Oregon – Ten years ago Thursday, the second of two Oregon City girls who were killed by their neighbor was kidnapped.
Two months before Miranda Gaddis disappeared, her classmate, Ashley Pond, vanished.
Both were kidnapped and killed by Ward Weaver, who’s serving life in prison for the crimes.
Why he did it has been relatively unknown and unreported. But now, Miranda's sister, Miriah, knows what happened. She got answers from Weaver after he went to prison.
‘He honestly thought when Miranda was walking up the hill to the school bus that Miranda had saw something he was in the middle of doing and he got scared and panicked. So he told her: “Hey, Ashley’s inside. Ashley wants to come home and Ashley’s scared.” So, Miranda went over,’ Miriah said.
Preying on a 13-year-old’s desire to help, using the idea of her 12-year-old friend, Ashley, as bait, Weaver employed the ultimate deception. Katu online article 8th March 2012
‘My [Ashley Pond] daughter: she didn’t make it into school.’ People Magazine Investigates s3e6: Fallen Angels, 911 call, Discovery 2020
‘There were over 100 sexual offenders in the neighbourhood … We’re gonna hit on to a graveyard of little girls.’ ibid. rozzer
Over the next two years Ward Weaver manages to make his trial just as sensational as his crimes. ibid.
Without a confession, police can only speculate on what really happened to Ashley and Miranda. ibid.