Disappearance in Decatur: The Tragic Abduction and Murder of Penny Timmons
On Halloween 1992, 20-year-old Penny Timmons was abducted from her workplace in Decatur, Illinois and was missing for more than a year before the case was finally solved
Background
On October 31, 1992, 20-year-old Decatur, Illinois, resident Penny Timmons went missing shortly after 4 p.m. She was last seen in the company of an unknown man. The circumstances around Penny’s disappearance indicated that she had likely been abducted.
For more than a year, the grief and uncertainty weighed on Penny’s family and the community. Then, in December 1993, the grim reality of what happened to Penny Timmons was finally discovered, thus bringing to a close a mystery that had lingered over the city.
Halloween 1992
On October 31, 1992, in Decatur, Illinois —a city roughly 175 miles southwest of Chicago —20-year-old Penny Timmons was going about her normal routine. She left work around noon and dropped her eighteen-month-old daughter, Alexandria, off at the babysitter. She then returned to the Mount Zion Kmart, where she worked as a photographer.
A few hours later, Timmons was seen in the company of an unknown man. She was first seen buying beer and cigarettes inside a convenience store while the man remained in the car.
A short time later, just before 4 p.m., Penny entered the Phillips 66 service station at Wyckles Road and U.S. 36 on the opposite side of town. She headed to the restroom while an unknown man waited by the door.
Many of the witnesses would later state how odd Penny's behavior was. She knew several of the workers, including her boyfriend, who was there when she came in, yet she pretended not to know anyone.
When Penny exited the restroom, she approached her boyfriend and told him there was a leak in the bathroom sink that needed immediate attention. Penny then left and drove away with the unidentified man.
Timmons’ boyfriend checked out the restroom. He found a small scrap of paper with a message that read - Jeromy - he has a gun in his pants! HELP! this isn’t a joke! He immediately contacted the Macon County Sheriff’s office.
Investigation
Macon County Sheriff Lee Holsapple and Detective Bill Valentine began to investigate the potential kidnapping. The unknown subject seen with Penny was described as a white male in his 20s, around 6 feet tall and 160 pounds, with shoulder-length brown hair. None of Timmons’ friends remembered ever seeing the man before. Fliers were printed and distributed with a police sketch.
Penny’s car remained parked in the Kmart parking lot. A billfold wallet was discovered inside the car, though it was unclear if it was the wallet she was currently using, as her driver’s license was missing. Nothing inside the car appeared to have been disturbed, and there were no signs of violence or a struggle.
As investigators spoke to Penny’s family, her father, Gary Sebens, and sister, Paula Nichols, were adamant about one thing: Penny would never run away. She wouldn’t abandon her daughter or family. It just wasn’t the Penny they knew.
Local and state police eventually agreed. They launched aerial searches, canvassed neighborhoods, and followed every lead. The family printed flyers. The community rallied to help search for the young woman. However, as the days and weeks passed, the question lingered: Where was Penny?
On November 7, 1992, America’s Most Wanted, the popular TV show hosted by John Walsh, featured Penny Timmons’s story in an episode. Hopes were raised as tips came in from all over. Sadly, none of them resulted in a breakthrough in the case; however, Detective Bill Valentine remained hopeful. Penny’s family vowed to keep searching and offered a $5000 reward for information.
One promising lead came months later when investigators uncovered a clue from telephone records. Shortly before her disappearance, Penny made a call to the USS John Kennedy. Despite hours of investigation and the cooperation of the Navy, no one could link the call to her disappearance. Once again, the trail grew cold, but not for long.
Suspect
On November 15, 1993, the Grand Jury indicted a 22-year-old man, Daniel Elmo Parker, in Penny’s disappearance. Parker was already in prison at the time of the indictment for an unrelated weapons charge. He was alleged to have pointed a sawed-off shotgun at a McDonald’s employee and received a four-year sentence after pleading guilty.
Parker’s name was reportedly on the radar of investigators early on in the investigation; however, it took time to build a case against him. Though Sheriff Holsapple and State’s Attorney Larry Fichter did not go into detail on the evidence presented, they acknowledged that it was sufficient to convince the grand jury.
Some of that evidence included a .38 caliber revolver found during a search of Parker’s residence, and blood found in the trunk of his car that was matched to Penny Timmons. Fichter also stated that he was ready to put six or seven witnesses on the stand who would testify that Parker admitted to them that he murdered Timmons.
After the indictment, Parker agreed to a plea deal to avoid the death penalty. He admitted to the abduction and murder of Penny Timmons, revealing that he shot her to death shortly after leaving the Phillips 66.
Closure
On December 17, 1993, he led detectives to where he’d buried her body. Penny was buried behind a house on Spruce Street, a quiet suburban neighborhood. The house was owned by Parker’s mother and stepfather, Doug and Darlene German. Parker had lived there at the time of Penny’s disappearance.
Detectives called it a “major break in the case.” They found Penny’s remains behind a high privacy fence and a maintenance building. Sheriff Holsapple stated that Parker’s parents had “no clue” she was buried there. Penny’s remains were positively identified through dental records.
Although prosecutors believed they could secure a conviction even without a body, part of the reason for the plea deal was to give Penny’s family some closure. Gary Sebens, Penny’s father, felt relieved at bringing her home. The family “knows where Penny is now.” For the family, the long ordeal and waiting was over.
On December 21, 1993, Penny was buried in Mt. Zion Cemetery in Decatur. Remembered as a young woman who loved family, animals, and Christmas, Penny was mourned by family, friends, and even people who had never met her but helped in the search.
This included Sheriff Holsapple and members of his team who worked on Penny’s case and also attended her funeral. He said that the case was “one of the most unpleasant investigations I’ve ever been involved in.” He worked closely with the family during the investigation, saying, “We got to know Penny so well that she became part of our families.”
Sentencing and Release
The day before Penny’s burial, December 20, 1993, Daniel Parker pled guilty to Penny’s kidnapping and murder. He would not say why he had abducted and murdered her. Penny just happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time on that Halloween night in 1992.
As per the plea agreement, Daniel Parker was sentenced to sixty years in prison. However, because of a program called day-for-day good time, which eliminated one day from a prisoner's sentence for every day of good behavior they had, Parker was eligible for parole after 30 years. In July 2023, Daniel Parker was released from the West Illinois Penitentiary under supervised conditions.
This program has since been altered; however, because Parker was sentenced before those changes went into effect, he only served half of his 60-year sentence.
Sources:
“TV show triggers dozens of tips in woman’s disappearance.” UPI Archives, 7 November 1992, https://www.upi.com/Archives/1992/11/07/TV-show-triggers-dozens-of-tips-in-womans-disappearance/
Tatham, Judy. “Police to analyze 82 TV tips on Timmons.” Herald and Review, 10 November 1992, https://www.newspapers.com/image/80372649/?match=1&terms=penny%20timmons
Tatham, Judy. “Hope, but no word.” Herald and Review, 6 November 1992, https://www.newspapers.com/image/80372438/?match=1&terms=penny%20timmons
Ingram, Ron. “Timmons’ killer gets 60 years.” Herald and Review, 21 December 1993, https://www.newspapers.com/image/77339030/match=1&terms=%20penny%20timmons
“Mystery of missing Decatur woman ends.” Journal Gazette and Times-Courier, 21 December 1993, https://www.newspapers.com/article/jg-tc-journal-gazette-and-times-courier/83572023/
Kleine, Ted. “Suspect led deputies to body.” Herald and Review, 19 December 1993, https://www.newspapers.com/image/77338724/?clipping_id=110606942
Tatham, Judy. “Man indicted in Timmons case.” Herald and Review, 16 November 1993, https://www.newspapers.com/image/92146042/?match=1&terms=daniel%20elmo%20parker
Great article! I wonder what the family must make of the perp being set free.