Cabin 28 Murders – Victim & Killer Speak From The Dead
We continue with the Cabin 28 Murders series. If you missed the previous posts, you can find them here: Murder at Cabin 28 and The Suspects I and The Suspects II & Profilers Findings and Witness or Dream?.
On Oct. 24, 2009, two psychics visited Cabin 28 with Sheila Sharp, Sue’s daughter, and family friend, Richard Meeks, who also lived at the Keddie Resort. One of the psychics was a medium who could speak with the dead while the other used EVP.
Working together the result was both fascinating and spooky.
First, they approached the site of Cabin 28, which at this point had been torn down. Trampling through dead leaves, they stepped inside the perimeter of where the cabin once sat. Immediately the medium heard screaming. The lights on the EVP went wild, cherry dots flashing on and off.
The medium was visibly chilled to the bone as she recited the following:
Sue opened the door. “Oh…my…God, I know them.”
Two men enter the cabin with a third standing behind them. “No. Please. Don’t!”
Screaming, pain, pleading, begging.
“There were two. And a third. You’re on the right track [in the investigation], but what about Dee? Find Dee.”
“No! Not my babies, please! Kill me, just let them go.”
Unbearable pain. Chaos.
The medium tries to calm her.
Sue refuses to leave the site until all have been punished. Tortured and murdered, preferably. “Why isn’t anyone punishing them?”
Sheila Sharp approaches the medium. If you recall from part I, Sheila discovered the bodies.
Sue screams, “No! Baby, please leave and don’t come back.” This is caught on an EVP recording.
The medium again tries to calm Sue enough to speak with her daughter, who is shaking and crying, praying hands in front of her mouth.
Sue finally agrees, but will only say, “Baby, I love you very much. Please promise me you won’t come here anymore. The kids are safe with me. They’re fine. Tina’s with me too. I will protect them. No one better speak their names. And no one can speak to them. You need to leave, baby. If you want to talk to me, you don’t need to come here. Please go. Go!”
The medium asks Sheila if she knows whose cabin that is that Sue keeps pointing at.
Sue screams, “No! Don’t ask her.”
They hurry Sheila away.
Because of Sue’s obvious guilt over opening the door that night and her anger about the situation, the two psychics leave her alone and head toward the cabin Sue’s enraged about.
They enter the cabin, which is still standing.
The EVP goes crazy.
And here’s where we discover the truth from that fateful night.
Bo’s spirit is in the cabin. He’s stuck. Guilt won’t allow him to move on.
The cabin belonged to Martin Smartt.
The medium asks the following:
Are you guilty?
“Yes.”
Do you know what happened?
“Yes.”
Do you want to say something about that night?
“Yes. Wasn’t my idea. Anger around Sue.”
You know Sue?
“Yes.”
Are you stuck here because of what happened?
“Yes. It’s not my fault. Tell her [Sue] I’m sorry. It’s Martin’s fault. And Dee’s. He’s still alive and knows what happened.”
EVP continues to go wild.
“It got outta hand. Didn’t mean where it went. Violence and sex, that’s all we wanted. Wasn’t supposed to go that way.”
Were the boys there, or did they come home?
“Already there.”
Did Sue open the door?
“Yes. Martin pushed past her. Martin said she was easy. But then it got out of control. Martin was enraged, like he was possessed. He took it out on Sue. Sue didn’t matter. Pure animalistic savagery.”
Were there drugs involved?
“No. Drinking.”
Were all three of you involved in the murders?
“Two. I stayed back.”
Here’s my take on the case…
I haven’t been able to determine who “Dee” is, but the family members seem to know him. As soon as the medium related the name they all nodded, confirming the name, so he must be a friend of Martin and Bo.
On the night of April 11, 1981 or early morning hours of April 12th, Sue heard a knock at the front door. When she opened it, Martin and Dee pushed their way inside.
They wanted sex. If they had to rape Sue to get it, so be it.
Sue resisted. She screamed, threatened to tell Martin’s wife.
This enraged Martin. He beat her, punched, and kicked her.
His rage increased and the situation escalated. He grabbed the claw hammer, but that wasn’t enough. He drew a blade from his pocket and stabbed her repeatedly. Sue ran at one point because her bloody handprint was on the wall. Streaked, as if she was pushed. Martin or Dee subdued her. Martin delivered the fatal blow.
John heard the commotion and bolted in the living room with his friend, Dana.
Dee lunged at them, aided by Bo. They had to quiet them. They were in too deep to turn back now.
Martin was still busy with Sue. The crime scene showed major overkill. Then he “helped” his buddies with John and Dana.
The cabin exploded in chaos.
Deafening screams of terror.
Justin, Martin’s stepson, awoke in the back bedroom and tiptoed to the archway of the living room. With his back against the wall, he craned his neck around the side of the archway, peeking into the living room. There, he witnessed his stepfather covered in blood, straddling either John or Dana. Without a sound Justin padded to the bedroom and buried his head with his pillow.
Tina awoke, but instead of spying on the men, she entered the living room.
Three dead bodies on the floor. Three men in blood-soaked clothes.
Martin came for sex and he’d be damned if he was leaving without it. He tossed Tina over his shoulder and escaped out the back door. Dee followed close behind.
As Bo viewed the carnage, guilt consumed every inch of him. He covered Sue’s body with a blanket and fled.
Miles away, the three men stopped. Martin either acted alone or the three men gang-raped twelve-year-old Tina. I have no doubt Martin was the one who murdered her to silence her screams, and then disposed of her as if she was yesterday’s trash.
Whether animals tore Tina’s body apart or Martin did it in a fit of rage, I don’t know. We might never know unless the authorities arrest Dee, the only one of the three who’s still alive today.
Years later, Tina’s skull was found near the waterfall, the rest of her remains scattered in the same vicinity.
What’s your view of how the murders occurred?
There are so many angles to this story. A mob connection. A cover-up by the police. I’ll visit this case again in the future. For now, this is where the series ends.
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23 Comments
Anne
I’m not a big believer in mediums, but my friend’s daughter was kidnapped and murdered and a medium told the police where to find the body and she was right. Definitely weird.
Sue Coletta
Wow! Spooky. Sorry for your loss, Anne.
Anne
Is there a link to the video?
Sue Coletta
I thought I included it in the post. Sorry about that. Here it is: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z6MG93zJhp0
John Baker
There are many unanswered questions surrounding this case, but I don’t think the answers are going to be found by charlatans who claim to talk to spirits.
Sue Coletta
The police have uncovered new leads since I posted this series.
Jody
If u ever can watch psychic investigation believe me when I say that it will change your mind about mediums and psychics. I did not believe in till I watched the series where they help cops I believe it’s called true psychic investigations.thir are some really talented people that are given truly good gifts out thir that have truly helped people.
Sue Coletta
I’ve seen it. Great show!
carri williams
i am a psychic and yes these reading are correct. i wish i could go there. I can do it remotely. this was a sex crime. and terrible one.
Sue Coletta
Wow! I thought they were. So sad. The horrors that poor family experienced. So sad. Oh, yeah, I agree. Even the crime scene screams “sexual.”
Mae Clair
Very eerie with the mediums. I’d be completely freaked out if I was in that group. I love folklore and myth, but I tend to be wary of anything supernatural.
The whole tale is tragic…especially when you think that someone who may have been guilty of murder (Dee) was able to walk away. A reminder that some crimes end up as cold cases.
Sue Coletta
The video is definitely eerie. Cool, but the mediums could have gotten the info from the news.
Mae Clair
So true!
coldhandboyack
I seem to be missing some of your posts. WP says I’m still subscribed. I went looking for this, because I suspected it was about time for an update. I loved this series, and promise to pay more attention in the future.
Sue Coletta
No worries. This post was only featured for a day or two before the guest post. Many people missed it because they’re used to me keeping them featured for a lot longer.
coldhandboyack
It could be failure at my end. Sometimes one just slips past me. I should hire a psychic to tell me when my favorite bloggers are up to something new.
Sue Coletta
Hahahaha! Yeah, me too.
Garry Rodgers
I think you’ve got this right, Sue. There’s no way this was a stranger to stranger crime and it’s most likely there was more than one perpetrator involved. The degree of violence shows intense rage and there has to be some clear motive for that. An intoxicated sexual desire sure fits the profile.
I’ve never had much to do with psychics in investigations. The occasional times were nut cases who caused more trouble than good. It’s always best to stick to the sciences and, as far as I know, there’s no proven science behind psychic abilities (except for my dog sensing when the fridge door is about to be opened 🙂
Sue Coletta
Ha! You’re right, of course. The psychics could have easily gotten their information from the news. I thought it was interesting, though, and a cool way to end the series. Hey, we’re going to set up the doggy A/C today. Hopefully, he’ll let me share it, but I don’t have high hopes. 🙂
Nicholas C. Rossis
Thank you for sharing that fascinating series, Sue!
Like Margot, I’m skeptical of psychics, even if I do believe that “there are more things in heaven and earth.” However, in this case, they seem to be the genuine article. It sure does get my creative juices flowing 🙂
Did anyone follow up on the Dee line of investigation?
Sue Coletta
You know, I’m not sure. I’ve spent way too much on this series. 🙂 When I do an update later on I’ll find out.
Margot Kinberg
…and what a fascinating series it’s been, Sue! Thanks for sharing all of this with us. As you say, there are some things we will probably never know, even if the police catch Dee and he tells the absolute truth. But your theory is at the very least entirely consistent with the undisputed facts.
I’m honestly not sure about the whole medium EVP angle. I’m not saying it should be completely discounted. But let’s just say I’m not convinced. That said, though, what they reveal is at least consistent with the facts, too. The whole thing is really interesting.
Sue Coletta
It’s always hard to believe psychics/mediums. There are so many fakes out there. But I did find the introduction of Dee interesting, especially since the family reacted to the name. I’m glad you enjoyed the series, Margot. 🙂