Two decades before the Lindbergh baby became America’s most famous missing child, four-year-old Bobby Dunbar, went missing in Opelousas, Louisiana, setting in motion one of the strangest kidnapping stories in the nation’s history.

In the summer of 1912, the Dunbar family took a trip to Swayze Lake in St. Landry Parish, where Bobby wandered off and disappeared. The boy’s disappearance was followed by an eight-month search across the American south, until Bobby was ostensibly found in the company of William Walters, a handyman traveling through the Mississippi. Bobby’s parents were elated to have their son back after such a long absence, but the problem was, very few people seem convinced that the boy was in fact Bobby Dunbar.

After extensive news coverage of the search, Walters’ trial for kidnapping, and the joyful return of Bobby to his family, interest in the case began to fade, but for the Dunbar family, questions remained about Bobby’s identity. Had the Dunbars, in their desperation to find their son, unintentionally kidnapped someone else’s child?

Thank you to the Incredible Dave White of Bring Me the Axe Podcast for research and Writing support!

References

Crowley Post-Signal. 1913. "Charges fell to ground." Crowley Post-Signal , April 11: 5.

Daily Advertiser. 1914. "Walters' trial at Opelousas." Daild Advertiser (Lafayette, LA), April 21: 1.

—. 1914. "Supreme court frees Walters." Daily Advertiser (Lafayette, LA), June 30: 1.

McThenia, Tal, and Ira Glass. 2008. "The Ghost of Bobby Dunbar." This American Life. Chicago, IL: Chicago Public Media, March 14.

New York Times. 1912. "$6,000 for missing boy." New York Times, November 10: 1.

—. 1912. "Kidnapped boy murdered." New York Times, December 15: 14.

Ray, S.W. 1914. "Opelousas jury hears life story of other mother." Times-Picayune, April 23: 8.

St. Landry Clarion. 1912. "No trace of lost Bob Dunbar." St. Landry Clarion , September 7: 1.

—. 1912. "Robert Dunbar, 4 years old, mysteriously disappears." St. Landry Clarion , August 31: 4.

—. 1914. "Asks that fair play be given to the accused." St. Landry Clarion, April 18: 1.

—. 1914. "Fair play for Walters." St. Landry Clarion, April 18: 1.

Times-Democrat. 1913. "Recognizes playmates." Times- Democrat (New Orleans, LA), April 26: 1.

—. 1913. "Does not identify boy." Times-Democrat (New Orleans, LA), April 22: 1.

—. 1913. "Dunbar boy talking." Times-Democrat (New Orleans, LA), May 20: 4.

—. 1913. "Hunting for kidnappers." Times-Democrat (New Orleans, LA), April 27: 1.

—. 1913. "Is not Bruce Anderson." Times-Democrat (New Orleans, LA), April 26: 1.

—. 1913. "Now believes boy hers." Times-Democrat (New Orleans, LA), May 3: 1.

—. 1912. "Scores search for missing lad." Times-Democrat (New Orleans, LA), August 25: 1.

—. 1912. "Suspicion turns toward negroes." Times-Democrat (New Orleans, LA), September 2: 1.

—. 1913. "Movements of Tinker." Times-Democrat, May 23: 1.

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Today we are joined by Emmy award winning film directors, Chapman & Maclain Way to discuss the wild story behind their Netflix Documentary "The Kings of Tupelo: A Southern Crime Saga". This documentary was expertly crafted and features the often unbelievable folklore surrounding the 2013 Presidential Ricin Attacks. Haven't watched it yet? Check it out by visiting https://www.netflix.com/title/81903247

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After his arrest, investigators would learn that, by the time he appeared on the game show, he was also a killer. In the year that followed, Alcala would go on to murder several other women until he was finally caught and convicted for his crimes. At his trial, Rodney Alcala was found guilty of eight murders, among other crimes, but he is suspected of several other murders, perhaps as many as one hundred or more.

Thank you to the Incredible Dave White of Bring Me the Axe Podcast for research and Writing support!

References

Associated Press. 1980. "Forest worker tells of grisly body find, fingers defendent ." Daily Breeze (Torrence, CA), March 23: 7.

—. 1980. "Witness in Alcala trial admits lying." Los Angeles Times, March 26: 44.

—. 1980. "Jury deliberate murder charge." Oakland Tribune, April 30: E3.

Brown, Doug. 1980. "Jury asks for the death penalty." Los Angeles Times, May 9: 32.

—. 1980. "Prosecution rests case in penalty part of Alcala trial." Los Angeles Times, May 8: 63.

CBS News. 2024. "Rodney Alcala: The Killing Game." 48 Hours .

Dunn, Edward. 1977. "Oneida woman slain in L.A." Post-Standard (Syracuse, NY), November 15: 1.

Esquivel, Paloma. 2010. "Alcala gets death penalty." Los Angeles Times, March 10: 72.

Falcon, Gabriel. 2010. Convicted serial killer won on 'Dating Game'. March 10. Accessed November 18, 2024. https://web.archive.org/web/20240814201903/https://edition.cnn.com/2010/CRIME/03/08/dating.game.killer/index.html.

Hicks, Jerry. 1986. "Alcala again given death sentence in slaying of girl, 12." Los Angeles Times, June 21: 50.

—. 1986. "Alcala asks jury to spare him, insists he isn't a murderer." Los Angeles Times, June 19: 141.

Jarlson, Gary. 1979. "Hunt for missing girls spreads to Oxnard." Los Angeles Times, June 28: 10.

—. 1979. "In search for girl's killer, time is the principal foe." Los Angeles Times, July 14: 22.

Kaye, Peter. 1981. "The long, painful path to justice." Daily Breeze (Torrence, CA), June 18: 19.

Kirkman, Edward. 1971. "Fear of a new sex killing spurs 6 on trail." Daily News (New York, NY), August 8: 75.

Levenson , Michael, and Eduardo Medina. 2021. "'Dating Game killer,' who preyed on woman in 1970s, dies in prison." New York Times, July 26.

Liff, Mark, Joseph Martin, and Paul Meskil. 1977. "Attorney urges FBI to hunt daughter." Daily News (New York, NY), July 31: 3.

Los Angeles Times. 1980. "Alcala defense wtiness's story repeated to jury." Los Angeles Times, April 30: 42.

—. 1979. "The Southland." Los Angeles Times, June 22: 30.

—. 1977. "Police now see link in strangulation murders of 10 LA women." Sacramento Bee, December 1: 22.

Moynihan, Colin. 2012. "Convicted killer pleads guilty to 2 New York murders." New York Times, December 15: 20.

OC Weekly. 2010. Rodney Alcala's murderous romp through polite society brings him to an Orange County courtroom again. January 21. Accessed November 19, 2024. https://www.ocweekly.com/rodney-alcalas-murderous-romp-through-polite-society-brings-him-to-an-orange-county-courtroom-again-6402172/.

Pelisek, Christine. 2010. "Rodney Alcala: the fine art of killing." LA Weekly, January 21.

Reyes, David. 1986. "Man convicted second time in murder of girl." Los Angeles Times, May 29: 43.

Sands, Stella. 2011. The Dating Game Killer: The True Story of a TV Dating Show, a Violent Sociopath, and a Series of Brutal Murders. New York, NY: St. Martin's.

Secret, Mosi. 2011. "After decades, charges in 2 Manhattan murders." New York Times, January 27: 24.

Smith, David. 2024. "The terrifying true story behind Woman of the Hour." The Guardian, October 22.

The People v. Rodney James Alcala. 1984. 36 Cal. 3d 605 (Supreme Court of California, August 23).

Weinstein, Henry. 2003. "New trial, new charge in old cases." Los Angeles Times, June 28: 32.

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