Fulton man investigated in the case but never charged

Branson Perry, seen above in photos posted on bransonperry.com, went missing from his home in Skidmore, Mo., 10 years ago. Tips can be left at that website.

SKIDMORE, Mo. (AP) — Friends and relatives of a then-20-year-old northwest Missouri man who disappeared 10 years ago have vowed to keep a promise to his recently deceased mother to find out what happened to him, even though they acknowledge he is likely dead.

On April 11, 2001, 20-year-old Branson Perry left his parents’ home in Skidmore and hasn’t been seen since. Officials have turned up little evidence in the decade-long search for Perry.

“We haven’t received any tips lately, not since last year. Every now and then we’ll get something,” said Nodaway County Sheriff Darren White, who was a deputy when Perry disappeared.

No one in the town has forgotten Perry. Plans are being made for another search this spring, just like those conducted every year for the last 10 years.

“Around town, we searched every oil well, every outside toilet. We searched everywhere that was possible for us to think that something could be there,” said Jo Ann Stinett, his grandmother.

Most people believe that Perry is dead, the St. Joseph News-Press reported Monday. When his mother, Rebecca Klino, died in February, her obituary said she had been preceded in death by her son.

“I think she knew he wasn’t alive, but she always wanted to continue to look for him either way,” said Monica Caison, founder of the CUE Center for Missing Persons.

Caison said she and other close friends of Klino’s promised her they would continue to look for her son.

One suspect in the case was identified in 2003. Authorities believe Jack Wayne Rogers of Fulton bragged in an online chat room that he abducted, raped and murdered a blond-haired man from Skidmore. In the same chat, authorities believe Rogers said police would never find the body because of how he disposed of it in a remote area of the Ozarks. Authorities searched the yard of Rogers’ home in Fulton in November of 2003 for possible buried evidence.

Rogers was charged separately with child pornography and sentenced to 30 years in federal prison. However, he has never been charged in connection with Perry’s disappearance.

Sgt. Roger Phillips, an investigator for the drug and crime control division of the Missouri State Highway Patrol and a friend of Klino, is committed to finding answers.

“Just because (Ms. Klino) is not here doesn’t mean this train is not going to keep moving,” Phillips said. “It’s about getting to the truth.”

Online:

Tipline in case: http://www.bransonperry.com

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Monday, April 11, 2011

Today is the anniversary of the disappearance of Branson Perry.  He has been missing for ten years.  I first heard of Branson five years ago when I sat in the kitchen of his grandmother, Jo Ann Stinnett.  Since that day, I have never stopped hoping that the family would get answers to their questions about the young man torn from their lives.

Branson was last seen at his home at 304 West Oak Street in the small town of Skidmore, Missouri.  He was twenty years old.  He is presumed to be the victim of foul play.

His mother, Becky Kilno, passed away last February without ever knowing what happened to her son.  Family and friends have vowed to continue the quest for this young man in Becky’s name.

Somewhere out there, someone knows what happened to Branson.  Ten years is too long to carry the burden of that information.  Whoever you are, it’s time to tell what you know.

You can submit a confidential tip to the Missouri State Highway Patrol to Detective Roger Phillips, (816)387-2345 or through the CUE Center for Missing Persons, (910) 232-1687.

You can also submit a tip online.  The link and further information is posted on the website for Branson and on his Facebook page.

I orginally wrote about Branson in my book about the murder of his cousin Bobbie Joe Stinnett, Baby Be Mine.

http://dianefanning.blogspot.com/2011/04/branson-perry-is-still-missing.html

A Mother Waits, A Mother Dies

I was deeply saddened to learn of the death of Rebecca Ann “Becky” Klino on Valentine’s Day.  Becky was the mother of Branson Perry.

Branson was related to Bobbi Jo Stinnett and both lived in the small farming community of Skidmore.  I learned about Branson when I wrote about Bobbie Jo’s gruesome murder on December 16, 2004.  Lisa Montgomery killed Bobbie Jo to remove the baby from her body and claim it as her own.

Bobbie Jo’s death was dreadful and tragic, but her mother, at least, could bury her daughter and find justice in the courtroom with Montgomery’s conviction and death sentence.  Branson’s mother, Becky, on the other hand, still waits.  Branson, at the age of 20, disappeared in April 2001 under suspicious circumstances.

Law enforcement, at one point, targeted Jack Wayne Rogers as a possible suspect.  His chatroom discussion about a torture murder seemed to indicate his victim was Branson Perry.  No additional evidence linking him to that crime beyond what Rogers posted on the internet ever surfaced.  The investigation turned their focus to Skidmore itself–population 332–a town whose violent history began with the crimes of Ken McElroy and never seem to end.

For nearly a decade, Becky waited for answers and for justice.
Now, she is gone.  May she rest in peace.

Baby Be Mine, the book about the death of Bobbie Jo Stinnett, recounts the violent history of the rural area in and around Skidmore.

Volunteers from North Carolina traveled to Nodaway County to assist local authorities in the continuing search for local missing man Branson Perry this weekend.

The group included the Community United Effort (CUE) Center for Missing Persons of Wilmington, N.C., Sgt. Sheldon Lyon with the Missouri State Highway Patrol said.

“An area was looked at with the help of a group from North Carolina that specializes with search dogs,” Lyon said. “These dogs searched an area in western Nodaway County.”

Beyond that however, the Missouri State Highway Patrol doesn’t disclose the details of ongoing investigations, Lyon said.

Branson Perry went missing from his father’s home in Skidmore on April 11, 2001. Twenty years old at the time, Perry was cleaning the house with a friend when he took some jumper cables to his father’s shed. He hasn’t been seen since.

Neither the Missouri State Highway Patrol or Nodaway County Sheriff’s Department have been able to close the case.

“This is really unfortunate situation. A young man has been missing for so long. His family just has no closure on this at all,” Nodaway County Sheriff Darren White said. “The really sad part about it is, is as time passes it just becomes more and more difficult to resolve it.

“Here we are, all these years later, still searching.”

Anyone with any information is encouraged to call the Missouri State Highway Patrol at (816) 387-2345

The northwest Missouri teenager vanished in 2001. He left his home on foot and indicated he was taking a pair of jumper cables to a shed that sat on a lot adjacent to the residence. It is unknown if he ever arrived.

The Highway Patrol in St. Joseph isn’t commenting on what led to Sunday’s search or whether new evidence may have surfaced in the long unsolved case.

Witnesses tell NBC Action News that a canine search team was also involved in the search of an area off Road 240 in Nodaway County.

MARYVILLE, Mo. — A team of searchers from the North Carolina based organization, CUE Center For Missing Persons were brought into western Nodaway County to use specialized equipment and dogs as part of a two-day search for Branson Perry.

Mr. Perry was reported missing April 11, 2001. He was last seen at his home in Skidmore, Mo. There is a $20,000 reward for information leading to the whereabouts of Mr. Perry and/or the arrest and conviction of the person and/or persons responsible for his disappearance.

This is an ongoing investigation for the Nodaway County Sheriff’s Department and the Missouri State Highway Patrol who have never closed the books on this case, said Sgt. Sheldon Lyon, a spokesman for Troop H.

Investigators were believed to be searching an area in and around Missouri Highway 113 and 240th Road in western Nodaway County on Saturday and Sunday. Mr. Lyon declined to comment on the results of the investigation. Anyone having information concerning this case, please contact the Highway Patrol at 816-387-2345.

Benefit Helps Solve Murder & Missing Person Cases

10/04/08

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – If you know something, say something. That’s the message from local parents at a fundraiser for murdered and missing children.

Dozens joined together in Kansas City Saturday afternoon for the 65-mile benefit ride and poker run.

Organizers say the third annual ride drew the biggest crowd yet.

Parents welcomed the support but say nothing can take away their pain.

“In a way every day is a bad day because you just want to make up one day and not miss them so much and that’s never going to happen,” said Misty Kirwan.

Misty’s son, 21-year-old Chris Bartholomew, was killed in a drive-by shooting in Westport last spring. But he wasn’t the target.

“His killers are still walking the streets and nobody’s talking,” she said.

Becky Klin0 hasn’t seen her son for seven and a half years. Branson Perry was last seen outside his father’s home in Skidmore, Missouri.

“Branson had a heart of gold,” said Becky.

Knowing Branson could be alive keeps Becky going.

“Chances are real slim and that’s the hardest thing, but you have to keep believing.”

Branson’s stepfather drives a special van everyday. It has a picture of his son on one side and Chris Bartholomew on the other.

It keeps their faces fresh in the public eye. It’s also a reminder that a senseless crime can happen to anyone.

“You don’t know what’s behind somebody’s face. You don’t know what’s going to happen when you drive down the street. And it’s scary,” said Becky.

Branson Perry reward recently doubled to $20,000. Chris Bartholomew’s reward is $30,000.

CUE Center for Missing Persons

8/06/2007

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A North Carolina-based group is coming to Missouri this month to help raise awareness about several local missing persons cases.

The CUE Center for Missing Persons is going on a national tour, and scheduled to make numerous appearances throughout Missouri in August; distributing a trail of DVD’s, press kits and valuable information concerning 110 missing persons and six unsolved homicide cases.

The 2007 tour, On the Road to Remember will depart from Wilmington, NC on August 21, and will end more than 5,299 miles later returning the volunteers to their home state North Carolina, on September 2.

Hundreds of volunteers will take part in various legs of the tour, which will include 30 rally stops, traveling thru 17 states in an effort to promote a public awareness.

Missouri – RALLY STOPS

Family & Friends of Missing – Branson Perry – August 29 at 7:30 pm
Craig, Missouri 64437

Family of Missing – Jeremy Alex (Grand Rally Honoree Stop) – August 30 at 3:00 pm
Tom Watkins Park 2100 West High
Springfield, Missouri 65803

Family of Missing – Bianca Noel Piper – August 28 at 5:30 pm
(Intersection) McIntosh Hill Road & Hwy 79
Foley, Missouri 63347

Family of Missing – Amanda Jones – August 29 at 10:00 am
Jefferson County Sheriff Office 510 1st Street
Hillsboro, Missouri 63050

Families of Missing – Kara Kopetsky & Jesse Ross – August 30 at 10:30 am
Residence 15706 Lawrence Avenue
Belton, Missouri 64012

Mom Of Missing Man Pleads For Info In Case – Kansas City News Story – KMBC Kansas City

SKIDMORE, Mo. — A Missouri mother is making a plea for information about her son who has been missing for six years. Tuesday, April 10, 2007.