A year ago today a documentary about this case, Children of the Snow, aired on Investigation Discovery. It is now available on Hulu. If you haven’t watched it, you should. https://www.hulu.com/series/children-of-the-snow-e5670464-7adc-4907-80c1-9f38ce17ee82
Please read this letter from Michael Farquar, sent to Governor Gretchen Whitmer on December 5, 2019, about the reason for his participation in the documentary. I received permission from Mike to publish this letter on the one-year anniversary date of the documentary airing. When I copied it, the file name said “Justice for all.” In Michigan it seems it is often “Justice for none.”
Governor Whitmer did not respond to Mike’s letter. Her office did, however, send him a generic holiday greeting a few weeks later. Let’s hope 2020 brings some answers and some peace. Let’s hope law enforcement makes it a priority to actually work on the tips that have come forward in the wake of Children of the Snow. As Mike says in his closing:
“My family and I have already felt the wrath of public exposure; wrath that was never visited on the perpetrators of these crimes or the investigators and agencies who failed to bring anyone to justice. Someone at the highest levels of Michigan government needs to evaluate what has taken place here out of a sense of justice to all the child victims and to ensure nothing like this is allowed to fester in Michigan ever again.”
How could the Governor not respond to that letter? Continuing the pattern of protecting the monsters – just awful.
The auto mass mailer reply is more insulting than totally ignoring him. WHATS UP WITH THESE PEOPLE???????
The first primary point that I emphasize to anyone that’s honestly looking into these cases, is that they should bear in mind that they need to recognized just how thoroughly organized and sophisticated these crimes actually were. The next level of obfuscation and obstruction came from key law enforcement people and the media giants that sat on their hands and did nothing about any of it in terms of seeing that it wouldn’t happen again. Yeah, OCCK and Fox Island news was covered in the Michigan area, but it was not covered nation or worldwide. My focus is to thoroughly examine documents like the ‘Allen letter to Dr Danto,’ because I’ve been recognizing bits and pieces of details in that document that shows that it was composed by a person that was very experienced in the art of subliminal deception. It’s yet another such document where I warn people to not be too taken in by the text messages, and that they need to notice several of the subtle and peculiar little details, and that they also need to notice just how snide the damn document really is, in spite of the ruse where author of the document is trying to claim that he has acted as a reluctant accomplice. In other words…it’s actually a very taunting document, but it does contain several subtle little clues which are found in several other high profile crimes…. crimes which still remain unsolved, yet they have the same overall list of characteristics. The great value and usefulness of Cathy’s blog is the coming together of all of the related documents, like the letter presented here in this same thread. Unfortunately, we are going to find that all of these crimes involve key official people, and that these same people are more interested in their own careers and money than they are in the righteous cause called “justice.”
Please divulge the telling details here. There is no way we can know specifically what you are talking about. We can now say, “Screw the key official people” because they are dead.
Please divulge the telling details here. There is no way we can know specifically what you are talking about. We can now say, “Screw the key official people” because they are dead.
Michigan is probably still full of Mafia members and certainly they were there in the 60s and 70s. Hello, Mr. Hoffa.
I have wracked my brain to try to come up with a convincing theory as to why the authorities are and always were so lame regarding these four crimes. So we are talking politics and money. And the Mafia at that time had graduated from Tommy guns to supporting political campaigns.
Could it be that the powers of the times had accepted big money from the Mafia to win their elections? And could it be that the Maf was majorly behind the capture, degradation and killing of young children for trafficking/porno selling purposes? And could it be that the powers that “were” at the time couldn’t possibly risk exposure of this evil filth? And maybe they still can’t because you shouldn’t bite the hand that feeds?
The Mafia certainly had lines even their members wouldn’t cross. I’m not sure even they would go beyond gambling, loan sharking, and prostitution into the utterly sick world of child exploitation. Too reprehensible even for organized crime.
I’ve lived in Oakland County my entire life and hadn’t even heard of the OCCK until late 2019 (I was born a few years after Busch’s death). I found out about the case because a friend’s dad was 8th grade sweethearts with Kristine Mihelich’s mom back in junior high school; he’s the one who sent me down the rabbit hole. My older brother’s late wife later worked with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children because of what happened in 1976-77. My dad was also a Pontiac cop at the time but doesn’t recall working directly on the case. I’ve showed him mugshots of Chris Busch, Vince Gunnels, Greg Greene, Bad Eyed Bob Moore, etc. Apparently he was doing more administrative work than patrol at the time the task force was at full tilt.
And I wish I’d known about this when Brooks Patterson was still alive. He was my neighbor on Lake Oakland for a while. I would not be at all surprised if somebody from the Mafia threatened him, although I’m more inclined to believe any threats came from or on behalf of General Motors. If H. Lee Busch had an office on the Fourteenth Floor of GM, that would’ve afforded unimaginable power and influence.
It’s hard to believe just how incredibly powerful GM was in this state at the time, even with the Michigan State Police. One of my university professors rose from the factory floor to become the guy in charge of logistics for all of North America. He had all sorts of stories of things done by old GM.
If a city with a GM plant tried raising their taxes, the company would threaten to shut down the plant, put thousands out of work and cost the government more paying out unemployment than the city would’ve collected in taxes. And it worked every time. The city would back off to keep the plant open.
One thing old GM never tolerated was stopping a production line. You could rush a bunch of barely screwed together crap off the end of the line and let the dealers or customers worry about it later, but shutting down the line was a firing offense. If a truck carrying parts wasn’t going to make it to a factory in time to prevent a line stoppage, GM was known to dispatch a helicopter, use a CB radio to intercept and stop the truck on the highway, pull a few boxes of parts from the trailer, and fly them to the plant to avoid a dreaded line shutdown.
So when a truck carrying a load of components disappeared somewhere between the supplier and the auto plant, my professor was the one who had to make things happen. He called up one of the top brass at the Michigan State Police:
PB: “Hello, my name is “Phil Bryant” [name changed], I’m [such-and-such] at General Motors, and we have a tractor-trailer that’s missing somewhere between [supplier] and our facility in [wherever]. We need you to find that truck.”
MSP: “That’s not our job. Find your own truck.”
PB: “I don’t think you understand. I’m reporting this vehicle and its driver missing. It’s urgent that it be located.”
MSP: “We don’t work for GM.”
PB: “Okay, then. I will call you back in 30 minutes.”
My professor made a phone call which cascaded up the chains of command, and half an hour later, he called the state police back as promised:
PB: “Hello, my name is Phil Bryant.”
MSP: “How can we help you?”
The state police did find the truck; the driver made an unscheduled, unauthorized stop for some paid female companionship. That is the kind of power General Motors had at the time.
It’s pure speculation, but I do wonder if someone made some calls on behalf of GM in 1977 and late 1978. Calls that would’ve gone something like, “If the name ‘Busch’ is used in a press release or news story, we will shut down every plant in Pontiac. That new plant we’re thinking of building in Lake Orion will go somewhere else. Do you understand me?”
Cathy, keep on doing what you’re doing.
Good job …grateful for people like him (Michael)
Mike’s letter was profound, and to not get any response from the Gov. is wrong on many levels. I have my thoughts of her regarding her true alliance with the Democratic party based on her latest legislation and constant grandstanding…among other things.
The injustice behind putting a victim’s name out there in FOIA docs for the world to see and redaction of perps or alleged perps is appalling and very dangerous.
Bill Barr is running the Justice Department with a mob mentality, and God only knows the secrets he willing to hide and coverup for the elite.
Sends a big, sad message to us all. Does truth really matter?
All signs point to a no.
All of this stuff took place long before Trump and Barr, etc, made the scene. Yes, I’m aware of the Epstein factor, but laying blame on Trump and associates for OCCK, Fox Island, and several previous high profile crimes, isn’t warranted, and it just isn’t fair. Most everyone has come in contact with shady people, but that doesn’t make them shady…unless they continue to associate and co-operate with such people, like Epstein. I’ll address these two core cases in another thread and I’ll explain what to look for and notice on the ‘Allen to Dr. Danto letter.’
My comment about Barr relates to the Justice Department politics in the now and how unhelpful they would probably be to this case.
Never mentioned POTUS, but I guess birds of a feather and all. In no way did I accuse Trump, Barr, and associates for OCCK, Fox Island, and several previous high profile crimes. Perhaps you’re referring to someone else here, but don’t call me unfair for something I never said.
And “shady people” come in different degrees of shades. No one I know is a child molester, killer, or rapist. And I would never cover one’s ass that ever did such a heinous thing to another human.
Sorry, I wasn’t pointing to you as that being all that conclusive, I just don’t want to mix the subjects up that much. These days you really have to scrutinize your news sources more than ever.
Do you know of another documentary in the works? Or any news about the Keenan book?
Yes another doc is in the works. I’m told Marney’s book is due out in September.
Glad to hear. The momentum is important. Only pressure from increasing public awareness will nudge (and hopefully embarrass, if that’s possible) Cooper et. al.
Any idea how I can view the second episode of Children of the Snow? It was “locked” on the website and it is “locked” on Hulu. It says something about being able to log in through your cable TV provider, but we no longer have cable TV, only internet.
I think it was supposed to air on ID Channel on Feb 19; not sure if it requires a subscription of not. Not part 2 but youtube has a local video hopefully, but I haven’t watched for anything “new”.
Another option is to try the full-priced Hulu trial deal for a week and then cancel.
Good work, Mike!
You are, and always have been, one of The Good Guys.
Yes – historic court records, appeals, lawsuits, etc., with names of child victims unredacted, from many cases across the US and Canada have become ‘public’ in recent years via the internet (not to mention FOI disclosures). As useful as that can be for researchers like myself, it’s not right. Such public disclosures, with no notification given to the victims named, violates the victims no less than the original crimes, IMO.
When I started looking for surviving victims of Grossman & Richards, I had two probable first names to work with. I found you & your full name through a historic court document, that just happened to turn up when I did my daily Google search for Dyer Grossman.
But I don’t intrude into victim’s privacy and bring up their past, without evidence that they are still actively seeking justice themselves. I would not have attempted contact, despite all the info I wanted to pass to you, if you had not been posting comments online about your desire to see Dyer Grossman brought to justice. I can’t make that happen, for you, but I commend your ongoing efforts to bring that about.
I don’t know what to say, about Mike’s revelation – he now thinks he might have intersected with Mark Stebbins. I have no reason to believe Mike is anything but a highly reliable witness of the historic events he was involved in.
So many people, far more informed about every aspect & angle potentially involved in OCCK than I, seem convinced that the answers lie in an ever-expanding roster of conspirators.
I feel silly, saying that I see reasons to believe a much smaller circle could account for the four official OCCK victims – a circle very close to Chris Busch and his family.
Was DNA obtained for Bennett? Was DNA obtained from all of Chris Busch’ known juvenile victims? From any/all boys Chris Busch was a documented Big Brother to?
Hi Catherine,
Do you know the address in Ann Arbor where Francis Sheldon lived?
Jerry
I am curious about his address too. I was a teenager in Ann Arbor when this was going on. A boy my age was approached by a car in our neighborhood and all the parents got concerned.
I don’t think the address is in any of the FOIA documents. I don’t recall ever seeing an Ann Arbor address. There was a big Sunday Magazine article written about him in either the News or Free Press right before the Fox Island news broke. But his address would not have been listed.
I remember reading a police report you posted when they broke into his place but didn’t find anything. He had already cleaned out all the evidence. Unfortunately the address was not listed. Back in the 70s there weren’t too many condominium associations in Ann Arbor. I can only think of five. We lived in one of them. Thanks for all you are doing Cathy.
I don’t, Jerry. I will see what I can find out.