CBS 48 Hours: Who killed Jonelle Matthews?

This weekend, the new 48 Hours episode on CBS will take a closer look into the sudden disappearance and murder of Jonelle Matthews in 1984. Matthews was only 12 years old when she was reported missing from her home in Colorado. Almost 35 years later, her remains were discovered in July 2019, and a year later, a man named Steven Pankey was arrested in October 2020 for kidnapping and murdering Jonelle Matthews.

The official synopsis of the episode, which airs Saturday, August 6, 2022, at 9:00 PM ET, on CBS News reads:

''A former candidate for governor is accused of kidnapping a 12-year-old girl. Does his decades-long fascination with the case mean he’s a true-crime junkie or a murderer?'' "48 Hours" correspondent Richard Schlesinger reports.

Without further ado, read on to find out more details about the Jonelle Matthews murder case.

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CBS 48 Hours: What happened to Jonelle Matthews?

Jonelle Matthews was a 12-year-old girl from Greeley, Colorado, who'd gone to attend a Christmas choir event on December 20, 1984. According to CBS News, she was dropped home by a family friend that night but was never seen again. Authorities soon began an investigation and initially suspected Jonelle's father, Jim Matthews, but he was cleared. The police couldn't come up with any substantial leads and the case ultimately went cold.

In a significant development, a man from Idaho named Steven Pankey became a person of interest. According to CBS News, Pankey lived near the Matthews' house in Colorado in 1984 when Jonelle went missing. Pankey has had his troubles with the law over the years. As per CBS News, he was accused of creating a nuisance and harassment at a local bank. Pankey also dabbled in politics for a while.

In the years since Jonelle's disappearance, Pankey ''repeatedly inserted himself into the investigation,'' according to CBS News. He reportedly once told the Idaho Supreme Court that he was arrested and convicted in the bank case so that the police could ''force'' him to ''become an informant'' in the Jonelle Matthews case. After Jonelle's remains were discovered in July 2019, authorities searched Pankey's house and he was eventually arrested in October 2020.

According to the Grand Jury indictment, Pankey kidnapped Jonelle from her Colorado home and shot her. The indictment mentions that Pankey was aware of a rake at Jonelle's home that was used to remove foot impressions in the snow, which was not made known to the public. Pankey pleaded not guilty to charges of kidnapping and murder.

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CBS 48 Hours: Is Steven Pankey convicted?

During the trial, Pankey's ex-wife, Angela Hicks, made some statements that pointed to his guilt. According to CBS, she told jurors that her ex-husband made her listen to news coverage about Jonelle's disappearance and found a newspaper in the trash that mentioned the snow outside Jonelle's house was raked.

Meanwhile, the defense came up with another angle: Norris Drake, a man whose mother lived near Jonelle's house, could be a potential suspect. But he had an alibi for that night. Pankey ultimately admitted to lying about his knowledge of the Jonelle Matthews case, for which the jury found him guilty. However, jurors were deadlocked on the kidnapping and murder counts. A mistrial was ordered on those counts and a retrial is set for October 4, 2022, according to CBS News.

You can watch CBS' 48 Hours on Saturday, August 6, 2022.

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