MYSTERIOUS DEATH OF: Rowena Wilkinson Zapalac

The gist

When 20-year-old Rowena Wilkinson Zapalac died in her Flatonia, Texas apartment in 1984, authorities quickly ruled it a suicide by autoerotic asphyxiation. Her sister Jolita questioned this ruling for decades, and after their parents' death, she pursued the case—eventually leading Crime Junkie investigators to conclude Rowena was murdered. The investigation uncovered troubling evidence ignored by police and revealed potential connections to another woman's death in the same small town, plus a third suspicious death.

Key takeaways

• Physical evidence contradicting suicide: Rowena had a broken acrylic fingernail with blood on it, symmetrical bruises on both upper arms consistent with being gripped from behind, scratches on her neck, and blood in her bedsheets—none of this appeared in the official police report.

• Questionable crime scene details: The apartment had a broken kitchen window with glass on the floor, scattered pennies, water still in the shower a day after her death, and a coffee table pushed against the door (Rowena's makeshift lock)—details ignored by investigators who claimed there was no forced entry.

• Autoerotic asphyxiation extremely rare in women: Only three documented cases of women dying this way existed before 1984, compared to roughly 50 men per case in medical literature, making the suicide theory highly implausible.

• Second victim, Melody Bush: Six months before Rowena died, Melody Bush was murdered in the same town and last seen at the Stag Club bar—the same bar Rowena visited the night she died. Both women have potential connections to a man named Cooper Cherry.

• Serial killer Robert Charles Brown unlikely suspect: While Texas Rangers briefly considered Robert Charles Brown (who confessed to multiple murders including possibly Melody Bush), his account contained inaccuracies about the cause of death, and his MO was inconsistent with either murder.

• Cooper Cherry's suspicious pattern: Cooper Cherry was present in Flatonia the night both Rowena and Melody died. He was also connected to a third woman, his first wife Rhonda Stahl, who died in a questionable car accident in 1980 under unclear circumstances—no autopsy performed.

• Town silence and prominent family connections: Cooper Cherry came from a wealthy, prominent Flatonia family (father owned ranches and oil wells, served on the bank board). Despite evidence suggesting he warrants investigation, no one in town is speaking to reporters, possibly due to fear of powerful local connections.

• Case reopening in progress: Jolita filed a petition to change Rowena's death certificate from suicide to homicide, enabling case reopening. Recently, she was contacted by Texas Rangers and the Texas Attorney General's office to discuss reopening the investigation.

Notable quotes

"I told them after they pass, I would dig into the truth...I hate that my nephew has lived the past forty years believing his mom accidentally killed herself masturbating." — Jolita Wilkinson, on her motivation to investigate her sister's death

"When you have the right connections, life is a bit easier for you. If Cooper had anything to do with the deaths...nobody in his family would want anyone to know that kind of stuff." — Thomas Zappalac, Rowena's ex-husband, on how power and family prominence might shield someone from justice

Worth a full listen?

Listen to the full episode if you want the complete investigative narrative showing how Crime Junkie uncovered missed evidence, tracked down reluctant witnesses, and identified a person of interest in a decades-old case—or if you're interested in how small-town power structures and institutional failures can silence justice.