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Thu. August 10.2000 12:00 AM EDT |
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ELVIN BISHOP'S DAUGHTER, EX-WIFE MURDERED |
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The daughter and ex-wife of Elvin Bishop, the blues guitarist best known for his 1976 No. 3 hit "Fooled Around and Fell In Love" were found dead following a bloody crime spree that may have also resulted in the deaths of three others.
In Woodacre, Calif., Bishop's ex-wife, Jennifer Villarin, 45, was shot to death in bed while housesitting for their daughter Selina Bishop, 22, on Thursday, August 3. Selina's body was discovered on Monday, August 7 distributed among several duffel bags in the Mokelumne River in Sacramento County. Selina's 30-year-old boyfriend, Glenn Helzer, is being held in connection with the crimes. "I don't know that I have words to describe what has happened," said Harold Jewett, deputy district attorney for Contra Costa County. "There's something truly horrible and evil at work in this case." Police believe that the deaths of Villarin and Bishop are connected with the disappearance of an elderly couple, Ivan and Annette Stineman. The two were last seen on July 30 letting two ponytailed men into their house in Concord, Calif. A neighbor noticed that their minivan was parked outside their house that evening, but the next day it was gone. As calls went unanswered and newspapers piled up outside the house, the Stinemans' daughter reported the couple missing on August 3. Selina herself was reported missing on Friday, August 4. She was last seen two days earlier eating at Berkeley's Bison Brewing Company with the ponytailed Glenn Helzer. Helzer formerly worked as the Stinemans' financial adviser, but lost his stockbroker job after allegedly becoming involved with drugs. Bishop and Helzer were due to go on a camping trip to Yosemite National Park that day. At 5 a.m. on August 3, police responded to a report of shots being fired at Selina Bishop's home in Woodacre. A neighbor in the building said she heard six to eight shots being fired and someone running out into the street. Inside Bishop's apartment, the police discovered the bodies of Jennifer Villarin and a friend, James Gamble. The couple had been housesitting for Selina while she was away. Later that morning, police say, Helzer telephoned the Two Bird Cafe in San Geronimo, in Marin County, where Selina worked as a waitress. When told she wasn't there, Helzer became upset and hung up. On Friday, the Two Bird Cafe received a call from a man who said that Bishop was late returning from her Yosemite camping trip and would be unable to make it for her shift that day. Two Bird Cafe owner Tony Miceli believes that the man on the phone was Helzer. He told the San Francisco Chronicle that Helzer "said a lot more than he normally does. He's usually very secretive, and he seemed to be giving more information than was necessary." Bishop was later reported missing, and police issued an all-points bulletin. On Sunday, August 6, police in Oakland discovered the Stinemans' abandoned minivan. Inside the van they found palm prints later identified as belonging to Helzer's younger brother Justin and Dawn Godman, who shared a home with the two brothers. The minivan was unlocked, with the keys still in the ignition. On Monday, police went to Glenn Helzer's Concord apartment - located only a few blocks away from the Stinemans' residence - to arrest him on an unrelated burglary charge. Helzer leapt out of bed and ran to the home of a neighbor, Mary Mozzochi. Pursued by police, he broke in, threatened to kill Mozzochi with a knife unless given a change of clothes and a car, and cut off his ponytail with the knife. Helzer was finally arrested a few blocks away from the Mozzochi residence. Police also arrested Justin Helzer and Dawn Godman on charges of drug possession after ecstasy was allegedly found in their home. A search of the apartment also allegedly turned up items stolen from the Stinemans' house. Hours later, a person on a Jet Ski discovered a duffel bag floating in the Mokelumne River. The duffel bag was found to contain a human torso. A second duffel bag was found floating under a dock by a marina operator. There was a head inside. The marina's Rachel Linden told the San Francisco Examiner, "It was creepy when they lifted up the canvas bag. You could see blood mixed with the water." The bags had been weighted down, but after a few days in the water several had floated to the surface. Over the next three days, police recovered a total of eight bags containing a variety of body parts. On Wednesday, August 9, the Associated Press reported that the Sacramento County Coroner's Office had concluded that the remains in the bags belonged to Selina Bishop, Ivan Stineman, and Annette Stineman. The coroner said all three suffered blunt trauma before being dismembered. When asked what possible motive there could be for the killing of Bishop and the Stinemans, Harold Jewett told The Sacramento Bee, "Money, extortion." According to Sacramento Bee reporters Andy Furillo, Ralph Montano, and Sam Stanton, one possible scenario police are investigating involves Selina joining the Helzers and Godman in robbing the Stinemans. Bishop allegedly tried to cash two checks made out to her by Ivan Stineman on the day of the robbery. However, it's believed that she fled the scene of the crime after the couple were murdered. Jewett would only remark to the Associated Press, "It's a little bit of a mystery why Selina met her end the way she did." Prosecutors suspect the Helzers and Godman of killing the Stinemans, Villarin, Gamble, and Bishop, but will not charge them until a further investigation is carried out. Glenn Helzer has been charged with burglary, robbery, making terrorist threats, and use of a deadly weapon. Justin Helzer and Dawn Godman have been charged with drug offenses and auto theft. "The evidence is significant," said Jewett. "But there's a great deal of forensic evidence that needs to be examined in Contra Costa and Marin counties. I expect that will take some time." Elvin Bishop has not released a statement about the two murders, telling his booking agent that "he's not taking any phone calls." However, the San Francisco Chronicle reported that he was "devastated" by the events. He flew home to Marin County from a concert in Montana when the news broke. Bishop first began playing guitar with friend Paul Butterfield at the University of Chicago. He later became a charter member of the Paul Butterfield Blues Band, playing on their self-titled 1965 debut and the 1966 classic East-West. Having created an improvisatory style of playing that would have a lasting impact on American rock and introduced the world to Chicago electric blues, Bishop left the band after its third album, 1967's The Resurrection of Pigboy Crabshaw. He moved to San Francisco and formed the Elvin Bishop Group while playing with Eric Clapton and Jimi Hendrix. Bishop's biggest hit came with 1976's "Fooled Around and Fell In Love," with Mickey Thomas - later of Starship - on vocals. With two charting albums, 1976's Struttin' My Stuff and 1977's Live! Raisin' Hell, Elvin has continued to tour, record, and play on records by heroes like B.B. King. |
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