Spotlight: The Berman Murders by Doug Kari

Unraveling the Mojave Desert's Most Mysterious Unsolved Crime

True Crime

Date Published: March 5th 2024

Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield

At daybreak on January 6, 1986, a couple on a camping trip in the Mojave Desert set out for a stroll and never returned. The local sheriff’s office eventually discovered that Barry and Louise Berman had been murdered. As years passed and the double homicide remained unsolved, the Berman case spawned speculation and conjecture. Despite extensive investigation by local and federal authorities, to date there’s never been an arrest made in the case – let alone a conviction. But this doesn’t mean the crime is unsolvable.

After years of investigation, research, and interviews, Kari was able to link the Berman murders to a Cambodian sex crimes and trafficking case involving a former Marine. This is the first book to tell the full story of the Berman murders and uncover the likely suspect.

Excerpt

To Deputy Boyer’s way of thinking, the call from Chili Bob wasn’t cause for alarm. Maybe the missing couple went backpacking into the wilderness, or maybe they hitched a ride into town to buy more supplies. Although the call warranted follow up, it seemed no different from any of the other minor incidents that the sheriff’s office regularly handled. 

From this benign beginning, the case of Barry and Louise Berman would become a years long saga of near misses and dead ends – confounding Boyer and other law enforcement officials and tormenting the missing couple’s family and friends. How did Barry, the heir apparent to the Kahlua liqueur fortune, and Louise, a 1960s wild child turned spiritual seeker, end up dead in the desert – murdered while on a romantic getaway?

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About the Author

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