Who Was Nona Dirksmeyer? Keith Morrison Explores The Unsolved Murder Of Beauty Queen

Publish date: 2024-04-26
On September 11, 2023, a 28-year-old man named Kevin Mason was arrested; however, he was unintentionally freed two days later, on September 13, 2023, at around 11:05 a.m. Authorities learnt of it many hours after his release and once more issued a warrant for his arrest at 5:30 p.m. According to investigators, later that day following Mason’s release, he called for a ride, and his girlfriend Desiree Oliver picked him up close to the jail. Forestal described his girlfriend’s purchase of a new phone in a press conference on September 20, 2023, as “the deceptive type of behaviour we’d expect from someone when they’re assisting a criminal.” He continued by saying that she also purchased men’s underpants, a travel bag and men’s slippers from Walmart.

An intriguing new podcast called “Murder in Apartment 12” with Dateline’s Keith Morrison as the host explores the mysterious passing of Arkansas beauty queen Nona Dirksmeyer. The podcast went live on Tuesday, September 26, 2023. All around the nation, the story of the beauty queen caught on like wildfire.

The crowned queen, Nona Dirksmeyer, was found dead in her Russellville residence. Since her brutal murder nearly 17 years ago, Gary Dunn, who was twice charged with her murder but was never convicted, has been imprisoned after meeting a new beauty queen in the same town.

Who Was Nona Dirksmeyer? 

Nona Dirksmeyer, a student at Arkansas Tech University, was only 19 years old when she participated in the Miss Arkansas competition. She won the hearts of many but sadly, after the beauty competition, she was discovered dead in her flat. The base of her own floor lamp was used to savagely stab and beat Nona to death. Despite the fact that there are still many unanswered issues about the incident and the inquiry, two individuals were apprehended and later charged with the heinous crime.

Nona Dirksmeyer Death: How Did He Die? 

Since the beauty queen’s body was discovered in her Russellville flat 17 years ago, friends, relatives and other River Valley residents have questioned whether justice will ever be done and whether the case ever be resolved. When Dirksmeyer passed away, police initially detained her lover; however, he was later found not guilty by a jury in 2007. A special prosecutor was chosen and a second investigation into the matter started after Jones was declared not guilty.

Police discovered a second suspect after conducting more research, on Gary Dunn. After serving six years in the Arkansas Department of Corrections after being found guilty of Battery in the Second Degree in connection with a 2002 incident in which he beat a female, Dunn, who resided across from Dirksmeyer in the same apartment complex, was on parole.

After his DNA was detected on a condom wrapper found on Nona’s kitchen counter, Dunn, who had been out of jail for four months, was named as a suspect in the murder of Dirksmeyer. Prosecutors accused Dunn of the murder in 2008, and the matter went to trial. On Tuesday, December 4, 2018, ten years after Dunn’s release, complaints of separate occurrences allegedly involving indecent exposure and an attempted kidnapping were brought to the attention of the Russellville Police Department and the Office of Public Safety at Arkansas Tech University.

Dunn was moved from the Pope County Detention Centre to an Arkansas Department of Corrections facility on December 21, 2018, due to a parole violation. After the DNA evidence was produced in court and contested by an expert witness for the opposition, there was not much direct evidence connecting Dunn to the crime. Dunn was ultimately given a 15-year prison term for attempting to kidnap someone, but he will only be serving a third of it. On August 11, 2023, he was set to be released. 

Keith Morrison’s “Murder in Apartment 12” Podcast

This podcast talks about the mysterious death of beauty queen, Nona Dirksmeyer. The first two episodes of “Murder in Apartment 12” will be available for free download and streaming on all podcasting platforms starting on September 26, 2023. The following two weeks will see the release of the final four episodes.

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