"I Owe Him A Debt I Can Never Repay": Remembering Hank Albarelli

Hank P. Albarelli Jr., talented author and journalist, passed away on June 18th, 2019 in Florida. He was a multifaceted man who wore many hats throughout his life. Hank produced music festivals,
worked in the Carter administration in the White House, and was an award-winning playwright.
His determined and thorough nature was well-suited for his later career in investigative journalism, where he produced compelling and meticulously researched articles and novels encompassing subjects including the assassination of JFK and the murder of Frank Olson. A Vermont native, Hank also spent considerable time investigating and reporting on the disappearance of Brianna Maitland.

He wrote what is arguably the most comprehensive piece on Brianna's disappearance to date in 2006, its release providing ever-needed media pressure in the case. In his article Hank spoke with an assistant district attorney, an FBI profiler, and included poignant quotes from Brianna's teachers and loved ones that captured her personality and loss. He was the only one who followed Ramon Ryans to Burlington and the Ligia Collins case.

His efforts were greatly appreciated by Brianna's dad, Bruce Maitland. Bruce remembers Hank as a man with a "great heart and strong sense of justice", who "used his investigative journalism skills to try to find Bri and wrote a great article, that to this date is the finest written on her case" Bruce added, "I will miss him and owe him a debt I can never repay".

Hank listed his favorite poem as Listen to the Musnt's from Shell Silverstein's Where the Sidewalk Ends:

Listen to the MUSTN'TS, child,
Listen to the DON'TS
Listen to the SHOULDN'TS
The IMPOSSIBLES, the WON'TS
Listen to the NEVER HAVES
Then listen close to me-
Anything can happen, child,
ANYTHING can be.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Dutchburn House

Image
The Dutchburn House Sometime after 11:30 p.m. on March 19th, 2004 in Montgomery, Vermont, the awful sound of a car crash resounded into the silent night. An old weathered farmhouse stood on a curve on Vermont Route 118, abandoned since the 1990’s. The small home faced the roadway and stood before a large cornfield bordering the Trout River. The white paint which once covered the wooden exterior was blistered and faded. Plywood covered its windows and doors. On display on one of the boarded windows was a ‘No Trespassing’ sign. A light green 1985 Oldsmobile Royale was traveling on Route 118 along the curve. For reasons one can only speculate, the driver went off the roadway in reverse and at an odd angle. After driving over some tall grass, the vehicle’s back bumper slammed into the side of the abandoned farmhouse. The car became lodged into the home’s foundation and was brought to a halt. A piece of plywood covering a boarded window was dislodged by the impact and landed on t
Read more

What They Found in Her Car

Image
What They Found in Her Car From what I’ve learned along the way, I’ve determined that the following items were left behind inside of Brianna Maitland’s abandoned vehicle. In the front seat: The front seat of Brianna Maitland’s vehicle. Photographs taken by Bob Kates in 2006. Bobkatlair.blogspot.com Two paychecks addressed to Brianna Maitland on the front passenger seat. One Styrofoam takeout box with half of a sandwich inside on the front passenger floor. A marijuana leaf trinket with the text “Emerald Bay”. Photograph by Bob Kates. A cut out image of Angelina Jolie from an article in the August 2003 issue of Cosmopolitan Magazine with the text, “Angelina Holds Nothing Back”, taped to the ceiling. Photograph taken by Bob Kates in 2006. Beer bottle caps, glued over radio dials. Multiple cigarette butts in the vehicle’s ash tray. A small card with a graphic of a fairy standing in front of a waterfall, in the driver’s visor. In the ba
Read more

In Keallie's Words, Part 1

Image
In Keallie's Words, Part 1 Brianna's injuries included two black eyes, a broken nose, and a concussion.  "I hit her two times. She didn't fight back. It looks like I annihilated her, but I didn't. I hit  her twice and she didn't fight back. I said, ' you're not worth it' and walked away. They look at me like I'm a monster, and I jumped her with a crew of women, but that's not what happened." If you've looked into the Maitland case, you know Brianna was injured in a fight three weeks before she disappeared. She had a falling out with her friend Keallie LaCross because of a love triangle (or rectangle). Because of the timing of this fight, some have speculated that Keallie may be involved in Brianna's disappearance. Keallie was kind enough to grant me an interview back in March, and we spoke on the phone for nearly two hours. I know people are waiting for a podcast episode with Keallie as a guest. We are working on i
Read more