Post by Scumhunter on Sept 3, 2016 0:58:02 GMT -5
The now decade old unsolved murder of Appleton, Wisconsin mother Connie Boelter was once featured as a web-exclusive case on America's Most Wanted old website. I was able to retrieve the archive and post it below although I warn parts of it may now sound outdated since it will be followed up with a huge potential break in the case:
Tragedy Befalls Small-Town 'Mother Of The Year'
Connie Boelter's friends and family described her as a soft-spoken, caring and compassionate woman who devoted her every waking moment to her family. The 56-year-old divorcee spent all of her free time tending to her three grown children, as well as her own elderly mother.
“She was a great mom. She was very family-oriented, very involved, and extremely caring,” says her daughter, Dawn Gunderson.
After her divorce in the mid-1980s, Connie, a Wisconsin native, did everything possible to raise her children in a happy, loving environment. She worked two jobs, yet still managed to attend each of their school functions and extracurricular activities.
In 1991, tragedy struck the Boelter family when Connie’s 18-year-old son, Tom, was killed in a car accident. Despite the catastrophe, she kept the family afloat, acting as their proverbial “rock” during their darkest hours.
The following year, Connie’s youngest daughter, Lynn, saw an ad in the local newspaper, the Appleton Post Crescent, calling for nominations into its annual Mother of the Year contest. Lynn submitted Connie’s story, feeling it would be the perfect way to honor her mother after all their family had recently been through.
When the submission period ended, The Post Crescent surprised Connie at work, notifying her that she was indeed their recipient for Mother of the Year. In addition to the paper publishing a feature article on her integrity and character, neighborhood businesses bestowed a number of gifts upon Connie as a reward for her devotion to family.
As Family Grows, Bonds Grow Even Stronger
It was Connie’s strong family ties that kept her out of the dating game. Though Connie had a few potential suitors in the years following her divorce, ultimately, “she got content with her independence,” says Lynn. Connie was unable to find a man with ideals compatible to hers, Lynn tells AMW, and she did not want to choose between a man and her family -- opting, instead, to remain a single parent.
As her son and daughters grew older, they each started families of their own. Connie made sure she was active in their children’s lives as well, making sure to provide individual attention to each of her eight grandkids. Though Dawn’s 15-year-old son had friends of his own to hang out with, for instance, he “would still like to go to the movies with her,” says Dawn.
While Connie would have preferred to spend all of her time with family, she earned a living working in the banking industry. For decades, Connie worked as a teller and branch manager before finally settling into a position as a loan officer at a Hortonville-area Wolf River Community Bank. Her daily commute only took about 15 minutes from her Appleton, Wis., home, and she was rarely, if ever, late to work.
On the night of Nov. 14, 2006, Connie was planning on baking some brownie bars for an office potluck event to be held the next day. After calling her friend to discuss that evening’s episode of “Dancing With The Stars,” Connie realized she was lacking some key baking ingredients and went on a late-night grocery run.
Though she baked the treats when she got back home, she would never get to see the delighted smiles on the faces of her colleagues.
Cops Find Gruesome Scene Inside Suburban Home
The next morning, Connie didn’t come in to work on-time. Concerned, her colleagues contacted Dawn, who immediately went to Connie’s duplex to check on her. Once inside, Dawn found her mother, deceased -- the victim of blunt force trauma.
After dialing 911, detectives with the Appleton Police Department arrived moments later. They immediately began trying to piece together the events leading up to Connie’s murder, but the answers would not come easily.
For the first month, a core group of detectives worked around the clock trying to find those answers. But as time went on, leads began to dwindle, detectives were re-assigned and the mystery has gone unsolved.
Reeling from the loss of their beloved mother, Connie’s children found the strength to carry on by relying on each other. Sadly, Connie’s own mother, Helen, could not get over the shocking loss of her daughter. Within a year of Connie’s passing, Helen “lost her twinkle and her zest,” says Lynn. “She lost the fight in her,” she says, passing away at the age of 91.
Killer's Motive Evades Appleton Detectives
Though answers in this most puzzling case are few and far between, the detectives still assigned to finding justice for Connie have become more determined than ever to uncover the vile suspect responsible for her heinous murder.
Investigators have determined that Connie was most likely killed during the early morning hours of Nov. 15, 2006.
The night before, between 11:30 p.m. and midnight, one of Connie’s neighbors heard a dog barking. The unusual break in the silence signified to police that the dog might have been reacting to a commotion in Connie’s home -- though no one can be certain.
Much to their dismay, no one living on Connie’s quaint, suburban street reported seeing or hearing anything else out of the ordinary.
Through DNA, cops were able to eliminate many of Connie’s family and closest friends as potential suspects. Investigators now hope that one day soon, the DNA at the scene will reveal the killer's true identity.
Early on in their investigation, authorities pulled surveillance video from the Copps Food Store and the Walgreens where Connie went shopping mere hours before her death. The video showed her milling about, but detectives were unable to determine if anyone had been tailing her.
A motive suggesting why someone would want to harm Connie Boelter still remains the biggest mystery to detectives.
Since Connie hadn’t dated anyone in the time leading up to her death, cops don’t believe her murder was orchestrated by any potential mates -- nor do they necessarily believe that she was specifically targeted.
Though Appleton detectives do have some theories as to why she was killed, they are holding them close to their vests so as not to sway the public -- or more importantly, to show their hands to the killer.
"We need the public's help, but at the same time, we want to send a direct message to the person who did this that we will not stop searching for them," says Detective Sgt. Cary Meyer.
Detectives believe that there are individuals in Appleton and the surrounding Fox Cities area who may know something about her murder – but for whatever reason, they have not come forward. Additionally, "there's a chance that whoever did this isn't in the Fox Valley region anymore," says Detective Sgt. Meyer.
Investigators now hope that through the power of AMW, the national attention might be the catalyst imploring those with knowledge of Connie's murder to do the right thing.
Community, Detectives Keep Hope Alive
Appleton, a small city with a population of roughly 80,000 citizens, is known for its low murder rate and having a close-knit community. So in the immediate aftermath of Connie’s slaying, her friends, family and much of Appleton banded together to help the Boelters out in their time of need.
While the family had buttons and bumper stickers made, they also paid to have billboards raised near Connie’s Appleton home, as well as in Hortonville, near the bank where she worked.
In addition to the major publicity push in the early months of the investigation, a benefit was held in Connie’s honor on Mother’s Day 2007, at which roughly 1,000 people turned out in support of the Boelter Family. The event consisted of a 4-mile walk at the Greenville Lions Park, a brat fry, a silent auction and more. In total, the Mother’s Day benefit raised more than $25,000.
In late June 2007, a friend of Dawn’s husband set up a motorcycle ride, entitled “Ride For Justice,” the proceeds of which helped pay for the billboard campaign. The following year, organizers re-named the event, “Connie’s Ride,” in her honor. Beginning in 2010, the ride’s proceeds will not only help the family pay for the billboards, but they will also be donated to charity.
Years Later, Pain Still Lingers
The first year after Connie’s murder was hard on everyone in the Boelter family, says Lynn. But it was during the second year when they finally started coming to terms with the tragedy.
“That year, we began letting ourselves heal,” she says. “In the third year, I find myself at peace. We’re all in a really good place.”
While the grief over Connie’s shocking murder will never fully dissipate, cops hope to one day find justice for the Boelter family matriarch. Investigators feel that this is a highly solvable crime and that all they need is one tip to put the whole puzzle together.
web.archive.org/web/20100524004506/http://www.amw.com/fugitives/brief.cfm?id=72164#brief
OK and now a 2016 update, there is now a prime suspect in this case: James K. Olson, the retired President of the exact same bank Connie Boelter worked at.
Investigators discovered Olson had significant debt and appeared to violate bank practices and federal loan requirements. Appleton police Sgt. Daniel Tauber said in a Feb. 24, 2015, affidavit that Boelter, as the bank's head loan processor, "would have had direct knowledge if there was any illegal or unethical activity taking place."
Because of this, Detectives believe there may be a connection between unethical practices at the bank and Connie Boelter's death.
It is still important to note however, that no one including Olson has been arrested yet and this is still an unsolved homicide. Below I will post a photo of Olson, a link to the May 2016 articles and the usual admin notes:
www.postcrescent.com/story/news/crime/2016/05/01/police-focus-banker-boelter-homicide/83242526/
Admin Note #1: According to articles, Appleton police ask anyone with information about Connie Boelter's homicide to call the department at 920-832-5500 or Lt. Polly Olson at 920-832-6089. Anonymous tips can be sent by text to CRIMES (274-637) with the keyword APDTIPS at the start of the message.
Admin Note #2: If you have any news-related updates on this case, please contact us here: amwfans.com/thread/1662/website-contact-form