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Murder of Brooke Wilberger

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Brooke Wilberger
BornBrooke Carol Wilberger
February 20, 1985
Fresno, California, U.S.
DiedMay 25, 2004(2004-05-25) (aged 19)
Corvallis, Oregon, U.S.
NationalityAmerican
Known forMissing person and murder victim
Parent(s)Greg and Cammy Wilberger

Brooke Carol Wilberger (February 20, 1985 – May 25, 2004) was an American student from the state of Oregon who was abducted and later murdered. Her disappearance was covered by the national media; her murder investigation was one of the most publicized in Oregon's history.

Early life

Brooke Wilberger was born in Fresno, California, on February 20, 1985 to Greg and Cammy Wilberger. She had three sisters and two brothers. Described as a devout member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Wilberger was a graduate of Elmira High School near Eugene, Oregon. She had just completed her freshman year at Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah, at the time of her abduction. During that time, her boyfriend, Justin Blake, was serving as a Mormon missionary in Venezuela.

Disappearance

At the time of her disappearance, Wilberger was on summer vacation, visiting and working for one of her sisters in Corvallis, Oregon. On the morning May 24, 2004, Wilberger was last seen cleaning lamp posts in the parking lot of the Oak Park Apartments, which her sister and brother-in-law managed, on the edge of the Oregon State University campus.

Investigation

Initial efforts

A billboard in Salem requesting information on Brooke Wilberger.

When Wilberger disappeared, the police began investigating immediately – against normal procedure. Lt. Ron Noble of the Corvallis Police Department said, "Normally, we would wait. Because adults can come and go as they please, and we would normally wait to see if she showed up maybe the next day." However, in this case, police officials agreed with the family that Wilberger was not the type of girl to disappear on her own. The Wilbergers' LDS ward organized a search by citizens of Corvallis.

The investigation initially centered on Sung Koo Kim, who was named as "person of interest" in the disappearance. Kim was later dropped as a suspect, but received an 11-year prison sentence for multiple counts of burglary and theft of women's personal property in Yamhill County, crimes uncovered while he was being investigated for the Wilberger disappearance. He was released in December 2012 after serving about seven years.

Media coverage

The Wilberger case was covered several times on the Fox television program America's Most Wanted between 2004 and 2006. The Montel Williams Show interviewed three of Wilberger's siblings, Shannon, Spencer and Jessica, which aired November 29, 2004. The ABC News program 20/20 examined Wilberger's disappearance along with that of Maura Murray on March 17, 2006.

The Investigation Discovery Channel portrayed the Wilberger story on three different series:

  • The first showing was on the crime examination series "On the Case with Paula Zahn", Season 1, Episode 14 Beauty and the Beast first aired: April 18, 2010.
  • The second showing was on the documentary series "FBI: Criminal Pursuit", titled Predator, Season 2, Episode 10, original air date April 29, 2011.
  • The third documentary was the Season 5, Episode 5, titled: An Angel Taken, of the series "Motives & Murders: Cracking The Case", premiered March 31, 2016.

Dateline NBC aired a two-hour special on the case on February 4, 2011. The Oxygen channel documentary series It Takes A Killer also covered the case on January 6, 2017.

See also

References

  1. Cite error: The named reference ERG was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. "Brooke Wilberger's remains found in coastal range, killer sentenced to life in prison". Statesman Journal. Salem, Oregon. September 21, 2009. Retrieved September 22, 2009.
  3. ^ "Waiting for Brooke. - Free Online Library". www.thefreelibrary.com. Eugene, OR: The Register-Guard. May 24, 2005. Retrieved March 18, 2017.
  4. ^ "Authorities Charge Man With Murder". America's Most Wanted. Archived from the original on October 26, 2012. Retrieved April 13, 2007.
  5. Schabner, Dean; Sarah Netter (September 21, 2009). "Brooke Wilberger found: Killer gives location of remains to avoid death penalty". ABC News.
  6. ^ Hunter, Donna (August 14, 2008). "Vanished: Two coeds, two horrifying mysteries". 20/20. ABC News.
  7. "Suspect Charged With Murder Of Brooke Wilberger". KUTV.com. Archived from the original on September 26, 2007. Retrieved April 13, 2007.
  8. "Crime Alert Archive". fa.oregonstate.edu. Oregon State University. August 3, 2005. Archived from the original on March 19, 2017. Retrieved March 18, 2017.
  9. "Sung Koo Kim gets nearly six years for underwear thefts". KATU.com. Retrieved April 13, 2007.
  10. "America's Most Wanted | Missing Persons | Brooke Wilberger Case". September 21, 2009. Archived from the original on March 23, 2012. Retrieved June 22, 2015.
  11. "America's Most Wanted | Missing Data File for Brooke Carol Wilberger". Archived from the original on March 27, 2006. Retrieved March 19, 2017.
  12. ""The Montel Williams Show" | Vanished Without a Trace (TV Episode 2004)". Internet Movie Database (IMDb). November 29, 2004. Retrieved March 19, 2017.
  13. "CBS Television Distribution - Best of Montel". www.montelshow.com. November 29, 2004. Archived from the original on December 5, 2004. Retrieved March 19, 2017.
  14. "20/20 | Vanished: Two Coeds, Two Horrifying Mysteries". 20/20. ABC News. March 17, 2006. Retrieved March 19, 2017.
  15. "20/20 | Vanished: Two Coeds, Two Horrifying Mysteries". Internet Movie Database (IMDb). March 17, 2006. Retrieved March 16, 2017.
  16. "On the Case With Paula Zahn | Beauty and the Beast". TVGuide.com. April 18, 2010. Retrieved March 18, 2017.
  17. "One the Case with Paula Zahn | Beauty and the Beast". Investigation Discovery. Archived from the original on March 19, 2017. Retrieved March 18, 2017.
  18. "FBI: Criminal Pursuit | Predator". Investigation Discovery. April 29, 2011. Retrieved March 18, 2017.
  19. "Motives & Murders: Cracking the Case | An Angel Taken". Investigation Discovery. March 31, 2016. Retrieved March 18, 2017.
  20. "Motives & Murders: Cracking The Case | An Angel Taken". mytvee.ga. Retrieved March 18, 2017.
  21. Raskauskas, Nancy (January 31, 2011). "Brooke Wilberger back in TV spotlight". Corvallis Gazette Times. Gazette Times. Retrieved March 18, 2017.
  22. "Full Episode: Bringing Brooke Home". NBC News. Retrieved March 18, 2017.
  23. "In Search of a Kill". Oxygen Official Site. January 6, 2017. Retrieved March 18, 2017.
  24. "Shows A-Z - It Takes A Killer on Oxygen | TheFutonCritic.com". www.thefutoncritic.com. Retrieved March 18, 2017.
  25. "Brooke Wilberger". World News. Retrieved March 19, 2017.

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