Mina Dekker — Murder on the third floor
In 1938 Mina Dekker, a 19-year old secretary in Grand Rapids was bludgeoned to death with a hammer as she worked alone in an abrasives retail operation. Her killer left her for dead, took the hammer, and was never apprehended. Her death cascaded through the community and the effect on her family has not lessened over time. Somebody got away with murder and her 85-year old brother, Adrian, still wonders.
There was only ONE suspect, Calvin DeBlaey, but police never arrested him or formally charged him. Â He was given two polygraph tests–novel for 1938, scopolamine–which was thought to be a truth serum–and interviewed again and again. Â
As part of telling our story,  we will include portions of the November 1938 edition of True Detective magazine, a story that covered the murder.  We include this WITH PERMISSION of the magazine (Magazine Design & Publishing Ltd., www.truecrimelibrary.com).
Click on any of the images to enlarge them.
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