It took a month for his body to be found, but even then his perpetrators couldnt be caught. [6] The city is situated on the east bank of the Marais des Cygnes River and only a few miles southwest of the city of Linn Valley. The other racial makeups of it are 0.6% African American, 0.9% Native American, 0.2% Asian, 0.1% from other races, and 1.0% from two or more races. It's got twists and turns, it's got possible race relations, it's got young drunkenness, bravado. Where have all the candidates gone? What happened to my son? I also really felt as though the Unsolved Mysteries episode didn't dive deep enough and it left me with even more questions than I already had. An Associated Press story from 1993 said Mitchell routinely removed organs from corpses without the consent of victims families, and he improperly stored body parts in his New York office. United States. They have been filtering in from people who claim to have information for years. That said, I am positive I'm forgetting to include something here. I definitely knew it was a racist town, but Ive never heard that motto either. Just compiling a list of people who were implicated in those comments. The suspicious death of Alonzo Brooks in 2004 was featured in the fourth episode "No Ride Home" of the fifteenth season of Unsolved Mysteries TV series in 2020. His family called authorities in Linn County, Kansas and the Linn County Sheriffs Department launched a search. The FBI added that his death was being investigated as a potential racially-motivated "Alonzo Brooks was killed. When the family found him and saw what he looked like, we knew that there was foul play, said Angela Cox, one of Brooks aunts. WebTornado activity: La Cygne-area historical tornado activity is near Kansas state average.It is 79% greater than the overall U.S. average.. On 4/12/1964, a category F4 (max. The son of a local judge (Smith?) I work with reporters to make sure our stories reflect the fullest view of the place we call home, so listeners and readers feel primed to explore the places, projects and people who make up a vibrant Kansas City. Any of the Boones? Some of these kids, who are adults now, may have been scared to come forward before, or may not have known what they saw was important. The 1865-1870s movement sought to overthrow Republican state governments. Also the scientists on the show is full of shit. In 1881 a coal mine was opened, after which it became an important point for the industry. Still, as U.S. Attorney Stephen McAllister who is taking point in the Brooks case as of 2020, along withFBI Special Agent in Charge Timothy Langan toldNBC Dateline, these led to nothing. It is reached by traveling east across the dam and then north at the first intersection past the An autopsy did not determine the cause of death of the 23-year-old. Still, according to his friends, the usually reserved Brooks was having a time of his life, playing games and happily talking with people. Josh Pratt is a documentary editor from Paola, Kansas, who has investigated Brooks death for years. Cox and Ramirez both think race played a part in his killing; the 23-year-old was Latino and African American, and one of the few people of color at the party. "I'm Mexican and his father is Black," she told Dateline. Alonzos family deserves to know the truth, and it is time for justice to be served.. Whenever possible, actual redditors have participated in investigating the events. Add a Place. I just hope now they will have the courage and kindness in their heart to come forward.. Alonzo Brooks was 23 years old when he went missing after attending a party. His case was recently reopened by the @FBI who are offering a $100K reward for tips leading to an arrest. WebLa Cygne Tourism: Tripadvisor has 20 reviews of La Cygne Hotels, Attractions, and Restaurants making it your best La Cygne resource. The grave was The second movement (1915 1944) saw millions of members of the KKK form, which was opposed to immigration into America, especially against Catholics and Jews. At the point when Brooks could be officially declared missing, the authorities sprung to action. Though we still don't know for sure how Brooks died, these sorts of theories would certainly point toward foul play. He was targeted because of the color of his skin.. How could Brooks disappear without anyone noticing a thing, only to leave his shoes behind and turn up dead a month later? RoadSnacks is reader-supported. We measured the places in the Sunflower State where there have historically been the most Klaverns per capita. [9], Numerous theories have been offered as to how Brooks died. According to an investigation by the FBI, there were approximately 100 people ages of 16-25 at the party and Alonzo was one of only three African-American men in attendance. "It defies reason to believe that Alonzo's death was a suicide or that he somehow accidentally tumbled into a relatively shallow creek, in Linn County, leaving behind his boots and hat, all with no witnesses whatsoever," McAllister said. Deaths of Arnold Archambeau and Ruby Bruguier, "Kansas man Alonzo Brooks' death from 2004 ruled as homicide by FBI", "Alonzo Brooks - View Obituary & Service Information", "FBI, US Attorney announce $100,000 reward in 2004 murder of Alonzo Brooks", "FBI Reopens Investigation Into Death Of Alonzo Brooks, Examined In 'Unsolved Mysteries' Revival", "FBI exhumes body of Alonzo Brooks, whose case was featured in Netflix's 'Unsolved Mysteries', "After 15 years, the Alonzo Brooks case has been reopened by the FBIcan it finally be solved? Males had a median income of $30,900 versus $19,803 for females. The most memorable movement of the KKK started in the 1950s, which was involved in the Civil Rights movement, and which targeted the black population in America. Im Mexican and his father is Black, Ramirez told NBC Dateline in June. His friends had found his boots and beanie discarded by the side of the road and it became evident to them that something had happened to him. Looks like we found a lot of the same information!! This article is an opinion based on facts and is meant as infotainment. I tried googling it and found he history on sun down towns - is that related? It is past time for the truth to come out. "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990", "La Cygne, Kansas Kppen Climate Classification (Weatherbase)", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=La_Cygne,_Kansas&oldid=1133051458, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, La Cygne Elementary School, grades PreK5, This page was last edited on 12 January 2023, at 02:10. While at the party, racial slurs were allegedly uttered They didn't just target one race. "It defies reason to believe that Alonzo's death was a suicide or that he somehow accidentally tumbled into a relatively shallow creek, in Linn County, leaving behind his boots and hat, all with no witnesses whatsoever," he says. Alonzos mother, Maria, told Dateline she remembers the evening of April 3, 2004 being a chilly one. Backwards town that would rather protect their own then see justice served. Anyone with information about Alonzo Brooks' case is urged to call the FBI at 816-512-8200 or 816-474-TIPS or submit a tip online at tips.fbi.gov. WebSince the incident, internet users and natives of Gardner and La Cygne have not only theorized about what happened to Brooks, but have emailed tips and reports to crime After the official autopsy performed in 2004 didnt determine a cause of death, Brooks case went nowhere. Unfortunately, this wasn't quite the case. I got a feeling it's going to come out soon, and I'm not giving up hope about that, Ramirez said. He rode to the party with friends, but they left before him, leaving Brooks without a ride. "Someone knows something, and we are hopeful that with the passage of time and this significant reward this renewed effort will produce results, and provide closure for the Brooks family," Langan states. I was surprised how the documentary never mentioned the old La Cygne motto : If your black dont let the sun hit your back. ", "U.S. Attorney, FBI Announce $100,000 Reward in Cold Case", "Unsolved Mysteries gives update on Alonzo Brooks case", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Death_of_Alonzo_Brooks&oldid=1139767168, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 16 February 2023, at 20:15. Article continues below. It sure seemed that the investigation of the death of Alonzo Brooks was facing a brick wall. But any piece of information is significant and could be the missing puzzle piece we need to solve this case.. Were in this for the long haul and were not going to stop until we find out what happened.. Here's an effort to tone down their lights, A Kansas City group is paying off traffic fines to help drivers get their licenses back, Kansas City jazz and tap legend Ronald McFadden, half of the McFadden Brothers, dies at 66, Feds Offer $100,000 Reward In Kansas Cold Case That May Have Been Racially Motivated, Activists say Kansas City is in 'a moment of crisis' after racist incidents at local schools. Here's hoping that she's correct. I live just an hour-ish south of La Cygne and even have some mutual facebook friends with some of the people who have been implicated in the comments of the blog.Since the Netflix Unsolved Mysteries episode on Alonzo aired a few days ago, the comments on that blog have begun to blow up once again, with lots of La Cygne locals chiming in about local whisperings surrounding the case. Josh Pratt, a filmmaker who lived in Paola, Kansas, at the time of Alonzo's death and knew many of the people at the party, has been trying to answer that question for Alonzos family for the past five years. Its not just the authorities who are taking a methodical approach. It is investigating the death as a potentially racially motivated crime. There were 454 households, of which 34.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.8% were married couples living together, 10.4% had a female householder with no husband present, 6.6% had a male householder with no wife present, and 33.3% were non-families. He was also a bit of a homebody who didn't leave the house too much, preferring to spend time with his family instead. On April 3, 2004, he, along with some of his friends, was headed to a rural house party just outside of La Cygne. Of course there was a ton of coverup and pisspoor investigative work. What happened to my son? WebThe body of Alonzo Brooks, the Black man whose death was featured by Unsolved Mysteries on Netflix, has been exhumed in Kansas, media outlets report. He was targeted because of the color of his skin., McAllister said that at the time, interviews with people who attended the party, yielded no confession and shed no light on where Alonzo might be.. At an early date La Cygne became a manufacturing point. But on April 3, 2004, Alonzo decided to go with some friends to the party in a rural area just outside of La Cygne in Linn County. "I can find out what happened. WebLa Cygne Elementary Parker Elementary PVMS PVHS . The next day Brooks did not return to Gardner and was deemed to be missing. 13731 KS Hwy 152, La Cygne, KS 66040 Phone: 913-757-4447 Fax: 913-757-4443 We got nowhere with the local authorities they didnt even want to talk to us, Cox said, at her home in Topeka. Its been 16 years and I just want justice for me and my family to know what happened to my son and I know that someone out there knows what happened, said his mother, Maria Ramirez. In 2004, Brooks, a Black man, went missing after attending a party. Anyone with information is asked to call the FBI at 816-512-8200 or 816-474-TIPS. 12:18 AM EDT, Tue April 6, 2021. He was our surprise baby, Maria told Dateline. He was just another guy like me trying to find his direction in life. 2023 Cinemaholic Inc. All rights reserved. In July 2020, the FBI exhumed his body from his grave at a Topeka cemetery. Why does no one seem to know what happened between the party and the tragic discoveries that followed, despite the fact that there were up to a hundred potential witnesses? But he was my baby. Additionally, Slinkard stated that the FBI is doing everything that they can and that they will spare no resources in order to bring justice to those who were responsible for Brooks' death. Stay Connected . When the water receded, his body was revealed. As theU.S.Attorney's Officenotes, the authorities had no cause of death to go by. We live in a world of unsolved murders. These were stored in some wooden vaults in the attic and when they were take out, they were displayed in a similar fashion to the photo. The people involved were some of the best in the field, and the results they were able to uncover were interesting, to say the least. The wildlife area is located 7.2 miles from U.S. 69. We could tell.. Pause Gallery . WebThe Marais des Cygnes is formed about 1 mile north of Reading, Kansas, a city in northern Lyon County, by the confluence of Elm Creek and One Hundred Forty-Two Mile Creek, and flows generally east-southeastwardly through Osage, Franklin, Miami and Linn counties in Kansas, and Bates County in Missouri, past the Kansas towns of Melvern, Quenemo, This subreddit is about unsolved mysteries. Alonzos mother told Dateline she believes her son was targeted for his race. This has all the trappings of a Hollywood movie, he said. Then his family searched for Brooks around the farmhouse and found his body in a creek within an hour, according to the FBI. However, the family never stopped their search for answers. [6], Following the night of the party, the Brooks family traveled to La Cygne to search for their son and contact the local authorities. But in 2019, the Department of Justice and FBI reopened the investigation into his death. Dont freak out. Its a significant amount of money, Billy Brooks said. WebThe body of Alonzo Brooks was exhumed last summer, 16 years after he was found dead. Where have all the candidates gone? WebHome of the Buffalos. Brooks was one of only three black people at the party in La Cygne. They killed two. For one, the coroner who performed Brooks autopsy, Dr. Erik Mitchell, said he couldnt determine the cause of death. More. And then it was all taken away from him.. "Morans Old Problem", The Iola Register, 31 January 1959, p.4. "He used to get behind me and just mess my hair up right after I had it fixed up, and I used to get so mad at him, Maria said. WebThe FBI said some evidence suggests that Brooks death could have been racially motivated. Alonzo never made it back to his home in Gardner, Thank you for putting the truth out there. Native American Runners Honor A Kansas City Murder Victim On Their Months-Long Journey To D.C. So I gathered up some information about it and started reading about the case.. The case is full of unanswered questions and conundrums of the sort that can leave a grizzled old movie detective desperately staring at the complicated evidence wall he's compiled in his house after he retired. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.7% of the population. While the details of the examination are being withheld for investigative purposes, the new autopsy focuses on injuries to Brooks body that the examiner concluded are inconsistent with normal patterns of decomposition, according to the release. We are very cautious of our kids now.. Wow all over Facebook they expect to get sympathy? I first heard about it when Unsolved Mysteries made an inquiry of our office, and indicated they were going to do an episode about it, McAllister said. FBI Special Agent in Charge Timothy Langan said he hopes the reward money will encourage more witnesses to come forward. La Cygne is located at 382049N 944544W / 38.34694N 94.76222W / 38.34694; -94.76222 (38.346841, -94.762171). A track for BNSF Railway passes through the city. Image 5. And then when family members would call them, they told us that we're calling too much.. They then swept the branches of the nearby Middle Creek. Chris Trinkle is another man rumored to be involved. For every 100 females, there were 89.0 males. The gender makeup of the city was 47.3% male and 52.7% female. KCUR serves the Kansas City region with breaking news and powerful storytelling. Associated Press. It defies reason to believe that Alonzos death was a suicide or that he somehow accidentally tumbled into a relatively shallow creek in Linn County, leaving behind his boots and hat, all with no witnesses whatsoever, McAllister said. Image 1 (current) Image 2. "So he's mixed. On April 5, 2021, the FBI announced that their investigation had proved that Brooks' death was a homicide. [8] Consequently, the pathologist could not determine a cause of death. "It is a quiet place of profound sadness to one who knows its history, but no answers are there. [1], On July 1, 2020, Brooks' death was featured in the fourth episode "No Ride Home" of the fifteenth season of Unsolved Mysteries TV series. With the 17-year-old investigation seemingly about to kick in high gear once more, there's new hope that Brooks' family and friends will finally get closure and that the person or people responsible for his death will finally be brought to justice. The festivities were held at a home in a rural area outside La Cygne, Linn County. In the city, the population was spread out, with 26.3% under the age of 18, 6.8% from 18 to 24, 27.7% from 25 to 44, 21.8% from 45 to 64, and 17.4% who were 65 years of age or older. Prairie View USD 362 13799 KS Hwy 152 La Cygne, KS 66040 Phone: 913-757-2677 Fax: 913-757-4442. When Alonzo was in his early 20s, he moved from Topeka, Kansas, where he had been working with his dad, to his mothers house in Gardner, Kansas. Alonzos father believes the reward money will urge someone to come forward. Did you know Logan Smith? Anyway, I just wanted to make a more extensive post regarding the Alonzo Brooks case, and would be interested in any more information anyone has compiled. (Featured Image Credit: FBI). The number of active members of the KKK is much smaller these days. However, they have yet to air.Just wanted to include on this thread the people implicated by the commenters on the Cold Case Kansas blog for those who are interested. I think they know that they're being denied justice. The body of Alonzo Brooks, the Black man whose death was featured by Unsolved Mysteries on Netflix, has been exhumed in Kansas, media outlets report. It's rumored that they helped perpetrate the murder because one of their female relatives had some interaction with Alonzo at the party. Image 4. Attendees left the party after a fight broke out, then headed to the farmhouse where Alonzo was last seen.[13]. As KSHB Kansas City tells us, Netflix'sUnsolved Mysteriesbrought plenty of new interest in the case, and a new autopsy was conducted on his exhumed remains. McAllister appears to take his mission quite seriously, and also seems to have a flair for the dramatic. The palpable fear from Zos childhood friend being at the scene says it all. The result is the following list of the most racist cities in the Sunflower State: Read on below to see how we crunched the numbers. You can reach me at jodifortino@kcur.org. 2023 Cable News Network. As NBC Datelinetells us, Alonzo Brooks was the youngest of the five children of Maria Ramirez and Billy Brooks Sr. After his parents divorced, he initially lived and worked in Topeka, Kansas with his father, but he moved in his early 20s to stay with his mother in Gardner, Kansas. "I was always trying to protect him." WebKANSAS CITY, KSThe death of a Kansas man whose body was found in a creek in La Cygne, Kansas, in 2004 was a homicide, according to a new report by a federal forensic The city is named after the Marais des Cygnes River, which is a basic French translation of an Osage appellation meaning marsh of the swans.. Tips can be submitted online at fbi.tips.gov. #unsolvedmysteries #Justiceforalonzobrooks https://t.co/5l38xxFr5r. His death certainly was suspicious, and someone -- likely multiple people -- know(s) what happened that night in April 2004, McAllister said at the press conference on June 11. Alonzo, who was 23 years old at the time, was getting ready to head out for a party for someone who was leaving to join the Navy. Calling too much be involved located at 382049N 944544W / 38.34694N 94.76222W / 38.34694 ; -94.76222 (,. Kcur serves the Kansas City region with breaking news and powerful storytelling 'm Mexican and his is... 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