Accusations from the daughter initiate investigation
The FBI and DCI authorities, along with the County Fremont investigators, descended on the excavation site after the DCI said they found nothing in the news release. The attention of the authorities was drawn to the allegations made by Studey Dean “Don” Donald McKiddy Lucey, who claimed that her late father, Studey Dean, was a serial killer and had buried the bodies of his victims around and inside a well on her land.
Read the most recent news: Daughter of purported Iowa serial murderer claims authorities are excavating for remains.
Daughter recounts her father’s alleged exploitation of women
She informed Rood that he would frequent bars to approach isolated, intoxicated females. He would also engage with prostitutes at truck stops. Additionally, he would target destitute women who had no place to spend the night or call home,” she revealed. “He held various positions such as a gas station attendant, mechanic, and tow-truck driver across multiple gas stations and truck stops,” she stated. According to McKiddy, these women typically had black, dark brown, or dirty blond hair, mostly of shoulder length, and had a modest sense of fashion; they did not wear excessive makeup or jewelry. She informed Register investigative reporter Lee Rood that most of these victims were in their late 20s to early 30s, not thin nor overweight. McKiddy mentioned that her father specifically preyed on women “who wouldn’t be noticed” and sought them out along the Iowa-Nebraska border, away from his hometown of Thurman. In her first interview with the Des Moines Register since her story gained international attention through a Newsweek article in late October, McKiddy shared this information.
More: Alleged Iowa serial murderer targeted women ‘who would not be noticed,’ daughter tells Register.
Family members of individuals who are unaccounted for seek assistance in obtaining information
McKiddy, a 53-year-old resident of Lakeland, Florida, stated that her father, Rood, was a gambler and a crook who had a history of stealing property and running drugs and guns. However, she emphasized that she did not have any criminal record in Iowa. McKiddy mentioned that she had been in contact with several missing relatives’ families, but she had not been able to find any connection between her father’s activities and their disappearances.
More: From John Wayne Gacy to the ‘I-65 Killer,’ discover the connection between these 11 serial killers and Iowa.
Thurman, a small village of approximately 170 individuals where his family’s history extends over a century, is the secluded, wooded Green Hollow located to the north of Thurman. Studey was a troubled individual who resided in this area. He passed away in March 2013 at the age of 75. The Des Moines Register obtained around 20 incident reports from the Fremont County Sheriff’s Office, dating back to the late 1990s, which demonstrate a history of violent and unpredictable behavior by Studey. Sheriff Kevin Aistrope stated that these reports consist of threats to harm the son of his second wife, with whom he lived alongside for several years, and an instance where a suicidal Studey shot himself in the arm while deputies were present. “Whenever deputies were dispatched to Green Hollow, it was considered a two-car call,” stated Chief Deputy Timothy Bothwell to the Register.
More: Was there truly a serial murderer residing near Thurman, Iowa? The sheriff and the townspeople refuse to dismiss it.
What Lucy Studey McKiddy informed authorities
In 1979, she had seen a dead body near an old cellar on her father’s property. She had also seen another dead body around that time and had taken it to the well with a wheelbarrow, along with two other men. In 1977 or 1976, she saw her father with a trunk in the car, taking out a body. She shared these recollections with deputies in 2021. She said that she stole money from him because she was trying to get her dad in trouble. He couldn’t find any evidence to check her allegation, but he said that she tried to steal money from him. This was the first time her father accused her of stealing money from him, which happened in 2007. Before that, authorities had told McKiddy that her father had buried bodies and killed people on the land of a county-run home. At least twice before, bodies had been buried in a 90-foot-deep well on that land.
More: Investigation is currently underway into the daughter’s claim that an Iowa man was a highly active serial murderer.
How many individuals did Donald Studey purportedly murder?
The Register has accused Susan McKiddy of lying, stating that her sister, who lives in Wisconsin, has been unable to reach another sister. Newsweek reported that if there were 50 to 70 serial killers in the U.S., Studey would be among the most prolific. However, in an online story on October 22, Newsweek reported that during subsequent interviews with reporters, Studey stated that she had heard stories of up to 15 serial killers. According to a sheriff’s investigative report in 2021, McKiddy knew about the bodies of five individuals as well.
Additionally: The woman who lived with the presumed Iowa serial killer struggles to come to terms with the contrast between the gentle and compassionate individual she knew and the homicides he is accused of.
What information we have regarding the individuals affected
He stated that there have been numerous disappearances that went unnoticed. Sheriff Aistrope told the Register that if McKiddy claims that there were many victims, all of them would have come from Omaha. Newsweek reported that most of the victims were either transients or sex workers picked up in nearby Omaha, Nebraska. McKiddy did not directly attribute the information to Omaha.
More:After 35 years, here’s how police identified ‘I-65 Killer’ Harry Edward Greenwell, who lived in Iowa at the time of his death.
What piqued so much curiosity?
Newsweek reported that cadaver dogs detected indications of potential human remains at four different locations, one of which was identified multiple times. Aistrop, deputies, and Newsweek reporters were present to probe the allegations, while McKiddy visited the purported burial site.
More: Seven of Iowa’s most notorious true crime, unsolved case enigmas.
Where can Thurman, Iowa be located on a map?
Thurman, located in the most southwestern part of Iowa, is situated in Fremont County. It is adjacent to Missouri to the south and Nebraska to the west, with the Missouri River separating the two. As one of the most economically disadvantaged counties in the state, it is nestled within Iowa’s Loess Hills. Thurman gained attention in the media after experiencing extensive destruction from a tornado in 2012.