Episode 31: The Kidnapping of Jessica Gutierrez: 39 Years and Searching

In 1986, four-year-old Jessica Gutierrez disappeared from her South Carolina home in the middle of the night, leaving behind only a few strange clues and a single chilling statement from the sister who slept beside her... Her sister insisted that a man in a “wizard hat” carried Jessica away. After massive searches and years of dead ends, Jessica’s case refused to fade from the community’s memory. This episode breaks down what happened that night, the troubling investigation that followed, and the decades-long fight to uncover the truth.Got a story to tell? Send it in for the next episode of Boo's Clues!And help spread the word! Share the podcast with your true crime coven of friends and family or your paranormal pals.Website: https://www.suspectsandspirits.com/Follow the podcast on IG, Facebook, and TikTokIG: suspectsandspiritspodcastFaceboook: Suspects & Spirits PodcastTikTok: suspectsandspiritspodSources:https://www.lexingtonscsheriff.com/news-releases/man-sentenced-to-life-in-1986-cold-case-child-abduction-murder https://www.abccolumbia.com/2024/02/08/jury-finds-thomas-mcdowell-guilty-of-murdering-kidnapping-4-year-old-girl https://www.wistv.com/2024/02/08/prosecutors-present-impactful-evidence-jurors-day-3-thomas-mcdowell-murder-trial https://www.wistv.com/2024/02/08/state-defense-rest-thomas-mcdowell-murder-trial-day-4 https://www.lexingtonscsheriff.com/news-releases/suspect-arrested-in-1986-child-kidnapping-killing https://www.wcax.com/2022/01/07/child-kidnapping-killing-cold-case-coming-close-police-arrest-suspect-35-years-later https://www.oxygen.com/crime-news/thomas-mcdowell-charged-in-1986-murder-of-jessica-gutierrez https://www.koat.com/article/jessica-gutierrez-man-arrested-1986-kidnapping-murder/38700491 https://truecrimenews.com/2024/02/09/south-carolina-jessica-gutierrez-thomas-mcdowell-kidnapping-murder-missing-child-lexington-county https://www.lexingtonscsheriff.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/2024-Annual-Report-FINAL2.pdf

Episode metadata supplied by the publisher feed · Published Nov 26, 2025

Embed this episode

Attribution link and audio player

NOW PLAYING

Episode 31: The Kidnapping of Jessica Gutierrez: 39 Years and Searching

0:00 46:41

1×

No transcript for this episode yet

We transcribe on demand. Request one and we'll notify you when it's ready — usually under 10 minutes.

Share this episode

Similar Episodes

No similar episodes found.

Similar Podcasts

Back to Bardstown VAULT Studios Season four, "Back to Bardstown", is coming Tuesday, March 26. A puzzling web of victims and suspects now have more overlap than ever before. In season one, host Shay McAlister investigated five unsolved mysteries in Bardstown, Ky. This season, she takes us back to America's 'Most Beautiful Small Town' where shocking arrests and new developments in one case is linking victims and suspects from other cases in a way many only suspected, but never knew for sure. Explicit Another Not Guilty Another Not Guilty Another Not Guilty tells the stories true crime won’t touch — the real cases where the government gets it wrong, the defense fights back, and justice somehow survives. Hosted by public defenders who’ve seen everything from police “oopsies” to prosecutorial plot twists, ANG gives you a front-row seat to the wild, emotional, hilarious, and infuriating world inside America’s courtrooms.Each episode features real public defenders sharing the cases that made them laugh, cry, or question reality. These are true stories of everyday people thrown into a system built to convict — and the defenders who fought like hell to prove otherwise.You’ll hear unforgettable cases like:• “Meth, Murder, and a Missing Boyfriend” — a dark, twisty saga with cartel rumors, a desert crime scene, and a defendant everyone assumed was guilty… until he wasn’t.• “Pin the Gun on the Homie” — where a gun supposedly teleported between suspects.• “Is Explicit Grand Ramblings Hilary Smith & Shelby Tieche Shelby and Hilary are two best friends and kindred spirits who love to discuss the good, the bad, and the downright weird. Join them every week for 30+ minutes of chit-chat about life's little oddities. Lots of laughs, drinking, and breaking out into song is guaranteed. Explicit Curiosity Public's Podcast Curiosity Public Welcome to Curiosity Public - our highly opinionated, thought-provoking, and curiosity-driven journey of all things spirits! Explicit

Frequently Asked Questions

How long is this episode of Suspects & Spirits?

This episode is 46 minutes long.

When was this Suspects & Spirits episode published?

This episode was published on November 26, 2025.

Can I download this Suspects & Spirits episode?

Yes. Use the download control on the episode player to save the publisher-provided media file.

URL copied to clipboard!