The Newport Bridge stands a majestic 219 feet above the Narragansett Bay in Rhode Island. On the evening of November 10th, 1993, the bridge was the scene of a sobering discovery, the latest twist in one of the states most sensational murder cases. Shortly before 7:00 pm, a bridge supervisor and a state trooper investigated an empty car that was blocking one of the westbound lanes. The engine was running and the headlights were on. On the back seat were several articles of clothing, neatly folded. Up front, there was cash, cut up credit cards and a drivers license. Robert Moorehead was the bridge supervisor on duty that evening and said when he first got there, he thought it was just an abandoned car, and upon checking the car, he realized it was the Emerys car. Most anyone in Rhode Island would have recognized the name Emery. That very day, Adam Emery, the cars owner, had been convicted of murder. Though he was free on bail, Emery faced 20 years to life in the state penitentiary. Now it appeared that Adam and his wife, Elena, had found a way out of their impeding separation, by jumping to their deaths off the Newport Bridge. The apparent double suicide of Adam and Elena was shocking news, but soon authorities began to suspect that the Emerys were in fact, alive. They believed the abandoned car was just the final touch in a well-planned escape to freedom. It all began three years earlier, on August 30th, 1990. Adam Emery, his wife Elena and another couple stopped for dinner at a local seafood stand. It was just before 9:00 pm when a car whizzed by and sideswiped Adams car. The car then sped away and disappeared around a corner. Reporter Elizabeth Rau covered the Emery trial for the Providence Journal and said that Adam Emery headed out for a car in the distance after Elena yelled Thats the car, lets chase them. The car they were chasing was driven by 20-year-old Jason Bass. His cousin, Joshua Post, was in the car with him and said that Adam Emery got out of his car, yelling and screaming Well kick your butt! Im gonna kill you!. Joshua said that he had never seen someone so angry before. It was at that moment that Adam pulled out a knife and jumped on the hood of Jasons car. While clinging to the car, Adam began to slash at Jason with the knife. Jason put the car in reverse and attempted to flee, but it was too late. He was stabbed once through the heart and died instantly. Neighbors rushed out to help. They were soon joined by Kevin Hopkins, an off-duty detective for the Rhode Island State Police who lived just down the street. Kevin said when he arrived, the whole air about the scene was very spooky. It had a haze, and it was a warm summer night and Kevin just had a spooky eerie feeling about what he was going into. He pulled up, thinking that it was just a motor vehicle accident. The tragedy of Jasons death was compounded by the facts that soon emerged. According to Detective Hopkins, Jason never so much as touched Adam Emerys car and said that the Ford LTD that was being driven by Jason Bass was not the vehicle that hit Adam Emerys car. They took paint chips off of Adams car and they tested those paint chips with the paint of Jason Basss car, and proved conclusively that it was a different vehicle that struck Adam Emerys car that evening. Those who knew Adam were stunned by the turn of events. He had never been in trouble with the law. Now, Adam Emery stood accused of second-degree murder. Reporter Elizabeth Rau was in attendance at Adam Emerys trial and said that Adams testimony was very rigid. He never expressed any remorse for killing someone. He said that he stabbed Jason Bass in self-defense. The trial ended on November 10th, Adam Emerys 31st birthday. Adam Emery was found guilty of second degree murder. The judge allowed him to remain free on bail pending formal sentencing a month later. By nightfall, Adam and Elena were dead, or so it seemed. After the police found the car, they began to reconstruct the events leading up to the apparent double suicide. At 3:00 pm, Adam left the courthouse with Elena. A half hour later, the Emerys showed up at a local sporting goods store. Joel Smith, the stores manager, was working that day and said that Elena was far from nervous. Shed smile, she was talkative, and it didnt seem like there was anything on her mind or she had anything planned. The Emerys bought sweatsuits, athletic socks and 80 pounds of strap-on exercise weights. Curiously, the salesman reported that Adam was disturbed by the total bill. To police, saving money seemed an unlikely concern for someone about to take his own life. An hour later, at 4:45 pm, Adam and Elena pulled up at the Newport Bridge. The previous hour, they had been observed, calmly dining at a fast food restaurant, which also seemed out of character for a couple bent on suicide. At 4:50 pm, eyewitnesses recalled seeing the Emerys on the walkway of the bridge. By 5:15 pm, Adam and Elena had driven away. Two hours later, their car was found back on the Newport bridge. Apparently the Emerys had returned to the bridge, but what happened then is still a mystery. The search for the bodies of Adam and Elena Emery was one of the most extensive in the history of Rhode Island. In the end, not a single scrap of evidence was recovered from the bay. Then, Detective Hopkins remembered a taped conversation Adam and Elena were having in the courtroom following Adams guilty verdict. Kevin Hopkins obtained the tape and took it to a person who was hearing-impaired. One of her means of communication is to read peoples lips, and Kevin asked her if she could interpret the conversation that was being held between Adam and Elena Emery. Hours of replaying the tape finally revealed Elenas words. According to the lip reader, Elena told Adam, Were gonna do what we originally said you promised me. Clearly, the Emerys had a plan, but was it a desperate suicide pact or a bold scheme to fool the authorities and run away? Months after the Emerys disappeared, a fisherman working in the bay found two human leg bones in his net. Clinging to one was a fragment of a sock that was identical to those purchased by Adam and Elena. Authorities compared the DNA sample from the bones with DNA samples of both Elenas mother and sister, but the bones were not female and were instead male. It was originally thought that the bones were of Adam Emery, but the length of the bones did not match Adams height. Then a few weeks later, Detective Hopkins responded to an urgent call from the harbor. Narragansett Bay had given up another grim piece of evidence. A skull recovered from the east passage of the bay was found and later positively identified as that of Elena Emery. Elena had at last been found. To date, theres been no trace of Adam. Perhaps, his bones are deep in Narragansett Bay, or perhaps, the day will come when Adam Emery turns up alive. Officially, the case is still open. Reliable sources say theres no reason to believe Adam Emery ever committed suicide. A federal warrant was issued on January 18th, 1994 and Emery was charged with unlawful flight to avoid prosecution. He is wanted by the FBI for second-degree murder and unlawful flight to avoid prosecution. Adam Emery is 61, 175 lbs. and has brown hair and blue eyes. He may work as a purchasing agent or a worker in a plastics factory and may have fled to Florida or Italy. Adam Emery would today be 50 years old. ~Alex~
Posted on: Mon, 04 Nov 2013 19:07:08 +0000