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A person once mentioned the name of an interesting person Disappearance of Iowa news anchor Jodi Huisentruit Now found responsible for 2006 murder wisconsin The woman – and investigators believe there may be more victims.
Investigators in Wisconsin say Christopher Revak, a former emergency medical technician, died by suicide in Missouri Jail Had he still been alive, Sale would have faced charges in the 2009 death of 21-year-old Deirdre Harm.
Wood County District Attorney Jonathan Barnett wrote in a letter shared by the Sheriff’s Office on October 20 that he believed there was enough evidence to bring the case to trial.
“I consider this matter closed,” Barnett wrote. “I believe I had enough to press charges and, if Mr. Revak were still alive, would have prevailed at trial.”
Harm, a single mother from Wisconsin Rapids, disappeared on June 10, 2006, after a night out with friends at a bar downtown. His remains were found five months later in a wooded area about five miles away.
The Wood County Sheriff’s Office and the Wisconsin Rapids Police Department said in a joint statement: “This may bring some closure for many but it will not bring Deidre back. Our thoughts and prayers will always be with Deidre’s family.”
Deidre’s family also released a statement, reading in part, “First and foremost, words will never heal our hearts that are forever broken, nor will they ease the sadness or emptiness we feel every day without her.”
He said, “To the person or people responsible for the death of our beloved Deidre Christine Harm, I want these words to be heard and felt. You didn’t just take one life; you shattered countless others. Deidre was a daughter, a friend, and a light in this world whose absence is felt deeply by everyone who knew and loved her.”
Revak, a Wisconsin native, was visiting family in the area at the time of Harm’s disappearance.
Authorities now say he was “responsible for her death,” formally closing the case that had gone unsolved for nearly two decades.
But Revak’s violent history extends to several states. He was charged in the 2009 murder of Renee Williams, a 36-year-old mother of three from Mansfield, Missouri, who disappeared in March 2007 after her bartending shift. Revak was also at the bar the night she disappeared. According to Fox 9. He died by suicide in prison a day later.
Douglas County Sheriff Chris DeGasse, who investigated Williams’ case, said the relationship between Revak and Harm deepened his fear of what investigators might uncover.
“We’re probably dealing with a serial killer,” Degasse said. KY3“During his day, he’s doing his bit for society and helping people and saving people, but Chris Revak also had a dark side.”
Degasse said that forensic evidence links Revak to Williams’ disappearance – his DNA was found inside his truck, and his DNA was recovered at the scene.
Degasse said, “When I started working on the Christopher Revak case, he was my suspect in the murder of Rene Williams.” “I didn’t think it was his first attempt.”
After his arrest, Degasse began looking into other similar cases.
“I Googled ‘women kidnapped from bars’ in all the towns where he lived,” he said. “And when I searched for Wisconsin Rapids, Deidre Harm came up.”
That discovery led Missouri and Wisconsin investigators to compare notes – and ultimately link Revak to Harm’s murder.
Connection to Jody Huysentruit
Revak had also previously been identified as a person of interest in the 1995 disappearance of Jody Huisentruit, a 27-year-old morning anchor at KIMT-TV in Mason City, Iowa.
Huysentruit disappeared around 4 a.m. on June 27, 1995. She called a producer and said she was on her way to work but never arrived.
Police later found signs of a violent struggle outside her apartment, including high heels, earrings, and a crumpled key left near her car.
He was declared legally dead in 2001, but his body was never found.
Mason City police said there was no direct evidence linking Revak to the case.
However, in 2024, Iowa and Wisconsin investigators re-examined his possible ties, noting similarities between his case and his confirmed involvement in other crimes.
A statement shared with FindJodi.com Mason City Police Capt. Mike McKelvey clarified: “Nothing has been found to indicate that Christopher Revak was in Mason City at the time Jodi Huysentruit was abducted, but he remains on the list of persons of interest in her unsolved case.”
Investigators previously explored whether Revak’s former partner had ever lived near Huysentruit, one of the last people to see him alive, but they determined that she had moved out months before the anchor’s disappearance.
Douglas County Sheriff DeGasse said he still finds the overlap troubling.
“He had a girlfriend who lived very close to Jody,” he told KY3. “That’s our only connection to it. I’ve done this for 32 years. I don’t believe in coincidences. I don’t believe that you have a guy who’s a serial killer, who lives in Ava, Missouri, and commits a murder. He kills Deirdre Harm in Wisconsin Rapids and now we have a place where he was and right next door to where his girlfriend was there’s another guy who was murdered.”
Despite no confirmed links, the renewed focus on Revak has refocused attention on the Huysentruit cold case, which remains one of Iowa’s most haunting mysteries.
“We haven’t put this down. We haven’t stopped working. We haven’t stopped pursuing leads and information,” former Mason City Police Chief Jeff Brinkley told FOX9 earlier this year.
In 2024, authorities searched a property in Winsted, Minnesota following a tip, although no new evidence was found. A $50,000 reward has been offered for information leading to Huysentruit’s disappearance.
Earlier this year, Huisentruit’s family said in a statement on Facebook: “The pain and suffering we and everyone who loved Jodie has felt is immeasurable. True peace will only come when Jodie is found and justice is served. We still hope that will happen one day soon.”
Following news of an update on Haram’s case last week, he reacted by offering his thoughts and prayers at a difficult time.
He added, “Our thoughts and prayers are with Deirdre’s family, friends, and everyone who loved her during that difficult time. With this news, please keep the focus on them in this moment as they go through this process and continue to grieve.”
a pattern of violence
Revak’s double life – respected EMT by day, violent hunter by night – troubles those who investigate him.
According to a letter from District Attorney Barnett, Revak’s former partner Johanna Revak confirmed that the couple had traveled to Wisconsin at the time of Harm’s disappearance.
She told investigators that Revak had become more aggressive after drinking, and that a former classmate had described him as violent when rejected by women.
“During his day he’s doing his bit for society and helping people and saving people, but Chris Revak also had a dark side,” Degasse said.
Currently, authorities in several states are reviewing old cases for possible ties to Revak.
“Since I was working on the Renee Williams murder case, I couldn’t believe this was the first time Chris Revak had committed a murder,” Degasse said.
For Deidre Harm’s family, the official closing offers peace amid years of pain.
“We live with the pain of her loss every day, but we are also determined every day to keep her memory alive,” they said in a statement.
“Speaking her name, sharing her story and reminding the world that her life matters.”