John Albert Gardner: ‘Dateline NBC’ Examines Case Of California Missing, Murdered Teens Amber Dubois, Chelsea King Tonight
John Gardner, the man who killed Amber Dubois and Chelsea King, will be examined on tonight’s Dateline NBC. The episode entitled Vanished will go behind the scenes of two missing girls who went missing from California within a year of the other. John Gardner, whose full name is John Albert Gardner, was sentenced to life in prison for their murders, according to ABC News.
Amber Dubois was a 14-year-old girl who disappeared in 2009. Her parents were horrified to find out that their daughter had never made it to school. Police could find no clues, and there were no witnesses to the abduction. After her body was found, police could find no suspects and the case went cold.
In 2010, another California teen went missing. 17-year-old Chelsea King was a strong, spirited girl who was always smiling. King vanished after going out for a job. Distraught friends and family members organized a search to find her. Her body was discovered by a member of the search party.
Law enforcement officials caught a break in the case when another woman named Candice Moncayo was attacked. Moncayo later identified John Albert Gardner as the man behind the attack. Gardner ended up confessing to the murders of Amber and Chelsea, according to CBS News.
An investigation of the killer’s background indicated that he had a history of psychiatric problems since the age of six. His mother, a psychiatric nurse, tried to get help for her son. Investigators also learned that over the years, John Gardner was on all sorts of psychiatric medication to control his violent outbursts and bizarre thought patterns.
John Gardner told investigators that he knew that he was a sick man, and that he needed to be put away because he would definitely kill again. Amber Dubois’ mother was so distraught over her daughter’s death that she demanded to speak with the killer in private. Her wish was granted. In the meeting with the killer she learned that her daughter begged for her life but never cried during the long drive to the murder scene. According to her, the meeting with him gave her some closure.
The killings were also covered in an episode of 48 Hours on CBS. The book Lost Girls by Caitlin Rother is also based on the crimes of John Gardner.
Catch Dateline NBC Thursday night for this latest mystery. Here’s the tease.
“When Amber Dubois vanished in San Diego County, a search turned up nothing. Then, a year later, Chelsea King disappeared in a neighboring town. Dateline reports on the mystery of the missing California teens.”
Watch video of John Gardner’s anger erupt in the court room after survivor Candice Moncayo asks how his nose is. (Candice was able to escape Gardner by punching him in the nose and running away from him. Inquisitr also reported on the murder of Cathy Torres and Alexandra Kogut. Both cases were featured on previous episodes of Dateline NBC at 9/8 central.
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