Sorry for the late release. I'm an independent podcaster. There is no team, it's all me.
I'm human. Back in two weeks. Happy Thanksgiving.
EP 75: The Vanishing of Tammy Belanger: A Dark Anniversary
This month marks the 40th anniversary of the disappearance of 8-year-old Tammy Belanger from Exeter, New Hampshire. Tammy’s story is one that many in Southern New Hampshire know all too well, but the dark truth behind her abduction is still haunting. In this episode, we explore the mystery of what happened to Tammy after she was last seen crossing the street on her usual walk to school on November 13, 1984.
Tammy’s case is eerily linked to another young girl—Christy Luna, an 8-year-old girl from GreenacresFlorida whose circumstances mirrored Tammy’s in disturbing ways. As we dive into the details, I make the case for the main suspect in these crimes, a deviant predator who is believed to be responsible for both disappearances.
Through Tammy’s story, we learn of the lost hours that passed before anyone realized she was missing, and how this case helped shape new protocols in the way schools respond to student absences. In 1984, when Tammy vanished, there were no calls home for missing children, no immediate alerts or search efforts. It wasn’t until hours later, when her mother Pat noticed Tammy was missing, that anyone realized she wasn’t at school, and by then, critical hours were lost.
This episode uncovers the haunting details of that fateful day and examines how a missing child led to critical changes in child safety protocols.
Listener Warning: This episode contains sensitive content and details about child abduction, abuse, and trauma.
Back in two weeks. Happy Thanksgiving.
Photos from episode 75:
Tammy Belanger's photo appeared everywhere, headline on the 40th anniversary, Christy Luna, Nelson and Pat Belanger, Google maps view of Christy's walk from home to Belk's on May 27, 1984, The Suspect, the suspect's car (said to have been "rigged" for kidnapping), photo of Tammy, Bear Brook victim's headstone Newsclippings reporting on Tammy, The Del Fuegos, Books I referenced by Warren Zanes, Phillips Exeter Academy, lovely downtown Exeter... Bear Brook: Authorities would eventually identify Marlyse Honeychurch and her two children, Marie Elizabeth Vaughn (center) and Sarah Lynn McWaters, as three of the four victims found in two barrels in Allenstown, New Hampshire.
Sources
updating Phillips Exeter, NH
Exeter, NH
Phillips Exeter Academy https://exeter.edu
Billy Ruane
I definitely created this page for the band for their reunion shows about a decade ago... https://www.facebook.com/thedelfuegos
Bear Brook Four Murders https://www.nhpr.org/nh-news/2019-06-05/three-bear-brook-murder-victims-identified-citizen-sleuth-genetic-genealogy-provide-key-clues S.O. Stats
Fed SO Registration https://smart.ojp.gov/sorna/current-law/legislative-history#federal-sex-offender-legislation
Growth Average
Boston Children’s Hospital Growth
Nelson Belanger Obituary
Tammy Belanger's Disappearance
From the archives
Boston Globe https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-boston-globe-tammy-belanger-quary-s/159464872 W Lebanon Valley News https://www.newspapers.com/image/833484490/?match=1&terms=tammy%20belanger%20
W Lebanon Valley News https://www.newspapers.com/image/833484714/?match=1&terms=tammy%20belanger%20&clipping_id=159204900
Palm Beach Post https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-palm-beach-post-tammy-belanger-susp/159396334
WMUR Channel 9, What Happened To Tammy Belanger? https://www.wmur.com/article/new-hampshire-tammy-belanger-cold-case/62897390 New Hampshire Dept of Justice, Tammy Belanger https://www.doj.nh.gov/bureaus/cold-case-unit/victim-list/tammy-belanger
Seacoast Online, Life Changed Forever When Tammy Vanished
Fosters Democrat, Tammy’s Disappearance Haunts The Seacoast
https://www.fosters.com/story/news/2019/11/30/tammy-belangers-1984-disappearance-still-haunts-seacoast/2182031007 Manchester Union Leader, Tammy Belanger's disappearance remains a mystery
https://www.unionleader.com/news/crime/tammy-belangers-disappearance-remains-a-mystery-40-years-later/article_36b4a2ac-a147-11ef-9fc3-5fdc1f4d6dfb.html Exeter Patch https://patch.com/new-hampshire/exeter/exeter-chief-says-he-knows-who-s-behind-tammy-belange31970e865d
Tammy’s Route To School
Nancy Champion Lanza
https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2012/12/18/167527771/nancy-lanza-gunmans-mother-from-charmed-upbringing-to-first-victim
Christy Luna, Greenacres, Florida
Finding Christy Luna, Greenacres, Florida, May 27, 1984