Opinion ID: 1439456
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Disappearance of Nicholson, DeGeus, and the Duncan Family

Text: Honken was released on bond. During June and July 1993, Honken and Johnson searched for Nicholson, often asking Johnson's friend, Christi Gaubatz (Gaubatz), to babysit Johnson's daughter while they searched. On July 7, 1993, Johnson purchased a .9 mm handgun. Meanwhile, in mid-July 1993, a mutual friend introduced Nicholson to Lori Duncan (Duncan). Duncan was a single, working mother raising her two girls, Kandi (age 10) and Amber (age 6). Nicholson began staying at Duncan's house. On the night of July 24, 1993, Honken and Johnson again asked Gaubatz to babysit Johnson's daughter and borrowed Gaubatz's car so they could search for Nicholson. Honken and Johnson normally returned about midnight, but on this occasion they did not come home until around five o'clock in the morning. On July 25, 1993, Nicholson, Duncan, Kandi, and Amber suddenly disappeared. Five days later, on July 30, 1993, Honken appeared for his plea hearing, but declined to plead guilty. Honken told his attorney he heard a rumor Nicholson had skipped town. Honken also provided his attorney with a VHS tape of Nicholson saying Honken was not guilty of the charges against him. Around August 2, 1993, the government learned Nicholson was missing after warrants were issued for Nicholson's arrest and officers were unsuccessful in locating Nicholson. The government continued its drug investigation against Honken, now turning its attention to Honken's only other dealer, DeGeus. Honken told Cutkomp he was worried about DeGeus testifying against him. Honken believed DeGeus had been subpoenaed to appear before the grand jury. DeGeus disappeared on November 5, 1993. The night of his disappearance, DeGeus dropped his 10-year-old daughter off at his mother's house and told his mother he was going to meet Johnson, his former girlfriend. DeGeus said he would return shortly to pick up his daughter that evening, but DeGeus never returned. In the winter of 1993-1994, while cleaning a bedroom closet, Gaubatz discovered a large black handgun with attached silencer in a cosmetics bag belonging to Johnson. Gaubatz called Johnson to demand Johnson remove the gun. Johnson told Gaubatz not to worry about the gun because Honken would take care of it. That winter, Honken went to Cutkomp for assistance destroying a large black pistol. Honken and Cutkomp used a torch to cut and melt the gun into a number of unrecognizable pieces, which they discarded in ditches along a country road.