Crime Junkie
Crime Junkie
"Every true crime story has one thing in common, nothing is as it seems." — Ashley Flowers
"Kara's family couldn't help but wonder if there was some kind of connection, and this speculation brought more attention to Cara's case at a time when the public was already losing interest." — Ashley Flowers
"The most important thing to each one of these families is that people remember the girls and not the men behind their deaths. Those men didn't define their lives or who they were or the people that they were going to become." — Ashley Flowers
The episode recounts the disappearance of 17-year-old Kara in May 2007. Initially, authorities treated her case as a potential runaway, a notion her family vehemently disputed. This differing perspective created an immediate rift between the family and law enforcement, complicating the early stages of the investigation. The narrative highlights how external factors, such as a major tornado in a nearby town, diverted media attention away from Kara's case, further hindering efforts to generate public interest and gather leads.
The investigation into Kara's disappearance took a significant turn with the subsequent disappearance of 18-year-old Kelsey Smith less than a month later. The striking similarities between the two cases—young women disappearing under mysterious circumstances within a close proximity—sparked widespread speculation about a potential connection. While law enforcement initially stated the cases were not connected, the parallel nature of the investigations and the eventual resolution of Kelsey's case brought renewed attention to Kara's unsolved disappearance.
The episode details how Kyler Eust, Kara's ex-boyfriend, became a person of interest due to past domestic violence allegations and his interactions with Kara shortly before she went missing. Despite multiple individuals coming forward with confessions from Kyler regarding Kara's death, and later, Jessica Runions' murder, the lack of concrete physical evidence prevented charges for Kara's case for many years. The discovery of both Kara's and Jessica's remains in October 2017, ten years after Kara's disappearance, finally provided the evidence needed to charge Kyler Eust with their murders. The episode concludes by emphasizing the advocacy work of Kelsey Smith's parents and the importance of remembering the victims.