John Gosch - Iowa - 1982

Yes. The best evidence points to that. Not only that, there were numerous other attempted abductions of paperboys/girls in the same proximity as the Gosch and Martin kidnappings, as well as in Indianola, Iowa (one witness underwent hypnosis - I will state that hypnosis isn't always reliable, but it's intriguing that the witness said the plates of the suspicious vehicle in the Gosch case were from Warren County, Iowa, which is where Indianola is located).

I am of the belief that the abductor is a local suspect for a reason: The Detective currently assigned to the Gosch case is convinced that Johnny Gosch is deceased, and Eugene Martin's remaining family members also believe he is deceased, along with the Sr. Officer who was assigned to the case. Compare this case to that of John Joubert in Nebraska: he abducted at least one paperboy and another child. In those cases, he dumped the bodies in spots where the bodies were found fairly quickly (Robert Ressler, the famed FBI behavioral specialist, noted this indicated a lack of familiarity with the area). Assuming both Gosch and Martin are dead, their bodies still haven't been found. This leads me to suspect that the abductor/killer disposed of the remains in a spot where he knew they wouldn't be found, which shows to me that he knows the area well. I'm also of the belief that this person either worked in the newspaper business or was very close to someone who did, because he knew this routes very well and when they were utilized.

I believe that the Martin and Gosch cases are connected. I'd wager $500 on it. Reasons:

1) Both abductions took place in upper-middle class neighborhoods;

2) Both abductions took place early on a Sunday morning;

3) Both abductions, although occurring nearly two years apart, were around the same time of year (Gosch in September, Martin in August);

4) In both cases, the boys' paper bundles were left behind;

5) Both boys were seen talking to a suspicious person prior to disappearing (in Gosch's case, I don't believe he knew his abductor based on what he told a witness, but in Martin's case, he was by all accounts having a very cordial conversation with an unknown individual right before he disappeared - which, assuming that was the abductor, indicates to me he may have known that person);

6) Both boys were right around the same age (Gosch was 12, Martin was 13).

Regarding Paul Bonacci, I don't believe he is a credible witness at all. He was charged with three counts of perjury in the Franklin Credit Union Scandal, and keep in mind, a grand jury did indict several individuals in that case, and some of them went to prison, but the grand jury did not find the claims of sexual abuse credible. I have also read accounts that Bonacci was in Omaha, NE at the time of the abduction. Another thing that makes me suspicious is that Johnny's father during an interview once indicated that he had heard from a corrections officer at the prison where Bonacci was in custody that Bonacci had kept numerous articles on the Gosch case in his cell. Noreen Gosch claims that he knew information not revealed publicly, such as that Johnny had a scar on his leg/ankle. That had been made public: A man tried to scam the Gosches and stole $11,000 from them by claiming Johnny had been sold into slavery, and he knew of a scar on Johnny's leg and ankle: apnews.com/8ddf3b85060ebdafffbf6168b8653939

This information would have been available right before Paul Bonacci came forward. I'm not questioning Noreen Gosch's intelligence or anything to that effect, but I believe she was desperate to find her son, and was willing to do anything to track him down. I believe Paul Bonacci victimized her, as well, and it's just flat-out sick. I'm guessing he saw that they had been scammed once and decided to see if he could get more money for himself. Keep in mind, there is no solid evidence that Eugene Martin was also sold into slavery, either. There have been some accusations that the police covered-up what really happened, but I strongly doubt that. If you don't believe me, watch some of the interviews of Sr. Officer James Rowley, who was assigned to the Martin disappearance. When interviewed, he had a giant poster of Martin behind him, and when he retired, he kept that poster in his garage, because the case bothered him so much. He treated it as if someone in his own family had vanished, and he frequently updated Eugene's father (on a weekly basis, is my understanding) about the case status. He was of the belief that a local pedophile abducted and murdered both boys. He also didn't believe Bonacci was credible and referred to him as "a pathological liar."

Bottom line: This is a case that probably stems around a local serial abductor/killer, not a slavery angle.