It all started with what seemed like a normal request.
My daughter, Lauria, had just turned 16 and asked to spend the night at her best friend Ashley’s house.
I agreed immediately. After all, she had never given us a moment of worry—and with her aunt Pam having recently passed away, I wanted her to have some joy.
I kissed her goodbye as she left, never imagining that this simple sleepover would turn into a parent’s worst nightmare.
Fire and Fear
The next morning, I was managing the restaurant I work at when Lauria’s older brother called me in panic.
Ashley’s home was on fire, and he couldn’t reach Lauria. My heart sank.
Police arrived soon after and confirmed the unthinkable: the Freemans’ house had burned to the ground.
Bodies of Ashley’s parents, Kathy and Danny, were discovered—both shot in the head.
This was no ordinary fire; it was a cover-up for murder.
Clues That Something Was Wrong
As the investigation unfolded, we learned Danny had been involved in selling drugs.
My immediate fear was that whoever killed him and his wife had taken the girls.
But police seemed to believe the girls were simply hiding, which made no sense to me. Lauria wouldn’t have left us worrying.
Her bag, cash, car keys, and ID were all found in the ashes, yet the girls weren’t entered into the national missing persons database.
Determined, I created posters and distributed them across 100 miles, refusing to sit back while uncertainty ruled.
Turning to Every Resource
A few days later, John Walsh from America’s Most Wanted reached out, urging me to become my daughter’s voice.
From that point on, the search consumed my life. I delved into the world of drug dealers, hoping to track any lead about Lauria and Ashley.
Months later, a local cartel boss told me the girls hadn’t been trafficked, and my hope that they were alive began to fade.
Yet the horror kept creeping in. Another informant claimed the girls had been abducted, raped, tortured, and murdered, with images taken as proof.
I handed everything to police, but often had to pursue leads myself—searching old homes, arranging excavations, and appealing publicly for information.
Faces of Evil Revealed
Over the years, two killers confessed but nothing came of it. In 2016, I started a Facebook campaign, which brought three names to the forefront: David Pennington, Warren “Phil” Welch, and Ronnie Busick.
Pennington and Welch were dead, but Busick was still alive. I tracked him down via social media, leading to his arrest in April 2018 on four counts of murder.
A former girlfriend of Welch revealed horrifying Polaroids showing the girls tied up and starved, and officers believed they had been held for up to seven days.
Busick admitted only to being an accessory to first-degree murder and refused to reveal more, even when I confronted him in prison.
A Mother’s Unending Search
He gave police the location of a cellar, but no trace of Lauria or Ashley was found.
He received a 15-year sentence, yet the full truth of what happened remains buried. Despite the devastation, I cannot stop searching.
Lauria was a kind and gentle soul, and all I can do now is continue fighting for her memory, hoping one day to bring her home and put her to rest.
At 62, I know I will never give up this search. A mother’s love doesn’t end, and neither will mine for Lauria.
