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| MISSING/ENDANGERED Branson Perry Skidmore, MO |
On April 11, 2001, Branson Perry asked a friend to come over to help him clean up in preparation for his father's April 13 return from the hospital. The twenty-year old had been living with his father, Bob, at 304 West Oak Street in Skidmore, Mo., and his father had been hospitalized
Branson's parents had divorced five months earlier, and his mother, Becky Klino, lived in a small town about 20 miles away. While Branson and his friend cleaned the house, two men worked to replace a broken alternator on Bob’s car that had gone out the previous day. The car was parked on the street in front of a storage shed next to the Perry home. Perry was last seen walking to the storage shed to hang up some jumper cables, then he vanished.
Inexplicably, no one saw where he went or what happened to him.
According to a forum message by Klino, "The events of the day are fairly sketchy to me and often make no sense. I don’t have a time line of when they occurred, only sporadic comments that were made. At one point, the friend saw Branson run into the kitchen and take something out of one of the cabinets, then run out the back door. When he returned, she said he wouldn’t tell her what he was doing and acted like nothing happened. Later, she said she had taken a shower and when she came out of the bathroom, she saw one of the men that were working on the car going through the cabinets in the kitchen. She said she asked him what he was looking for and he told her nothing and went back outside."
Klino says that at around 3 p.m., Branson's friend was upstairs when she heard the front porch door close. She looked out the window and saw Branson and asked him where he was going. He replied that he was going to put the jumper cables in the storage shed and would be right back. He never returned.
When Bob Perry was not able to come home from the hospital on Friday as expected, Branson's grandmother stopped by to check on him. She had not heard from her grandson for a couple of days, and she was surprised to find that all the doors had been left open on the house. The radio was also on, but Branson was not there. She became concerned when she returned the following day to find that Branson still wasn't home. Calls to his friends proved fruitless; no one had seen the young man. She notified Bob Perry on Sunday, who then called Becky Klino that evening. On Monday morning, Bob was discharged from the hospital and all three met at the police station to file a missing person’s report.
The search and the investigation
When police arrived at the Perry home to investigate the disappearance, they determined that nothing of Branson's appeared to be missing. His van, wallet, and all of his personal belongings were left behind. The men working on the car told police they never saw Branson while he was on his way to the shed. The jumper cables were also not in the shed.
According to Klino, "Several people were given lie detector tests. Some passed it and some didn’t. I was not given details, which I understand." But in an odd turn of events, just two weeks after the investigation started, Klino said the jumper cables, "mysteriously showed up in the shed, just inside the door."
It is believed that Branson was lured away, possibly by an acquaintance(s).
On December 16, 2004, one of Branson Perry's relatives, Bobbi Jo Stinnett, who also lived in the small farming community of Skidmore was brutally murdered in an attempt to steal her unborn child. The case is not thought to be related to Branson's disappearance.
The year before, a possible suspect emerged. According to the Associated Press, Jack Wayne Rogers, from Fulton, had bragged in an online chat room that he had "abducted, raped and murdered a blond-haired man from Skidmore" and said "police would never find the body because of how he disposed of it in a remote area of the Ozarks." A search of Rogers's yard for possible buried evidence yielded nothing. Rogers remained the prime suspect for years, but no additional evidence has ever surfaced to link Rogers to Branson's disappearance, or to the crime he bragged about, so no charges have been filed.
Rogers denies ever having contact with Branson Perry, claiming the logs were only fantasy. Rogers was eventually arrested on several charges unrelated to Perry's disappearance. He is currently serving a 30-year sentence in federal prison with no chance of parole for child pornography and allegedly performing a gender reassignment on an individual in a motel room.
According to a forum message by Klino, "The events of the day are fairly sketchy to me and often make no sense. I don’t have a time line of when they occurred, only sporadic comments that were made. At one point, the friend saw Branson run into the kitchen and take something out of one of the cabinets, then run out the back door. When he returned, she said he wouldn’t tell her what he was doing and acted like nothing happened. Later, she said she had taken a shower and when she came out of the bathroom, she saw one of the men that were working on the car going through the cabinets in the kitchen. She said she asked him what he was looking for and he told her nothing and went back outside."
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| Perry family home. Credit: Skidmore Police Department and family. |
Klino says that at around 3 p.m., Branson's friend was upstairs when she heard the front porch door close. She looked out the window and saw Branson and asked him where he was going. He replied that he was going to put the jumper cables in the storage shed and would be right back. He never returned.
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| Perry storage shed Credit: Skidmore Police Dept. and family |
The search and the investigation
When police arrived at the Perry home to investigate the disappearance, they determined that nothing of Branson's appeared to be missing. His van, wallet, and all of his personal belongings were left behind. The men working on the car told police they never saw Branson while he was on his way to the shed. The jumper cables were also not in the shed.
According to Klino, "Several people were given lie detector tests. Some passed it and some didn’t. I was not given details, which I understand." But in an odd turn of events, just two weeks after the investigation started, Klino said the jumper cables, "mysteriously showed up in the shed, just inside the door."
It is believed that Branson was lured away, possibly by an acquaintance(s).
On December 16, 2004, one of Branson Perry's relatives, Bobbi Jo Stinnett, who also lived in the small farming community of Skidmore was brutally murdered in an attempt to steal her unborn child. The case is not thought to be related to Branson's disappearance.
The year before, a possible suspect emerged. According to the Associated Press, Jack Wayne Rogers, from Fulton, had bragged in an online chat room that he had "abducted, raped and murdered a blond-haired man from Skidmore" and said "police would never find the body because of how he disposed of it in a remote area of the Ozarks." A search of Rogers's yard for possible buried evidence yielded nothing. Rogers remained the prime suspect for years, but no additional evidence has ever surfaced to link Rogers to Branson's disappearance, or to the crime he bragged about, so no charges have been filed.
Rogers denies ever having contact with Branson Perry, claiming the logs were only fantasy. Rogers was eventually arrested on several charges unrelated to Perry's disappearance. He is currently serving a 30-year sentence in federal prison with no chance of parole for child pornography and allegedly performing a gender reassignment on an individual in a motel room.
"The police are not completely ruling out Rogers," Klino wrote in a post on her forum, "but now the investigation has turned towards Skidmore again. They have received new leads there. I suppose time has a way of unraveling secrets. I believe someone in that area knows what happened to Branson. In my heart, I don’t believe Rogers is responsible. Despite the nightmare I lived through then, I am thankful that someone with that much evil will never walk the streets again. If it wasn’t for that chat log they found on the other computer, the police may never have come across that animal."
A mother's plea for justice
Becky Klino remained devoted to finding out what happened to her son. On a former website dedicated to Branson's disappearance, she wrote:
I have never been a person to ask for much. I am asking, pleading, even begging for your help in finding my son or finding out what happened to him. I need for this nightmare to end. It is a roller coaster that doesn’t ever stop. From the outside I may appear to be fine. Inside, I will never be ok. If you have ever lost someone who has died, then you know that feeling of complete despair. Over time it eases and becomes bearable.
You know the cause of what happened and you have been able to put your loved one to rest. You will always have that sense of emptiness and at times it overcomes you, but you are able to put it into perspective again. Parents of missing children never have that feeling ease. It never becomes bearable, only easier to hide. One minute you are ok and functioning, the next minute something triggers inside and you plummet to the deepest ravine you could ever imagine and can’t find any way out. It can be something as simple as a smell, a taste, a sound, a touch and all the horror is there again. It never ends.
Please, please, please find it in your hearts to come forward if you have ANY information. You may think it is insignificant, but it may be the key link to answers.
Sadly, both of Branson's parents died before ever finding out what happened to their son. Bob Perry passed away in 2004. Rebecca Kilno passed away of melanoma cancer in February 2011. It was written in Klino's obituary that she had been preceded in death by her son.
"I think she knew he wasn’t alive," said Monica Caison, founder of the CUE Center for Missing Persons, "but she always wanted to continue to look for him either way.” Branson's aunt, brother, other family members, and friends of Klino's are still looking for answers.
Sgt. Roger Phillips, an investigator for the drug and crime control division of the Missouri State Highway Patrol, says he is also committed to the investigation. “Just because (Ms. Klino) is not here doesn’t mean this train is not going to keep moving,” Phillips said. “It’s about getting to the truth.”
Due to the circumstances, Branson Perry's disappearance has been classified as Endangered Missing/Homicide and a sample of his DNA has been placed in the CODIS database, in the hopes that his remains might someday be found and returned to his family. A $20,000.00 reward is being offered for information that leads to the recovery of Branson’s remains and for the arrest and conviction of the person or persons responsible for the disappearance and HOMICIDE of Branson Kayne Perry.
If you have any information about Branson Perry's disappearance, call Detective Roger Phillips, Missouri State Highway Patrol at (816) 387-2345. If you wish to remain anonymous, call the CUE Center's anonymous tip line at (910) 232-1687.
About Branson Perry
Branson Perry graduated Nodaway-Holt High School in 1999, and had been employed by a roofing company and a traveling petting zoo. He was unemployed at the time of his disappearance. Perry was a non-smoker and a weightlifter, and had a black belt in hopkido.
According to News Press Now:
For 19 years, Michael Kurz, a New Jersey police officer, has spent his off-time doing online sleuthing into Perry's disappearance. He believes that Perry's case is drug related, as does the Nodaway County Sheriff's Office.
Perry’s aunt, Gail McMurray, said Perry was compassionate and loved nature but never knew he was involved in drugs.
“He kept that part of him away from me,” she said. “I knew about him, going camping and all the fun stuff and about his personal life, but I did not know anything about the drug life.”
She found out about Perry’s addiction when he told her he wanted to get clean. He disappeared only a couple of days before he was supposed to enter a rehabilitation center.
Through years of information and leads, Nodaway County Sheriff Randy Strong and Kurz said they have found a suspect. However, there isn’t enough evidence to make an arrest, as Perry's remains haven't been found. He believes someone will need to come forward with evidence.
Details of Disappearance
Name/age: Branson Kayne Perry, 20
Missing Since: 04/11/01
Missing from: Skidmore, Missouri
Classification: Endangered Missing
Date Of Birth: 02/24/81
Physical Description: white male, 5'9", 140-155, blonde hair, physically fit
Distinguishing Characteristics: Small faint scar on upper right cheek. Small scar on left knee. Normal teeth; wisdom teeth have been pulled. Right handed. Black belt in Hopkido, lifted weights.
Medical Conditions: Racing heart condition. Allergic to Penicillin. Clothing: Shorts (size 32) and a T-shirt (size medium to large).
Jewelry: Possibly wearing necklaces and leather trinkets or chains with arrowheads on them.
DNA: in CODIS
Investigating Agency: Missouri State Highway Patrol, (816) 387-2345.
Links: http://www.bransonperry.com/tag/branson-perry/.
Sources
Ritzdorf, Quinn. (2022 Aug 14). Officers have suspect, still need evidence in 21-year missing person case.
Published: 4/15/11 Last updated: 7/4/24.
22 comments:
This is an extremely sad case. I can't even begin to understand how people simply disappear, especially when other people are around. I'm wondering if a predator had been spying on Perry prior to abducting him, if in fact he was abducted. The problem is that since there were people there it would be very risky for a predator to attempt an abduction. Because of this I would naturally suspect that the people there may know more that they haven't revealed. On top of that, a predator is not going to return the jumper cables. A person who was there, and perhaps attempting to cover-up their involvement, would return the jumper cables.
BITM,
I find this case particularly unsettling because Branson Perry was an athletic adult and he disappeared quickly and for no apparent reason, and it occurred during daylight hours when people were around, but no one saw anything.
It is my understanding that stranger abductions are statistically rare. I also agree with you that a stranger would not return the cables; there would be no need to do so, and it would pose a risk of getting caught.
Branson's mother, Becky Klino, fought very hard to find an answer to her son's disappearance. I truly hope an answer can be found for the Perry family. The family deserves--and needs--to know the truth. And they deserve to have a proper burial for Branson.
I'm wondering if there was some type of accident or even an altercation between him and the people there, one that led to his death with the people covering it up? I don't know. Very strange and sad case.
I think we've all seen movies where someone screws around and another person falls, usually on something, and is killed. Then the group covers it up because they are afraid nobody will believe it was an accident. That's sorta what my intuition is telling me in this case.
cant they take dna or fingerprints to find out who returned the cables. ?
@ crashed2002,
Good question. Unfortunately it's probably one of those things that should have been done at the time. Also, there's no real way to determine if any prints would be from the person(s) responsible for his disappearance, unless it is a complete stranger whose prints should not be there.
I suspect you'd have to get permission/warrants to take samples from all those who were there, then compare them to the jumper cables. A match would really only prove that the person touched the cables at some point--not necessarily that he/she returned them or was involved in foul play. And if the prints/DNA belonged to a stranger with no police record, I think the police would be out of luck.
I am hoping samples were taken. If a strong suspect ever emerges, perhaps this could be used in court to help build a case against him/her.
Thank you for including Branson on your website.. May we provide a link back as well.?
http://bransonperry.com
Thank you
Linda
Absolutely! And do please let me know if there is anything else I can do to help. I'd be happy to post updates, announcements, etc.--whatever is needed.
Dear God! This is another senseless sad case of a beautiful person who seems like he is so nice, who dropped off the face of the earth.
I pray his poor family and friends find answers. I don't understand it at all.
I kind of wonder about the two guys who were there the day he disappeared. His friend said she caught them rummaging in the kitchen cupboards and they acted odd and secretive when she questioned them. Branson was acting oddly too...what the heck was going on???
@Amy,
I couldn't agree more that there are far too many of these cases. Each time I read about one, it's like receiving a strong and deliberate punch to the gut. It's scary to think that in this ever-shrinking world, people could disappear without a trace. I hope Branson's loved ones and supporters find answers!
Very sad and rare
They need to bring the friend in and the two guys fixing his car and bring them in for some brutal questioning! I think they must know something and should be questioned until one of them cracks. The jumper cables just don't magically appear back in a shed like that. I know of I were in the case,i would not play around. Sadly both Branson's parents didn't get the justice they deserved. This case needs to be solved by bringing in those three people because I know one of them is not telling the truth!
If the friend saw Branson walk out to the shed with the jumper cables, and he never returned after saying he would be "right back," when he didn't come right back, what'd she do, just leave? That makes no sense. If I'm hanging with my friend and he randomly disspeared I wouldn't just go home. And if all the doors were open it must have been her who opened them because she obviously left after he did. And if two people were working on the car at the same time, when they got done, what'd they do, just split as well? Nothing about that adds up.
Agree.. and also the jumper cables reappeared 2 weeks later.
Please visit site dedicated to Branson's case http://bringbransonhome.wordpress.com
Thank You
I have to agree with the posts about 1) jumper cables seemingly showing back up, that’s evidence so if they were in a “predator’s” possession said “predator” wouldn’t return them. That’s very suspect. 2) He leaves and says “I’ll be right back”, to friends who are helping out with cleaning essentially doing manual labor which all of us will do for a friend but human nature dictates anyone of us doing that type of work with your friend who initiates it asks for help doesn’t come back and sticks everyone else with the cleaning of course we are all going to look for that person, especially if he didn’t come back within at least 10-15mins. It’s human nature we’re gonna look and yet nobody sees him he just vanishes somethings wrong
Well damn it why is nothing being done and why has he not been found and laid to rest beside his mother?
I don't get it. He was a living human being and who ever did this needs to be brought to justice. People talk a big talk about his disappearance but actions speak louder than words. Skidmore is a small town and every piece of ground needs searched,.. every drug person and any suspicious person needs to be questioned. Mostly the girl Jena that was there when he disappeared. Just because he is a missing male and had a drug problem as others say does not make him any lesser of a human being so let's stop with the guessing and hearsay and bring him home!
Interesting this site avoids mentioning that Branson was gay and had been drugged and raped by a neighbor, Jason Biermann, a few weeks before his disappearance. This site also failed to mention Mr. Biermann was not home for "two weeks" after Branson went missing and nor was he cooperative with police during the investigation. It also doesn't mention that Beirmann lived in a house right behind the shed, which Branson could have been easily lured over there. Aslo Jason Beirmann was in prison recently for being apart of a meth ring. A short time later Beirmann moved out of Skidmore. Several people want Branson's murderer brought to justice but why live out certain facts?
And why would she be taking a shower there? Maybe washing off some evidence?
I lived in Graham years ago I knew of Becky and her family. My friend and I used to buy flowers from them out of the green house there. My question is, when that girl looked out the window did she see Branson with the jumper cables? And,how far was the car from the shed that these friends were supposed to be working on. Because these two guys Saud they never saw Branson go to the shed. If they were working that close to the shed or house , how could they not of saw him. In my opinion someone is lieing. Police should keep pushing and questioning them.
There was a mini series documentary done on this (called "No One Saw A Thing") and two other notorious murders in Skidmore last month. They spent about a hour on Branson's case and there was absolutely no mention of the next door neighbor (Biermann) nor Rogers and the alleged rape Branson spoke about (they did very briefly mention the jumper cables that suddenly reappeared). His sexuality wasn't also mentioned. It focused on drugs and the investigator said he knows exactly who killed him and it was about a drug deal gone wrong scenario. They haven't arrested the person they "know" who killed him nor mentioned his name because they are still trying to get more evidence. Maybe it was Biermann after all. The mini series was mostly about the McElroy murder but was thankful they shined a light on Branson and the Stinnett case. My take on the whole thing is that Branson was selling drugs and kept some of the money instead of turning it into the drug dealer. I believe when he was seen going in and taking "something" out of the cupboard it could have been what was left of the drug money (or drugs). He went back outside to give it to the drug dealers when they decided to kill him. There was mention of someone driving the body "'several states" away and disposing of it, which is most likely what happened and we know Biermann disappeared during this time. Also there was absolutely no mention of the two mechanics that were there at the time of Branson's disappearance and just a very brief mention of his friend Gena. It did say his friend Gena saw him leaving the house with the jumper cables.
After watching that documentary last month I believe Branson was strangled with the jumper cables. The murderer cleaned them off and returned them two weeks later maybe out of guilt or to throw investigators off. I still believe it was Beirmann. It would have been easy for him to clean them and return them since he was under investigation and didn't want to be caught with them.
Sad case. Branson was only 20 and had his whole life ahead of him. I have little doubt the Skidmore police knows more about this case than they let on. Corruption runs rampant there. I just hope some justice can come in this case some day.
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