EP 56 | Where Is Debra Melo (part two) & Deadly Massachusetts Domestic Violence Cases

Is Debra Melo in Taunton?

So many of you are interested in Debra's story. Debra Melo is missing. This year marks 24 years that she disappeared. This is an important story to tell.  She did not just leave. There was no reason to walk away from her family, her daughter, her son. This is part two of Debra’s story, with Steve Demoura, Debra's brother-in-law and dedicated advocate to get justice for Debra and her family.

In this episode I talk about domestic violence against women and coercive control and other Massachusetts cases where the wife, and sometimes the entire family are killed.

Listen with care.

Drawing parallels with other Massachusetts cases, we look at the stark realities of intimate partner crimes with the stories of deadly domestic violence cases, Teena and Arianna Kamaln (Dover, Mass), Linda and Sebastian Robinson (Andover, Mass), Breanne Pennington (Gardner, Mass) Ana Walshe (Cohasset, Mass), Carol DiMaiti Stuart (her story was covered most recently on HBO Max's Murder In Boston).

National Domestic Violence Hotline
The Hotline.org
Call 1.800.799.SAFE (7233)

Do you have any kind of information about Debra Melo's disappearance, about when she went missing, if you overheard someone, if you saw something, if you know something but have been afraid to say it, you can email me.

CrimeoftheTruestKind@gmail.com
Crime of the Truest Kind Line: 617-903-8411 to leave a message
Send it: PO Box 752, Burlington, Mass 01803

You can also contact the Massachusetts State Police at (781) 830-4800

Thank you for listening. 

Transcript

Anngelle Wood: 0:00

Well, hello. My name is Anngelle Wood and this is Crime of the Truest Kind. Happy New Year, everyone. I make the joke that that greeting expires on February 14th. I pick that very randomly. Aside from it being sort of a holiday for people. Earlier? Should it expire earlier? Possibly, but definitely not later. My name is Anngelle Wood.

Anngelle Wood: 0:49

Crime of the Truest Kind is about New England crime stories and history the things that happen here and crime is history, and sometimes history is crime. Part of what I do is talk about where these things take place the cities, the towns and the landmarks. They all relate to those locations and are a part of a story. Like Taunton, the Silver City, not every town has a mile to wax nostalgic about its former glory. This is an important story to tell. So many of you are interested in what happened to Debra. Debra Melo is missing. This year marks 24 years that she disappeared. She did not just leave. There was no reason to walk away from her family, her daughter, her son and this is part two of Debra's story, with Steve Demoura, Debra's brother-in-law and dedicated advocate to get justice for Debra and her family. Please do go back and listen to episode 55 if you have not. This is episode 56. Where is Debra Melo Taunton, Massachusetts? In this episode

Anngelle Wood: 2:13

I talk about domestic violence against women, coercive control and other Massachusetts cases where the wife and sometimes the entire family are killed. Please listen with care. Well, we can all be facetious and say I watched Dateline. It's the husband. Dateline was not yet even a thing when Carol DiMaiti was shot and killed while pregnant with her first baby in October of 1989. And I don't think for a second that none of those hard-nosed pug ugly Boston detectives didn't smell a rat in Charles Stuart who blamed a Black man in a tracksuit in Mission Hill. Um, all the kids dressed like that in the 80s. Murder in Boston on HBO. Max is so sad because it's all true, boston has a shitty history the Stuart case sunk a knife deeper into that gaping wound. In spoiler, Charles Stuart murdered Carol DiMaiti Stuart, his wife, because he felt he had lost the upper hand in the marriage and he didn't want to have a kid Now. You would think that all those Dateline episodes taught us in its 30 year run that it's the guy right. I found a website that analyzes Dateline crimes and, as it turns out, they reported in 2020 that in just a little more than 38% of Dateline cases the suspect is the victim's significant other. In just 7% of cases the suspect is the victim's ex, but in 47.7% of Dateline cases they don't involve a romantic relationship between the suspect and the victim. Alright, and we are so often the judge in jury and crime cases.

Anngelle Wood: 4:02

I've talked about the true crime cabal of sleuths and tiktokies who dive face first into their almost detectiving and people have come up with wackadoo theories on everything. Someone even mentioned the Bridgewater Triangle in reference to Debra Melo's disappearance, because she's from Taunton, and the Bridgewater Triangle spans across several towns, including Abington and Bridgewater, freetown, middleborough, rojoba, thrinum and Taunton, a 200 square mile triangulated paranormal vortex. It is believed to be a hotbed of modern day myth, involving hauntings and curses and odd creatures and serpenty things, ghostly mysteries, ufos the one and only time I heard the word Pakwaji and part of the lore includes the ominous tales from the Taunton State Hospital it's known as State Lunatic Asylum that housed a few serial killers in its day. Now this is all fascinating to me and for another time. Now we know for years and years and years and years, women have faced overbearing, demanding, vengeful and prideful husbands. You know the vindictive Charles Stuart types. Yes, I know this can happen to men, but real talk here. I won't throw a lot of stats at you, but the National Domestic Violence Hotline says that almost half of all women and men in the US have experienced psychological aggression by an intimate partner in their lifetime 48.4 and 48.8% respectively. One in four women that's 24% and one in seven men, at 13% by the age of 18, in the US have been the victim of severe physical violence by an intimate partner in their lifetime. That's incredibly sad to me. I do understand how attitudes have been different around this topic generationally, culturally and that things have been changing, but what has not changed is that it can happen to anyone. No one is exempt from this and it's nothing that someone has done to deserve it.

Anngelle Wood: 6:33

Just one week ago in Dover, Massachusetts, one of, if not the wealthiest towns in the state, just 30 minutes west of the city of Boston, with a population of not even 6,000 people, a family was murdered familicide, sometimes referred to as family annihilation. By all appearances, this family would make some people envious. They lived in a massive home at the end of a private road called Wilson's Way, where a sign greeted the welcomed visitors two enchanted acres. I say welcomed visitors because they don't want no riffraff there. The 19,000 plus square foot home on five acres on a tree-lined street tastefully decked out for the holidays. But on Thursday night, just a few days after Christmas, a relative was compelled to check on the family after not hearing from anyone inside the home. When that family member arrived, they found the bodies of an 18-year-old girl who was in her first year of college, and her mother dead of what they would later learn was gunshot wounds. Nearby was the body of the husband and father. Preliminary autopsy results confirmed that 54-year-old Teea and her daughter Arianna were victims of homicide by gunshot. The husband and father, Rakesh Kamal, 57, was also fatally wounded, self-inflicted. In the preliminary investigation into the family it was learned that there were financial problems. We don't know the full scope of that yet, but what seems most obvious is this man made decisions for the two women in his life. They would have chosen differently.

Anngelle Wood: 8:24

Last January we first heard the story of Ana Walshe, a working mother of three young boys who didn't show up at her job as regional general manager at a Washington DC firm after New Year's weekend. She was never seen again after her New Year's Eve. Guests left in the early hours of January 1. Her husband was caught in ridiculous lies. There was no ransom note. Searches of their rented Cohasset home and searches of dumpsters in a transfer station on the North Shore turned up evidence. Anilalsh's husband has been charged with her disappearance and her murder.

Anngelle Wood: 9:03

I also covered it in Episode 39. This is the nobody case we talk about in Part 2 of my interview with Steve Demoura coming up. In February a man in Andover, Massachusetts, murdered 55-year-old Linda Robinson and her 12-year-old son Sebastian. The man, Andrew Robinson, the husband and father. There are reports that he was experiencing depression before he killed his family. In the story of Breanne Pennington in Gardner in October that I told you about in a recent episode, Breanne is Episode 51. Breanne was the young mother of four children whose husband shot her in the bedroom of their home with all four of their small children in the house. I can only hope they did not know what was happening.

Anngelle Wood: 9:57

That husband, Aaron Pennington, was having mental health issues. What kind to what degree, I don't know. I do know it affected his job and he took a leave. Sometimes it was causing problems for their marriage. Breanne was going to take her children to Texas without him, so he shot her and ran away. Two months later he has not been found. Aaron Pennington is wanted for the murder of Breanne Pennington. Is he alive? We don't know. Is it a Brian Laundrie situation? Well, each of these stories are very different. They have one thing in common their husbands decided they weren't going to live. These women would have chosen something else to stay with their children.

Anngelle Wood: 10:44

Domestic abuse is physical, it's psychological, it's emotional, it's financial, it is sexual, it is reproductive control, where a partner decides for the woman whether she is or is not having a baby. There is something called stealthing. Okay, so here's the part of the show where I ask you to earmuff it for me. That's that scene in old school where Vince Vaughn tells his kid to cover his ears because he's about to say something terrible. Though I will approach this very clinically and read verbatim from the Healthline's report Stealthing refers to the non-consensual act of removing a condom during sexual activity without the awareness or consent of the other person involved or persons. The term can also be used to refer to a person damaging a condom before or during application without their partner's knowledge or consent, so that it becomes less effective at preventing pregnancy or STI transmission. And someone just said what's STI Sexually transmitted infection? Do we know without a doubt that these women were being abused? Too often abusers act on the threat of if I can't have you, no one can, and they see to it. The best evidence is that these women are no longer living. The National Domestic Violence Hotline has many resources on how someone can make a safety plan Online at thehotlineorg 1-800-799-SAFE, 1-800-799-7233. Resources are available for anyone in need. Or maybe you're not sure you need help and you want to ask. Debra Melo was going to leave, but she wasn't afforded that choice. Do go and listen to episode 55 if you have not.

Anngelle Wood: 12:55

Debra Marie Melo, the 30 year old's mother of two from Taunton, massachusetts, went missing on June 20, 2000. She wanted to divorce her husband. She wanted to transfer to another Dunkin Donuts from where she and her husband had worked essentially side by side. She had the support of her family. Anyone who's spoken about Deborah Mello's husband, Luis Melo Sr has said that he was controlling and he was domineering, that he would follow her when she went out. He would watch her, stalk her. Debra wasn't able to go out and have a visit. Luis Melo would call looking for her. He had to keep tabs on her all of the time. Was she in an abusive relationship? Well, those are some key characteristics and there was an emergency order of protection filed in 1996.

Anngelle Wood: 13:49

But Debra is not here to tell us what her experiences were. What we do know is that she left her home that Tuesday afternoon for a doctor's appointment. Luis Melo drove her to Weymouth, 30 or so miles from the hospital. She never came back. That's what Luis Melo told her children. Your mother didn't come home. She was not reported missing that night. When she did not return, Luis Melo claims he went back to Weymouth where he said she had gotten out of the car that afternoon. Debra was not reported missing until the next day when other family members urged him to do so.

Anngelle Wood: 14:30

Luis Melo did not call anyone looking for Debra on that evening of June 20th, something her friends and family said he did regularly. He didn't go looking for her. That's when his story changed. He didn't call anyone on Wednesday morning to ask if they had seen Debra or if she had tried to contact them prior to June 20th. Luis Melo did not leave Debra alone and then, just like that, he stopped calling, looking for her. She didn't come home and he wasn't concerned. Remember this Debra couldn't go get a cup of coffee with her sister or a friend without him showing up.

Anngelle Wood: 15:13

I'll be right back. Please support Crime of the Truest Kind, and there are a number of ways to do so. Listen to the show, tell your friends about it, share it on social media. Leave a five-star rating and review on Apple podcasts. Go to the merch store, buy some merch. Drop a tip in the jar, give the dogs a bone. Really, my dogs are obsessed. Become a patron on Patreon with four tiers starting at just one dollar. All links at Crime of the Truest Kind. Lewis Mello stuck to the story that Debra got out of the car in Weymouth with nothing but the clothes she was wearing.

Anngelle Wood: 15:53

He told police he went back to Weymouth to look for her, but cellphone records showed he never left Taunton. Luis Melo took two polygraphs. He was never involved in any searches for her. He stopped cooperating with police and with her family. He stopped cooperating with police and with her family At the Donuts Donuts in Braintree where they both worked for a family. They had both worked for for a long time. No missing flyers were posted. We will also talk about that.

Anngelle Wood: 16:21

Luis Melo did not participate in any of their vigils, masses or searches with Debra's friends and family. He has not spoken publicly about his missing wife in the years since. He does not respond to any of the questions. Luis Melo got to move on. In 2003, he was arrested for domestic assault against his much younger girlfriend about 15 years younger, a woman named Samira de Oliveira. He received one year's probation and then in 2006, he was granted a divorce on grounds of abandonment by Deborah, where he then married Samira de Oliveira, the woman he was charged with abusing.

Anngelle Wood: 17:06

In the 23 and a half years that Deborah has been gone, her stepfather, joe, passed away, her brothers Richard and Stephen, her mother Marilyn, and just last month her only son, louis, died. That is the only time that she has been in the family. Her only son, louis, died. That is a great deal of loss for her family. In 2017, there was a development in her case and we will talk about it coming up. There was a dig in the area of Brian Drive and Taunton, less than a mile from where Deborah lived with her husband and children. The site was under construction at the time of Deborah's disappearance. The mellows resided at 60 Baileys Road in Taunton then and the mellows Louis Mellow, his wife and their daughter still do. This is all public record.

Anngelle Wood: 18:03

This is the second part of my conversation with Steve Demoura. We go over a number of things and I could tell you everything that we talked about, and I just shared some of it with you, but I think what's most important with these cases is that we understand and empathize with what families are going through when their loved one disappears and they feel helpless. This is the second half of our conversation. Do you think if Deborah went missing today, given all of the things that we know scientifically, et cetera, do you think her case would have been more easily solved? I'm still trying to understand why her husband, louis Mellow the last and only person to see her alive the day before her death. Louis Mellow, the last and only person to see her alive the day she disappeared. Why more attention or more pressure was not put on him?

Steve Demoura: 19:11

I think there'd be a lot of different things that could have happened. So I think it was maybe 10 years ago like that, for instance that story that I just spoke about, how and I forget the exact details of where, but when that guy out of his wife murdered him, put some of her stuff at his mother's property in the dumpster. They're looking to charge him with nobody.

Steve Demoura: 19:40

That's right 10 years ago they passed a law with enough evidence that you can. So 23 years ago you got nobody. You have no evidence. What I was talking about just a few minutes ago was if we don't have evidence in somebody's backyard in Weymouth or if we don't have evidence in somebody's backyard in Taunton, then you're not going to go searching there because there's too many hoops. Without a probable cause you can't go search something. 23 years ago it took weeks to get the phone records and, for instance, like a fact of, I was speaking to the Bristol County detective a short time ago and she said the technology that we have now, even with the canines, is far, far better than what it was 23 years ago. The technology we have for DNA, the technology that we have Ring camera, was not around. Surveillance was not around. I mean, there's so many things that are different that could have helped.

Anngelle Wood: 20:53

What do you and Debra's family believe is true?

Steve Demoura: 21:01

I would never speak on what Alyssa is, the daughter I've always like in the back of my mind. Any interview or anytime I was speaking on the radio or on TV or to law enforcement was different. I could say exactly how I felt, but publicly I just couldn't say too many bad things because it's still her father. She only has Arrant left and that's him. So, until proven guilty or innocent, patty and I divorced in 2001. So it wasn't that long after Debra and I know just from a divorce what my kids went through. So I can imagine what little Louie and Alyssa will go through with a name of Debbie Mello in the city of Taunton. So I respectfully you know I would never answer for Alyssa and how she felt, how I feel. She absolutely went to the doctors, she absolutely purchased skincare products and from that point on anything that happened is definitely against her will and I think it was premeditated.

Anngelle Wood: 22:17

Because you understand that she was planning on leaving him. She was planning on finally leaving him. The reports as I understand it, there hadn't been violence in the home for a period of time, but there had been some violence against Debra in earlier years, right?

Steve Demoura: 22:34

Yeah, he was just very, very possessive, Wouldn't let her out of his sight for a minute, Didn't want her to have friends, Didn't want her to have a social life. It was all just what he wanted. So if she was with us or we were together with the kids at a park or wherever it may be like he would call up where's my wife? Where's my wife? I mean she has a name. Hey, where's Debra? No, hey, where's my wife?

Anngelle Wood: 23:00

That became part of the story where he was known to be watching Debra and oftentimes her sister patties her name right. Oftentimes he's been seen watching them and, interestingly enough, the night she didn't come home he didn't call looking for her at all. Not one time.

Steve Demoura: 23:22

Right February they went on a cruise. Debra came to us and said, hey, we're going to go on a cruise and then, after the cruise is over, we're going to get a divorce. I'm like, oh shit, now he's going to throw her overboard First thing I thought of and I was sending something to my wife at the time. I'm like that doesn't sound right. She's like he's agreeing to it and I'm going to stay in the house with the kids and he's going to move out. And that's what I'm like. Debra, listen, you know he's not going to do that, and this was, I think, in November. I'm like, well, listen, if that's what you're going to do, you need to open up your own checking account or your own bank account. Now to put your money in your, because it's going through divorce isn't fun. You're going to need your money and if he's going to start controlling you about your money, you need to have your own account.

Steve Demoura: 24:12

February came and went, so they did do that and he never left. It wasn't going to happen, it's not going to fix anything, but he knew that she wanted a divorce. He knew that things were not good and, of course, it's a standard statement from somebody that's not in the right mind. Well, if I can't have you, no one will. I don't believe the whole story. Whatever it is, it was against her will. I'm not a fan of the owner of the Dunkin Donuts.

Steve Demoura: 24:44

I'm not a fan of his daughter. His daughter would basically run the facility and that's where Debra can find to her and said hey, listen, I want to move, we're going to get a divorce, move me to another Dunkin Donuts where I can work. And that never happened. And I believe that she told Louis everything about what was going on the day that we went, on, the 21st. So we went to the Dunkin Donuts to find out what was going on. Anybody seen her? The lady's up front, oh, she's at home, she's on vacation. No, she's not. And then the following day, which would be the 22nd, we went to the Dunkin Donuts, put up posters that we had just made and of course I had. That's the times. 23 years ago I had to go to a company that made posters. I was putting these things up everywhere and the owner or the daughter, they kept taking them down. Not one poster was up ever.

Steve Demoura: 25:40

This guy, he was more than just a boss, like he helped purchase vehicles. He was like the marriage counselor. He was with Louis, since Louis was 16 years old, 15 years old, working for him. This guy, plain and simple, louis made him a lot of money and Deborah made him a lot of money because she was the manager of the whole front and he was the manager of the whole back. They went to Kingston, they went to Atterborough, they went to Braintree, they went everywhere. Everywhere where he had a Dunkin Donuts, they would go move things around, get things up and rolling perfectly and then go to another one and I can remember plenty of times helping them get a mortgage and everything. It was more than just he, was more than just a boss. His whole family was in Dunkin Donuts the sisters, the brother, the cousins, everybody.

Anngelle Wood: 26:34

So it sounds to me that these folks have more information than they have been willing to share.

Steve Demoura: 26:46

I've talked to somebody in law enforcement whether they were just telling me that or not, I don't know, but did they have any involvement in the owner? How could you not keep a poster up? I mean, there's two or three businesses in Taunton that still have the original poster up 23 years later in that building.

Anngelle Wood: 27:06

I know in 2017, there was some excavation that went down in Taunton in the neighborhood not close to the home not too too close to the home where Deborah Mella lived with her family when she disappeared, but in the neighborhood. How did that come to be?

Steve Demoura: 27:24

Typically, when I will get a phone call or a message or something is whenever we have something in the social media. When we have something on TV or a story somewhere about Deborah, that's when people start talking about it again. So I did a article in a newspaper and the guy came down and we did a quick interview. He put it in the front page of the story and it wasn't her birthday.

Steve Demoura: 28:00

It wasn't the anniversary, he just wanted to do a story. So he did, with the whole media thing. They published their newspaper but then they put it out there. I got a phone call the next night after we did that article, that it was aired and it was a friend of mine. He said, hey, my daughter's boyfriend wants to talk to you. So, okay, I went to my friend's house. As soon as I got there I looked and this kid was like 30 years old and I'm like, all right, listen, how old are you? Because, like, if you're gonna tell me a story, you were what? Like eight, you know. So he told me a story.

Steve Demoura: 28:47

The area that he was speaking of it was like a dead end street. It's a cul-de-sac area with just a lot of different houses. Steve Perry Sr it was his development, it was his property, he was building this road. At the end of where this last house was, there was a huge hole because they were getting rid of a lot of leadge, a lot of rock. And the next day, when he went out there, there was a piece of equipment that was out there that had like a plastic bag with a razor blade and some bloody paper towels, and there was a pair of underwear. So good for him, good memory, and I don't take that away. So then they contacted in the owner of the properties that he was building the construction. At that time he had passed away so he wasn't around, but his son was. His son remembers that. So the hole that they were digging was for a foundation, so it was probably 40 feet wide, 30 feet deep, because they need the poor foundation that's full height inside of this area that they're digging, and it was just like a dirt path, like an access road. It wasn't asphalt and everything. So it was definitely under construction. So he did recall seeing that back at the time, 17 years ago, on the Bobcat that was there, the piece of equipment. So the police questioned him and then said you know what? We're not going to tell anybody, we're going to take the dogs out and then see, the canines went to a particular tree that was planted after the house was built and they got a scent from the tree. So if there was something underneath that tree as a body, that body gets into the roots of the tree and it wicks into the tree and the dogs can actually smell that and they did. So that's when they started digging up the front yard, they got consent from the people who purchased the house a year prior and they dug for a while.

Steve Demoura: 31:04

The media was just absolutely going crazy. So 2017, facebook's all around. So now my phone's blowing up. I can hear helicopters in my area because when they circle, they're not circling just over that particular house. I got a phone call that hey, you should look on social media they're saying that that helicopter, in everything that's happening, is Deborah. I was like full of paint, I was painting my house, I was doing stuff. So I hopped in my car and it was like deja vu. Like I hopped in my car, I pulled down and now there's no traffic, like no one's moving, like cars all parked on the side of the road. So I pulled right up to the police line where the house was and another police officer picks up the do not cross. I go underneath and just walk with me. So I just started walking with him and I'm like am I supposed to be here? He says that's why I let you in.

Steve Demoura: 32:05

I says this is a Deborah, and he says well, keep walking with me and you need to go talk to that other guy over there. So I went with that guy and now because now we're under surveillance, because everybody's watching and I was actually just looking at all of those episodes that got aired from different news stations last week Police said that they were searching and they wouldn't really say what about. But the brother-in-law of Debbie Mello was seen behind the lines talking to police. So that kind of summed it up. They waited a few days because of the activity. It was like the police, just the news stations, were just casing out the whole city, staying there overnight waiting for something to get a story. They came back. It was like an ultrasound machine they run that over the ground and then they can see what's under the earth. And a few days later, after it was quiet, they did do that and they came up with nothing.

Anngelle Wood: 33:08

And there was nothing. Dna hit.

Steve Demoura: 33:12

No, nothing At least. Yeah, that was 2017, 17 years later, but they took the efforts to do that and I've had searches done just last year, this past year.

Anngelle Wood: 33:25

And have your searches focused on Tawton or Waymuth, or both.

Steve Demoura: 33:29

Just Tawton.

Anngelle Wood: 33:30

You think that that probably where she.

Steve Demoura: 33:33

I don't know. You wanna think that she was a particular girl. Did she get let out? Did she wanna get out? No one's gonna leave their belongings in their cell phone in a car and just say, screw you, I'm getting out of the car.

Anngelle Wood: 33:46

So far away from where she lives.

Steve Demoura: 33:49

Right.

Anngelle Wood: 33:50

Let me suspend my disbelief for a moment. She gets out of the car empty-handed, has nothing on the side of the road of a very busy traffic.

Steve Demoura: 34:00

Right.

Anngelle Wood: 34:01

If they're out there, she's gonna find her way home, right? That's just absurd.

Steve Demoura: 34:06

It's a 45-minute drive, never mind walk.

Anngelle Wood: 34:08

That's right, not to mention the fact that, because of this location that Lewis Mello reported dropping her off in, there's no record of anybody seeing her during that time. It was between like three and four PM on June 20th. No one ever had any reports of seeing her at that time, did they?

Steve Demoura: 34:31

No, not officially. People have called up and said oh, I saw this when I saw that one, and it's like your statement or question was do you think things could have been different if it happened today? Yeah, because everybody's got dash cams or ring cameras or street lights have cameras. Now there could have been a lot that changed. And never mind that first 36, 48 hours, the dogs they could have tracked his phone.

Anngelle Wood: 34:58

Did anything happen in his vehicle? Was there any searches, anything done to the car he was in?

Steve Demoura: 35:04

That's the catch 22. What happens if there was blood? She had blood in her car, her trunk, the front seat really didn't matter, it was her car. And what about if there was blood at home? Well, they did take, they did do a search in the cars. I was there for that. They did do a search in the house. I was there for that.

Steve Demoura: 35:23

I mean the one statement that was said and I agree with it. If in fact, he did do something, he already shown to the world, prior to her disappearance, that he is the type of person like he is possessive. He has to call the shots, it has to be. He's in charge. You think that she could be somewhere that he doesn't know or he can't monitor? I don't. Evidently I'm living that. But there should be no perfect crime. There's got to be a mistake somewhere and I don't think that he's smart enough to get away with this alone. I truly believe that, because it was spare of the moment and it just happened and he just they got into a fight. He hit her now she's unconscious and he just did something with her.

Steve Demoura: 36:13

There's no way that you could just dig a shallow grave in a couple hours. I mean, I did do just that. I went to a location in Taunton. Someone brought me there and they said I believe something's right here. So I went back by myself and I dug a hole. I went down about five feet. I was there for like three hours. There's no way, like, unless you have. Like, I got a pickaxe, I got a shovel, a couple of tarps. All right, come on, let's go to the doctor's. Deborah. So that's why something I believe was already premeditated. He already knew something was gonna happen that day, or somebody, no one knows the truth. He could have said hey, I gotta make a stop on the way home because I'm gonna be buying a car or I'm gonna be doing this or that, I'm gonna be buying something. So I'm gonna stop at the store and you're just after we go to doctor's office, I gotta make a stop. And then something happened to her. Then I don't know.

Anngelle Wood: 37:15

Based on what I understand of their relationship, he never really let her out of his sight. Anyway, was it common for him to drive her places like this?

Steve Demoura: 37:25

Yeah, she didn't drive alone, because they worked together all the time, right by his side, all the time.

Anngelle Wood: 37:32

What can we do to support you in this? I have been trying to share information about Deborah's case, certainly talking about it on this podcast, letting other people know, because remember 23 years later. So there's people that don't know anything about her case. There are people in Taunton and in the neighborhoods where she lived and worked that don't know.

Steve Demoura: 37:58

I work with a guy who's like 30 years old. Just around Deborah's anniversary time it was in June, we were talking about it and he does some educational, inspirational type podcasts not really anything like you do. He's like hey, we talked about this before, do you wanna?

Steve Demoura: 38:20

do a podcast. Yeah, it's perfect timing. So we did do one and they did okay with getting hits and people watching the podcast, but it wasn't like it's not what they do. It was funny listening to them talk to me, because this has been my story for so long and growing up they really didn't know. They remember seeing some posters or hearing about it. They were three, four years old when it happened. Maybe by the teenager time you might hear a name pop up here and there of that, but they knew nothing. So I mean even law agencies.

Steve Demoura: 38:57

I've talked to certain people and even in Taunton there's some younger guys that are on the force now and they don't know who Deborah is. And I'm not putting fault on them. The biggest thing is, like I had said earlier to you, where from day one to 23 years later, some people just don't wanna talk to law enforcement, some people don't wanna get involved. But it's always when something comes out for a newspaper article or social media or there's a news clip of Deborah, that's when people start talking about it again.

Steve Demoura: 39:36

And I've been working with police in all different agencies trying to put this, if you will, the puzzle together, and something that doesn't seem right to you could mean nothing to me or it could be that missing piece of the puzzle. There's a lot of things that I won't say. I don't wanna jeopardize some things with the case, but there are some things in the case where I just don't care anymore. What do I have to lose? I would love to have anybody's piece of that puzzle that they wanna help. But just to make a comment on what you had just said like we don't have the DNA Patty's mother, deborah's mother passed away during COVID. We have her DNA, patty and her mother. We could pretty much figure out if something was found if it was Deborah.

Anngelle Wood: 40:23

Absolutely.

Steve Demoura: 40:24

We have dental records and everything else. If something was found with today's technology, it could be determined.

Anngelle Wood: 40:32

Science is solving these cases, cases that have languished for years and years and years.

Steve Demoura: 40:38

Because of the advent of DNA technology, it's absolutely possible for a case like Deborah's We've said it from day one, and even right now somebody out there has to know something that I don't, so all I need is just that little help of what you might know.

Anngelle Wood: 40:58

I think it would be very important and very impactful to bring it to no eyes and ears and generate some new interest, and that could include billboards and that could include some kind of reward. People have seen cases like this, not unlike this at all. Anything is absolutely possible. How long has it been since you saw Deborah's daughter?

Steve Demoura: 41:25

I see her frequently.

Anngelle Wood: 41:26

Do you think that she would have some input on re-energizing her case? Do you think that she would have an opinion as to whether she wants to do it or wouldn't really want to do it?

Steve Demoura: 41:36

I think she would. That would be something I would speak to her about for sure. She's always thanked me for the efforts that I've done for her and her brother and the whole family. I divorced Patty in 2001. I didn't divorce the family. I'm still here.

Anngelle Wood: 41:49

You have been there front and center. You have been the face of this entire case, steve, for a long time. That is a remarkable show of character. Certainly we know what life is like. That's easy to do, like, oh, I got this other stuff.

Steve Demoura: 42:01

Somebody watching might not realize it, but that's a statement, because in June is the anniversary, october 17th is her birthday, and if anything ever comes up and the police or somebody says, or they contact Patty Debra Sista and says, hey, what about this? Patty is like you probably need to talk to Steven, because I'm not really sure who we spoke to and I'm not good remembering names and stuff. My biggest thing is I don't have closure. So, because I don't have closure, everything's just so active in my brain that it's right there. I remember tons of dates, tons of people and every event that I think happened. I still remember them like I was there.

Steve Demoura: 42:53

Because I don't have closure yet, I would love to have closure on this and let her rest at peace. Whenever something comes up and someone says, hey, you need to go, take a look here, you need to talk to this person, I make a priority to the best that I can and I do that. I've gone so many places and talked to so many people in the past 23 years and made her a priority. It was a lot, it is a lot, but it's what we got to do.

Anngelle Wood: 43:17

How do you feel about the way that I know you said that the town, a lot of the local police, have handled this pretty well. How do you feel like the state overall has handled an unsolved missing persons case? In this case we're referring to Deborah.

Steve Demoura: 43:35

Physically. You would see taunt and police officers out there whether they're diving in the water or the local department out there searching the woods, but the state police were always there.

Steve Demoura: 43:50

I feel that they did okay. I'm not a police officer so I don't know cuts that they made and the shortcuts that they did. They follow up on everything To this day. I've talked to the state trooper that's involved right now. Anytime I have an issue, anytime I have something, she actually will reach out to me. I messaged her. Somebody first called the father and said that little Louis passed away. He called Alyssa and Alyssa called me immediately because she knew that I was speaking to him when he was in jail. So she called me. She's like what's going on? My father just got this phone call. Is this true?

Anngelle Wood: 44:28

I often wonder from a family perspective what the opinion is of how the state has handled things, because I've been part of the murdered and missing loved ones coalition in New Hampshire. Very recently this is something that I was a part of and it was a big group of family members who have no resolution to their loved ones cases and we all met at the attorney general's office in Concord, new Hampshire, and they want answers and they want attention and they want some time and new efforts put in and, like you, a number of these families believe they know who the perpetrator is, yet nothing has been done.

Steve Demoura: 45:16

It's very typical to get a little bit more active on the state level when you have an election year. Sorry, but not sorry. Oh no, we're going to be working on this. We're going to be doing this Seriously. You just threw that out there, that you're working on always unsolved cases to get a vote. Set up a meeting. I'll call you out on that, and I did in Bristol County. Since you said that out loud, let's set up a meeting. People use what they want to help their votes when it's a political year, sad to say.

Anngelle Wood: 45:52

But You're absolutely right. Thank you for being receptive to talking to me and thank you for really being the entire voice for this case. But I do know that there are some things that we could do and get some new eyes on it and get some new interest. I know Bob Ward at Boston 25 is always great with his with what he does yeah.

Steve Demoura: 46:19

One. There were three people Maria Stefano, bob Ward, and there was actually Terry Downing who used to work for the Brockton Enterprise, later on became a Taunton police officer. Those three people right there, and even right now, honestly, rondella Richardson but yeah, there are quite a few people that are still good out there that would be involved for sure for the help. Bob Ward's unbelievable Happy New Year.

Anngelle Wood: 46:43

You have been an unbelievable soldier for this family. Really you have, and if people don't tell you that enough, you have been just on the forefront all of the time, and that's just. That's incredible. More families need the willingness in the heart of an advocate like you have had.

Steve Demoura: 47:01

Thank you.

Anngelle Wood: 47:02

Nobody signs up for this. No family member signs up for this.

Steve Demoura: 47:07

That's a true story.

Anngelle Wood: 47:08

Nobody wants this. I have developed some relationships with people who are in a very similar situation. It's very difficult. There are times that they wish they could just shut it all off, but they're like, well, my sister's still missing, so how can I just not pay attention anymore? I appreciate your time. I really do want to see how maybe I can help.

Steve Demoura: 47:32

Absolutely. That'd be great, thank you.

Anngelle Wood: 47:34

Thank you, steve D'Amara. And this is not the end of this story for us. We are going to continue to work on Debra Mello's case, because Debra Mello is still missing. At the time of her disappearance on June 20, 2000, she was petite, five-three, about 110 pounds, blue eyes, shoulder length, brown hair. She often wore curly. Based on the many photos that I've looked at, she has a tattoo on her right shoulder of a rose with the name Louis underneath. She was wearing a blue sundress with white flowers and a white shirt. Underneath White shoes. She had a diamond ring and a ring with the name Debra.

Anngelle Wood: 48:18

All information on the many missing persons databases that you can look up online. If you have any information about Debra Mello, about when she went missing, if you overheard someone, if you saw something, if you know something but have been afraid to say it, you can email me. I am serious. I have a phone number where you can leave a voicemail. My voicemail number for the show is 617-9038411. Send an anonymous piece of mail, po Box 752, burlington, mass 01803. You can always contact the Massachusetts State Police, 781-830-4800, because someone knows something. Thank you for listening. Thank you for caring about Debra's case.

Anngelle Wood: 49:17

I have often asked family members what they think happened and they will tell you when your sister has been missing for 20 years and you haven't heard from them once they have grown to accept foul play was involved. What do I think Doesn't really matter what I think, but I'll just leave you with the words of Taylor Swift in the song no Body, no Crime. I think you did it, but I just can't prove it. No body, no crime. But I ain't letting up until the day I die. Many families of missing and murdered loved ones share that very same mantra. They will go to the ends of the earth for answers. That may be the only time I quote Taylor Swift on this show, can't be sure.

Anngelle Wood: 50:03

My name is Angelle Wood. This is Crime of the Truest Kind. New England Crime Stories and History Online CrimeoftheTruestkindcom. Follow at CrimeoftheTruestkind. Support the show, share it, post it on message boards, tell your friends. Leave a review that reminds me I have a new five star review to share. This is from Bass Girl on Apple Podcasts. Listen to this show. Angelle Wood is one of the best voices out of Boston, with a long list of radio credits. This show is very sensitive to the victims and advocates for them.

Anngelle Wood: 50:44

Thank you for covering the Carina Homer case and bringing attention back to it. At the time of the case, I was going to school across the street from the building where she was found and we'll never forget it. Her killer is still out there and they left a great case suggestion which I will most definitely research. It's about a Tufts professor in 1983. So thank you for that, and what Bass Girl said in that review is exactly what I want this show to be. And yes, the Carina Homer case is very important to me and I have a plan for the Carina Homer case too. I have a website set up who Killed Carina Homer? I have a Facebook group who Killed Carina Homer? You can join the group and I have been building information on Carina's case. Thank you to the great Patreon patrons. Superstar EPs Lisa McColgan, rhiannon, solid Gold, devin, pam Kay, brandy, debra, devil Dog, dominique Mark, rebecca you're all wick and cool. Two live shows this winter February 15th at Faces Brewing in Malden, march 7th at Off.

Anngelle Wood: 52:07

Cabot in Beverly, massachusetts. If you have information about the Debra Mellow case, anything at all, email me CrimeOfTheTrueIsKind at gmailcom. Thank you for listening. I will speak to you in two weeks, back with a brand new show, episode 57. Alright, lock your goddamn doors.