WISCONSIN RAPIDS, WI – A person of interest in the decades-old disappearance of television personality Jodi Husentruit has been identified as responsible for the 2006 murder of a Wisconsin mother, authorities announced this week.
Christopher Revak, who died by suicide in a Missouri jail cell in 2009, has been connected to the death of Deidre Harm through evidence gathered by investigators with the Wood County Sheriff’s Office.
Harm disappeared on March 13, 2007, after going out with friends in Wisconsin Rapids. Hunters discovered her remains in a remote area of Seneca, launching an investigation that would span nearly two decades.
Wood County Sheriff Shawn Becker stated that investigators gathered substantial evidence connecting Revak to Harm’s death, including testimony from family members who placed him in Wisconsin Rapids on the day she vanished.
District Attorney Jonathan Barnett agreed with the sheriff’s assessment, noting that “if Revak were still alive, he would be facing charges for her murder.”
Revak had worked as an EMT for Taney County, Missouri, before his death. He was facing murder charges for the 2007 death of Rene Williams when he took his own life in jail.
The connection to Husentruit’s case has renewed attention on one of Iowa’s most enduring mysteries. The television news personality vanished on June 27, 1995, while en route to work at KIMT-TV in Mason City, Iowa.
Items found at the scene of Husentruit’s disappearance included her shoes, a bent car key, hair styling products, and earrings, suggesting a struggle occurred. Despite extensive investigations over the years, her body has never been found.
A $50,000 reward remains active for information leading to a resolution in Husentruit’s case. The 27-year-old anchor’s disappearance captured national attention and has remained one of the most high-profile missing persons cases in the Midwest.
Revak’s identification as a person of interest in the Husentruit case predates his suicide, but the recent confirmation of his responsibility for Harm’s death has prompted investigators to reexamine possible connections between the cases.
The Wood County Sheriff’s Office has not disclosed what specific evidence linked Revak to Harm’s murder, citing the ongoing nature of investigations into his potential involvement in other unsolved cases.
Authorities continue to encourage anyone with information about Husentruit’s disappearance to come forward, noting that Revak’s death does not preclude the possibility of other individuals being involved.
The cases underscore the persistence of law enforcement in pursuing answers for families of victims, even when prime suspects are deceased. Advances in forensic technology and witness interviews continue to shed light on cold cases decades after the original crimes.
