READ HERE! NEW DOCUMENTS REVEAL HOW TEENAGER DIED 25 YEARS AGO
NEWAYGO, Mich. (June 24, 2014) – Twenty-five years after the murder of a Newaygo teenager, state police and the state attorney general believe they have those responsible in custody.
Shannon Siders’ disappeared in July 1989; her body was found three months later in the Manistee National Forest. Investigators determined she was murdered.
For decades no arrests were made, until now.
In 2011, a cold case team was assembled to take another look at Shannon’s murder.
They made the big decision to exhume her body in the search for more clues, a risk we can only assume led to the arrests.
“Nothing will bring Shannon back, justice is justice,” Shannon’s dad Bob Siders said.
He says he wants to know what happened to her that night she went missing, but knows it’s not going to bring her back.
Bob says Shannon was a fun-loving kid, your typical teenager.
Police say Shannon was last seen riding in the car with Paul and Matthew Jones.
The brothers were 17 and 19-years-old at the time of Shannon’s murder.
“These two guys have been on the short list of suspects since day one.” Bob said. “I’ve heard different stories of them being together that night, supposedly they dropped her off at a certain time.”
In 2012, the cold case team exhumed Shannon’s body in the search for more clues, part of an investigation that led to Tuesday’s charges.
Both Jones brothers are facing first-degree murder charges.
“It’s the beginning of the end. For true justice to be served I believe in capital punishment,” Bob said.
Questions now, if the death penalty is a possibility in the case, since Shannon’s body was found on federal land. That’s a punishment Shannon’s dad says fits the crime. He’s just happy they’re now behind bars.
