After 17 years, woman fights for justice in sister's murder and others unsolved in Wilmington

Chase Jordan and Jamey Cross, Wilmington StarNews
·4 min read
It's been 17 years since Allison Jackson-Foy went missing. Two years later, Jackson-Foy was found dead off Carolina Beach Road. Her family continues efforts to find a suspect and to help other families find missing loved ones.
It's been 17 years since Allison Jackson-Foy went missing. Two years later, Jackson-Foy was found dead off Carolina Beach Road. Her family continues efforts to find a suspect and to help other families find missing loved ones.

Lisa Valentino is not giving up trying to find the killer of her beloved sister, Allison Jackson Foy.

Every year, she reminds people on the anniversary of her death. Foy was last seen July 30, 2006, at Junction Billiards Sports Bar on Carolina Beach Road. The establishment was a few miles away from where her skeletal remains were found two years later in the woods by Carolina Beach Road near the intersection with Raleigh Road.

"Nobody shouldn't have to go 17 years without an arrest in a double homicide and probably more from this person," Valentino said. "My heart is with all those who are missing a loved one in unsolved cases like my sister's."

Valentino said the unsolved murder continues to bring emotional pain to her family, especially with Foy not being able to see the accomplishments of her two daughters. She also showed concern for the family of Angela Rothen, who also went missing in the same area a year later.

More: Additional rape kit testing leads to 48-year sentence in 1996 kidnapping, assault

Previous coverage: 10 years after Allison Jackson-Foy disappeared, no arrests in her murder

"These two women deserve justice," Valentino said. "It doesn't matter how long it takes. There needs to be an arrest made in this case so that Allison and Angela can have justice, and so that our families can have final resolution in these cases."

Valentino said continues to keep in contact with law enforcement and the district attorney's office.

"I think we all want the same thing" she said about getting justice and raising awareness.

She's also involved with the Wilmington-based Community United Effort (CUE), a nonprofit advocacy organization for missing people. Along with others raising awareness, she works as a state outreach coordinator.

"If there are other families out there who are in need of help of a missing loved one, which Allison was originally to begin with, they're an excellent resource to go to right there in the community," she said. "My sister would have not been found without the help of the CUE center and their volunteers. Seventeen years later, they still walk this walk with us."

New Hanover County has several unsolved homicides, the oldest of which dates back to the 1960s. Here are some of the unsolved murders in the county, according to the New Hanover County Sheriff's Office.

Melquan Hicks-Bey

Melquan Hicks-Bey
Melquan Hicks-Bey

According to the New Hanover County Sheriff's Office, the body of Melquan Hicks-Bey was located in a wooded area off of Rockhill Road suffering from multiple gunshot wounds on Nov. 5, 2017.

Officials said he was abducted during an armed robbery at a home on South 12th Street. He was 22 at the time.

Hicks-Bey: Police: Murder victim was abducted

Frank Brown

Frank Brown
Frank Brown

Frank Brown was shot and killed at his home on Oakley Road in Castle Hayne on July 3, 2002. His two sons found the 46-year-old when they got home.

According to authorities, the person who committed his murder was suspected of stealing his truck and leaving it a few blocks away.

Patricia Ann Ivey

The oldest reported New Hanover County unsolved homicide is over 50 years old. According to the New Hanover County Sheriff's Office, Patricia Ann Ivey was last seen alive around Aug. 5, 1968.

Her body was found along the Cape Fear River two days later. She had been shot.

A Duplin County native, Ivey had seven children and resided on Adams Street in Wilmington at the time of her death.

Michael McIntyre

In 2001, Michael McIntyre's body was found with several gunshot wounds after a 911 call was made. According to law enforcement, he was found on the side of an access road leading to Fortron Industries and Kosa Chemicals in the 4600 block of N. U.S. 421.

He was 23 years old.

Pamela Bradshaw

According to the New Hanover County Sheriff's Office, Pamela Bradshaw was last seen in September 2000 in the 500 block of North Seventh Street near the intersection of Red Cross Street.

She was seen talking to someone in a white vehicle in the middle of the street. She was reported before an investigation, which led to detectives saying she was killed at a home on Murrayville Road.

Bradshaw was 41 at the time of her death.

Rose-Marie Mallette

The body of Rose-Marie Mallette was found behind the MCO Transport near U.S. 421 on Sept. 15, 2001. According to reports from the New Hanover County Sheriff's Office, she suffered blunt force trauma.

She was 27 years old.

The sheriff's office reports 11 unsolved homicides in the area. If you have any information about the deaths of Foy, Rothen or any other victim, the detective division of the New Hanover County Sheriff's Office can be reached at 910-798-4260.

Reach reporter Jamey Cross at jbcross@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Wilmington StarNews: What murders are unsolved in Wilmington