The Baffling Case of Trevaline Evans | Forensic Files

Within 20 seconds, we're looking at a dead body right in front of us in exactly the place where the bad smell
was coming from. There she is. I could see a face staring at me um with what appeared to be a hole in the side of the
skull. I could see the hair and I I couldn't believe what I was seeing. >> Hi, crime junkies. I'm your host, Ashley
Flowers. >> And I'm Brit. >> And buckle the up because I am about to take you for a ride.
>> Brit, you know, my famous last words are like, "Oh, this case seems interesting."
Like, it could make like a quick mini episode. >> Yeah. Just cuz no one else has ever done
anything super like meaty. Like must not be a lot [music] there. >> Just kidding.
>> Well, wrong again. This case out of North Wales is [music] one that police have called the strangest case they've
ever worked. A woman named Trevolene Evans [music] vanished into thin air in the middle of
a busy town 35 years ago after being seen with a mystery man. And in 2019, two guys in North Wales got a tip about
where her body might be. And for the first time ever, we are going to report [music] on their full story. And we have
the neverbefore published photos they say prove that they found her. and photos that show someone [music] might
still be trying to cover up a murder. >> And they invited us back and asked us to
have another look again with our camera. And honest to God, my blood ran cold at
that moment. I realized what they'd done. It's just before midnight on Saturday,
June 16th, 1990, [music] when the North Wales police get a call from a man named
Richard Evans. He's worried about his 52-year-old wife, Trevolene, because she didn't show up to their dinner date that
evening. She's still not home, and he tells police that he'd already checked the little secondhand antique shop that
she runs just a few blocks away in case [music] she was burning the midnight oil. I mean, it was tourist season after
all. But even though her car was parked nearby, she didn't seem to [music] be there. And hanging on the door was a
handwritten sign that sent chills running through him. Back in 2 minutes, it read. Now, signs like this weren't
uncommon to see on the door, like it was something Trevaline often [music] did. She would tape them up when she was just
like stepping out really quick. But Richard had gone by the shop earlier in the day, and that same sign was hanging
there back in 2 minutes. And the last time he went by late in the evening, he let himself inside through an unlocked
back door and found more evidence that worried him. Her handbag, her keys, jacket, they were all there inside her
shop. Things she'd normally take with her if she was going to go anywhere for more than 2 minutes. I mean, even her
makeup compact was sitting out in the open on the counter like she had just been there. I mean, every single sign
seemed to point to her coming back. So that's when he phoned police. When officers responded to Richard's call, it
seemed like they were thinking this might end like so many missing person's cases with the person just showing back
up eventually. But there's only one way to know for sure. So, they start by trying [music] to piece together
Trevaline's movements that day. Except her husband actually can't help with that. He tells them that he and
Trevalene had spent the earlier part of the week about an hour away in a town called Ruddlin where they were
renovating this little bungalow that they planned to live in once they retired soon. Trevaline headed back to
their current place in Langofflin [music] midweek to tend to her shop while Richard stayed behind to keep working on
the place. Now, that dinner that she missed was the first time they planned on seeing each other once like both of
them had gotten back. >> And are [music] we sure she ever actually made it back into town? I mean,
I know her stuff's there, but did anyone lay eyes on her? >> Yes. So, which is why I think maybe for
a hot second they're like, "Oh, she's going to be back." I mean, her husband even makes a plea early on through the
media directly to his wife for her to come home. He says he doesn't understand why she would leave. They were happy.
But he doesn't seem to know what else to think. I mean, maybe he's afraid of the
worst. their police officer son who works a few towns over also named Richard. I mean, he's looking at the
situation differently [music] right from the start. Like, if she's gone, in his mind, someone forced her to leave. And
he tells reporters that his mom would never leave town without telling someone. She had a business to run, an
aging dad to care for, a grandchild, a ton of [music] friends. She wasn't in any financial trouble. She wasn't having
any medical problems. I mean, truly, she seemed to be looking forward to retirement. He says there is no reason
she would have to leave. And what's so confounding about this case is whether she left willingly or she was abducted,
neither makes complete sense to me with what they end up learning through their investigation. Physical searches for
Trevalene turn up nothing. [music] And these searches were extensive. In fact, it would become one of the most
extensive searches in northern Welsh history for the time. And by the end, they searched a 12mi radius around the
town. They even drag the river. They search local canal. I mean, they're looking inside caves and mines. They
knock on every single door in town, taking statements from hundreds of people and running down license plates
on more than 650 vehicles. They also find Traveline's address book. And according to the Daily Post, whose
reporting we relied on a lot for this episode, they call every number listed. And remember, it is tourist season in
this picturesque [music] little town. So there could be a witness out there who's
already come and gone and didn't even know that they saw something important. >> So police thinking this also go and
collect records from every hotel and bed and breakfast in the area and they contact more than 500 people on those
list too. And while they never find anything physical in their searches for Trevoline, they do over time collect a
bunch of little puzzle pieces that when put together paint a picture of her last
movements. But exactly when she put that be back in 2 minutes [music] sign up, where she went after, and who she met
becomes an even bigger question. Cuz a few people did see Trevaline the day she vanished. And they say she wasn't alone.
So, let me start with the timeline from the first full day that Trevaline was back in town. This is Thursday. At about
9:15 in the morning, a local woman says that she sees Travoline unloading her car near her shop on Church Street while
speaking to two men. There is a gay-haired man in a suit. Someone maybe in his like 50s with a briefcase.
Everyone calls this guy these smartly dressed man. [laughter] >> Very proper. >> Yes. But the witness also said that
there was a young man across the street who was like locking a gate at another shop and traveine seemed to be speaking
to him too. That's really all we know from Thursday. So then fast forward to Friday. This is the day before she goes
missing. There are more sightings of her and possibly more sightings of these two
men. According to a Crime Watch special on the case, a couple of local shop workers see Trevaline in the morning
walking [music] down the street with this same smartly dressed man in a navy blue suit with a black briefcase having
a conversation. Everything seems fine. Trevaline's even like waving to people that she knows. At 9:30, The Daily Post
has somebody putting her by this like tannery shop near her store with [music] the same smartly dressed older man. Then
at 12:30, she and this same guy are seen together in town on Oak Street. And Oak
Street is like a 4-minute walk from her antique [music] shop. Then we have them together again at 400 p.m. on Market
Street, which is right there in town, too. Like Oak Street, where they were earlier, just like turns into Market
Street when you cross Castle Street. >> Okay. And actually, Castle Street is the
next sighting of her. So, at about 8:30 that evening, two locals were driving home down Castle Street, and when they
stopped at a light, they saw Trevalene standing on the stoop of this shop. And they said she was like holding some
papers and was like poking her head out. She kept like popping in and out of this
little stoop. Seems like she was waiting for someone to come walking down the sidewalk,
>> but they didn't see anyone even when they looked behind them. And the woman in the car said that Trevolene normally
would wave to them or something, but she never even seemed to see them and so she
didn't acknowledge them. She seemed just super preoccupied in waiting for whatever or whoever it was she kept
looking for. Now, that same evening, some tourists who were in town just for the weekend tell police that they see
Travoline with the same smartly dressed man [music] at a place called Gail's Wine Bar, which is just one street over
from where they were seen together earlier in the day. And it's just around the corner from where that couple just
saw her like popping in and out of the stoop. I mean, it's like a 2 to 3 minute walk to Gails from there.
>> Okay, so like all really in this like small local area, >> very close. Now, all the sightings prior
to the Wine Bar seem to come from locals. So, I think police take those a tad more seriously, and they actually
only get this Wine Bar sighting after that Crime Watch episode airs, like weeks out from when she went missing.
So, I'm not saying they don't believe it. I just don't know how much they were able to follow up on it and what people
would remember even if they did all those weeks later. But, you know, like I was thinking to me it sounds like
Trevalene was waiting for someone to pick her up in a car. Like if you look at this on a map, this corner is at this
big intersection where you would stop and the side that she is on. I mean, I guess either side you could pop in. But
to me, the way she's like in and out, in and out, it's like you can't miss the car, right? Because like if the light
turns green or something or even if it was a green light, you got like 2 seconds to pop in. There's something
about it to me that's like, okay, was she waiting for someone to pick her up less like meeting somebody on the
sidewalk? Was it the smartly dressed man who picked her up? I mean, if the sighting at the wine bar is accurate, I
would think it had to be, >> right? >> Also, it seems most likely since we know she's spending so much time with this
guy for like so much of Friday. >> Yeah, I was going to say he's in all of these sightings, but he's just known as
the smartly dressed man. Like, none of the witnesses knew him. No, not even the locals.
>> And this is still when her husband is out of town, right? >> Right. So, this brings me to Saturday,
June 16th, again, 1990. Sometime that morning, a woman who owned a local market told police that Trevalene came
in to buy some milk. And something small she noticed is that when Trevolene opened her little purse, and when I say
purse, think more like tiny wallet than full bag. >> The shop owner said that she saw a stack
of cash. Now, Richard and police found her actual like big purse handbag in her shop, and some reports say that money
she'd had earlier in the day has never been found. But like, don't spiral just yet, though. There might be an innocent
explanation. Now, it seems Travelene made it to her store, opened up the shop like normal because that morning more
than two dozen customers come in and out of the antique shop. Even a friend stops
by to bring Traveline some fresh flowers sometime before noon. And this friend says like everything seemed totally
normal. They chatted a little bit. They had coffee. They even made plans to have
a girls night the next week. And it is after that friend leaves when the mystery really begins.
The world is full of mysteries that make us question everything we've ever known
to be true. These events leave us with a sense of wonder and yearning for understanding. I'm Evette Gentileway.
And I'm her sister, Rasha Pecarero. And each week on our podcast, So Supernatural, we take a deep dive into
the world's most bizarre and puzzling mysteries. Ready to dive into the unknown? Join us every Friday for a new
episode of So Supernatural, available wherever you listen to podcasts. A couple tells investigators that they
were in Trevalene's shop shortly after her friend left and they saw Trevolene like huddled in conversation at the back
of her store with a man who matches our smartly dressed mystery man description.
I don't know what they were talking about or if the couple could even hear anything, [music] but they don't report
anything else wild. They say they leave the shop and then the next thing we know
for sure is that sometime between 12 and 1, [music] Trevaline's brother stopped by the antique shop and found the door
locked and that be back in 2 minutes sign on the door, the one that Richard would discover later that night. Now,
one article I found mentioned that this brother made two stops at the shop like some 20 minutes apart and the sign was
up both times >> and that wasn't a red flag to him. >> No. So, like Trevolene had this slogan
for her store. It's like, "I'll buy anything." And she really meant it. So, it wasn't weird for her to head out in
the middle of the day multiple times a day to go meet someone for a sale or to scout out items that she could buy,
resell, whatever, or even just to leave for lunch. From what I can tell, it seems like she was the sole owner
operator, so there's like nobody else to cover. >> So, totally possible that he could have
missed her twice. And I say this because right about the same time as the second
visit, so this would have been about 12:40, we get a really firm sighting of Trevolene, a passerby sees her locking
up her shop, key in hand. I mean, if she had anything else on her, like a purse or whatever, it wasn't big enough for
anyone to notice. And they say she's heading in the direction of the town center, like where all of those
sightings were the day before. And then someone in town says that right about that same time is when she stops by the
local market and she buys an apple [music] and a banana. Now there is about a 2hour window where no one reports
[music] anything sightings or interactions in her store or out. And then at 2:30 p.m., this woman who is
familiar with Trevolene says that she spotted Trevolene near her own house. Like Trevolene's house, which same as
everything else, like we're still within walking distance. [music] I mean, if you're looking at a map,
basically you have like her shop on the right. You have the town center in the middle and then her house is just to a
little to the left of town center. Now, she doesn't see her go in or out of her house. She's just walking right near it,
heading back in the direction of town and the direction of her shop >> alone. >> Yeah, she's alone at this time. So, do
we think she's just like in and out of her shop a ton that day or is this back in 2 minutes just like her BRB sign?
Like I I'll be back at some point. 2 minutes doesn't really like discourage customers. Like it seems like a short
amount of time. >> So, this is what's so interesting to me. Well, two things actually. So, first she
had other signs that she would put up if she was going to be gone for longer, like be back in a half hour, back in 2
hours. >> So, like the 2 minutes is like specific for this situation. >> Yeah. So, if she went back, she could
have like quickly hung another sign to say that she was going to be out longer, but she didn't. And it's not like
something happened to her in 2 minutes after she left because we know she's like fine and well at 2:30.
>> So, she didn't come back. >> Well, this brings me to my second thing. Interestingly, the police find something
that maybe indicates she had made it back to the shop at some point after her 1240 trip into town to buy fruit. There
is a banana peel in the store's trash can. >> Like a fresh banana peel. >> Well, it's not fresh by the time they're
seeing it. Like, she's not even reported missing until like 10 hours after she purchased it. The shop is searched after
that. So, was it the same banana peel? can't tell you. I mean, people spent a lot of time pointing to this as a sign
that she made it back to the shop, but I'm like, then where's the apple? Like, nobody talks about the apple. Not even
mentioned. So, I'm assuming it was never found, but I don't know. And like, did they find the banana peel in her store,
but the apple or apple core was in her house? Like, there's never been any reporting about them searching
Traveling's house or what they found if they did. >> Yeah. And kind of like without the
apple, the banana doesn't mean anything. >> Not to me. Yeah. So, all that to say, a
lot of people think she came back because of the banana, but like I think that might just be a red herring.
[music] >> Now, this 12:30 sighting is regarded as the last confirmed sighting of
Trevolene. >> So, what could have happened to her in the 6-minute walk between her house and
her store on a bustling Saturday afternoon in a busy town center? Well, maybe some of the unconfirmed sightings
can point to that. Reporting in the leader says that 5 minutes after she was leaving her house, walking in the
direction of her shop, a woman matching her description was seen walking on the main road right off of market. It's
called A5. But this woman is walking in the opposite direction, like heading away from town. And then someone
matching her description is seen again around 3:45, even further down A5, farther away from town. So, if that
sighting is true, she could have walked away. >> Sure. But I mean, literally walk cuz she
left her stuff behind, including her car, which would have gotten her a lot farther a lot faster.
>> And there's one more unconfirmed sighting that will probably make you realize why all these last ones are
unconfirmed. A woman says that at 4:00 p.m. on Saturday, she might have spotted traveling inside her store, possibly
with a man, but she only caught a glimpse [music] in the store, so she can't be 100% sure of anything. So,
police end up not really considering this a fully credible sighting. But if it was her, if there was a man, it
actually might have been the younger man. if you remember him. >> Oh, the one at the gate at the other
shop. >> Yeah. So, all the sightings Friday and early Saturday were of the older,
smartly dressed man. But just before 6 p.m., there was a woman driving past Traveling Shop and she said that there
was a younger man in a trench coat standing outside the antique shop looking suspicious and she thinks thinks
maybe that the door to Trevolene shop was open. Now, to be clear, we never get a sketch of this guy, and nobody says
that he's the same younger man as the one from two days before. Like, to me, it's just it's odd.
>> And you said the store was locked when her husband found it, right? Or like the
front door was locked at least, >> right? And he didn't have an extra key. He only ended up getting in because he
went around to the back where that door was open, >> which by the way, that's kind of a red
flag, right? >> It seems like it to me. Like, if you left your antique shop unattended and
you're going to take the time to lock up when you leave, >> like lock up when you leave then.
Exactly. Like I keep having this gnawing feeling [music] that maybe she did make it back to the
shop and then something happened there. Maybe the banana peel really is the one that she bought at lunch. Maybe that's
why her compact was out and open like she was touching up like she got interrupted. Something happened and she
was taken out the back. And maybe the back in 2 minutes sign was put up because it was just the one that was
sitting out and someone just like threw that sign up because it was right there in her handwriting like they were just
trying to buy themselves some time. >> And I don't know, there's just a lot that doesn't add up if Trevolene just
walked away, which is maybe one of the many reasons why pretty early on police openly say that they suspect foul play.
And they say something really specific to a reporter with the Daily Post in November of 1991. A senior detective
says that he believes she was abducted and murdered, possibly after getting into a car with someone she knew. I
don't know where the car thing comes from. I like I think there's loads about this case that have never been shared,
but there is one other report I can maybe tie this back to. I didn't include this in the timeline even with the other
unconfirmed sightings because those at least were reported and then re-reported a few times. This one I only found one
time in an article from the Daily Telegraph dated July 13th, [music] 1992. And this one says that after she was
seen walking away from town, so this would have been that 230 sighting or maybe the 345, but more likely the 230.
>> After that, two people saw a woman who they say looked like Trevolene in the passenger seat of a car leaving town.
And at least one of the people who saw this said that the woman looked upset. So that's what we know. Okay,
>> let's talk theories. What happened to Trevalene? What and who kept her from coming back
in those 2 minutes? Well, the obvious place to start is with the mystery man. Police soon begin to wonder if Trevolene
met with Foul Play at the hands of the smartly dressed man. Because try as they might, they could not identify this
mystery man. So, why wouldn't he come forward unless he had something to hide? Which, by the way, it's not like this
story [music] was easy to hide from. Local news outlets were all over this. And then you had Crime Watch come in and
take the story to an even bigger stage. So, in the first year, this mystery man sketch was everywhere.
>> And still, nobody comes forward to say like they even know who he is. >> Well, he just doesn't come forward. I
mean, they get plenty of calls from people who think that they might know the guy's identity. I mean, at least one
person suspects that it might be this other antique dealer who was in town that [music] day, which honestly would
make so much sense. Like, we know she often goes out to buy antiques. We know she had money on her that day.
>> Yeah. Like, maybe she just had sold something or was about to purchase something.
>> Yeah. It seems like the most logical solution, but all the names of antique dealers that they get put forward to
them, like they're able to quickly look into and rule out, which I I kind of don't buy the dealer thing like like if
this guy was just there to sell her something, why would he have hung around with her for like 2 days and like what
the goal is to take that wad of money she was carrying with her on Saturday? Like I guess I don't like why so long.
Or maybe there was like something from her store and he's trying to like get her comfortable. Maybe he was a buyer. I
don't know if there was ever like a full inventory of the items that she [music]
had in stock or like things that she was expecting. So, I don't think we have specific things missing or anything.
Like again, this is just a possibility and one that police really buy into for a while. I mean, a bunch of news reports
have them [music] saying that they think the smartly dressed man could be in the
antiques world. And they even imply that the way he was dressed had to have had him there on business because one
detective told a paper like, I mean, think about it. It's Saturday. Most people have this day off. Why is this
dude still in a suit with a briefcase? >> Unless he's like there conducting business.
>> Exactly. But they go through that world pretty thoroughly and they don't find
this guy. So, mystery man probably not in the antiques world after all. >> So, call me cynical, which you do a lot.
>> Yeah, obviously. [laughter] >> But cynical crime junkies, it's like the same thing.
>> But isn't an affair like an equally likely possibility? Her husband's out of town. She's seen around town with this
other guy who like, >> yeah, >> I don't know. He's not running to the police to give his story. It just like
has me very side eye. The rumor mill in this small town is definitely churning and it seems like there was some gossip
that maybe Trevolene was having an affair or affairs plural, but police never speak on this publicly. I mean,
people are actually quite careful in news reports to just say that she had a lot of friends, both male and female.
[music] Like, that's it. But let's speculate for a second. What if she was having an affair? And what if she was
seeing this man while her husband was away working on their retirement home? Something went south. Lord only knows
what, but police keep calling this a murder investigation, so let's call it what it is. Was he from out of town?
Like, it's wild to me that nobody would have seen this man before with her. >> Like, just in the couple of days leading
up to her disappearance. >> Okay, fine. Maybe. But they have never tied this mystery man to a lover. And
also, like, this woman is everywhere with this man. Like, if this is an affair, she is not hiding it,
>> right? Like she's seeing people who know her that are like saying, "Oh, she usually would have hit." Like she waved.
She usually would have waved. Like we know this woman. >> They're out and about on town together.
Like something about this man being a lover does just doesn't feel right to me. >> I mean, unless she was just totally
checked out of her marriage. I mean, if she's planning on running off with this guy before Richard comes back into town,
maybe who cares who sees you? Maybe you're leaving breadcrumbs for your family so like they don't have to wonder
where you went or if you're by yourself or whatever. >> But then take your stuff with you,
right? Yeah. Make a phone call when they don't get the hint. And your story is national news.
>> Yes. >> And for those who know her, leaving them without answers is the part that doesn't
add up more than anything else. Like I said, I mean, for the first few years, like her son Richard was adamant [music]
that his mom would not have left on her own. >> First few years, did he end up changing
his tune? >> No. So tragically, like nine years after she went missing, he actually died of a
heart attack. I mean, he was really young, 37. God, but one of Trevaline's brothers, Len, he's been really vocal in
her son, Richard's place. >> He doesn't see a world where his sister just up and leaves without a word. And
listen, I came into this case fresh off of listening to there's this podcast called The Vanishing of Janice Rose. So
like, I had a really solid example of what leaving a life looked like. and all the people left behind who swore like
that you never would. But I mean it could be the case here. Like what do they know? Like
>> I mean might not be anything more than we do. Even though it's always a possibility that she ran off without
taking anything with her. Statistically, it's not probable. Like it's so unlikely.
>> So then did Mystery Man kill her? >> To me, that's the only reason that he wouldn't come forward. He's either with
her or he did something to her or he helped her get away. Listen, this is like a little fringe. I'm literally like
making up it as I go, but there are like some weird pieces to this that I [music]
don't think get enough weight. So, for 10 years, they're looking for Mystery Man. They get nothing. Trevaline just
poof vanished into thin air. But then something weird happens. In 2001, police form something like a little task
force to re-examine this cold case. One room, 10 officers, all dedicated to tracking Trevalines's movements in the 3
days before she vanished. >> It kind of sounds like writing a Crime Junkie episode.
>> Exactly. [laughter] And from this, they drop a bombshell. They say the sketch of Mystery Man
should be ignored. What? >> Yeah, they give us nothing as to what happened, why the sketch is wrong, what
about it is wrong. >> Just like just kidding, disregard. >> Well, yeah. Here's what's so weird. Lots
of people will talk about this case in a way that implies mystery man is no longer important.
>> But that's not what I read. Nobody says he's not involved or he's no longer important to the case. They just say
that the sketch is inaccurate. I have a list of follow-up questions because >> they had so many witnesses.
>> I know. So, was the sketch just wrong and a decade on they don't have much hope for witnesses giving them something
useful or did they ID him but he turned out to not be important? And again, to be clear,
that is not what they're saying. >> Wait, they're not saying anything, >> right? But many years later when the
documentary In the Footsteps of Killers is produced or they do a single episode on this case,
>> a woman named Linda is interviewed and she says that shortly after Trevolene went missing, she began dating one of
Trevalene's brothers, Phil. They were together for like 5 years following the time she disappeared. And when she's
being interviewed, she's like, I don't know what all this mystery man talk is all about. That man, that sketch is
without a doubt her brother, Phil. >> Wait, what? I'm confused. >> Girl, me, too.
>> How would [laughter] no one know it was her brother? >> So, Trevaline has two brothers, right?
Len and Phil. >> Okay. >> Len lived in town, but Phil traveled for work a ton, apparently. So, locals
probably wouldn't recognize [music] him. >> Mystery. Got it. >> Yeah. But in an article I found, it says
that he was in town that week from Switzerland. And listen, the side byside pictures of them are interesting.
>> Oh. Uh, that's the same man. Yeah. Okay. And in every picture that this ex is
showing in that episode, Phil is in a dark suit jacket. I mean, honestly, this makes sense to me. She's all over
town with this guy. Doesn't really add up for a secret love affair. Like, >> nothing to hide your brother. Yeah,
there's nothing to hide if it's just your brother. >> So, if it's true, she could have walked
away. >> The problem I have though with this, okay, it it's Phil. How is this not
confirmed? Like, Phil had to have heard about Mystery Man. He had to have mentioned to police all the times that
he saw her when he was in town. if that was him like >> because that would be like very very
solidly confirmed sightings because like her brother >> is with her the whole time,
>> right? Like like in my mind I'm like if like again Linda is like oh this is for
sure her brother and I'm like I feel like police would know that. So is this terrible police work and also her
brother Phil is living under a rock or my only third option for mystery man. What if she didn't leave with him at
all? What if he just helped her leave? And listen, I'll admit this one is the most far-fetched, but if mystery man is
Phil, and this wasn't the most bungled investigation of all time, that is the only thing that makes sense to me. The
only reason he would be the guy who's seen with her over and over for days, but then not admit it is if he knows
where she is or is hiding her or helped her or something >> and is like protecting her
by not saying anything. >> Yes. question mark. I don't you know what I mean? Like it's the only thing
that like it's the only way Phil makes sense to me. >> Okay. Where's Phil now? Can't please just talk
to him? >> No. Bill is Phil's dead now. >> Okay. I only have more questions. >> I know.
>> If it was him, if she did leave willingly, whether he helped her or not, what's the why? Like why is she walking
away from her whole life? Like with his help or [music] without it? There's no good explanation for that. I mean, all
of the reporting talks about her being in this happy marriage. She just opened this shop within like the last couple of
years. She's planning for retirement, new little house, >> new grandbaby. On paper, life is 10 out
of 10. But the other bombshell that Phil's ex dropped in that In the Footsteps of Killers episode
is she says none of that is true. That Trevolene wasn't happy. And she says that Richard wasn't all that nice of a
guy. So, I don't know, maybe now that her son was married, had a family of his own, she wanted out while she still had
some life to live. But just get divorced. I mean, it seems like a way easier solution if that's what she
wanted. But maybe it wasn't an option. >> Or maybe she just didn't want to go that
route. Barring a situation where she was afraid of Richard, I would think that she'd want to take
some stuff with her to start over, like money, her car, maybe she had someone else who was helping her, all of Phil or
a lover who is or isn't our mystery man. Or maybe she'd been preparing for this.
I mean, remember, so there were those rumors of an affair where multiples affairs in town or whatever. Well, in
the In the Footsteps of Killers episode, they actually talk of at least one affair, like it is a sure thing. And
they say they learned she had actually gotten an inheritance of like £10,000 from a man that she'd been having an
affair with who passed away. Now, I don't know when that was or if that money was still accounted for, but like
if true, pretty interesting in my book. >> Yeah, that that does kind of change things. But again, I think part of the
reason I'm like, was it is because it doesn't seem to change things for police. They say Travalene was met with
some sort of foul play at the hands of someone she knew, which makes me go back to, did they do a terrible job the first
time around? [music] Either ignore this or not dig deep enough to learn this, or
maybe, like I said before, maybe it's not that interesting as the like documentary or the episode presents it
to be. So, if this inheritance thing is real, I imagine Richard had to have known about it, right? Like, I can't
imagine that went over well. He might have. I mean, maybe that's why he seems so willing to accept that she just left.
I mean, Richard consistently is the one who talks to Travalene in early news reports, like as though she's alive,
asking her to come home, implying that she left on her own, while her son and her brother like don't even seem to
entertain the idea. But if you believe that, if if Richard believed that she left, if he knew, like, why not allude
to the fact that she had a reason to go instead of saying that you guys had like
this great happy life, happy marriage or whatever? I mean to save face >> maybe. But there's another reason you do
that too. If you want to divert attention, which brings me to theory number three.
What if Richard did something to his wife? Going back to 2001, after they brought
that group of investigators together, this is the same time that they said the sketch is inaccurate.
They also arrest Richard. Oh. I'm sorry. You could have led with that. >> Well, I'll tell you why I didn't.
According to the BBC, after some questioning, Richard is released that same day without facing any charges.
Police never call him a suspect. They also never explicitly say that he's cleared. The only official statement we
could find is that according to the BBC, they released him, quote, pending further inquiries. And if they ever
questioned him again, it again didn't result in any charges now. The timing sure feels suspect to me.
>> Yeah, I mean, you can see my face. [laughter] >> Like, hey, this picture we said was so
important for a decade. >> Forget about that. >> Probably not accurate. Husband is
arrested. >> The timing feels calculated. [music] >> Yeah. To me at least, it feels very like hint
hint, wink wink. This is the direction we're looking without actually saying anybody is
officially anything. >> I can't put words in police's mouth. I can only tell you what they did,
>> okay? >> Because they never say anything about Richard and I don't have access to the
police file. I can't tell you what they were thinking or even like I would die to know what came to the questioning or
like what questions they asked. >> I mean to be a fly on that wall and listen I have zero evidence backing this
up but I wonder if in 2001 like could they have talked to Phil's ex for the first time?
>> Like it makes sense to me that she would have never been spoken to early on because it seems like they met right
after Trevolene went missing >> she didn't know Trevaline. >> Yeah. So day one investigators miss her.
Even people a couple of months on are like, "Oh, like why would this new girlfriend who wasn't even around have
anything?" Like just skip her. >> Yeah. >> But if she got in touch with investigators 10, 11 years on and
started telling them things, the two bombs that she drops in that episode would explain to me the exact two things
that happened, right? >> Thousand%. >> Bomb one, she says, "I think mystery man is Phil."
>> Picture [music] gone. >> And then bomb two, I didn't tell you the whole thing. Yes, she said that their
marriage wasn't great. Whatever. ever. She also said that sometime after Traveline disappeared, furniture and
carpet were [music] moved out of Trevaline and Richard's home. Wait, but how does she know this?
>> Bill told her about the carpet and furniture and the two of them thought that it was so weird because
if you still think your wife is going to come back, you're talking to her. >> I say you're asking her to come back in
the news. >> Yeah. Getting rid of a bunch of stuff in your house is probably going to be a
shock to her. like is now really the time? >> And when was he supposedly doing this?
Like was he like was he moving it to the retirement house? Maybe. >> No. No. Cuz he never ends up moving to
the retirement house. He ends up selling it and he ends up converting her antique
shop to a residential housing like rents it out. So I mean I guess TBD timing maybe he was moving some of the
furniture to the shop to furnish the apartment. I don't know. And I don't know exactly when the girlfriend heard
about this or like when this exactly was supposed to happen. I just know shortly
after she went missing. She also says that after her and Phil were together, Richard would come by the pub that she
worked at to talk to her. And looking back, she thinks that he was trying to find out what she knew or what
Trevaline's brothers were maybe talking to her about. >> Like a temperature check.
>> Yeah. But she said it was so weird cuz like in all the times that he did talk
to her, he showed no emotion. Never asked questions, never said that he loved his wife, missed his wife, which
she found weird. But I don't know. So here's the thing. Like I know I teed this up being like, you know, her two
things, Phil is mystery man, Richard removing carpet furniture >> and like them not being happy.
>> Yeah, maybe those two things explain what police did in 2001. But I also can't make those two things
work together. Phil as mystery man only makes sense to me if he was like helping
Trevaline get away, right? Which no one ever suggests to be true. But then if he
helped her get away, why is Richard moving furniture? >> Then Richard has nothing to do with it.
>> Yeah. And and even if he did that, it's not suspicious. Like >> it has nothing to do with
>> this case makes no sense. I mean, you see why police is calling this one of the most confusing cases their
department has ever worked, ever seen. Okay, can we just like pause for a second and like go down a path with me?
If Richard is involved in some way, like break it down. Is his alibi of being out
of town bogus? I'm not going to go down a path with you. I'm going to take you down the rabbit hole with me.
>> Let's go. >> So, Richard is supposed to be in Rudd, right? An hour away. Police had initially reported that he
didn't get back until 5:00 p.m. And I read somewhere that workers could confirm that he was at this bungalow
where the work was being done, but I I only saw that in like one article. And there was some stuff even saying that
Richard and Trevalene only had one car. So, he like couldn't have gotten back. But like in my mind, I'm like,
>> but he did because he got shot. >> Whether it's at 5 or whatever, we know he gets back. Like maybe he got a ride.
I don't know. But anyways, if he's not back until 5, he's in the clear since everyone
believes something happened to her around 2:30 when she was last seen near her house.
>> Well, fast freaking forward. At some point, there are changes in news reports
about when Richard gets home without any real explanation as to why all of a sudden it's changed. Sometimes people
call it lunchtime that he's back. In that TV episode I was talking about, they get more specific and say that a
police source told them Richard was seen at a local pub at 2:30. >> 2:30? Like exactly when she goes
missing? >> Yes. Now, a bunch of blogs that I've seen go on the other extreme and they
say that he was for sure in Rland and actually he kept calling the house and the shop and when he couldn't get her,
he called a neighbor. And a neighbor is the one who actually first realizes the shop is unlocked. and they call him, he
calls police from Rland, so he's not even making the call from there. But like, for the life of me, I have no idea
where they're getting that information because nothing I've seen in like official news reporting comes even close
to that version. But if he was there the whole time calling on a neighbor, again,
I'm sure that puts him in the clear, or at least in my mind, >> without knowing the timing of the calls,
I can't say if he did or didn't have time to go back and forth between his bungalow and their home. Did they ever
do any of the searches for her up where the bungalow was? >> Yes, but not when or why you might
think. And really, this is when and where our case becomes active like in present day and gets exceptionally
more weird. So, before I tell you what I'm about to tell you, let me set the stage a little bit. So, there's this
wild tip that police get in March 2019. Based on all the reporting that was out there before, it seemed like these two
men got a tip given to them that led them to believe they knew where Trevaline's body was. And a ton happens
after this. Police search, they don't find anything. Then something even stranger happens. And then like a lot of
people just end up writing these guys off like, "Oh, they're just making it up."
But when I was looking at this case, I'm like, why? Like, they have no connection
to Trevalene, no reason to be doing this. They don't gain anything. And they are still so convinced that their
information is right. They say they have pictures, but of course, the pictures aren't published anywhere. So,
obviously, I need to get my hands on those pictures. And what I really wanted to know is where did this tip originate
from? Like, that is never reported on. And to me, it feels pretty important. Like, can I solve Trevolene's case from
another country? Probably not. But am I going to try? >> 1,000%. >> I couldn't call myself a crime junkie if
I didn't. And this felt like the one place I knew I might actually get answers because unlike the rest of this
story where everyone I wanted to talk to has already passed and can't give me the
details I need. These two brothers, Andrew Sutton, an accountant, and Lee Sutton, a carpenter, they're still alive
and have connections to this little place you might have heard of for the first time today, Ruddland. So, I asked
our reporter, Taylor Harts, to track them down and ask them how this tip came out. And this is a story that in
Andrew's own words is stranger than fiction. So get ready. Andrew Sutton told us that in 2019, his brother Lee,
Lee's the carpenter, >> he was doing some construction work on a bungalow in Rland. [music] And when Lee
mentions this to Andrew, Andrew thinks of Travalene. Her case is like local lore in North Wales. And when Andrew
hears bungalow in Ruddland, like to him there is only one bungalow in Rland. Obviously that's not true. So not
surprising when Lee brings it up to the owner and he's like, "No, no, no. This isn't the same bungalow that Trevaline
and Richard owned." >> But actually, this guy that he's talking to remembers the case well, too. And he
said that Richard used to spend quite a lot of time at the same bar that this guy did at the Rland Golf Club, which
like nothing burger to Lee, right? Like he Lee didn't really know about this case. Like he's like, "Okay, cool." He
goes on with his day. >> But as he's packing up at the end of the day, he's making small talk with this
guy asking him like, "Oh, well, do you still go to that pub at the golf club?" And the guy's like, "No, you know, I
actually stopped going to Rland Golf Club because it started to smell inside." And Lee said in that moment, he
literally dropped whatever was in his hand because he had heard that before. So he said back in 1990, young buck in
his 20s, he was in the construction trade then like he is later, but he says back then he did work for this older guy
and every day this guy did lunch at the golf club. Now this guy again, he seems to be retired or whatever and Lee said
that he used to work at the golf club back in the day. So this was like his spot. Lee knew his routine. He would
leave, he'd be gone for about an hour or so for lunch, come back. Well, one day in 1990, he leaves for his lunch at the
club, but he's back within like 15 minutes. So Lee's like, why back so soon? And this guy said that there was
this terrible smell in the building. He like could not take it. Now he confirmed
guy in 1990 and guy in 2019 did not know each other. Like he asked 2019 guy. So he's got two separate people over the
course of almost 30 years telling him about this horrible smell at the club in the summer of 1990. Now his brother
Andrew Sutton told us that 2019 guy said it wasn't just him that was bothered by
the smell. A lot of people were complaining about it. So much so that they complained to staff at the golf
club. And he said the golf club was adding an extension at the time. So employees reached out to the contractors
and the contractors were basically like h you know an animal must have just like
gotten in under the floorboards and died. And >> is that where the snow was coming from?
Like is it where the construction was? >> So no, that's the weird part. But like
from what they were hearing it was just like nobody wanted to deal. They were kind of all satisfied saying like listen
had to be an animal that died. It's decomposing. Yes, the smell is horrible but it's eventually just going to go
away on its own. So, as you can imagine, after Lee hears this, he immediately calls his brother and is like, "Hey, I
asked about that bungalow, not the one you're thinking of, but you're never going to believe this." And both of them
are just kind of like stunned. So, they decide to go on a field trip. [laughter] Like, they got to see this
thing for themselves, right? Like cuz there's no way two random brothers, one who'd never even heard about the case,
they're not going to find something that police haven't. But what if? >> Again, this is like sounding like the
creation of a crime episode. [laughter] >> So, in the most responsible fashion, they actually go to police first. They
make sure that they have this information to check it out, and then they wait. Surely, there's going to be a
search or they're going to hear something back. Hey, FYI. We looked into it. It's nothing. Like, thanks for the
tip. But they don't. Even when they try following up with police, police are like, "Listen, we may look into it. We
may not. It's like not your problem to worry about. Bye." Which isn't enough for them.
>> Like, they got to be in their bonnet about this thing now. Because Lee has been catching up on Trevaline's case in
this time. He watched the Crime Watch special that was filmed within 2 months of Trevoline going missing. And he sure
didn't like how Richard, who by the way is already dead in 2019 when all this is
happening. Lee doesn't like how Richard keeps slipping into past tense now and then talking about his missing wife,
>> which like we've seen before and it always makes me side eye cuz like you would have to consciously correct
yourself if you knew something like >> I know and I honestly when I first watched it like and I'm like the crime
junkie. I didn't even pick up on the past tense thing my first go around. The thing that like really kind of drove me
up a wall is I noticed that in all of Richard's interviews, he anytime he like talks about the police investigation,
he's like praising them like they did everything they could. Like they're doing a great job. And maybe they did.
I'm just saying I've never seen a case where a missing person is never found over decades and the family is like, you
did all you could do. Like there was like >> I'm not saying there's there's a first
time for everything. >> There's you but like there's usually like some hesitation, some like
questions. >> What else could we have done? Like we could we could have done this earlier.
We should explore other options. But like the >> But anyways, all that to say like
they're honing in on their own things and the Sutton brothers are not [music] going to let this go. I don't know if
they would have called themselves crime junkies before, but Lee and Andrew, you are crime junkies. So, at some point,
Lee decides to go take a look at this floor for himself. Like, what's what? Could a body be down there? Could it
just be an animal? And when he does, he doesn't think that there's any way an animal could have gotten under this
floor accidentally and died causing this smell. He thinks the only way something
dead wound up under those floorboards would be if it was put there by someone. and they are going to figure out what it
is if it is the last thing they do and they know exactly how. So, this building has an air brick right near where this
smell originated from. And I actually had to look up. I didn't know what an air brick was.
>> It is exactly what it sounds. It's like shaped like a brick, but it has holes.
So, like it's vented. >> Go through it. >> Yes. Right there in the name, Ashley.
[laughter] Now, the holes are too small to actually see anything. and it's obviously like dark under there, but
Andrew knows a tool that they can use. So, one Saturday morning in March of 2019, they go to a hardware store and
they buy a Stanley fiber optic LED inspection camera, which is basically this tiny little thing that you hold. It
has a screen on the front and then it's like a little um tube, >> like a scope. >> Yeah, that's the word, man. Today, uh so
it has this little scope so you can put it in tiny holes. Okay, so they buy this, they go straight to the golf club,
specifically the bar, and they're like sitting there inside like putting the batteries in, playing around with it,
figuring out how it worked and coming up with a little white lie because they felt like if they told the people at the
club that they're going to go hunting around for a dead body, like >> might not be welcome at the club.
>> Yeah. They're not going to be super into it. So when the guy at the club is like,
"Oh, what are you doing with that?" They make up a story and one of them is like,
"Oh, you know, my brother's going to buy this house and I want to check that the
floors haven't like brought it out or whatever. Do you mind if I just test it out here?" And the guy's like, "Sure,
whatever. Go for it." Okay, I am going to show you the pictures. These have never been published before anywhere in
the world. And this is what they see seconds after putting the camera through the air vent.
Oh my god. I wish the quality was better here. The Stanley camera doesn't record it. Like
that camera thing on it is just a viewer. Yeah. So, what you're looking at is pictures that the brothers took of
like the view screen or whatever. >> Okay. >> But I don't need it to be any clearer.
Ashley, I I think I'm looking at a human skeleton. >> I know. And even like the printouts I
feel like don't do it justice. The second I saw it, I feel like skull, eyes, spine. Mhm.
>> There's like maybe a hole in the skull. >> It actually that's like more pronounced
when you print it out. >> I mean, like I don't know. I looked at this and I saw it instant the same way
that I think that they did. I saw it instantly. >> I was a little surprised that apparently
uh our so our reporter saw it too. Um so did another reporter we have who's a former detective, but apparently
everyone else in the office like didn't they were like, "Oh yeah, no, there's nothing there."
Yeah. So, like if I don't know if I'm the one who's like losing it or >> it's also one of those things like am I
being biased >> like I I know what I'm looking for so I'm seeing it. One of those things. But
I mean what? It doesn't look like anything else. At least not to me. And listen, I
told you these have never been published anywhere before. Even though these men have talked to news outlets.
>> Wait, why not? >> I don't know. Like when we talked to Lee, he said that they tried to get
these pictures out there. Like they've had interviews scheduled with other reporters who've just ghosted them. And
then when they did a sit down with one journalist who actually heard them out, they never ended up publishing anything.
So Lee says they feel like they just keep like hitting brick wall after brick wall until we called. They gave the
photos to us. No problem. I mean, they're dying for someone to take them more seriously, which so it makes no
sense to me. I mean, obviously, I haven't been able to authenticate the photos. I asked the brothers if any
other people have tried and they said [music] no. And truly, when they were, you know, first talking about this with
us, like I and I hadn't seen the photos. I was like, you know what? These are going to be so vague. You're probably
not going to be able to see anything. That's why everyone writes them off and doesn't publish these pictures.
>> But then I see what's there and I'm like, >> what are we doing here, people? So,
okay, back to the story. They stick the scope down the air brick. They see this.
What do they do then? >> Well, they're in shock for a minute, as you can imagine. But they leave. So,
they said that they left. It was like a weekend and for like the weekend they're
like staring at these pictures like this can't be real, but like they really felt
like it was real. >> So, they took the pictures on March 14th. On March 19th, they come back to
the golf club and they tell the people at the club what it is they found and they need to call police. And Lee says
that the guy that they were telling this to at the club just quote went [music] to pieces and was like, "Well, how do
you know? Who is it? How long has she been there?" And we obviously said, he's like, you know, I don't I don't know.
Like, we just know our what our photos show. There appears to be a body under the floor.
>> He said at that point there was this other woman who appeared. She seemed to be in charge at the golf club as well.
And Lee said that she was asking about how this might affect their business. Now, we tried calling the golf club
ourselves to ask a manager about how all of this went down. But when we did, the
manager was already gone for the day or out of the office or in London, and they
have not called us back yet. But we do know that staff at the golf club and the Sutton brothers called police when
Andrew and Lee showed them the photos. And Andrew says that within a half hour, a large number of officers from Northern
Wales PD show up. They show them where they think the body is, show them the pictures, and Lee says that he followed
police inside to this room right above where they spotted the body. And guess what's on the floor? This trap door.
It's like 2 ft by 3 ftish, [music] they estimate, but there's this big heavy freezer over part of it. and Lee got a
chance to get on the floor and really get like a good [music] look at it. And here's the really interesting part. He
said that it looked like it had not been opened in a long time. >> I think the interesting part is that
police are just letting him examine this with them. >> Uh I think he like snuck in. I guess he
was wearing something that like maybe similar to what you might be wearing if you're actually going to go in that
crawl space to collect the body. And there were like so many people he kind of just like slipped right in there. But
once they realized who he was, they did kick him out. >> But importantly, he said that as he's
leaving, he can hear them like prying the door open and he could hear the nails screeching in a way that you only
hear when something is like decades old. So, >> and he's the the carpenter brother,
right? So, like he kind of knows what he's talking about here. >> Yeah. And he's like I'm walking out and
I'm like this is it. They're going to find her. But this is like when he's getting shued out. So, they make him go
outside where Andrew was waiting. And then they're moved even farther away from where the work is being done. And
it's weird. This officer who is leading them away, Lee says that he says the strangest thing to him. He says that
their photos would never hold up in court. >> And Lee's like court? Like who's talking
about court? Like what? >> It's just weird. >> But I don't know in the moment whatever.
So, they're in the clubhouse just waiting and the officer in charge comes back to [music] Lee and Andrew and says,
"Hey, we want you to put your camera back in. Just like see what you can see." So, they go back, they put their
camera back in, and this is what they see. Where'd it go? >> Where' what go? Don't do that. Where's the skeleton?
Police say there never was a skeleton. They say they found nothing. Now, that's what we get in the official
reporting when police talked to news outlets. We searched, we found nothing. Andrew and Lee told us though that as
they were pulling the camera out, I mean, confused as hell about what was going on.
>> Yeah. >> They said, like again, as it's coming out, they spot something. a bone maybe
like 10 inches long. And Lee starts getting all excited. He's like, "There, okay, do you see this?" Yeah. And he
shows the camera to the detective inspector and they get no explanation. Like nothing. They are just asked to
leave, go to the station for statements, which they do. They go, they give statements and they leave thinking that
they're going to hear something about the bone that they saw all together. But they don't. The next day they just get a
call and police say [music] there is nobody. >> But then then what am I looking at back
here? What is that? >> Feel crazy. >> Yeah, >> the brothers feel crazy. Like I said
before, they've met with reporters. They've met with people who the ones who did that like episode on this case, but
they feel like they're screaming into the void. Yeah, Ashley, there was a body there. According to police, there was
not. But if these pictures are real, then >> then then I would think someone moved
her body and that's exactly what the Sutton brothers think happened specifically. They think someone in the
police department removed it. They're pretty vocal about this theory [music] and Lee posts about it all the time on
his social media, but of course I mean there's no real evidence to support this and we
>> like there's if there's no body, there's nobody to remove >> and we don't have a statement from the
police department on [music] this. So like why the police though? My first thought went to someone at the golf
club. I mean, there was like four or five days between them putting the scope down, taking the pictures, and then when
they go back to call police. >> It seems like that that's what seemed like the obvious answer to me. But I
mean, in talking to the brothers, like what makes them so convinced of their theory is they
always point back to the trap door. They say that there's absolutely no other way
to get to that spot where they think the skeleton was other than the trap door. M
>> and Lee is adamant that when he saw that trap door and heard it being removed, he
knew that that thing had been shut tight when police opened it and that when they're opening it, that was the first
time that that had been done in like decades. >> But how would they remove a skeleton
with all of those people there? I mean, you said there was like a crowd, >> dude, with no one noticing.
>> I don't know. And also, why? Like a cover up like this would take a lot of people. Why would a lot of people have a
vested interest in this? >> I was going to say and to protect who? Like there's a lot of question marks as
like what the motive would be to do this. >> To me, the only person who wins if she's
not found there is the golf club, >> right? >> But again, the brothers don't leave a
lot of room for who. They point squarely at police and they even end up filing a
formal complaint against the police criticizing their handling of the case. the independent office of police conduct
reviewed the complaint and then sent the matter back to the police department that was being that they're making the
complaint against like they're listen this is like an internal matter you guys should handle it and the police
department is like we reject this complaint >> this complaint on this case that didn't
happen to them >> case closed on their end so that's it the brothers are written off as loony
randos who imagine this whole thing while I'm over here like but did Hey. >> Yeah. Let's hang out here for like a
minute longer. If there really was a body under the floorboards, if it really was put there the summer of 1990, if it
was Trevolene, to me, that kind of points to just one person. >> Mhm. And Andrew and Lee have a whole
theory about this. They say that they've heard Richard and Trevalene were having problems and that
she was actually on the verge of leaving him which they think led to some sort of
altercation and ultimately her death. And we know his bungalow was close by the golf club. And he by his own
admission says he's in Rland when she goes missing, >> right? Like that was his alibi. The
whole thing started because someone who used to go there says in 1990 Richard drank at the golf club bar. And we
weren't able to verify this, but Andrew and Lee say they even believe that Richard was working as a handyman at the
golf club that summer. [music] >> What? >> I know. >> Wait, what did he do for a living? Like,
was he always a handyman? >> He worked in maintenance. I think it was like at like a chemical plant. So, like
it's totally plausible that he could have been doing work there. [music] Again, we haven't heard back from anyone
at the golf club, so we haven't been able to confirm this. But anyways, the brothers are saying that they heard this
from other people because obviously people telling them to like sh go away. Like this doesn't make them less
interested in this and they have talked to a lot of people about it since. So they think Richard would have had access
to a storage room off the kitchen where they say there was a trap door [music] leading underneath the floor. And they
think that he could have put Traveline's body under there to cover up a crime. >> I mean,
hypothetically, it could work. He gets back to Laughlin, scoops her up in the car. I mean, she'd get in with him,
>> someone she knew, >> or or maybe something happens in her shop. He drives her off to another town.
What's so weird to me is based on everything I've read, police never even searched the whole Rland area back then,
by the way. So like I mean she totally could have been hidden away if she was there. And then he ends up selling the
bungalow. So even he doesn't keep ties to that town. >> But when would he have put her under the
floor? I mean she went missing on a Saturday. You can't just like walk into a golf club on a Saturday afternoon and
hide a dead body under the bar. Like what's the timing of it then? >> I don't know. Like she would have had to
have been somewhere else at least for a little while which like I don't know whatever that's doable. M the part
that's outlandish to me is how ballsy you would have to be to put anything dead under the floor and not expect
someone to go looking for it. Like >> like who doesn't know that a body is going to start to smell, right?
>> Especially when you like have this other house of theirs right like the bungalow's right there where like no one
else is. >> Yeah. If someone would have like smelled this and gone looking for it and found
that it was trevolene like he's right there. There would have been no one else to blame but him.
>> Well, yeah. And that doesn't really make sense to me either. If there was a trap
door there, why didn't they go looking for the smell in the n like in 90? Like I have to
>> We know it was bad for business. People left. >> Well, the only thing I the only thing I
can think is that maybe it was already nailed shut >> or >> then crack it open. Maybe the smell
wasn't as bad as everyone remembered. I don't know. I have spiraled on this. I'm
even like I mean I've gone deep. I'm like who owned the golf club in 90? Like online property records for North Wales
like they don't go back that far. Would someone have kept such a big secret for Richard? Is everyone still keeping the
secret and that's why the body was moved? But like why would a whole department be hiding a secret for a dead
man? Richard died in 2014. Like dude, this is was there no body after all? But wait,
cuz just when you start thinking that, this happens. In 2021, this small metal plaque seems to appear
mysteriously one day, bolted to a bench on a walkway just outside of Rland. No one knows when exactly it got there or
who put it there. And it looks like one of those little memorial plaques that usually say like in memory of whoever
except this message looks handmade, like someone actually scratched a message into the metal. A message that reads in
memory of Trevolene Evans. Vanished 166 1990. Found Ruddlin GC143209. removed 193209.
RIP. >> So, the Sutton brothers put it there. >> That was my first thought, but they say
that they're not responsible for it. They actually think that it might have been a relative of Trevalines or maybe
someone from the police department who put the plaque up, someone who maybe was there while they were excavating. And
like, I don't know, this is their way of like whistleblowing. Well, again, there's like no evidence to back that
up. So, I don't >> And this is like a public bench. Like, it's owned by the town.
>> It is, but I mean, this is definitely not like a town sanctioned plaque. Like,
the local government actually had it removed. >> But then another one pops up. This time
outside an old miner's cottage a few minutes away from the first bench. This one's same size, same material, same
like [music] sketchy handwriting it seems, but the message is longer this time. I'm going to have you take a look
at this one instead of reading it. >> Justice awaits those responsible for the removal and disposal of Trevolene
[music] Evans. In this life or the next from Rling Golf Club on March 19, 2019 [music] at noon and may the Lord have
mercy upon their souls. Noon is specific. >> I know I can't find anything about what
time of day the like they searched for her or whatever took up the floor. And of course, like no one knows who put
this plaque up either. Now, it's been quiet since 2021, but maybe that's because no one was listening. If enough
people talk about this case, talk about these pictures, maybe more people will feel comfortable coming forward and
speaking if they know something. There's been a fifth theory explored over the years that, you know, traveling could
have just been in the wrong place at the wrong time and gotten caught in the crosshairs of a stranger, perhaps a
serial killer. In 2011, police explored this avenue and looked into two different serial killers
in the area, Robin Ligus and Christopher Hiell. Robin killed a few men in the area around that time. One of whom was
an antiques dealer, but they couldn't find any solid connection to Trevalene or actually any other female victims. As
far as I can tell, all of his victims were male. So, it seems like he was ruled out. And then with Christopher, he
did kill women. And apparently, he used to work as a window cleaner who had a habit of stealing antiques. And back
when Trevaline disappeared, he was apparently working in North Wales. But they've never been able to definitively
tie him to Trevolene's case either. And sure, a serial killer is possible, but is it probable?
>> Right? And who was the mystery man? Where does he fit into all of this? Does he exist? Or is he a fiction of
everyone's imagination like police say the skeleton under the floor was for the Sutton brothers? someone out there can
[music] answer that question. So, if it's you, email me tips@auudiochuck.com. I'll be keeping an eye out for your
message. You can find all the source material for this episode on our website, crimejunkkey.com. [music]
And if you want to listen to more episodes like this and all of our episodes completely adree, [music]
be sure to join our fan club. You'll also get early access to new episodes every week. And you can follow us on
Instagram >> [music] >> @ crimejunkie podcast. We'll be back next week with a brand new episode.

On June 16, 1990, 52-year-old Trevaline Evans disappeared without a trace from her antique shop in Llangollen, North Wales. She left behind her handbag, keys, and jacket — and a handwritten sign that read: “Back in two minutes.”

Witnesses saw her walking through town that day with a mystery man in a navy suit, but she never returned. What happened in those final hours? Did Trevaline leave willingly, fall victim to a killer, or get caught in a decades-long cover-up?

In this episode, Ashley Flowers and Brit Prawat revisit one of Britain’s strangest missing-person cases — from the exhaustive police searches across North Wales to shocking new evidence uncovered in 2019, when two brothers claimed to have found human remains beneath the Rhuddlan Golf Club, the same area linked to Trevaline’s husband, Richard Evans. The case has haunted investigators for 35 years, raising questions about love, lies, and the secrets small towns keep.

Key Episode Moments 0:01 - 1:06 — Intro 1:07 - 3:03 — Back in 2 Minutes 3:04 - 6:06 — Last Sightings in Town 6:07 - 9:03 — Mystery Man Appearances 9:04 - 12:08 — Saturday Timeline Gaps 12:09 - 14:56 — Disappearance Window 14:57 - 17:20 — Foul Play Suspected 17:21 - 19:58 — Mystery Man Sketch Dropped 19:59 - 22:16 — Husband Arrested & Released 22:17 - 24:52 — Affair Rumors 24:53 - 27:05 — 2019 Tip at Golf Club 27:06 - 29:37 — Camera Discovery 29:38 - 31:58 — Police Search Finds Nothing 31:59 - 34:20 — Carpet & Furniture Allegations 34:21 - 36:48 — Possible Cover-Up Theory 36:49 - 39:12 — Memorial Plaques Appear 39:13 - 41:25 — Serial Killer Angles 41:26 - 1:09:22 — Outro --------

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Brief Summary

Trevolene Evans vanished in 1990; new evidence suggests foul play and possible cover-up.

Key points

A Chilling Discovery. A dead body is discovered in the place of a foul smell, shocking witnesses.
The Strange Disappearance of Trevolene Evans. Trevolene Evans vanished in North Wales 35 years ago, leaving behind a mystery.
The Last Confirmed Sighting. Witnesses report seeing Trevolene locking up her shop, but what happened next remains a mystery.
The Mystery of Trevolene. The investigation into Trevolene's disappearance raises more questions than answers.
The Mystery Man Revelation. A woman claims the mystery man is Trevolene's brother, Phil, raising eyebrows.
The Inheritance Twist. Rumors of Trevolene's affairs and an inheritance complicate the narrative.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

She wasn't in any financial trouble. She wasn't having any medical problems.

Describing Trevolene's stable life before her disappearance.

4:41WatchOct 20, 2025

Tension

75/ 100High tension

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