The Disappearance of the Clinton Avenue Five - Melvin Pittman, Ernest Taylor, Alvin Turner, Randy Johnson and Michael McDowell

Episode 062

Melvin Pittman, Ernest Taylor, Alvin Turner, Randy Johnson, Michael McDowell

It was a hot summer afternoon in Newark, New Jersey in 1978. Five close friends, Melvin "Ricky" Pittman (17), Ernest Taylor (17), Alvin Turner (16), Randy Johnson (16) and Michael McDowell (16) had all gotten together to play basketball at West Side Park.

As the afternoon turned to evening, the friends went their separate ways, planning to meet up again later. They were going to help a local business owner move boxes in preparation for his purchase of a new home, grab a few extra bucks for their trouble, and then see what this summer night had to offer. Sadly, none of them would ever return home.

Over the next thirty-three years, theories and rumors would run rampant. Psychics would claim to hold the answers, tipsters would call in with leads that led to nowhere and eventually, a confession would result in a trial that would end with unsatisfying results. What happened to the young men, since then referred to as the Clinton Avenue Five and who may hold the answers to this haunting mystery?

Listen to 062 - The Disappearance of the Clinton Avenue Five

Watch YouTube Video

Sources:

https://charleyross.wordpress.com/tag/clinton-avenue-five/

http://www.cnn.com/2010/CRIME/03/26/new.jersey.cold.case/index.html

https://abc7ny.com/archive/7344768/

https://defrostingcoldcases.com/uncovering-the-mystery-of-the-clinton-avenue-five/

http://truecrimediscussions.blogspot.com/2018/07/clinton-avenue-five.html

https://www.nytimes.com/1996/05/17/nyregion/after-18-years-newark-searches-for-5-boys-who-vanished.html

https://www.nj.com/news/2010/03/authorities_charge_two_men_wit.html

https://www.simpleenglishnews.com/archives/stories/whatever-happened-to-the-clinton-avenue-five__trashed-531715

https://wikivisually.com/wiki/Clinton_Avenue_Five