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Post by HeadMarshal on Jul 11, 2015 15:49:49 GMT -5
  (Above photo credit: doenetwork.org) Date Of Birth: August 28, 1942 Age at Time of Disappearance: 24 years old Height and Weight at Time of Disappearance: 5'9"; 155 lbs. Distinguishing Characteristics: White male. Brown hair; brown eyes. Marks, Scars: A small scar in the center of his forehead, a vaccination scar on his upper right arm, and moles/scar on his right cheek. -- In 1958, 16-year old high school student William Leslie Arnold was living in Omaha, Nebraska with his parents. William shot and killed his parents over an argument regarding the family car, then buried their bodies until they were located. William was sent to prison but escaped with a fellow inmate in 1967. An unidentified accomplice drove them to a bus station, where the two then traveled to Chicago before splitting up. The other escapee was caught soon after but William disappeared. Despite publicity efforts on the internet and in the media, no decent leads are known to have been developed on William's whereabouts. -- Thoughts? I had never heard of this fugitive before until Scumhunter received a master list of AMW fugitives over the years and William's name was among the felons. I have no idea when William was aired on AMW, however I'm guessing it was during the mid-1990s. It's rather annoying that AMW didn't do any further publicity of this case in the latter years of the show. As for where William is, that's really up in the air. We have seen other convicted murderers who broke out of prison and assumed new law-abiding lives under an alias, despite the fact that they committed murder in the first place. All we really know about William is that he played the saxophone in prison and he talked about Brazil. He would only be nearing 73-years of age now so it's quite possible that he's still alive. According to the doenetwork.org, you have any information about the whereabouts of William Leslie Arnold, then contact Nebraska State Patrol
Investigative Services, HDQ Troop, Investigator Jeff Ward, 402-471-4545.
Moderator Note: If you have any news-related updates on this case, please contact us here: amwfans.com/thread/1662/website-contact-formUPDATE from site admin: As of July 27th, 2018, Arnold still comes up in Nebraska inmate search results as a prison escapee: dcs-inmatesearch.ne.gov/Corrections/InmateDisplayServlet?DcsId=20841doenetwork.org/cases/4157dmne.htmlwww.wowt.com/home/headlines/656747.html |
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Post by Scumhunter on Jul 11, 2015 17:22:19 GMT -5
I read another message board user say he was featured "once" but the airing didn't have any results. Perhaps he fled to Brazil and that's why he was never caught. This case be may old, and admittedly I'm not too hopeful we'll ever see a resolution, but I have seen stranger things happen.
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Post by HeadMarshal on Aug 28, 2016 15:00:27 GMT -5
I checked newspapers.com and found the "newest article" they had on this case was from 1968 when William's fellow escapee was caught in Los Angeles. It revealed that William broke out of prison by sawing bars in the music room of a minimum security dormitory. William was also a trustee at the time of his escape, despite being convicted of two murders.
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Post by HeadMarshal on Sept 5, 2017 11:47:31 GMT -5
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Post by Scumhunter on Sept 5, 2017 12:39:50 GMT -5
Just wanted to let William Leslie Arnold know if he tries to google Investigator Geoff Britton again and comes across out site, I said hi and to turn himself in.  Seriously though, this is significant that the person looked up Arnold not by name but inmate number. |
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Post by notsholmes on Oct 14, 2019 2:57:27 GMT -5
N.B. Sorry for the convoluted post - I like to be very comprehensive which leads to a lot of rambling. Also, this post is full of speculation as I try to set out a possible theory to explain how the UP and MP are one and the same (backed by facts, of course).Good day fellows! I decided to compile my research which led to the submission into a write-up. I found this case incredibly interesting and I hope you do too! Any thoughts/input appreciated! For background, check out this great news series:The most relevant news story to this write-up (Part 4): web.archive.org/web/20190719050726/https://www.omaha.com/news/crime/new-evidence-surfaces-in-mystery-of-omaha-killer-who-escaped/article_ba48dfd9-e117-58fb-a805-13f43788591b.htmlThe missing person (MP) and unidentified person (UP) in question are:www.namus.gov/MissingPersons/Case#/2677?navwww.namus.gov/UnidentifiedPersons/Case#/12107/details?nav (No postmortem, for those uncomfortable) Summary (copied verbatim from www.doenetwork.org/cases/4157dmne.html):Details in support of my theory:Problems with my theory:- Distance -> The distance from the last sighting by his fellow convict of Chicago is still ~300 miles from the location where the UP was found (Google Maps). This isn't easy to explain away, though with a month of time between the final sighting by the other convict and the recovery of the body, it is still within the realms of possibility
- Speed of decomposition -> I had an initial doubt about the speed of decomposition in a month, maximum (if the last sighting date by the fellow convict of May 1968 is anything to go by) - condition of the remains was stated as "Not recognizable - Decomposing/putrefaction". I search online and found that, according to www.aftermath.com/content/human-decomposition/, decomposition is much quicker than I would have thought (especially in water, as was the UP)
- Brazilian registration card -> Finally, and the most damning, a Brazilian registration card with Arnold's details (web.archive.org/web/20170910081743/http://www.omaha.com/news/crime/new-evidence-surfaces-in-mystery-of-omaha-killer-who-escaped/article_ba48dfd9-e117-58fb-a805-13f43788591b.html). However this could be simply explained by identity theft or perhaps a hoax. I personally don't feel like it is genuine - after all, one would think that he would be living under an assumed name. He also risked it being found out (as it was) - though that may have been intentional, perhaps as a parting taunt or perhaps even simply to convince his family that he had indeed got there.
- As for how he got to Brazil (if it was really he), then I feel the most likely scenario was that he established a new identity in or near Chicago (he didn't really risk recognition as the case wasn't very well-known outside Oklahoma - to my knowledge), collected enough money/resources and then left by air or sea, perhaps as a stow away. Since the distance he would have had to travel was around 7000 miles straight-line (www.freemaptools.com/how-far-is-it-between-chicago-illinois_-usa-and-brazil_-south-america.htm) I highly doubt he traveled by land. I don't know much about traveling through South American countries, but I'm quite surprised that he didn't register elsewhere (though, of course, they may not have resurfaced or been released). Or perhaps in 1968 regulation was not so stringent?
Possible sequence of events:As to how the MP may have ended up in the situation the UP was found, then my proposal is as follows (taking the information that he got to Chicago as a fact - I don't think there is much reason to doubt it): - Arnold realises that his fellow escapee has been captured so stays low and perhaps gets out of Chicago
- He established contact with shady people and had dealings with them - money, provision, perhaps even (petty?) crime
- In one such case, he angered someone, forfeiting his life
- His body was disposed off in the lake - an easy way to get rid of any incriminating evidence
This is, of course, all speculation, but I believe that they are the most likely in the case that they are one and the same. There is one other very simple possibility - suicide. However I highly doubt that he would do so after all the ordeals he endured to get to the advantageous position he was in. Then again, the human mind can be extremely unpredictable. Whilst there are many similarities, overall my instinct is that this is not a match. There were just too many options available to him and it's unlikely that he wouldn't have capitalised on any of them. Furthermore, the chance of a hoax registration is virtually nil, since it wouldn't have been worth going to such efforts to achieve. The only possible way it could be fake is if somebody stole his identity and used it on entering Brazil, but for what purpose? The only scenario I could imagine is an elaborate one; that someone wanted people to believe that he had got to Brazil when he hadn't. As I was writing the previous paragraph, I thought of a crazy, but perhaps believable reason (prepare for the wildest bit of speculation throughout); that Arnold got someone else to register in his name, all the while settling in some far-flung (or perhaps not) area America, under a new identity. Perhaps he had gotten away with it for a long time and realised that all he needed to do was to simply convince everyone that he had got away, rather than have to move to a foreign country and start all over again. Anyhow, I doubt that he'll be found until a major investigation is conducted which explores all of these possibilities thoroughly, and I think it's unlikely for that to ever occur. A WebSleuths user suggested another scenario - that he joined a missionary and went to Brazil, perhaps under an assumed name. However this raises even more questions such as how the other members that were in his group (surely they go in groups?) didn't questioned him at all nor yet realised that he was wanted, ect.
Conclusion:I want to end on a reflective note, since I - and I am certain this isn't exclusive to me - find myself poring over the details of this, and other cases, and experiencing a thrill when piecing together the facts and submitting a match, almost as if the excitement and the glory of being the one to solve the mystery is all that matters, forgetting the actual weight of the situation, and the people whose lives are forever changed. The inexplicable hurt William caused his family and those around him is irreparable, yet I am sure they care about him nevertheless and want closure, and I hope they, and all other families with missing, get it, regardless of the one to whom the success is accredited. Thank you for reading. God Bless.
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Post by Scumhunter on Oct 14, 2019 3:41:48 GMT -5
Hi notsholmes, once again welcome to the forum and what an awesomely comprehensive post! I am intrigued by the unidentified person case you submitted as the physical details match up and Wayne County is not that far from Chicago. It is interesting Arnold thought Brazil would protect him as a similar situation happened with America's Most Wamted fugitive Jesse James Hollywood. Hollywood was wanted out of California for allegedly killing a teenage boy over his brother's drug debt. Hollywood fled to Brazil and married and had a child with a Brazilian woman, unaware the laws had changed and did not protect him from extradition. murderpedia.org/male.H/h/hollywood-jesse.htmIt seems the infamous case that started this was Ronald."Ronnie" Biggs aka "The Great Train Robber" who was safe from being extradited from the UK to Brazil, but this was in the early 1970s. en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ronnie_BiggsFinally, as far how Arnold got to Brazil, there was a special on the History channel about the Anglin brothers- John and Clarence Anglin who escaped from Alcatraz- and two nephews provided supposed proof they did escape despite rumors they drowned in the ocean the night they attempted to escape. They claimed they had made it to Brazil. The U.S. Marshal investigating on the show, Art Roderick, was skeptical until they showed a photo that looked just like them. A family associate and drug smuggler named Frank Brizzi took the photo (for what it's worth, I've actually met Art Roderick and he still thinks they're dead but he was intrigued on the show) www.inquisitr.com/2498203/alcatraz-escapees-married-had-children-in-brazil-nephew-of-john-and-clarence-anglin-wants-uncles-sentences-commuted-so-they-can-return-home/Of course the problem here is Arnold seemed like more of a loner and not the type to know drug smugglers or anyone else to privately smuggle him to Brazil, but who knows. In conclusion, I agree. The UP matches up very well and the Brazil aspect is the strongest evidence against the theory. Regardless I'm intrigued to see where this goes and thanks so much for posting! |
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Post by Scumhunter on Oct 14, 2019 3:48:00 GMT -5
P.S. Don't worry about speculation as long as individuals aren't specifically named.
I respect Websleuths and I'm not saying this to bash them but they have some rules that may apply to their site that don't apply to our site (and perhaps vice versa) so if there's anything you want to add feel free to and I can always edit if there's anything wrong but there likely shouldn't be.
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Post by notsholmes on Oct 14, 2019 5:04:28 GMT -5
Thank you very much for your input! How likely do you feel the missionary theory is?
The "disclaimer" for speculation was just to ensure that there was no confusion - unfortunately I don't have any further information on it, though I am thinking and researching long and hard into other possiblities. I remember the Anglin case and the picture is fascinating! Was it ever released to the general public? Edit: I was wondering if you are aware which episode/date his case was aired in/on?
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Post by Scumhunter on Oct 14, 2019 5:30:43 GMT -5
Unfortunately I don't know the airing date. I'm trying to find the message board where they mention he was aired once but I'm not sure if they said when or just the fact he was aired and the airing did not produce many results. I'm assuming he was probably aired in the early to mid 90s since those are the hardest years to find episode guides for but that is just a guess.
There was a reader of our site who we unfortunately no longer keep in contact with that apparently watched the show every week and sent us a list of fugitives he saw on the show he thought were still at large so that is also how we know he was aired on the show.
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Post by Scumhunter on Oct 14, 2019 5:33:20 GMT -5
Also sorry forgot to answer your question about the missionary theory- I guess it is possible. Like I would tend to think how he got to Brazil if he got there is probably in reality mundane as most cases tend to be but I guess you never know.
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Post by notsholmes on Oct 14, 2019 5:43:37 GMT -5
Shame about that reader. I'll try to do a bit of looking myself and see if I come up with anything - it's unlikely though since the case is quite obscure. My biggest question (if the Brazil theory is true) is where in the world was he in the 6-months prior to "his" registration in Brazil and what was he doing in the time?
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Post by тσρтєиhυитєя on Mar 5, 2022 22:47:03 GMT -5
According to Criminally listed, the fellow inmate that escaped with Leslie Arnold in July 1967 was, Jim Harding, he was sentenced to life in prison for a robbery that resulted in murder. He was captured in May 1968 in Los Angeles, California, because he was at a bar talking to a woman, and had the misfortune of looking like then FBI Top Ten Most Wanted, and Martin Luther King Jr’s murderer, James Earl Ray. Years later in an interview Harding was in disbelief that Arnold has never been caught. William Leslie Arnold’s case really deserved a lot more media attention, and it still does, even if they add it to the FBI’s featured fugitives site or do an all out media blitz on the anniversary of the escape. I do admit that the FBI in 2009 and 2014 instead of adding Semion Mogilevich and/or Brad Bishop to the Top Ten List, the FBI could’ve added William Leslie Arnold instead as he was 6 years younger than Bishop (3 years younger than current Top Tenner Eugene Palmer) , and was more catchable than Mogilevich. However I do want to say I see that possibility still, but realistically they missed their chance to add him. This case is really shocking having 1 man accounted for half a century later and the other nowhere to be found, but if you analyze it more, Harding got caught for putting himself out there and being in a city that’s the life of the party (I know this from experience lol), while Arnold being a loner hasn’t been located yet, which wouldn’t surprise me if he fled overseas or even lived in a very remote area in the Lower 48 States, Canada, or Alaska, which I think the latter makes sense. youtu.be/7Qvz3Mvxcrcyoutu.be/q1AmoldXWgAyoutu.be/y3-cxi-eFFE |
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Post by zekcat on Apr 30, 2023 14:27:43 GMT -5
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Post by outlawtaco on Apr 30, 2023 15:29:39 GMT -5
He also lived in Chicago less than four months after he fled Nebraska he worked as a cook on the south side of the city and he also married twice he eventually moved to Los Angeles and remarried and had two children apparently he left with his family first to New Zealand and then to Australia and this was also according to the article
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