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Trace Evidence

040 - The Mysterious Death of Kurt Sova - Revisited

Trace Evidence

Steven Pacheco

True Crime, Documentary, Society & Culture, History

4.74.2K Ratings

🗓️ 2 April 2018

⏱️ 87 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

On October 23rd, 1981, seventeen year old Kurt Sova had plans to go to a local carnival. Plans changed when he ran into a close friend who invited him to a party at a duplex nearby. The party was filled with locals and people who had driven in from Detroit, and Kurt began drinking heavily. When he began feeling ill, his friend took him outside for some fresh air.

The night had gotten cold, and Kurt's friend went into the duplex to retrieve their jackets. When he returned moments later, Kurt was nowhere to be found. For the next five days, friends and family, along with authorities, searched for Kurt, but could find no signs of him. During the search, several bizarre incidents took place.

A homeless man told a store manager that Kurt would be found dead and that no one would know what had happened to him. A friend of Kurt's claims to have seen him walking along the side of a road, not far from his own home. The owner of the duplex alleged there had been no party, and that she'd never even heard of Kurt. Sadly, five days after vanishing, Kurt's body was discovered posed in a crucifixion like position in a ravine nearby.

Strangely, Kurt's father claims to have searched that very area just the day before, but did not see his son there. A medical examiner could find no cause of death, and thus it was ruled a "probable accident." The Sova family felt their son had been the victim of foul play and that investigators had shirked their duty, and accused them of having no interest in figuring out what happened. The Newburgh Heights Police Department dismissed the family, believing they were simply grieving and in denial.

When a thirteen year old boy named Eugene Kvet turned up dead just months later with circumstances strangely similar to Kurt's, only the Sova family was asking questions. Over the next ten years, new evidence would be revealed, the FBI would file charges against the lead investigator in the case and Kurt's family would be fed important details that were ignored during the initial investigation.

What happened to Kurt Sova? Was his death indeed a tragic accident? Was he the victim of foul play, perhaps by someone at the party or even his close friend? Could Kurt's death and that of Eugene Kvet show the work of a killer in the area? Or were corrupt police officials somehow involved in Kurt's death? Join host Steven Pacheco as he explores this utterly baffling and tragic case in a re-investigation of the first ever episode of Trace Evidence, in episode 40 - The Mysterious Death of Kurt Sova - Revisited.

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Music Courtesy of: "Lost Time" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

Sources: https://www.trace-evidence.com/kurt-sova-2

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

Kurt Sova was the eldest son of Dorothy and Kenneth Sova, living in Newberg Heights, Ohio.

0:17.2

A smart boy with a lot of focus, he was attending school and due to his good behavior and grades,

0:24.5

was given a decent amount of freedom by his parents.

0:28.8

Kurt wasn't the type of kid to cause too much trouble, or fail to come home when his

0:33.7

curfew was up, at least, not without calling first.

0:39.9

On the night of Friday, October 23, 1981, Kurt had plans to go to a local carnival.

0:49.4

Plans changed though, when Kurt ran into one of his friends, who mentioned a party that

0:54.6

was taking place in a duplex.

0:58.0

The duplex was rented out by mutual friends, and excited by the change of plans, Kurt

1:04.5

rushed over to the party and found a busy scene.

1:09.8

During the party, Kurt is said to have drank a little too heavily.

1:15.5

Word would later circulate that Kurt had been drinking alcohol almost all day, specifically

1:21.8

190 proof ever clear.

1:26.4

The drinking caught up to Kurt, and according to his friend, he needed to step outside since

1:32.3

he might be sick.

1:34.8

Kurt's friend walked him out, where he leaned Kurt up against a fence.

1:40.2

The night was getting cold, and Kurt's friend went back inside to get their jackets.

1:45.8

When he returned just a moment later, Kurt had vanished.

1:50.8

After searching around the area, Kurt's friends assumed he had either walked home or caught

1:56.3

a ride with some other friends.

1:59.8

Kurt never returned home that night.

2:02.2

His mother had already been out looking for him since he was running late, and that wasn't

...

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