Murder of Walter Ackerson Jr.: Where are Troy Culver, Eric Forsgren and Geoff Calligan now?
Following the March 1990 abduction of Walter Ackerson, Jr., 16, of Yachats, Oregon, is the subject of Investigation Discovery’s “Shattered: The Pact.” Thanks to his tenacious mother, Karen Hull, the crime went unsolved for almost 20 years. The episode details the protracted investigative process and, at the end, the 20-year sentencing process for the offenders. We’ve got the information you need if you’re curious about the culprits and want to know who they are and where they are right now. So let’s get started, shall we?
Murder of Walter Ackerson Jr.
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The cause of death of Walter Ackerson Jr.
On July 6, 1973, Walter Thomas Ackerson Jr. was born in Kettle Falls, Stevens County, Washington. In an effort to leave an abusive relationship, he and his mother, Karen Hull, moved from the small hamlet of Kettle Falls to Puyallup, Washington. However, Walter found it difficult to adjust to the sudden change to a much larger school district as he began to be harassed and bullied at school by other students. He was small and had a hard time with other kids picking on him, Karen added. Many incidents of bullying back then simply weren’t handled the way they are today.
Walter hated going to school, so when Karen found an alternative – the Oregon Job Corps – he first shared his joy. It seemed like a very incredible opportunity, Karen recalls. He planned to be able to finish his studies, progress and use it for something. Walter moved to Yachats, Oregon in March 1990 to join the Angell Federal Job Corps Center located 200 miles away. Finally, under rigorous supervision, he was able to continue his education and even earn his GED, choosing Culinary Arts as his desired career choice.
Before it came to an abrupt end in the final weeks of March 1990, Walter maintained constant communication with Karen and her grandmother, Delores, for the first two weeks. An administrator at Walter’s facility called Karen on April 5, 1990, to let her know that her son had been missing since March 24. When I urged them to file a missing person report, they asked me why. They informed me that my son ran away to Wyoming with another boy. I quoted his age, which is 16 years old. She had no idea her son was missing for good, and it would take over 20 years to solve the riddle.
Who was Walter Ackerson Jr.’s murderer?
After discovering that no missing person report had been made even two weeks after the call, Karen Hull traveled to Yachats, Oregon. Although she was initially told that Walter had fled with all of his belongings, she discovered them in his room. Staff then revealed to him that on March 24, 1990, Walter supposedly hitched up at Nye Beach in Newport, Oregon with 3 boys to drink alcohol, but he never returned. Karen also met the three boys, who were Troy August Culver, 20, Eric Forsgren, 19, and Geoff Calligan, 19.
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Troy August Culver
All three told the same story: they had snuck off campus to drink on the beach, but Walter had gotten lost, and they had never seen him again. Troy reportedly apologized to Karen and said he felt responsible, which Karen found hard to believe. I told him he didn’t have to feel bad if my son drank and walked away, she added. She had a nagging doubt, however, and Walter’s classmate, Emma Beller, only confirmed it.
Emma informed Karen that there were stories that Troy and Walter got into a fight, and that the three guys then beat her son and pushed him, barely alive, over the Yaquina Bay Bridge in Newport. Ten stories above the Pacific Ocean was the alleged crime scene. The case, however, was dismissed by the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Department as a runaway teenager case because they accepted the three boys’ version of events. The boys reportedly frequently left the Angell Federal Job Corps Center, and police identified Walter’s case as similar. They didn’t even follow Emma’s account of what happened.
The investigation was turned over to a new group of detectives in 2004 after being cold for some time and briefly reopened in 1996. Eric was being held in Multnomah County Jail at the time for unrelated offences, so that investigators re-interviewed him and Geoff. Emma couldn’t remember the incident and both men repeated the same version of what happened, but when investigators spoke with Troy they began to have second thoughts. He seemed to remember minute details even after 14 years, though others’ memories of the entire incident are inherently hazy.
The investigation once again appeared to be over, but the Prineville Police Department called the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Department to let them know that Troy had admitted killing Walter in 1990 to his probation officer. According to police reports, Troy has undergone psychological treatment and alcohol and drug treatment in addition to being a registered sex offender since being convicted of promoting child sexual abuse in 2007. On March 24, 1990, he allegedly beat Walter nearly to death and threw him to the ground. the bridge.
Murder of Walter Ackerson Jr.
Where are Geoff Calligan, Eric Forsgren and Troy Culver right now?
Under Oregon law, a confession to a crime can only result in a conviction if there is physical evidence to support the confession. The investigators chose to question the other 2 accomplices because finding proof was extremely unlikely given the time that had elapsed. Eric Forsgren and Geoff Calligan were again questioned by the police and, in exchange for immunity, they admitted that Troy had committed the crime. Even after dumping Walter’s body in the water and on the bridge, Eric still believed he was still alive.
In July 2010, Troy was charged with first degree murder and first degree manslaughter. Under 1990 sentencing guidelines, he was charged only with manslaughter and received a maximum prison term of 10 years after pleading guilty. He was released in June 2020 after serving his sentence at Snake River Correctional Institution. He still lives in Prineville, Oregon, in his 50s, and is still under community supervision.
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