She also thinks Sister Cathy was murdered because she knew about Maskells abuse and was going to come forward. There is one living suspect in Cesniks homicide, according to police spokeswoman Elise Armacost. ', After Maskell's death, Jean Wehner came forward and revealed she was the student who the priest had taken to view Cesnik's body at the dump before her remains were officially found, Wehner claims the only nun at the school who sought to help the abused girls was Sister Cathy, The crime haunted the local community for decades. The Irish Tenors have been singing together for 25 years and have just embarked on a U.S. tour to mark this standout number. Though the documentary includes much of the story, director Ryan White doesnt include every piece of evidence, and some of the most crucial information gets left out. The homicide remains unsolved, and for decades Radakovic believed Cesnik was the victim of a wrong place, wrong time crime. Michigan honor roll student, 17, shot dead by 14 and 13-year-olds in attempted carjacking after he offered them a ride during subzero temperatures - juveniles will be tried as adults, Britney Spears warned by animal control after Doberman named 'Porsha' trained to protect her from 'any motherf****r with bad intentions' escaped $7.4 million California home and bit elderly man, Man, 80, is killed and three others are injured in 'horrific' San Antonio pit bull dog attack: Firefighters are forced to use pickaxes and metal poles to fight off the savage animals, Headless body of missing model, 28, is found dismembered in fridge in house of horrors in Hong Kong that had been converted into 'butchers shop' as police arrest her ex-husband and father-in-law, What COULD aliens look like? Woman Found Nearly One Month After Disappearance, Former Husband of Woman Whose Murder Remains Unsolved Is Now Accused of Assaulting Current Partner, 'I Lied': What Casey Anthony Believes Actually Happened to Her Daughter Caylee, Toddler Found Alive in Apartment After His Mother and Grandfather Were Shot to Death, The Mysterious Murder Victim Known as the 'Lady of the Dunes' Identified After Nearly 50 Years, Netflix Documentary Looks at Vanessa Guillen's Murder and Family's Fight for Answers from Military. But in interviews conducted before his death, he found these. YOU'VE REACHED YOUR MONTHLY ARTICLE LIMIT. The Baltimore Archdiocese reached a $35,000 settlement with VonDenBosch in 2016. Radakovic was Cesnik's younger sister. For us, our bar was more about bringing these womens experiences to light and starting this conversation.. RELATED:Netflixs Tiger King: 15 Best Joe Exotic Quotes. Click here to get breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases in the True Crime Newsletter. So we didn't want to set that as our bar, Hargrave said. There are a lot of people that are living that should be behind bars, she said. Several days later, on November 13, 1969, the body of Joyce Malecki, a 20-year-old woman who looked like Wehner, was discovered by two hunters in the same wooded location where Maskell had driven Wehner. Just a few days before she vanished, the priest reportedly called her and, once again expressing his love, had asked her to marry him. But I can whole-heartedly say, Cathy has been very much a part of all this.. Beginning tonight, Netflix viewers will be able to view all seven episodes of a series entitled, The Keepers., The documentary was produced by Ryan White. Despite the fact that Father Maskell's DNA does not match the DNA found at the crime scene, Armacost notes that the results don't necessarily clear him as a suspect. She had brown hair and brown eyes. SIGN UP FOR OUR FREE DAILY NEWSLETTER, FIRST TAKE, 'The Keepers' Filmmaker: Father Maskell Abused 40 Victims, Not Just the 6 in Netflix's Doc. (Radakovic was, in many ways, her sisters first student.) After the series premiered, messages started to arrive from around the world with new information. She still spends at least part of every day trying to find those people. However, White did still get to talk to them he even got to talk to the anonymous student he mentions in the series. She was just 26 at the time of her death. The Keough priest who allegedly masterminded the sex abuse, Father A. Joseph Maskell, died in 2001 and denied the abuse accusations before his death. Detective Gary ChildsBaltimore County Police Detective Childs is assigned to the cold case file for Sister Cathy's murder at the time of "The Keepers. The pair lived in the Carriage House Apartments building instead of at the convent, in an attempt to get closer to the secular world to better serve their students. We did it slowly it took three years. Nine months later, when Radakovic got married, she didnt throw her bouquet, instead leading everyone to the cemetery to put the bouquet on Cesniks grave. As it turned out, he had close ties to the police: his brother was a lieutenant, and Maskell was chaplain for the Baltimore County force, along with the state police and the Maryland National Guard. Sister Cathys battered body - she had been beaten over the head - was discovered off Monumental Avenue, in a Landsdowne, Baltimore County, Maryland, garbage dump by hunters, on January 3, 1970. In 1994, two victims, known then as Jane Doe and Jane Roe, attempted to sue the Catholic Church and Maskell for alleged abuse, but the case was thrown out because of Marylands statute of limitations. Nearly 20 years ago, Nugent had been calling many former students from the now-closed Archbishop Keough High School, for a story on Sister Cesnik, who was murdered in 1969. Its important to take this confession from Koob with a grain of salt, as he is proven in the show to be less than the most reliable of witnesses, but, as White says, I dont know where the truth lies.. How did the women keep their faith and how were they able to move on and have kids after what they went through? Mom Found Next to Her Car with Toddler Son Inside, Wife Wrote 'Letter from the Grave' Before 2008 Death Now Husband Is Guilty of Poisoning Her with Antifreeze, Body of Missing Md. And they used to it was horrible, it was just horrible, because I hated to leave, hated to leave. Except for that day, she said. Both had . Meanwhile, Baltimore city homicide detectives are continuing. Marilyn Cesnik RadakovicSister Cathy's younger sister, who joins the investigation with Hoskins and Schaub during "The Keepers.". Maskell was a police chaplain and he knew people in high places that's how they got away with it. [2] Her paternal grandparents, John (Jan) and Johanna Tomec esnik, were Slovenians who emigrated from Yugoslavia,[3] while her maternal grandfather, Joseph Omulac, came from Yugoslavia and maternal grandmother, Martha Hudok, came from Austria. Because the federal government keeps stalling and refusing to release information under the FOIA regarding Joyce Maleckis murder, there are likely countless pieces of possibly helpful evidence related to the homicides of both Joyce Malecki and Sister Cathy. 'The Keepers' Update: New DNA Evidence Found In Sister Cathy Cesniks Murder Case, Amy Robach and T.J. Holmes Should Remain On-Air Couple After ABC Exit, According to TV Host, Ryan Seacrest Addresses 'American Idol' Future After Exiting 'Live With Kelly and Ryan', 'Yellowstone': Paramount Boss Addresses Matthew McConaughey Spinoff Rumors, 'Yellowstone' Franchise Plans to Debut 2 Shows Every Year, 'Star Trek: Discovery' Fate Revealed at Paramount+ Ahead of Fifth Season, 'The Bachelor' Fans Slam New Season as Boring, Brie & Nikki Bella to Host Reality Competition Series, 'The Office' Alum's Sister-In-Law Found Dead Over 10 Days After Being Reported Missing. A headline in a Baltimore newspaper blared: 'City Police Fail To Find Missing Nun.'. Savvy internet sleuths have found evidence that James Maskell, a former patrolman, got a woman named Sarah Nell sentenced to a year in prison for biting him while he attempted to assault her. Detectives investigating her death believe she may have encountered her murderer outside her apartment since her car was found parked in the complex the day after her disappearance. He was never charged with Sister Cathys murder. There was only the two of us for a long time, so we were really close, Radakovic says. Her former students believe that Sister Cathy was murdered as part of a cover-up to protect a priest at the school, A. Joseph Maskell, who Cesnik suspected was guilty of sexual abuse of students. Nugent reported that three Keough graduates, who each received settlements from the Archdiocese of Baltimore for injuries of $40,000 or more as parties to this case, during the past years have told Inside Baltimore that they were also raped by policemen with the approval of the depraved Father Maskell. The Keepers was an intense docu-series on Netflix about an unsolved murder, and here are some bits of evidence the show has left out. She said Maskell knew people in high places and would allegedly 'allow girls at the school to talk about sex and drugs in his office'. Though she spent years in the dark, Radakovic is now regularly in touch with cold-case detectives after first meeting with them in the spring of 2016. Netflix's documentary series "The Keepers" dives into the case and uncovers a web of abuse that may . [13], Netflix produced a seven-part documentary series about the case called The Keepers, which debuted on May 19, 2017. I have very little doubt at the finish line. The next time the young nun was seen, it was by a female student from Cesnik's school, Archbishop Keough High School. A few years ago my auntconnected me to Jean, her friend. We are no longer accepting comments on this article. And they just paid settlements to the survivors its not that they deny it happened. And after almost 50 years, Sister Cathy's murder has remained unsolved. ", Up Next: Netflix Hidden Gems For Sci-Fi And Fantasy Lovers. Stuff being crimes, and they're walking around.. Charles FranzIn "The Keepers," Charles Franz came forward as one of Maskell's abuse victims in the 1960s. Soon they were linking that abuse to Sister Cathy's murder, and speculation that she was going to blow the whistle and tell all. It was early 2016 and the couple was at the California apartment of Radakovics mother, who had recently died. The exact number of his victims remains unclear. Joyce MaleckiThe 20-year-old Baltimore woman went missing on Nov. 11, 1969. "The Keepers" explores the murder of Sister Catherine Cesnik, who disappeared in November 1969 and whose body was discovered in January of 1970. One of the most frustrating aspects of being a true crime fan is dealing with endless cover-ups from authorities and government entities, like police and the FBI. Peter McKeonMcKeon was also a priest, and accompanied Koob to Sister Cathy's apartment when Sister Russell called to say she was missing. A retired, unnamed police homicide detective revealed to Nugent that the church authorities had allegedly used influence to impede the police investigation into Sister Cathys murder. ', 'Before I knew it, there was a big man on top of me and then I thought that would be it and another policeman came in and I could hear Maskell in the distance talking and laughing. Kathy HobeckIn addition to Wehner and Lancaster, Kathy Hobeck is one of six abuse victims who appears in "The Keepers." The Baltimore police has since reopened its investigation. She joined the School Sisters of Notre Dame when she was 18. Schaub was previously a nurse. It had to be somebody who knew her.'. After a week of teaching, Sister Cathy, a member of the Sisters of Notre Dame, and the daughter of a Pennsylvania postal worker, decided on Friday night that she was going to go shopping. The church has denied the charges, but it has settled dozens of sexual abuse cases in the matter of Father Maskell. She chose not to charge Maskell, saying the case lacked evidence. That documentary series, The Keepers, premiered on Netflix on Friday with Radakovic as a key participant. [1] Her body was discovered on January 3, 1970, near a garbage dump in the Baltimore suburb of Lansdowne. Tweet. Since then, he's been tracking and investigating the story over the years and is one of the investigators of her death in "The Keepers.". According to Hollywoodlife.com, Joseph Maskell's body was exhumed in Feb. 2017 and his DNA was tested by a forensics lab against DNA evidence found near the crime scene of Sister Cathy. For more on Sister Cathys mysterious death and the secrets she may have been killed to keep, subscribe now to PEOPLE or pick up this weeks issue, on newsstands now. The biggest hurdle was that the case was so old, that it was 45 years old. What we do know is that the FBIs continuing failure to contribute meaningfully to this case has negatively impacted any chance at an ending to the story. We went through Christmas with Cathy being missing, and that whole time because I had gotten that letter I was sure she was alive, Radakovic says. Magnus died in 1988 and was never charged with any crimes. The documentary investigates whether Maskell had. In her first interview about Cesnik, Radakovic speaks to PEOPLE about who her sister really was, what the decades after her death have been like and her renewed quest for answers. And she has not stopped looking into the murder of her former teacher. According to CNN, Bode Cellmark Forensics laboratory in Lorton, Virginia was responsible for comparing the DNA to the sample from the murder scene. 'After that we had to break away from him. I think he's dead, but I may be wrong. Detectives revealed on Wednesday that after weeks of testing, Maskell's DNA did not match evidence found from the murder scene nearly 50 years ago. Friday, Nov. 7, 1969 - Sister Cesnik, 26, left her Baltimore apartment for Edmondson Village Shopping Center in the early evening, according to her roommate, Sister Helen Russell Phillips. She thought she had more potential than they were allowing.. In 1994, two women identified only as 'Jane Doe' and 'Jane Roe' alleged that Maskell had raped them when they were students at Sister Cathy's school. [13][14] Police spokeswoman Elise Armacost announced that this discovery does not exclude Maskell from being a suspect in the case. As I stared at my hands in shock, Father Maskell leaned over and whispered in my ear, you see what happens when you say bad things about people.. An autopsy revealed Cathy Cesnik had been struck on the back of her head, there was a hole the size of a quarter in her skull, and there were strangulation marks on her neck. Jean is the most incredible survivor that Ive ever witnessed. The only way to do that was to find people who were involved. The Keepers filmmaker Ryan White made the new Netflix docuseries that has everyone on the edge of their seats. Six years Cesniks junior, Radakovic grew up as her tag-along and daily charge, as Cesnik babysat while their parents worked. The plaintiffs appealed. Some are calling it The Next Making a Murderer' what is your response to that? The discovery of Cesniks dead body rocked the family. But its not about popularity, its about the impact My hope is that we can have a fraction of that popularitythat leads to justice. They filed a $40 million civil lawsuit against him, the Baltimore Archdiocese, the sisters who ran the school, and a local gynecologist. The grisly case has. ', Asked how they could get away with such a crime, Lancaster told the TV news interviewer, 'Power and fear. Sister Cathy Cesnik's disappearance and murder remain an unsolved mystery. As The Keepers details, Radakovics engagement may have been one of the last things on Cesniks mind before she vanished while shopping on Nov. 7, 1969. The mysterious Brother Bob is, in many ways, even more chilling a figure than A. Joseph Maskell. On November 7, 1969, 26-year-old Sister Catherine Cesnik vanished. Netflix's documentary series "The Keepers" dives into the case and uncovers a web of abuse that may . James Maskell, A. Joseph Maskells uncle, is a similarly powerful and threatening figure that deserves to be prodded harder. Her life had been threatened and she had allegedly been abused by the priest. On November 7, 1969, Cesnik disappeared. She also talked about what happened after Sister Cathy found out about it. Gemma connected us with so many people in The Keepers.. However, the Catholic Church is completely unwilling to share these documents, even though White says he would love for them to be transparent and show the world what they have.. They encourage everyone reading this to question everything, stay hydrated, and treat others with kindness. 1 of 40 Sister Catherine Cesnik is pictured with her father, Joseph Cesnik. Were you scared of taking on the Catholic Church? He was accused of sexual abuse and aiding Maskell, and was also named in a 1994 lawsuit. The series also renewed the investigations into the murders of two women, Sister Cathy Cesnik and Joyce Malecki. And I can hear Cathy saying 'I told you I'd take care of this' and I said, I didn't think you meant 20 years later. . When she realized Sister Cathy was missing, she called Koob, and together with him and McKeon, the three later called the police. The plaintiffs suits are thus barred by the statute of limitation. Published on May 18, 2017 10:03 AM. [6] Residents at the apartment complex noticed Cesnik in her car at approximately 8:30 that night, and others spotted her car illegally parked across the street about two hours later. She moved into an apartment with another nun and was weighing her options. As one of the Baltimore detectives who initially worked on the case, Nick Giangrasso, told a reporter for Huffington Post: 'The Catholic Church had a lot of input into the police department. Give Light and the People Will Find Their Own Way. The girl left but the next day, she later claimed, Maskell waved a gun at her, warning he'd kill her and her family if she revealed the abuse. [15] The series features interviews with women who were Cesnik's students, with some who say they were sexually abused by Maskell and others.[16]. When she was reported missing later that night, several dozen cops and half-a-dozen dog teams unsuccessfully searched a wide swath of Baltimore's southwest neighborhood searching for clues to her whereabouts. Amateur sleuths have continued tracking the famous cold case in a new podcast series. And I had spent time trying to convince my parents, Shes alive, lets find out what the letter says, shes tellin us where she is, we need to go, we need to find her, we need to help her. , I dont think we thought she was dead, Radakovic remembers. 102, September Term 1995, "Baltimore Archdiocese Pays Settlements to a Dozen People Alleging Abuse by Late Priest", "Netflix's 'The Keepers' generates interest in other Md. Cesnik attended St. Mary's School on 57th Street and St. Augustine High School, both in Lawrenceville. Making a Murderer was sucha phenomenon and if we have a fraction the popularity of Making a Murderer, I will be a happy filmmaker. Either way, theyre lying and withholding information that would be helpful to the case. Baltimore nun Cathy Cesnik, 26, vanished while out on a shopping trip in November 7, 1969. It would be two months later, on January 3, 1970, that a couple of hunters came upon Sister Cathy's decomposed, frozen and mutilated body, and notified police. There are six survivors showcased in the documentarybut we had many conversationswith other survivors who werent featured in the documentary. What we tried to do in the editing was present all various narratives. The theory that people in position of authority and power are ableto decide what we as the populous know or dont know or whether survivors of abuse are validated or not I also liked the institutional meaning of The Keepers.. I have deep gratitude for the detectiveswho sat down with me and had complete transparency in opening their crime scene photos and investigation. Sister Cesnik had been reported as a missing person on November 7, 1969, from her residence at the Carriage House Apartments in Baltimore City, 21229. I had fond memoriesof the church, but for this, they were so non-participatory with it. 'Father Maskell picked me up, took me to a wooded area where there was a lot of policemen gathered around, he left me in the backseat and two policemen abused me while Maskell stood next to the car. Those who knew her at the time said that she wouldn't allow any conversation about Cesnik's death, saying that was her life before, and that she now had a new life. I mean, my mother loved eating chocolate, and I remember distinctly my mother said, Im gonna give up chocolate until Cathy comes home and then Im gonna eat chocolate until I get sick. . For the next 47 years, the case went unsolved until now. Also Read: 'The Keepers': Sister Cathy's Medical Examiner Also Worked on JFK, JonBenet Ramsey Cases. White, the Keepers director, said nearly the same thing in a separate interview. He was well connected to the local community and to the police departments, at both the county and state levels. Everything Ive done, Ive really tried since that time which is just a little over a year ago for me Ive tried to give them all the information that Ive learned, she says of working with authorities. Do not sell or share my personal information. ', One former student, Teresa Lancaster, told WJZ-TV in Baltimore, that Sister Cathy had 'confronted' Maskell 'and she lost her life for it. Hoskins and Schaub looked into each of those tips, and the tips have kept coming in for the past five years. Does he ever reveal them? Sister Cathy's body was undressed to the waist. Oddly, her Ford Maverick, which she had recently purchased, was found just a block from her apartment parked illegally in a no parking area and unlocked. She was comfortablewith that the long length of production actuallyhelped her comfort level. Farm Heroes Saga, the #4 Game on iTunes. In 2004, a retired Baltimore homicide detective told the Baltimore City Paper that the church lawyers had 'stepped in and they talked to the higher-ups at the police department. The Keepers will premiere on Netflix on May 19. However, she didnt want to go on the record. In fact, people around the world were so distraught at learning about Sister Cathys case that they started flooding the Baltimore County Police with calls. Tom Nugent, author of the acclaimed Death at Buffalo Creek, and an investigative journalist, has been writing about Sister Cathys case since 1994, and recently in his online publication, Inside Baltimore.. Joyce Maleckis murder is explored as much as it can be as being potentially connected to the murder of Sister Cathy Cesnik, but theres still so much that Abbie, Gemma, and audiences dont know. He was said to have allowed girls at the school to talk about sex and drugs in his office, and even permitted alcohol and cigarettes during gatherings in his rectory living quarters. Tom NugentFreelance journalist Tom Nugent covered Sister Cathy's death starting in 1994. On January 3, 1970, the decomposed body of Sister Catherine Ann Cesnik was discovered at a dumping area on Monumental Avenue in Halethorpe, 21227. It started with a freelance journalist, Tom Nugent. Radakovic still tears up when she talks about Cesnik, who died more than 46 years ago. Ryan White's aunt attended Archbishop Keough High School, and had stayed in touch with Jean Hargadon-Wehner. Her mutilated remains were found on January 1970 and her murder is still unsolved. No one, not even fellow Keough graduates, knew that Jean Hargadon-Wehner was the so-called "Jane Doe" who came forward in the early 1990's and accused the Archdiocese of Baltimore of allowing the abuse to continue.