretty
widely believed that he grew marijuana somewhere on that property for his own personal use.
>> Okay. So, that's that's what's widely believed. There are some other things that come into play here, though. There
are some people that state that he was he was selling marijuana, right? >> That he was in cahoots with somebody
else and they had a little drug operation where they were both moving and potentially growing marijuana. Um,
there was one report that stated that inside the trailer, and I want to be very clear about this, one single report
out of all the little reports out there, there's one single report that says that
they found evidence of drug manufacturing, which to me, using those words is completely different than
growing marijuana, unless unless unless you're claiming that mother nature is your manufacturer of marijuana. So what
that sounds like to me is that they must have found some kind of drug >> equipment, you know, some kind of
creating these drugs equipment. Now I don't think that he was running any kind of meth operation because
>> why not? >> We've seen Well, because this is just my belief. I have no evidence of such, but
we have seen where where certain people will use certain terminology and certain
words and then when you dig down deep and you find out exactly what they're talking about.
>> Well, they've kind of >> they've kind of stretched it a bit, right? they've kind of embellished a
little bit where evidence of drug manufacturing could be something as simple as that they found a small
digital scale somewhere in the trailer that might not have had anything to do with drugs at all. But but
>> right I get I get your point. >> See where I'm going with this? If you if you find a digital scale and you find a
stack of baggies, that doesn't necessarily mean that manufacturing drugs. >> Well, right, but they could be used for
pot as well. Look, if you're growing your own pot to smoke it, I I got nothing against you. And if you have a
little extra and you're selling a baggie here or there to your buddy, that's not
to me. That's not You're not a drug dealer. >> You're just kind of helping out your
buddies. That's not like drug operation. But one report now, let's go let's let's
dive into this a little bit because it's 1999. This is not a wide uh you know, it's not this epidemic like it is now.
You know, heroin and crystal meth and all that stuff in these rural areas. Now, it's killing the it's killing the
country. So, so maybe there's only one report because a lot of that crystal meth stuff is kind
of household items and you might not really know what it was. >> That's true. Yep.
>> Also, accelerant. Well, this stuff is very flammable. >> So, was that what was used for the
accelerant? It's almost like because of the lack of evidence or the lack of them
collecting the evidence or the lack of them presenting the evidence to the public, it just becomes more question
after more question and we can speculate on that all day. But I but to me a a family that's not doing so well
financially wants to move out to the country, which nothing wrong with that, but maybe the
the father was also using this as an opportunity to make ends meet. >> Yeah. >> Like we're going to move out onto some
land on into this trailer, but because we're doing that, I'm going to have some job opportunities and that's going to be
drug activity. >> Yeah. And Kathy was the bread winner. Um she had a good job. Um Danny, from my
understanding, was kind was often unemployed. >> Uh usually between jobs and like you
said, maybe uh maybe selling a little dope here or there was was a way to make up for that.
>> Well, this is what I find. Okay. First, you're the bread winner. You're the mom.
This guy has a shitty temper, you know, and we know that he's abusive to to your
son. So, chances are he's abusive to you. Just leave. You know what I mean? Find somebody else. Some And I
understand you're you're in a town of 600 people, but I moved to another town. >> Yeah. They were originally from the
neighboring town, which had like over 6,000 people in it. Um I believe they moved there just a few years before this
whole incident went down. Um but yeah, I'm with you. It seems like a But again, there's different dynamics to every
family, every relationship, but it from the outside looking in, it definitely seems like the Freeman family was
odd and dysfunctional. >> Well, I'm just saying that she could love a winner with money as much as she
can this loser with nothing. >> That's all I'm saying. >> Okay. So, let's, you know, before we
move on from the evidence and start seeing how that might apply to these different theories and maybe kind of
ruling some of them out as we go. Uh, one more thing regarding the evidence though, the police did state that,
remember we said that the the Freeman's had telephone service to the trailer. >> They did state that there were no
outgoing phone calls from the Freeman's trailer late that night or during the early morning before the fire was set.
And there's no report by anybody that we know of that they had a cell phone of any kind.
>> Correct. Correct. And the thing here is too, um, you know, we stated that all of
the vehicles were out front, uh, that were located on the property. None of the vehicles were missing, but regarding
Laura's car that was still there. Uh, the keys were found in the ignition, this is probably probably just means
that she never took them out of the car. Um, that the house was quite a bit of a
ways off of the road. might not be any need to do so, but she did have a purse and she had approximately $200 in that
purse. The purse was located inside the trailer after this incident took place. So, where you have money that that is
rumored to have been in the freezer, a substantial amount of money, depending on who you talk to, between $1,200 and
$4,000 where that is not found. Um, we also have a situation where there's money
found in a in a purse. Uh, $200 that could have been taken that was left behind.
>> Yeah. But here's my issue with that is law enforcement and a lot of people looking into this case like to say,
"Well, there's $200 left in a purse." So there that proves that proves right there that this wasn't a robbery. Well,
that doesn't prove crap. That just proves it wasn't a robbery for just money or, you know, random belongings.
This could have been a robbery just for drugs or just for drug money. >> Mhm. >> And so that doesn't really prove
anything just because there was money left somewhere. That's all I'm putting out there. It's
just time and time again when you see this stuff about this case, well, there's $200 left over, so therefore
that definitely wasn't a robbery. I don't think anybody's saying that because because everyone's saying that
there's >> everybody that's what is reported all the time. It's re every almost every
video that you ever see made on this thing is like, well, there's $200 left, so chances are it wasn't a robbery.
>> It just wasn't a good robbery. Maybe they made off with the $1,200 or $4,000 that was in the freezer and thought,
well, this is all the money they got. I'm peace. I'm out of here. >> Right. or like I said, I mean, if he had
some drug activity, then that's why that's why people would be there, you know, for his drugs and for his drug
money. >> Mhm. So, do you should we go back through these theories that we >> Well, no, no. I think let's stay on this
$200 right now. Right. >> Okay. >> I think that $200 to me means it starts ruling out the idea for me
that the girls would be involved, >> right? Right. And that's why I asked if you wanted to go back through the
theories cuz theory number one is that after years of physical abuse, Ashley with the help of Laura that they shoot
the parents and with one of the guns that they find in the home and they together they flee the area to go off
and live wonderful lives elsewhere away from this, you know, and I'll say quote unquote abusive father.
>> Well, I think you can say abusive father just on the evidence of physical abuse.
not sexual abuse, but we can definitely say that there is enough evidence that shows that this guy
>> he abused Shane. We're we we have evidence of that. I don't know that we have evidence that he abused Ashley is
what I mean. What I meant by that, >> we have all the speculation or all the the accounts brought up by um
>> you know, her her grandparents. But I think calling somebody an abuser of I it's a very powerful label to to put on
somebody >> and and I see what you're getting at. I Half of me agrees with you, but the
other half of me I'm talking about >> well half of you is smart and the other half is is
>> and the smart half the smart half of me is is stating that in this situation we're talking about a situation where
Shane no longer exists. >> Yeah, I understand. We're talking about a situation where we're going to say,
"Did Ashley kill or participate in the murder of her own parents because she was being abused by her father is a very
powerful statement." And I don't think that speculation would would point me in that direction strong enough for me to
believe that. I would want hardcore evidence that he was in fact abusing specifically Ashley.
>> Okay. So, what's your long- winded point? My long-winded point here is that I don't know why the smart half of me
cannot fix the creek in this chair that I'm sitting on every time I move. So, I apologize everybody out there. If you're
hearing weird noises, it's it's from me. >> It's coming from his ass. [laughter]
>> That's That's where the creek noises >> from that area. I didn't have a long-winded point. I think you got me
upset because we're calling him a specific specific abuse. Uh but but regarding this theory, so what do you
think? >> This first theory. Yeah. Right. >> It doesn't add up. >> It doesn't. You're exactly right.
Because and I think that's why we bring up the $200 in Laura's purse. It seems strange to me that Laura would leave
behind her own money, right? >> Or or her own purse. >> Correct. Um even if you wanted to try to
make it look like you were abducted, I don't know that kids these are kids, right? I know they're 16 years old. I
know they're good students. I know that they are smart young ladies. The thing here is though, I don't know that that a
kid would come up with this wild theory that you know what, we can kill these two and we'll take off and maybe we'll
get lucky and they'll think we were abducted, so leave behind your purse, you know. And furthermore,
>> well, >> furthermore, none of the vehicles none of the family's vehicles or Laura's
vehicle was taken. So by that by that point alone you can cross off theory one in my opinion because now you have to
have outside help. There has to be some form of trans transportation getting you
out of the area. >> Well look the purse behind not that big of a deal. Leave the purse behind.
>> The cash is big. >> You need the cash, right? And you know but >> I don't know. Was there cash in the
freezer? I'm gonna say not. Look, we we've all I look, the other question I have, too, which might seem a lot pretty
silly to everybody, but but how long was she dating her boyfriend? >> Uh, I don't know.
>> And the only reason why I want to know is because sometimes in the initial stages, you kind of just, you know,
overexaggerate maybe a little bit. >> Mhm. >> You know, I I've had that happen before.
or been on a date where somebody's, you know, telling you what they do for a living, you know, and they kind of a
little braggadocious about it and and I think and and these are, you know, women
in their 30s, right? So, what's a girl in their her six, you know, she's 16 years old. Oh, I'm going to get a car.
Well, what kind of car you're going to get? Well, I'm going to get a nice one cuz Well, how do you got money for that?
Well, I got a couple thousand saved up. I got some cold hard cash in the freezer. Right. The thing here is
though, Captain. Okay, so I want to uh kind of present something that I was thinking about the other day. What if I
were to think that maybe Ashley killed her parents? Um, could could the tipping point or could the trigger moment could
that have been if she came home and discovered that all of her hardearned money that she had saved and saved and
saved for her very first car that her father had taken it from the freezer and went off and did something with the
money? Yeah. Not. Look, I look I see that again. Then you're going to drag you're
going to drag your friend into this. >> Mhm. >> And it's We're going on how many years
now? >> Well, it's been 16 years. Yeah. >> So 16 years you've been in hiding and
your friend hasn't came forward. No. And the other thing too is I think if it was
based on the abuse, right? >> Then here's what would happen or this is my speculation.
You're overcome with whatever an embarrassment or whatever you're feeling, rage that your father would be
abusive towards you sexually or physically and you've had enough and and I'm not going to take it anymore and you
snap and shoot your father. >> Mhm. >> How does that go on to shooting your mother?
>> Right. >> And then on top of that, then you have to light your house on fire. I mean,
other than you're covering up one one murder with another. >> Yeah. But I think for somebody that by
all accounts, you know, was a good kid, you know, had something to live for, was
progressing in her own life, didn't seem like she had many problems, you know, she's celebrating a happy time. You
know, 16 is a a a great time. You know, you're going to get your freedom, you're
going to get your independence, more independence. 16's a good time. So, it's a snap. And then on top of that, then
you have to have a friend going along with this and she's going to drop everything that's going on in her life
and she's 16 and has a bunch to live for so she can just help you out. Now, it's,
you know, it doesn't seem too likely, but then and then when you run away, you're going to forget the two $200,
>> right? And I think that's what does it all those things that you said plus the
the other fact that they didn't take a vehicle and they left the $200. you just you wouldn't do that. You wouldn't leave
behind a car. You wouldn't leave behind additional funds when you know you're planning on starting a whole new life
elsewhere because you got to run from these murders you committed. And just like the captain was stating, there is
nothing in the background of either of these two young ladies. These were smart young ladies, honor students. They were
good. They, you know, worked. Um, it sounded like it sounds to me like Laura Bible's family life was probably much
different than Ashley Freeman's family life. It does sound to me though that Ashley Freeman was very close with her
mother. Even if she hated her home life or hated her father, she only had two more years to go to be out of that
house. And I I just don't see anything in their background to point toward them having committed this and taken off.
>> Yeah. Because, you know, we don't know what kind of gun they were shot with. The thing that points towards them is
that half the dude's face was missing. >> And to me, that would be a shotgun blast. To me, a shotgun or a rifle would
be something if she was going to use something, I would assume that she'd use something that she's more familiar with.
>> And I'm again just also assuming that she'd be more familiar with a rifle based on hunting. Um, but but then you
have to have the cojones. You got to be one bad ombre to shoot your father in the face with a with a rifle.
>> And keep in mind his his collar bone was broken. This almost points towards some
kind of scuffle before he's shot where I would think, you know, if you're this situation, if you're going to shoot your
parents, you're going to walk into their bedroom in the middle of the night and shoot them in their sleep. You know,
that that's typically how these things go down. it wouldn't lead to some kind of altercation. So, I think you can
scratch off the first theory that the two girls did it themselves and took off on their own. And that kind of helps us
scratch off theory number two as well, because it's basically the same theory, but that they they had the assistance of
one or two men or one or two boys that may have assisted in the attacks and that they left town with this person or
persons. >> What's your gut feeling on the boyfriend? I mean, I look, you know, he
claims he left at 9:30. A lot of other people say, "Well, it's probably at 10:30."
>> I see. >> Um I I that that doesn't bother me either way. You know, if you're off a
little bit, we're not talking about a detail. There was people there afterwards,
>> right? >> So, to me, that little detail is not, you know, he's not being nefarious and
trying to, you know, cover his his ass, you know. But, uh what's your gut feeling on this guy? So Jeremy Hurst, my
gut feeling is I like him. Um I don't like him I don't like him I don't like him as a suspect. Well I he I don't even
know if he's attractive or not. >> But the thing here is Captain first of all I like you said doesn't bother me
that he's off approximately an hour on his time because the other dude that said he stayed later could be off on his
time. >> Right. >> Um what I think we have is a situation where he reports that he left their home
at at such and such time. He probably he's a child. He's under 18. He goes straight home to his parents house. His
time is probably accounted for. That's what I'm getting at. That his time between and it's a small window. It's
not like these people, this crime happened sometime in the week of this. No, this crime happened sometime
between, let's say, 10:30 p.m. and we believe the mom was killed at 5:00 a.m. the next morning. Right. So, it's a
small window. I believe his time was easily accounted for during the course of that time. And on top of the this is
gonna seem kind of strange, but I'm gonna say it anyway. >> Go for it. >> The birthday gift that he purchased for
his girlfriend, you know, don't we all love that young love, right? That's that's that's great. Those those high
school romances that you have his birthday. >> That's where you're going with this.
>> His birthday Well, we were all I was in high school once >> when you were in high school.
>> Yes. >> High school. Look, high school romances are okay when you're in high school. I
no longer participate in high school romance. >> Um, >> but to me, >> I'm going to need you around, Colonel.
>> And and I'm playing to the ladies now. Okay. >> Okay. Ladies, hey, how you doing?
>> Jeremy's birthday gift to his young girlfriend seems to me to be wellthought out, that he he didn't cut any corners
on this birthday gift. And what I mean by that, what did we say? It was a a silver chain with a heart-shaped
pendant. Yeah. >> That also contained her birthstone. Let me tell you, men as a whole, sorry men.
Now, I'm not playing against the men. >> Sorry men. >> Especially when men are 16, 17, 18 years
old. >> We do not know what birthstone >> you have depending on what month you're
he what I'm getting at is I think he he put in good effort, >> right? >> He put put together a thoughtful gift.
That tells me that I think he truly cared for that young girl. >> And that I think that because of such he
wouldn't do anything to harm her family or harm her. >> Yeah. But if he really cared about her
that much, maybe he would harm the family and help her cover it up. I don't know.
>> But then but then he stays in town. He doesn't leave with this this young girl
that he's >> Men have done some strange things for ladies before. But you point out a good
you a good reason why I think that theory number two can be scratched off as well because okay if they have the
had the assistance of a boy or boys or a couple of men or whatever >> where and who are these men and boys you
know wouldn't they be reported missing at some point as well or you're living in a town of 600 people
>> right right >> when two of them disappear >> if there's another two missing >> it's pretty obvious you know so I think
we can scratch off theories number one in number two. >> All right, Colonel. Way to scratch off
some theories. >> I'm not the Colonel. I hold no rank anywhere. >> It's the Captain the Colonel show.
>> I'm Nick. We're we're changing the name of the show to the Captain the Colonel.
True Crime Gay Ridge. Anyways, thanks for listening and uh we're going to have to get to these theories and there's
some suspects that are going to come up in this next episode. Plus, we need to get your chair fixed because I'm tired
of hearing your your butt squeak. Thanks for listening. Thanks for telling a friend. Thanks for sharing on social
media. And until next time, be good, be kind, and [music] don't live. [music] >> [music]

Missing Welch Girls /// Part 1 /// True Crime Garage

Episode: 107

Released: 5-16-2017

www.TrueCrimeGarage.com

In the early morning hours of December 30th, 1999 in Welch, Oklahoma a trailer home fire is reported. Firefighters arrive and put out the blaze. The dead body of wife and mother Kathy Freeman is discovered. Her husband, daughter and a family friend are missing. Law Enforcement theorized Kathy’s husband Danny shot her, set the home on fire and abducted his daughter Ashley and her friend Lauria. The following day, to everyone’s surprise Lauria’s family looking for clues at the scene of the fire find the dead body of Danny Freeman. Tonight we gather in the garage and discuss what could have possibly happened that night in the trailer. We also want to know what happened to Ashley Freeman and Lauria Bible.

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Brief Summary

The episode discusses the 1999 disappearance of Laura Bible and Ashley Freeman, exploring the investigation and various theories surrounding their case.

Key points

The Case of the Missing Welch Girls. A chilling introduction to the case of Laura Bible and Ashley Freeman, who went missing in 1999.
Celebrating Ashley's Birthday. Ashley Freeman's 16th birthday celebration takes a dark turn when she and her friend go missing.
A Gruesome Discovery. The discovery of Kathy Freeman's body leads to a shocking investigation into the family's fate.
Danny's Harassment Claims. Danny believes law enforcement is harassing him, expressing fear for his safety.
Trial Deadlock. The jury deadlocks on Danny's child abuse charges due to lack of key testimony.
Intentional Fire. Investigators determine the fire was set to destroy evidence of the crimes.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

Jesus.

Reaction to the gruesome discovery of Danny Freeman's body.

8:50WatchFeb 4, 2026

Tension

65/ 100Some tension

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