True Crime On This Day June 19th

Last Updated on September 26, 2022 by Ben Oakley

June 19th

On June 19th in true crime, Watts cold case, murder, mystery disappearance, unsolved crimes, robbery, and missing persons.

1978

In Hanauma Bay, Hawaii, 18-year-old Maryann Acker and her husband, 28-year-old William Acker shot dead a local man, 20-year-old Lawrence ‘Larry’ Hasker.

The couple had moved to Hawaii and decided to support themselves by robbing people at gunpoint. Maryann would attract the men and they would take them away to an isolated location where they were robbed.

Maryann was first convicted in 1982 but the ruling was overturned due to procedural issues. In 2009, 31 years after the crime, Maryann was found guilty of the murder. William Acker received immunity after testifying against his wife.

1979

In Tulsa, Oklahoma, Kenneth Ray Johnson along with three accomplices robbed a U-Tote-M store in the city and shot dead the store clerk.

The clerk was unable to get the cash register open immediately and so Johnson shot him in the stomach. Despite the clerk bleeding to death, Johnson demanded that he opened the store safe.

When the safe was opened, Johnson grabbed the money and left with his accomplices.

The store clerk managed to call the police just before dying of his wounds. Johnson and his accomplices were arrested shortly after. Johnson was subsequently sentenced to death.

1980

In Kaster, Germany, 19-year-old private Gerard Pelzer vanished without a trace. He was stationed at the 13^th Wings and came home regularly to see his family when he was off duty.

He was due to go home at the beginning of June but never showed up. The German military later listed him as a deserter as he failed to return to the base.

Later in the investigation, a military report was discovered in his personal belongings. It read; “Private Gerard Pelzer was found unconscious alongside the road by two German civilians and was brought to the base infirmary.”

The military denied the report. Pelzer’s disappearance has been the subject of conspiracies ever since.

1981

In Tulsa, Oklahoma, 40-year-old Ronald Terry Curby vanished without a trace after leaving a party in the early hours.

He headed back towards his home in Bartlesville, but his car was discovered the following day, parked close to the Washington-Tulsa County line. His family described him as reliable and not the type to run away.

Despite one truck driver witnessing the car in the early hours of the morning, no trace of Curby has ever been found.

One theory has been put forward regarding Curby eloping and creating a new identity, but investigators have long suspected foul play. Curby’s disappearance remains a mystery.

1983

In Baton Rouge, Louisiana, 26-year-old salesman Marion Grant Watts disappeared under suspiscious circumstances. He was last heard from by his aunt when talking to him on the phone.

She told police that in the background she heard a car horn and Watts left the phone hanging. He claimed he would be back shortly as he was helping a friend move some appliances.

He never returned and was reported missing shortly after. Investigators found his personal belongings in his bedroom, including his wallet and shoes, which meant he had left the phone call barefooted.

Despite the investigation into his disappearance, no trace of Watts has ever been found, and his whereabouts remain a mystery.

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