Walter Ackerson Jr. Murder Case: What Have Become of Troy Culver, Eric Forsgren, and Geoff Calligan?

Walter Ackerson Jr. Murder Case: What Have Become of Troy Culver, Eric Forsgren, and Geoff Calligan?

Shattered: The Pact is a documentary series that airs on Investigation Discovery. It is based on the disappearance of Walter Ackerson Jr., who was 16 years old and last seen in Yachats, Oregon in March of 1990. It was his resilient mother, Karen Hull, who was ultimately responsible for solving the crime nearly two decades after it had been committed. In this episode, we follow the extensive investigation all the way through to its conclusion, which is how the criminals were finally convicted 20 years later. If you are intrigued by the situation and want to know the name of the people responsible and where they are at the moment, we have you covered. Then, shall we get started, will we?

 

Walter Ackerson Jr
Walter Ackerson Jr

 

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How Did Walter Ackerson Jr. Die?

It was in Kettle Falls, which is located in Stevens County, Washington, that Walter Thomas Ackerson, Jr. was born on July 6, 1973. In an effort to get away from an abusive partner, he and his mother, Karen Hull, moved from the rural community of Kettle Falls, Washington, to the larger city of Puyallup, Washington. But Walter was unable to adjust to this sudden relocation to a school district that was substantially larger than the one he had been attending, and as a result, other students began picking on him and bullying him at school. Karen stated that “He was small, and he was struggling with the other kids picking on him. He was having a hard time.” A significant amount of bullying that occurred in the past, which just was not addressed in the same way as it is today.

Karen stumbled upon a solution for Walter, which was the Oregon Job Corps, and he initially shared her enthusiasm for the programme. Walter hated attending to school, and Karen found a way to get him out of it. Karen reflected on the past and said, “It looked like a really amazing chance. He was under the impression that he would be able to complete his education, then use it in some capacity in the future. Walter made the trip from Puyallup to Yachats, Oregon, in March 1990 so that he could enrol in the Angell Federal Job Corps Center, which was located around 300 kilometres away. He was finally given the opportunity to further his education and even obtain his GED; he ultimately decided that a career in the culinary arts would best suit his interests.

After keeping in close contact with Karen and his grandma Delores for the first two weeks of the year 1990, Walter suddenly broke off all communication with them in the last weeks of that month. Karen received a phone call from an administrator at Walter’s facility on April 5, 1990. The administrator informed Karen that her son had been missing since March 24. She told me, “They told me my son went away to Wyoming with another guy, and I requested them to file a missing person’s report, and they asked me why?” She said, “They told me my son ran away to Wyoming with another boy.” Because he is sixteen, I stated,” She had no idea that her kid had vanished without a trace, nor did she realise that it would be nearly two decades before the mystery would be solved.

Who is Responsible for the Death of Walter Ackerson Jr.?

Karen Hull travelled to Yachats, Oregon, after discovering that a report of a missing person had not been filed despite the fact that it had been two weeks after the initial call. She had been told that Walter had absconded with all of his stuff, but she discovered them in his room after investigating further. The staff then informed her that Walter had supposedly gone drinking with three boys while hitchhiking to Nye Beach in Newport, Oregon on March 24, 1990, but he never returned. This information was given to her by the staff. Karen also talked to the three boys, who were then 20, 19, and 19 years old respectively: Troy August Culver, Eric Forsgren, and Geoff Calligan

Karen Hull travelled to Yachats, Oregon, after discovering that a report of a missing person had not been filed despite the fact that it had been two weeks after the initial call. She was told at first that Walter had absconded with all of his stuff, but she discovered them in his room after investigating further. The staff then informed her that Walter had supposedly gone drinking with three boys while hitchhiking to Nye Beach in Newport, Oregon on March 24, 1990, but he never returned. This information was given to her by the staff. Karen also talked to the three boys, who were then 20, 19, and 19 years old respectively: Troy August Culver, Eric Forsgren, and Geoff Calligan.

Who Is Troy August Culver?

They all shared the same account, which was that they had secretly left the school grounds in order to go drinking on the beach, but along the way, they had become separated from Walter and lost track of him. On the other hand, Karen asserts that Troy apologised to her and stated that he felt responsible, which was something that Karen was unable to comprehend. She stated, “I told him there was nothing for him to apologise for if my kid was drinking and went away.” However, she couldn’t shake a nagging notion that was reinforced by Emma Beller, a classmate of Walter’s who goes by the same name.

Karen was told by Emma that there were stories circulating that Troy and Walter had gotten into a dispute that resulted in the three lads beating her son up and then throwing him off the Yaquina Bay Bridge in Newport while he was barely alive. The purported location of the criminal activity was at a height of ten stories over the Pacific Ocean. The Lincoln County Sheriff’s Department, on the other hand, bought into the scenario that was presented by the three guys and concluded that the case included a runaway adolescent. The Angell Federal Job Corps Center was plagued with instances of boys running away from the campus, and the authorities assumed that Walter’s situation was similar to the others. They never bothered to investigate Emma’s account of the events in any way.

After that, the investigation was put on hold until it was passed on to a new team of detectives in 2004. In 1996, the case was temporarily reopened, but then it was put on hold once more. An additional interview with Geoff and Eric was conducted by the investigators, with Eric being held at the time in the Multnomah County Jail on charges unrelated to the investigation. Even though both of the guys repeated the same version of the events and Emma couldn’t even remember what happened, the detectives started to get suspicious after they interrogated Troy. Both of the men repeated the same version of the events. Even after 14 years had passed, it appeared as though he could recall minute particulars, in contrast to the other people, all of whom had naturally fuzzy memories of the entire event.

However, the Prineville Police Department called the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Department to inform them that Troy had confessed to his probation officer that he had murdered Walter in 1990. The case had once again given the appearance of having gone cold, but the Prineville Police Department was able to revive it. According to the papers filed by the police, Troy had been a registered sex offender ever since he was found guilty of promoting child sexual abuse in 2007. He also participated in alcohol and drug therapy, in addition to counselling sessions. On March 24, 1990, he stated that he had nearly put Walter’s life in danger by beating him up and then throwing him off a bridge.

They all shared the same account, which was that they had secretly left the school grounds in order to go drinking on the beach, but along the way, they had become separated from Walter and lost track of him. On the other hand, Karen asserts that Troy apologised to her and stated that he felt responsible, which was something that Karen was unable to comprehend. She stated, “I told him there was nothing for him to apologise for if my kid was drinking and went away.” However, she couldn’t shake a nagging notion that was reinforced by Emma Beller, a classmate of Walter’s who goes by the same name.

Karen was told by Emma that there were stories circulating that Troy and Walter had gotten into a dispute that resulted in the three lads beating her son up and then throwing him off the Yaquina Bay Bridge in Newport while he was barely alive. The purported location of the criminal activity was at a height of ten stories over the Pacific Ocean. The Lincoln County Sheriff’s Department, on the other hand, bought into the scenario that was presented by the three guys and concluded that the case included a runaway adolescent. The Angell Federal Job Corps Center was plagued with instances of boys running away from the campus, and the authorities assumed that Walter’s situation was similar to the others. They never bothered to investigate Emma’s account of the events in any way.

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Death Explained of Walter Ackerson Jr.

After that, the investigation was put on hold until it was passed on to a new team of detectives in 2004. In 1996, the case was temporarily reopened, but then it was put on hold once more. An additional interview with Geoff and Eric was conducted by the investigators, with Eric being held at the time in the Multnomah County Jail on charges unrelated to the investigation. Even though both of the guys repeated the same version of the events and Emma couldn’t even remember what happened, the detectives started to get suspicious after they interrogated Troy. Both of the men repeated the same version of the events. Even after 14 years had passed, it appeared as though he could recall minute particulars, in contrast to the other people, all of whom had naturally fuzzy memories of the entire event.

However, the Prineville Police Department called the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Department to inform them that Troy had confessed to his probation officer that he had murdered Walter in 1990. The case had once again given the appearance of having gone cold, but the Prineville Police Department was able to revive it. According to the papers filed by the police, Troy had been a registered sex offender ever since he was found guilty of promoting child sexual abuse in 2007. He also participated in alcohol and drug therapy, in addition to counselling sessions. On March 24, 1990, he stated that he had nearly put Walter’s life in danger by beating him up and then throwing him off a bridge.

 

Walter Ackerson Jr
Walter Ackerson Jr

 

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Where Have Geoff Calligan, Eric Forsgren and Troy Culver Been Hiding Now?

Under the legislation of the state of Oregon, an individual cannot be convicted of committing a crime solely only on their confession unless the authorities are able to produce physical evidence to support the confession. Because of the passage of so many years, it was extremely unlikely that any evidence would be found, therefore the investigators chose to question the two other people who had been involved in the crime. Eric Forsgren and Geoff Calligan were questioned by the police once more, and in exchange for immunity from prosecution, they testified that Troy was really responsible for the murder. It is said that Eric was so certain that Walter was still alive, even after they had tossed his body off of the bridge and into the water, that he even laughed about it.

In July of 2010, an indictment was handed down against Troy on charges of first-degree murder and first-degree manslaughter. However, he entered a guilty plea and was simply charged with manslaughter. According to the sentencing guidelines that were in effect in 1990, he was subject to a maximum jail sentence of ten years. He was released from the Snake River Correctional Institution in June of 2020 after having completed his time there serving his sentence. At this point in time, he is in his 50s and still resides in Prineville, Oregon, where he is still subject to community supervision.

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