Hi, park enthusiasts. I'm your host, Dillia D'Ambra. And the case I'm going to tell you about today

happened just a few years ago in 2022. It's probably a crime story that listeners living in the New England

region of the United States know about. But for many of you tuning in, it might be the first time you're

hearing about it.

It takes place in the city of Concord, New Hampshire, which is located about an hour

and a half northwest of Boston, Massachusetts.

All around the capital city are lakes and a few different state and local parks.

It's a really beautiful place to spend time outdoors without necessarily having to go very

far off the grid.

There are 30 different designated public trail systems in Concord that loop through or around

residential neighborhoods. One of those popular hiking areas is the broken ground trails system,

which is made up of six different smaller trails or paths that in total cover about five miles.

The Marsh Loop Trail is about one and a half miles long and a short stretch of it is right

off Interstate 393. When ice and snow begin to melt after a long winter, many of the trails

get muddy and erosion can be a problem. Walkers who don't want to get dirty tend to veer off the

beaten path to avoid the mud and end up doing what's known as widening the trail. The city's

Conservation Commission highly discourages this, not only because it speeds up erosion, but because

you could get hurt. In mid-April 2022, a couple going for an afternoon stroll on Marsh Loop ended up going

off trail, but not by choice. The saga of events that unfolded after they vanished is a story

with as many twists and turns as the city's trail system itself. By the time you finish

this episode, you might be bogged down by the question.

Was justice served?

...