When you’re young you sometimes feel invincible. Your whole life is ahead of you and it’s hard not to imagine yourself having a successful future. Your dreams and ambitions are at your fingertips, and the world is your oyster.

These thoughts were no different for Bonnie Huffman, a hardworking, intelligent 20-year-old school teacher whom, in 1954, had just finished her third year of teaching for K-8 students in Buckeye School in Old Appleton, Missouri. While working as a school teacher, she was living with her mother, Lillie Huffman, and half-brother, Bobby Thiele in a three-room farmhouse and using the money she earned from teaching to help pay the bills, but was soon to start working an office job at Missouri Utilities Company that would provide more of a substantial source of income. Money she earned from teaching to help pay the bills, but was soon to start working an office job at Missouri Utilities Company that would provide more of a substantial source of income.

Bonnie also had plans of marriage with her boyfriend of four years, Doug Hiett, and they had made the proper arrangements for such an occasion even though they weren’t engaged. As with many relationships, however, they had their fair share of problems. Doug had been absent for a while because he was in the U.S. Army and deployed in Korea but had recently returned during the summer of 1954. It’s unclear what transpired, but on July 3rd, 1954, he unexpectedly ended his relationship with Bonnie without providing an explanation.

The break-up devastated Bonnie, and not knowing what to do she called her best friend Mary Lou Bess and asked if she would accompany her to the Broadway Theatre in Delta, Missouri, to help clear her head. Mary happily agreed, and she and her husband, Cramer Bess, met up with Bonnie soon thereafter, and they managed to keep Bonnie in good spirits for several hours.

Once the Broadway movie was over, Bonnie suggested the three go to the nearby tavern. She thought it would be humorous to watch drunk people stumbling around the parking lot. Mary and Cramer thought this was a peculiar thing for Bonnie to propose because she always avoided this particular bar due to its unsavoury reputation. Mary and Cramer both assumed Bonnie was wanting to go there with the possibility of finding Doug but didn’t want to ask her reasoning. Instead, the two declined her offer and recommended that she should go home and try to get some rest.

The three parted ways, and Mary and Cramer believed Bonnie would be going home as well, but they noticed her get in her grey 1938 Ford and head in a different direction than her normal route. That was the last time Mary saw her best friend alive, and it’s unknown whether or not Bonnie drove to the tavern. What is known is that Bonnie did seem to be going back home on Highway N, but she never arrived.

The following morning when Bonnie didn’t arrive home, Lillie and Bobby started to get concerned. Bobby decided to make a trip to Delta, Missouri and found Bonnie’s vehicle parked in the middle of the road. At first, he presumed she had car trouble and checked to see what was wrong. The car managed to start up fine, and he proceeded to move it out of incoming traffic. Thereafter, he went back home to inform his mother, and the two called Mary and Doug to see if Bonnie was with either one of them, but she wasn’t. It was at this point Lillie and Bobby started to panic, and they called the police to report her missing. When the police arrived at Bonnie’s vehicle, they found her car keys still in the ignition, but her purse, glasses, necklace, and watch were missing. There was also a Gene Autry toy cap gun near her car and a VFW magazine. However, they couldn’t locate Bonnie.

One day later on the morning of July 5, 1954, a young couple passing through from Allenville, Missouri noticed a foul stench in the air. They followed the source of the odour and uncovered the body of Bonnie Huffman two miles down the road, lying in a culvert, near the local high school, approximately two miles away from where her vehicle was found. The police were quickly notified, and an investigation immediately ensued.

Bonnie was discovered to have knee abrasions, a dislocated jaw, and her neck broken. Her t-shirt was partially torn, and her underwear was missing. The police believed she was sexually assaulted and murdered, but due to the warm temperatures and a lack of medical advancement, an official ruling after an autopsy couldn’t be determined.

It was theorized that Bonnie’s killer(s) made her park her vehicle, and subsequently brandished the toy cap gun to force her to comply. A struggle occurred, and Bonnie was forced into the perpetrator’s vehicle and managed to jump out while they were driving, and while doing so, was severely injured and the driver proceeded to rape, murder, and discard her.

Once the news of Bonnie’s murder started to make headlines, the entire community was in disarray — scared that such a grisly crime could occur in a small, populated town. The police were doing everything in their power to solve the case. They were interviewing hundreds of citizens and issued numerous polygraph tests, but they had trouble locating promising leads. One tip they did pursue extensively came from the VFW magazine located at the crime scene. They managed to track down the subscriber and his mailing address to St. Louis, Missouri. According to the subscriber, he and his nephew were down in Hiram, Missouri — near Bollinger County, where Bonnie was discovered — for the 4th of July weekend but left back for home abruptly. Moreover, it was discovered that his nephew had actually been arrested in Bollinger County for sexual assault. The uncle was given a polygraph test and passed without any issues. It’s unsure if his nephew was followed up on more heavily or not.

Bonnie’s ex-boyfriend, Doug, was also brought in for questioning. He complied wholeheartedly and expressed deep remorse; blaming himself for her murder by saying, “If I hadn’t broken up with her, none of this would have happened.” He also stated he had planned to mend things with Bonnie because he regretted ending their relationship so suddenly. After a thorough investigation and a strong alibi for his whereabouts on the night this tragedy occurred, he was ruled out as a suspect. With the lack of pivotal leads to follow up on, Bonnie’s murder turned into a cold case.

One year later, a wooden cross mysteriously appeared where Bonnie’s body was found. Shortly thereafter, an unidentified person removed it for unbeknownst reasons. In 2007, a replica was planted anonymously, with the words: To the memory of Bonnie Huffman. Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me though he were dead, yet shall he live. – John 11:25, KJV.

Ten years went by and in 1964, Bonnie’s cold case started to defrost when a true crime magazine covered her story and caused a huge splash. The author of the article illustrated Bonnie’s physical attributes and portrayed her as a lustful object for careless men, and labelled her killer(s) as a “Merciless sex fiend.” The sensational article created a much-needed resurgence in Bonnie’s case, and law enforcement began to look more heavily into the investigation. As a result, more leads and potential suspects were disinterred.

One person of interested was a man who molested his own two daughters when they were only six years old. Another individual unveiled was a man littered with tattoos and religiously spoke openly about his desires of sex and berating women. The last person examined was a local mechanic who had dark sexual fantasies and wore women’s clothing when he was at home. Unfortunately, law enforcement was unable to connect any of the men to Bonnie, and they were ruled out as a suspect.

Once again, Bonnie’s case became stagnant. It wouldn’t be until decades later in 2004 when the Cape Girardeau’s police station had a new clue emerge from a mysterious letter from Florida. It was mailed anonymously and had no return address. The contents inside had a detailed summary of what happened on the night of Bonnie’s murder.

According to the author, he (or she) was on their way home after a long night of dancing with friends and stumbled upon a deserted vehicle in the middle of the road. He believed the driver needed assistance, so he got out of his car but soon realized nobody was in view. In mere seconds, he spotted two men throwing *someone* in the ditch. In the midst of the commotion, he heard a female voice screaming for help at the bottom of the culvert. The two men became aware of his presence and immediately chased after him. He quickly got back inside his vehicle, and the two men attempted to force their way into his car to pull him out, but the doors were locked. They proceeded to run to their vehicles and block his pathway on the road. He managed to escape their grasp and would go on to say in the letter, “How I ever got the clutch in and shifted, I will never know.”

Additionally, the author claimed he didn’t come forward sooner because he was petrified of retaliation, particularly because of how small the town was. Moreover, he included a hand-drawn map of where Bonnie’s body was found, along with accurate depictions of the roads and where the stores and the Cape Girardeau Police Department were located at the time. The police concluded that the letter was genuine and the most tangible piece of evidence they had. Sadly, the author never made contact again and due to his anonymity, the promising lead was unable to be pursued further.

It’s now been over sixty years, and most of the locals, witnesses, and possibly Bonnie’s killer(s) have passed away. The physical evidence collected has since been destroyed, although a single latent fingerprint from Bonnie’s rear-view mirror still exists. With not much to work with, the likelihood of her case being solved is slim to none. One of the original officers who investigated the crime stated, “It’s just one of those things. Some cases can’t be solved. It’s just as simple as that.”