The Disappearance & Murder of Alicia Showalter Reynolds
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Since 1996, reports indicate several disappearances and murders involving young women along the US Route 29 Corridor, which begins in Pensacola, runs 248 miles through Virginia, and ends near Baltimore. While most of these cases may not be linked to the same perpetrator or the same location, the cases are haunting. This is one of those cases.
The first notable disappearance on Route 29 seemingly occurred on March 2, 1996. On 7:30 a.m., Alicia Showalter Reynolds said goodbye to her husband and got in her car, a Mercury Tracer. She was driving from Baltimore to Charlottesville, about 155 miles, to shop with her mother, Sadie.
Alicia, a John Hopkins University graduate student, never arrived at her destination. When too much time had passed, Sadie called Alicia’s husband, Mark.
Soon, Alicia’s car was discovered near Culpeper County. It was on the shoulder of the southbound highway. Apparently somebody had placed a white napkin on the car to indicate that she’d had car trouble. But upon inspection, nothing seemed to be wrong with the car.
On May 15, Alicia’s remains were found outside Lignum, about 15 miles from the location where her car was found. Investigators did not reveal how she died, but they did say she likely was murdered the day she was abducted.
Apparently, witnesses had seen Alicia speaking with a man on the southbound shoulder of the highway. They reported he had been driving a dark Nissan pickup truck, possibly in green. Witnesses reported the suspect as white, in his 30s or 40s, and having medium-length brown hair. He appeared no taller than six feet.
A Maryland man with initials D.D.R. is one suspect in Alicia’s disappearance. He served time in jail for attempted kidnapping of a bicyclist around the same time as Alicia’s murder. He also drove a truck similar to the one described by witnesses as belonging to the Route 29 stalker.
Another suspect in Alicia’s murder is Richard Mark Evanitz, the man who was responsible for the murders of Kristin Lisk, Katie Lisk, and Sophia Silva. He died by suicide in 2002.
One more mysterious suspect emerged as well. The suspected “Route 29 Stalker” allegedly flagged down several women as they drove alone…
