Denise Didn't Come Home | 5. The Broken Road
32:16 Share

Christine Herron was 15 years old in the spring of 1993 when she disappeared, and in over 30 years there has been no trace of her. I did know before the night was over she was dead, though. A story of murder and heartbreak and investigative error. He was 90% sure he was going to be convicted. From CBC Podcasts, I'm David Ridgen, and this is Someone Knows Something, Season 9, The Christine Herron Case. Available now.

Hey everyone, just a quick heads up before we get started. This episode contains descriptions of violence and sexual assault, so please take extra care when listening. Karen Falaska told me that in the summer of 2017, she was working in her office in Boulder, Colorado, and she got a call from the University of Colorado Police Department. I was at my desk, just a parking lot away from the police department, and they were wanting me to come over there.

Karen was nervous. She'd spent almost 50 years hunting for the man who murdered her sister. And she sensed the truth might have finally arrived. But now, it seemed like all she wanted to do was get away from it. And then they kind of broke down and said, you've got to come.

Bergen County is applying here to tell you something that you want to hear. And I was like, oh, geez, I got to go smoke a cigarette. I've got to go smoke like three cigarettes. I was just like walking around the parking structure. I started trembling, like really trembling, like an alcoholic that needs a drink, not knowing what they were coming here to tell me. I didn't want to get my hopes up, you know.

Finally, Karen made her way over to the police department, where she was greeted by a familiar face: Detective Rob Anzalotti of the Bergen County Prosecutor's Office. I had made her a promise that I would never stop the pursuit of finding out who killed her sister Denise, and I thought she deserved the respect of me personally being there. It was important to me to personally look her in the eye and tell her that we had solved it. Anzalotti told Karen that Richard Cottingham had finally confessed to murdering Denise.

I think it was extraordinarily emotional for Karen. I kind of knew that she was going to have some doubt just because I knew who she was. You know, I knew the person Karen was and she, anything short of DNA evidence, she was absolutely going to question the validity of it.

Karen told me that Anzalotti had come empty-handed. No copy of the confession, no official report, just his word that Cottingham did it.

He told her that because of his deal with Cottingham, there wouldn't be any charges. He asked her not to tell anyone about the confession because he was afraid that Cottingham would stop talking. I told them, okay, all right, and I walked out of there. As each day goes from that meeting, I accept it less and less.

Seems like such an easy solution for such a terrible, terrible crime that stumped everyone for decades to suddenly be quietly solved and put away after getting no exposure whatsoever and then swearing me to silence. It's not right. Not long after that, Karen got a phone call out of the blue from this dumb kid from New Jersey who'd heard about Denise's murder, who was interested enough in what happened to reach out.

who didn't really seem to know what he was reaching out for. Hello? Hi, Karen. Hi. Me. If you feel comfortable, I'm ready to start recording. Okay, I'm ready. And that brings us back to the beginning of this story.

to when I started talking to Karen. First, I guess it's just like a little bit of background of like who you are. I had no idea that I'd stumbled into Karen's life at this pivotal moment.

That, to Karen, my timing was almost too perfect. Maybe even a little suspicious. Eventually, she broke that promise. She told me about the confession. That according to Bergen County, this 50-year-old murder had finally been solved.

And she told me that she wasn't buying it. It didn't take long for Karen's wish to come true.

A few weeks later, Anzalotti flew back to Colorado to meet with Karen at her home. And this time, he brought something with him that Karen had been asking for. My name is Anthony Scalia. From Truth Media and Sony Music Entertainment, this is Denise Didn't Come Home.

What I knew about Cottingham was that he was this torso killer, killing prostitutes and easy prey. His murders were gruesome and brutal. Death and desecration and torture and dismemberment. Why would you think that he did this? So what was the thrill? It was more rape? Control? It was getting away with it. It was the game. The stalking.

We're still taking the word of a convicted serial killer. I trusted him when I could verify what he had to say. You recall abducting a girl from Old Hook Road? I definitely took her from Old Hook Road. There's only one unsolved homicide of a girl that we last saw on Old Hook Road, and it's Denise Velasquez. Chapter 5, The Broken Road.

Hi, I'm Ashley Flowers, creator and host of the number one true crime podcast, Crime Junkie. Every Monday, me and my best friend Britt break down a new case, but not in the way you've heard before and not the cases you've heard before. You'll hear stories on Crime Junkie that haven't been told anywhere else. I'll tell you what you can do to help victims and their families get justice.

Join us for new episodes of Crime Junkie every Monday. Already waiting for you by searching for Crime Junkie wherever you listen to podcasts. Hi, I'm Barbie. And I'm Barbie. We're making a podcast together. The Barbie Podcast. Like us, so many of you have big dreams, problems to solve, fears to conquer, and cool stories to tell.

You want to learn. We're here to listen. We'll connect you with remarkable people from all over the world who are experts in their fields. The first season of the Barbie podcast is available now. And listen, wherever you get your podcast.

On January 30th, 2018, Karen secretly recorded this conversation with Detective Rob Anzalotti and his partner. Anzalotti is here to let Karen read a copy of Richard Cottingham's confession to the murder of her sister, Denise. Thank you. Yeah.

I'm not, I can guarantee you that I'm ready to see the truth of what he said. Karen only got to read a transcript of the confession, but a few years later, I was able to get this recording of the confession itself. Today's date is Wednesday, March 1st, 2017. And seated to my left is Mr. Richard Cottingham.

Do you swear the statement you are about to give is the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help you God? Yes. Can you tell me, to the best of your recollection, when did this homicide occur? The summer of '69. The summer of 1969? Yes. I remember it to be a hot day, and it was before I got married, May of '70. It was a summer night, I was on my way to work, and I seen a young lady walking on the side of a road,

in the opposite direction. Went a couple more blocks and I made a U-turn. I asked the girl if she needed a ride or something to that effect and she said okay and she got in my car. I pulled up in front of the pizza shop that was right on the corner. I asked her if she wanted a slice of pizza. She said okay, but she said I have to go meet my friends in a few minutes. I think she was just trying to be nice to me because I gave her a ride.

I had to talk her to get back in the car and I told her I'd help her look for her friends. When Karen read that part of Cottingham's confession, it made sense to her. The girl he's describing is Denise. Like, I bet she was uncomfortable and trying to get away, but trying not to be rude or... I think she was scared. She really knew she was in trouble. When she got back in the car, I drove her over to St. Andrews Elementary School.

and I went down into the yard area, which was deserted at that time. What did you have in mind? What was the purpose of bringing her there? To mess around, to have sex with her. Did you force her to do this? I didn't physically force her, no. But I let her know that she had no choice. I told her to do it, she did it. She wouldn't have done it unless I told her to do it. I made the decision that she was dangerous to me, that she'd seen my face,

At that point in the confession, Cottingham started to get really vague about the crucial details. Can you explain to me how you killed her? I would almost definitely say that I strangled her.

Denise was found badly beaten, and Anzalotti wanted an explanation for that.

Denise was found with a bloody handprint on her leg. Anzalotti wanted to know where that came from. I don't recall. It would...

Probably by her legs. Do you remember what side of the road you dumped her on? Not positive, but I'm pretty sure it was on the right-hand side. Do you remember actually what town you were in on Westminster Road? No, I have no idea. Okay. After removing her body from the car and leaving it on the side at Westminster Road, what did you do next? I believe I drove into the city. I think I just went in and had some deed. I think he's really not wholly convincing.

I mean, if that makes you certain, that interview there and... He doesn't remember as much detail as I would like him to, but also to his defense of some of the haziness, we're asking to remember something at this point that was almost 50 years ago. One thing about the confession that really bothered Karen was that Cottingham said he picked Denise up at night, in the dark. But Karen remembered the sun still being up and seeing Denise walk off down Old Hook Road in daylight.

I know that when we left the house it was light out. I mean, it was probably starting out going to sunset, but it was still light out. So either my timeline is off or... Yeah, you totally could be off on your time. You could be... You thought you saw something written. I mean... You know, I don't know. It's just odd. But anyway, I just want to make sure that we are definitely accusing the right person of doing this. Well, I would love for more detail. It just all makes a ton of sense. He has no incentive to give this stuff to us.

And we certainly have no incentive to accept it from him. And we would not come tell you unless we were a thousand percent certain. Without DNA evidence or a fingerprint, is there ever that one percent chance where you got the wrong guy? We'd like to think not, but we certainly know that it happens. But I don't see any scenario where he duped us into this because for what? Toward what end? Because he didn't have to say it. Yeah. If you guys are hanging your hat on this confession as...

After it was all over, Karen called me to tell me about the confession. And that was very clear in his confession, you know.

But he doesn't remember if he strangled her. They asked him about blood, and he said, well, there was maybe a little bit of blood. He's not clear about it. But there were certain things he said that gave me the feeling that he really did have her. He had her. It made sense when I read it in the confession. He said, well, you know what? She was really trying to be nice. She was really trying to blow me off in a nice way. And when he said that, I just knew it was her.

We were raised to have manners, to treat people with dignity, to be kind even to the unlovable. I really see her outside of his car, really trying to nicely negotiate her way out of this person's path. And I could feel her fear, knowing that she was in a bad place with this person and really not being able to get away. That moment terrifies me. I could just picture it. Me too.

Do you still need a little bit more of proof that you were once looking for, or are you pretty much just really accepting this now?

That's a really good question. I feel like I have to accept it. There's some things wrong in it. And I'm sure that I'm always going to be stuck with this doubt. But, I mean, everything I asked for, I got. Everything I've struggled for just came true. And I'm sitting here going, yeah, but really? You know? I feel this sense of surrender, like this is as far as it's going to go. And that's kind of where I am. I don't know...

After Karen read Richard Cottingham's confession, I thought she had finally found an answer to the question of who killed her sister. I thought, maybe, she had found some peace. But I realized that with Karen, it wouldn't be that easy.

I remember being a little frustrated. I mean, I could admit that the confession was hazy and it had some holes.

But by this time, I was starting to feel more and more every day that Cottingham killed Denise. And that's because I was spending all my free time researching his cases. How he used to prowl the streets of Bergen County for victims. He knew his hunting ground well. And it turns out, I did too. I came across something that was really interesting this weekend that I had no idea. I don't know if you knew this, but he lived in Lodi. Right, I didn't know. Yeah.

At one point, Cottingham lived right in my hometown of Lodi. That blew my mind. And then I found out he lived on Vreeland Street, a street I'd known my entire life. It was less than two blocks from my grandma's house. Vreeland Street is maybe a minute and a half drive from where Denise was found. I did the drive last night. I was with my girlfriend and I was like, turn down this street and then turn down this street. And I looked at the time and I saw how long it took.

And it was right there. Like, ridiculously, ridiculously, ridiculously close. Not only that, but Cottingham lived close to where another victim was found, Irene Blaze. She was killed just a few months before Denise. I just, I see Cottingham doing it. Well, I'd say it's very, very possible that he did. My question to you is,

Would it ever be enough for you to say, you know what, yeah, that is it? Or do you think it's just like a... Well, I know I'm never going to get that really good feeling that people think they're going to get when they get to the end of something that has been a lifelong quest almost. I know I'm never going to feel that good. Karen was still hung up on her own memories of the night of the murder, the things she remembered that weren't in Cottingham's confession. I just recall so clearly these things.

From the real memory and the real experience of having been there, people will say, you're not remembering it right. You don't forget. You go over it and over it and over it in your mind. I asked Karen to take me through those memories again. She said that Cottingham claimed he had picked up Denise at night, in the dark. People keep saying it was nighttime, it was dark, and it wasn't. It was early evening, light out, and we left the house.

Karen remembered that she and Denise walked down the street together to catch a bus in daylight. She turned around and she said, I have to go do something. And said to me very sternly, do not follow me. Karen, do not follow me. And I said, please stay with me. I see her walking away from me in daylight. It's not even dusk yet. She split off from me and walked down Old Oak Road. Karen said she sat down at the bus stop.

And that's when she saw a man in a blue car. He drove by real slow and just gave me an evil, evil look, like gawking at me. And then he made a U-turn and came back towards me. And I was really scared when I saw him do that. So I just stood there. I just stood my ground. I just looked right at him. And I stepped out and acted like I was writing his license plate down on my hand.

I suddenly realized why Karen couldn't let go of that moment, because she felt guilty.

I see now that it so easily could have been me. I did think in the early times of her death that it should have been me. That people wouldn't have been so ripped up had it been me. Yeah, I definitely want to come back to that. Of all Karen's memories, this was the memory that tortured her the most. I had been stalked that night. And when I read the confession, that wasn't a part of this story at all.

Unless we could somehow confirm that Cottingham saw Karen that night, I worried that she would never find peace. But a couple weeks later, Karen called me.

She found out that anyone could message an inmate through the prison email system. I feel it roaring up from deep inside of me, like, you know, it might be possible for me to speak to the person who caused all this. This whole road has been leading here. It's a broken road, and I'm trying to make it straight. No more middlemen. No more hearing about what happened secondhand or reading it from a transcript.

Karen needed to go to the source. The only two people that know what happened that night is Denise and Richard. If I really want to know what happened that night, I should just ask him. I was worried about Karen. On the one hand, I wanted her to get the answers she needed. On the other, I wasn't sure what she would find in the dark recesses of Cottingham's mind, and whether any of it would help. If you only have a serial killer's word...

How can you believe anything he says? He's gotten this far by lying. We're talking about a guy who is the master of deception. I know. That's on the next episode of Denise Didn't Come Home.

Unlock all episodes of Denise Didn't Come Home ad-free right now by subscribing to the Binge Podcast channel. Not only will you immediately unlock all episodes of this show, but you'll get binge access to an entire network of thrilling true crime and investigative podcasts, all ad-free. Plus, on the first of every month, subscribers get a binge drop of a brand new series.

That's all episodes, all at once. Unlock your listening now by clicking subscribe at the top of the Binge Cases show page on Apple Podcasts or visit GetTheBinge.com to get access wherever you listen. Denise Didn't Come Home is a production of Truth Media in partnership with Sony Music Entertainment. I'm your host, Anthony Scalia. The show is produced by Ryan Swiker and me. Story editing by Mark Smerling.

Kevin Shepard is our associate producer. Scott Curtis is our production manager. From Sony, our executive producers are Jonathan Hirsch and Catherine St. Louis. Fact-checking by Dania Suleiman. Kenny Kusiak did the mix. Sound design by Kenny Kusiak and Ryan Swiker. Music by Kenny Kusiak, Epidemic Sound, and Marmoset. Our title track is Gimme Some by Weevil. If you've been enjoying the show, we'd love to hear from you.

Give us a call at 646-665-2748 and leave us a voicemail. Don't forget to leave us a review on Apple Podcasts. It really helps other people find the show. And thanks for listening.