Jennifer Schuett and Police Chief Tim Cromie

"Lived to Tell: The Jennifer Schuett Story"

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This case study will detail the story of one of the presenters, Jennifer Schuett, who was kidnapped as an eight-year old, brutally raped, had her throat cut and was left for dead in a field. The challenges faced in the initial investigation which included a severely injured and traumatized child victim, and when multiple agencies, including the FBI, are involved will be examined. Jennifer will share her memory of that night, her desire to find her attacker, and moving on with her life.

How time became both an obstacle and an advantage in an 18-year old investigation will be discussed. The use of the media, including America’s Most Wanted, to find possible witnesses and clues will be reviewed. The presentation will explain how DNA identified a possible suspect and the steps taken to connect him to the crime. Jennifer will talk about highs and lows of the investigation and dealing with multiple detectives over the years. She will describe her experiences, becoming the “Survivor,” and her desire to motivate survivors and the professionals who work within the system.

Special Agent Matthew Fowler, FBI

Online chat Investigations:

Sexual exploitation of minors

This presentation will explore the use of sophisticated techniques in online chat investigations. Several cases will be highlighted that show varying circumstances investigators faced during chatting and face-to-face meetings with subjects involved in the sexual exploitation of minors.

The presentation will use actual chats, along with audio and video recordings, to highlight the challenges and techniques used in cases involving enticement and sex trafficking crimes. A trial, in which the sophisticated techniques discussed in this workshop, was introduced for the first time in Federal Court will be discussed. This successful prosecution resulted in a 30-year sentence for the defendant. Lastly, the common issues, pitfalls, and best practices in chat investigations will be presented. 

Supervisory Special Agent Cari Robins

Uganda Serial Murders: 

In 2017, over the course of only 5 months, 24 women were killed near Kampala, the capital of Uganda.  In a country where most people do not have access to cable television or social media, these homicides demonstrated a level of sadism often only depicted in movies.  This presentation will discuss the investigation of those serial sexual murders from a behavioral perspective.

Intimate Partner Homicide: 

The majority of murdered women are killed by a current or former intimate partner, however the critical detail of a relationship between the victim and offender is all too often overlooked.  This presentation will demonstrate how examining an investigation with this lens widens the scope of where investigators can find evidence.  One aspect of this presentation is understanding intimate partner violence, including stalking behaviors, which is critical in investigations and also in the prevention of this type of homicide.  Through several case examples and lessons learned, various aspects of intimate partner homicide investigation will explored.

Presentation Summary:

This presentation will provide an overview of a case study, "The Apple Dumpling Gang," which yielded the largest sentence of a human trafficker in US History (400 years-LIFE). The case will highlight the use of the proactive high risk model and the human trafficking victim identification tool, which initiated the case due to the identification of the first juvenile victim. The case study will incorporate the investigation (involving a multi-pimping operation and multiple victims), long-term victim assistance efforts/services, and intelligence efforts.

Presenters: FBI Task Force Officer, Detective Penny Gallegos (Colorado State Patrol); FBI Victim Specialist, Anne Darr, FBI Staff Operation Specialist, Whitney Orndorff.