Pod Insights Dark Downeast UPDATE: The Murder of Charline Rosemond (Massachusetts) About this episode When we first covered the case of Charline Rosemond on Dark Downeast back in January of 2025, her murder was still unsolved. But a few months after the release of the episode, that finally changed. A suspect has since been indicted. So, we’re rereleasing the original episode covering Charline’s case with a new ending and an interview with Charline’s sister Rose, who has been Charline’s fiercest advocate since day one.
Rose has heard rumors about the suspect and his friend’s alleged involvement in Charline’s murder for years. She knows the suspect. They all grew up together. They were friends. At least, Charline thought so when she planned to meet up with them on the night her life was stolen. Now, one of those so-called friends is facing charges for her death.
Transcript 0:01 Speaker 00 Every case starts somewhere. A small town, a missing persons report, a family asking the same questions over and over. But sometimes a story reaches beyond its own community. Its impact extends further, calling for more attention, more conversation, and a wider audience. That's what Crime Junkie does every Monday. Ashley Flowers and Brett Praywat cover the cases you can't stop thinking about, from unsolved murders to missing people to investigations that still need answers. Because every new person who hears the story is another chance to uncover the truth. Listen to Crime Junkie every Monday, wherever you get your podcasts.
0:45 Speaker 00 When we first covered the case of Charline Rosemond on Dark Down East back in January of 2025, her murder was still unsolved. But a few months after the release of the episode, that finally changed. A suspect has since been indicted. So we're re-releasing the original episode covering Charline's case with a new ending and an interview with Charline's sister Rose, who has been Charline's fiercest advocate since day one. Rose has heard rumors about the suspect and his friends' alleged involvement in Charline's murder for years. She knows the suspect. They all grew up together. They were friends. At least Charline thought so when she planned to meet up with them
1:30 Speaker 00 on the night her life was stolen. Now, one of those so-called friends is facing charges for her death. I'm Kylie Low, and this is the updated case of Charline Rosemond on Dark Down East.
1:54 Speaker 00 When 23-year-old Charline Rosemond drove off in her parents' car around 7:00 a.m. on April 7, 2009, it was the beginning of a typical day that, if everything worked out, would be the last time she had to borrow their gray Honda Civic. According to reporting by Bob Ward for Boston 25 News, Charlene had made plans with a friend to go look at a new-to-her car after she got out of work that evening. If she loved it, she was gonna buy it on the spot. She had $4,000 cash in her wallet, ready to go. Charlene arrived to work at the Herb Chambers Car Dealership on Commonwealth Avenue in Brighton that morning as usual. When her workday wrapped up around 5 o'clock, Charlene briefly called home to talk to her
2:39 Speaker 00 mom, who told Charlene that she needed to bring their car back as soon as possible because her dad needed it. Charlene assured her mother that she'd be back to hand over the keys by 6 or 7, no later. Charlene's mother and father waited as 6pm passed and then 7 o'clock without the headlights of their car appearing outside of their home in Everett. She wasn't picking up her phone when they called either. They went to bed without any sign that Charlene would return, and she never did walk back through the door. The next morning, Charlene's mother woke up Charline's sister, Rosalie, who also goes by the name Rosie. Her mother was concerned.
3:21 Speaker 00 She told Rosie that Charlene hadn't come back when she said she would the night before, and she still wasn't home yet. Rosie has said that she actually wasn't too concerned at first. She and Charlene occasionally stayed out late hanging out with friends. After all, they were both in their twenties and liked to have a good time, and sometimes they got into fun that had them coming home the morning after. Charlene's mother and father continued calling Charlene, but the calls kept going to voicemail. Still, there was a degree of hope, knowing the kind of person and the kind of employee Charlene was. No matter what had her out late the night before, Rosie and Charlene's family knew that Charlene did not miss work.
4:06 Speaker 00 Charlene had worked in the office at the car dealership for about four years and was known to be a reliable, responsible employee, not someone who missed work, or even showed up late. Jumping in to help her parents track down Charlene, Rosie called the office at the car dealership that morning and asked one of Charlene's coworkers if she'd shown up yet. Charlene usually got to work around 7:00 or 7:30 a.m., but what the coworker told Rosie was surprising and unsettling. No Charlene yet. Checks back in throughout the day revealed that Charlene never made it to work at all. Now that was definitely not like Charlene. Rosie's worry was growing, but she still wasn't convinced something was wrong
4:52 Speaker 00 or that something bad had happened. She and her parents kept calling Charlene's phone, still with no answer. A few hours later, Rosie's dad walked into her bedroom with a look of concern and pain written all over his face. It had been a full day without any sign of Charlene, so he told Rosie, "It was time to go down to the Everett Police Station to report Charlene missing."
5:16 Speaker 00 Charline's sister Rosie has been Charline's voice from the earliest days of her case. Being only two years apart, they were an inseparable duo growing up. They wore matching outfits, styled their hair the same, and kept each other's secrets. They were as close as close could get, but the sisters were not without their disagreements and quarrels. It was all part of their special sisterly bond. Rosie shared Charlene's story and the impact it had and continues to have on her family in an episode of her podcast, The Rosie Perspective. She no longer updates the podcast, but the episode titled "Unsolved Murder of My Sister Charlene Rosemond" was the 23rd episode of the show,
5:59 Speaker 00 first published on August 23rd, 2020. Rosie says she chose to publish the 23rd episode on that date because Charlene was 23 years old when she was killed. I've been in contact with Rosie throughout my reporting process for this episode, but we weren't ever able to connect for an interview. However, she wants Charline's case to get more attention, and wants more people to know her sister's name and story. So I've leaned on her recollections and the narrative of her personal experiences throughout the timeline of the case that she shared in her podcast to help tell a complete story here on Dark Down East. Rosie shares on her podcast that this car Charlene was planning to go see that day,
6:44 Speaker 00 it was really exciting. Not only did it mean gaining some independence back because she would no longer have to ask her parents for the keys to their car every time she needed to go somewhere, but it was also a good deal. It was a Lexus that she believed was valued at about $6,000, but the friend who offered to take her to see the car said she could probably get it for more like $4,000. Not wanting to miss the chance to get a discount on a car like that, Charlene had gathered up the four grand in cash so she could buy it right then and there. Despite her mother's word of caution, Charlene carried the cash with her to work on April 7. As far as her family knew,
7:27 Speaker 00 she was supposed to come home right after seeing and possibly buying the car, but she never returned. Down at the Everett Police Station on April 8, Rosie and her father explained everything to officers as they tried to report Charlene missing. They told them how Charlene hadn't come home the night before, that she never showed up for work, and that she hadn't answered any of their calls to her cell in almost 24 hours. It was all out of character and it was all extremely worrisome. Unfortunately, Charlene's family members were met with a response far too similar when an adult disappears. They were told they needed to wait 48 hours before a missing persons report could be filed. Charlene was 23 years old.
8:13 Speaker 00 Police reasoned that maybe she didn't want to come home.
8:18 Speaker 00 But Rosie wasn't about to just sit and wait. She started investigating her sister's disappearance herself. As she explains on the Rosie Perspective podcast, because she and Charlene were only two years apart, they hung out with a lot of the same people and did a lot of the same things. So her first phone calls were to their friends to figure out the last time they had seen or heard from Charlene. Rosie says she spoke to one person who was in regular contact with Charlene. They were close friends and talked all the time. But when Rosie told this person that Charlene was missing, Rosie got the sense that the person didn't care. She said they were, quote, "unbothered" by the news,
9:01 Speaker 00 that no one could reach Charlene and that she never came home after work the night before. According to Rosie, this person suggested that maybe Charlene was somewhere drunk. Rosie was offended by the response. She just knew that couldn't be the case. Rosie says she also reached out to the friend who was supposed to be taking Charlene to look at the Lexus for sale, but she claims that this person also was not concerned about the fact that Charlene was missing. She did not elaborate on the content or tone of their conversation, though. Rosie and Charlene's parents went to bed on the night of the 8th, still with no idea what was going on or where Charlene might be. Every day and night after that,
9:46 Speaker 00 more and more family members arrived from out of town to support the search effort. They all hunkered down at Charlene's parents' house in Everett, doing everything they could to maintain hope that Charlene was out there somewhere and they'd find her soon. But fear seeped into every passing moment without her.
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12:44 Speaker 00 By Friday, the 10th, Everett Police finally issued a missing person alert. According to reporting by Jessica Fargan and Orion Johnson, the alert stated the last known signing of Charlene was around 5:00 PM on April 7th, when she left the Herb Chambers Car Dealership in Brighton, driving the Honda Civic she'd borrowed from her parents. As part of the missing persons investigation, police checked on the activity on Charlene's bank accounts and found that her debit card had been used twice on the day of her disappearance. But they did not elaborate on if the activity was suspicious in any way. It's possible, and this is very much an educated guess, that the transactions were related to the cash she'd gotten to buy the car,
13:28 Speaker 00 but I can't be sure. Police had also attempted to triangulate the position of her cellphone, but it had been turned off, so it wouldn't be useful in tracking Charlene's movements. The source material I've been able to access for this case does not indicate if there were any further sightings of Charlene after she left work that day. Something that was so confusing about Charlene's disappearance during those first few days of the missing persons investigation was how a woman and a vehicle could seemingly vanish. Because along with Charlene, her parents' gray Honda Civic she drove that day was missing too. Rosie believed that if they found the car, they'd find her sister, or at least clues as to where her sister ended up.
14:13 Speaker 00 Each day was excruciating. Rosie's birthday was April 11th, but there was no celebration. Charlene's other sister in Florida was supposed to get married in the span of days that Charlene was missing. But nearly the entire family was in Massachusetts to support the search for Charlene. On April 13th, six days after Rosie last saw her sister, she received a phone call from a friend. The friend told Rosie that she and her family needed to speak with the Somerville Police Department. Simultaneously, Rosie's father's phone rang. The caller was his cousin, who was a taxi driver in the city. It was hard to make out what his cousin was saying in the busy house. Rosie's father handed the phone off to his son-in-law, who stepped into the other room.
14:59 Speaker 00 A few minutes later, he delivered news that shattered the delicate hope they'd clung to for nearly a week. Somerville Police had found the missing Honda Civic. It was parked behind an apartment building in Union Square a few miles away, and Charlene's body was in the driver's seat.
15:17 Speaker 00 According to reporting by Jenna Nierstedt for the Boston Globe, the gray 2001 Honda Civic was discovered around 6:30 PM on April 13th, 2009, outside 10 Webster Avenue in Somerville. Immediately, Rosie and her mother and father rushed to the scene. Rosie was unwilling to believe it was really her parents' car, that the person inside could really be her sister until she could see it for herself. The crime scene tape kept her from inspecting the car up close, but she could read the license plate number from where she stood. There was no doubt it was the same vehicle Charlene had driven to work on the day they last saw her alive. Charlene's body was sitting slouched behind the wheel. It's believed that the car was parked there
16:01 Speaker 00 in the Union Square Apartment Building parking lot for the whole six-day stretch that she was missing. It sounds almost unbelievable that a woman could be deceased in her car for almost a week before someone noticed her there. But this wasn't a large visible lot. From an aerial view on Google Maps, you can see how the triangular-shaped patch of pavement sits in the shadows of several buildings. The driveways along each side of the Webster Avenue building are narrow, maybe only wide enough for one car to pass through at a time. But even if it is secluded, as secluded as you can get for a city neighborhood, it's still a parking lot for a large four-story residential building. People had to have been coming and going,
16:45 Speaker 00 yet it took six days for someone to find Charlene. Erin Smith reports for the Alston Brighton tab that the autopsy revealed Charlene had died from a single gunshot to the head. The medical examiner believed she was killed on the day she was last seen alive, April 7th. Her death was ruled a homicide.
17:06 Speaker 00 There is exceptionally limited public information available about the investigation into Charline's murder. What little source material I have access to shows that based on the bullet wound and other analysis in the car, police could tell that whoever shot Charlene was sitting in the backseat. They also had reason to believe that another person was sitting in the passenger seat. So it's theorized that two people were involved in the killing. At first, police didn't disclose if any of the cash Charlene was known to be carrying that day had been found on Charlene or in the vehicle, but later reports do indicate that the $4,000 was missing. With that, investigators believed
17:50 Speaker 00 that Charlene was robbed for that cash and shot, and her killer or killers made off with the money. The fact that the cash was missing and that Charlene was planning to buy a car with that cash on the day she disappeared was no doubt a hugely important detail for detectives to fully explore. According to Rosie, Charlene said an old neighborhood friend had offered to bring Charlene to see the car. Who was that friend? And who owned the car she planned to buy? Was there even a car for sale at all? Or was it all a guise to steal the cash? Investigators with the Middlesex District Attorney's Office, Everett Police, and Somerville Police worked together on the case to track down answers to those questions
18:35 Speaker 00 and numerous others. And not long after the tragic discovery in that Somerville parking lot, investigators had zeroed in on a witness who seemed to know more about Charline's murder than he was letting on.
18:49 Speaker 00 Throughout the first few days of the investigation, police interviewed friends, family, and other possible witnesses to narrow down who might have been the last person to see Charlene alive on April 7. According to reporting in the Somerville Journal, police had successfully identified "the" person, they believed, was with Charlene on the night she was killed. They didn't name the person, but the individual was being referred to as a suspect. There was a snag, though. A witness gave this suspect an alibi. In an interview with police, 20-year-old Dokens Joseph said— well, he said a lot of things, and some details he gave contradicted other parts of his multiple stories.
19:34 Speaker 00 But Dokens claimed that on the night of April 7, he was with the person police had identified as a suspect in Charline's murder. Dokens claimed that he, the suspect, and another person had all been hanging out at one of their homes. Except, when police asked the suspect who they saw on the night of April 7, the suspect didn't mention hanging out with Dokens at all. When police told Dokens that, he changed his story a bit, but he still said he was either with the suspect or the other person on two separate occasions between the hours of 5:30 and 10:30 p.m. on the night Charlene was shot and killed. The second person Dokens mentioned that he was with on the night of the murder
20:19 Speaker 00 is also considered a suspect in this case. And investigators must have been building a pretty significant case against these two individuals, because on April 23, 2009, prosecutors presented the evidence to a Middlesex grand jury.
20:36 Speaker 00 Appearing in front of the grand jury on April 23, 2009, Dokens Joseph took the stand to tell his story, testifying that he was with at least one of the two suspects on two separate occasions during a five-hour span on the evening of April 7. Appearing again in front of a grand jury on April 30, Dokens doubled down on his previous version of events. But by then, investigators knew the information he provided to be false. Further investigation of his multiple statements revealed that other witnesses, as well as Dokens's own cellphone records, contradicted his testimony. Dokens was lying on the stand and perjuring himself. Dokens was arrested on May 8, 2009,
21:21 Speaker 00 and charged with two counts of perjury for refusing to provide truthful information relating to the investigation of Charlene's homicide. I requested the files relating to Commonwealth v. Dokens-Joseph from the Middlesex District Attorney's Office to learn more about the circumstances of the case and try to glean more details about Dokens' multiple version of events shared during his interviews with police and his testimony. But the docket is subject to an impoundment order, meaning they're not available for public inspection. However, media reports, as well as a press release from the DA's office, refer to Dokens-Joseph as "a significant witness in Charline's murder case."
22:03 Speaker 00 He is believed to have useful information relating to her murder, but instead chose to knowingly provide false information under oath, including a false alibi for two people, one of whom was believed to be the last person to have contact with Charlene before she was murdered. The following year, in April 2010, Dokens-Joseph was found guilty of perjury and handed a two-and-a-half-year sentence. DA Jerry Leone wanted the conviction to serve as a notice to anyone considering lying to law enforcement and judicial fact-finders, saying, "We will pursue those who are untruthful in matters that are serious, and that they cannot impede
22:46 Speaker 00 or obstruct our search for the truth and justice, especially in homicide matters." Months passed without any updates in Charline's case. Though the conviction of Dokens-Joseph for lying about significant details relating to the homicide was a sign that investigators were working on things behind the scenes, still, no one had been charged with her murder almost a year later. The two suspects discussed throughout the grand jury proceedings and the perjury case have not been publicly identified to this day. About two months shy of the one-year anniversary of Charline's murder, an anonymous post surfaced on a site called Lipstick Alley.
23:28 Speaker 00 The social media accounts for Lipstick Alley say it is the internet's largest African-American forum, with politics, news, sports, celebrity gossip, fashion, and relationship advice. The user appears to be using an anonymous function called incognito, so there's no profile photo or identifying information. The title of the post reads, quote, "Should I snitch or mind my own business?" end quote. In the long post, the user explains that they heard about the murder of a woman named Charline Rosemond in their home state the previous summer, and they'd talked about it with a friend. During that conversation, the friend said that people knew the person responsible for killing Charlene,
24:12 Speaker 00 but no one was speaking to police. Based on the content of the post, it sounds like this person had mutual friends with Dawkins-Joseph. The author of the post alleged that the person who killed Charlene was someone they grew up with, and they went to elementary and freshman year of high school together. The user writes that when they heard this person was possibly involved with killing Charlene, on one hand, they were shocked, but on the other, it wasn't too surprising. The alleged killer was someone who didn't pay attention in class and got into trouble. The user put it out to the forum, quote, "For some reason, I feel like I should snitch, but at the same time, I don't want to be put into this situation. Any advice?" end quote.
24:58 Speaker 00 Responses to the post were divided. "Tell the police anonymously," one user said. Another warned that "snitching" could put their life in danger. Others discounted the information, saying it probably wouldn't be helpful to police anyway because of the secondhand nature of it all. Ultimately, the OP responded stating they were scared and decided not to say anything, assuming the police already knew who did it. Now, as a Dark Down Easter and true crime podcast listener, what is one thing you have heard ad nauseam when it comes to sharing information with investigators in an unsolved case? No detail is insignificant. No tip is unimportant.
25:42 Speaker 00 If the anonymous forum user is listening right now, or if this reaches the ears of anyone with knowledge of what happened to Charlene Rosemond, I hope they hear this. Charlene's loved ones deserve to know what happened to their daughter, sister, aunt, and friend. Whoever stole her life is still out there somewhere, and maybe has the capacity to do more harm. Maybe they already have. So I implore you to speak up and share what you know with investigators. It could make all the difference in the world to those who love and miss Charlene most.
26:26 Speaker 00 I've been trying to get a head start on holiday shopping this year, and I've realized that some of the best gifts are just really nice versions of things people already use every day, which is why I always turn to my BFF, Quince. I got my daughter the cutest lightweight puffer jacket, which is perfect for layering during these colder months, and don't worry, she doesn't know how to find the podcast app yet, so she won't hear this and spoil her gift. As a New Englander, high-quality outerwear is key, but I can't justify paying triple digits for a jacket that'll fit her for, like, two snowstorms? Quince is high-quality, everyday essentials, not high prices, because they work directly with factories and cut out the middleman.
27:08 Speaker 00 I know you can find what you're looking for from Quince: cashmere sweaters, organic cotton basics, bedding, luggage, a gift for everyone, and hey, pal, you deserve to treat yourself too. Gold hoop earrings. Add to cart. Give the gift of quality this holiday season. Download the Quince app for app-exclusive offers, or go to quince.com. Get free shipping on your order and 365-day returns, now available in Canada and the UK too. And when Quince asks where you heard about them, let them know it was Dark Down East. It's the best way to support the show.
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28:51 Speaker 00 One of the things that's missing from the publicly available source material about Charline's case is how this scene, the vehicle that Charlene's body was found in, was processed, and if any evidence was found inside or on the car. What about fingerprints, a shell casing, hairs, anything at all that might yield some answers? If police had identified two possible suspects, and the last person believed to be with Charlene on the night she was killed, maybe DNA analysis on any evidence would confirm they were in the car with her. But then again, maybe DNA or prints in the vehicle from the suspect or suspects wouldn't necessarily be that compelling. Maybe there would be another explanation
29:36 Speaker 00 for them to be in and on the vehicle Charlene routinely drove, because Rosie believes that whoever killed Charlene is most likely someone she knew.
29:46 Speaker 00 Charlene was supposed to go with a friend that night to look at the Lexus, and she was found dead in Somerville, her old hometown, where she went to high school. The town where Dokens Joseph was from too, by the way. But according to Rosie, the community of people in Somerville that they'd been a part of growing up seems to be keeping whatever they know about the case a secret. I told you that Rosie called a close friend of Charlene's early on in the search, and according to Rosie, this friend seemed unfazed by the fact that her family hadn't been able to find or contact Charlene after she left for work on the night of April 7. Now, I get the sense that Rosie believes this person was either involved in the murder or has knowledge of who did it.
30:30 Speaker 00 But she is not about to go public with that person's name. Rosie also said in her podcast that certain unnamed friends were notably not in attendance at the funeral. So yeah, these details suggest that the theory Charlene knew her killer and that person was possibly even considered a friend holds water. But just because we simply don't know, let's talk about the possibility that the suspects are people completely unknown to Charlene. There have been cases across the United States of people responding to classified ads or for-sale listings online specifically for vehicles only to come face to face with a killer.
31:13 Speaker 00 According to reporting by Jamie Lynch, Faith Karimi, and Christina Maxoris for CNN, in January of 2015, husband and wife, 69-year-old L. Ray Bud Runyon and 66-year-old June Runyon, made a three-hour trip to Telfair County in Georgia in hopes of buying Bud's dream car, a 1966 Mustang, just like the one he had after returning from Vietnam. When they arrived to look at the car, they realized in horror that there was never a 66 Mustang. The seller, Ronnie J. Adrian Towns, shot and killed Bud and June, stole their personal belongings, left their bodies in the woods,
31:55 Speaker 00 and sank the SUV they'd driven there that day into a lake. The suspect pleaded guilty to two counts of malice murder and is serving a life sentence without the possibility of parole. In another case from August of 2020, 39-year-old Joseph Rowland and his wife, 40-year-old Jocelyn Rowland, responded to a listing for a car for sale on the Letgo app. Jennifer McCray reports for CBS Colorado that when the Rowlands arrived, the supposed seller, 20-year-old Kyrie Brown, told them he'd brought the wrong title for the car and asked if they'd follow him to an apartment down the road. And then Kyrie pointed a gun at the couple demanding money. They tried to drive away, but Kyrie shot them.
32:39 Speaker 00 Joseph and Jocelyn later died at the hospital. They were survived by their five children. Records show that investigators were directed to Kyrie as a suspect in part by photos he posted of himself on social media with a stack of $100 bills believed to be stolen from the Rowlands after shooting them. He was later sentenced to two consecutive life terms for their murders. In yet another similar crime on November 26, 2023, 18-year-old Carlos Carizana Ricardo drove to Baltimore, Maryland to look at a car he found listed for sale on Facebook Marketplace. Chris Baranato and Keith Daniels report for Fox 45 News that after seeing the car in person, Carlos actually decided not to buy it.
33:24 Speaker 00 That's when the seller, 18-year-old Marquez Harris, allegedly started shooting at him as he drove away. Carlos died from gunshot wounds. The case is pending. Using either a fake or real classified listing to target someone for robbery is not a novel scheme. The fact that several of these setups became homicide cases is tragic. Could this have been part of Charline's case? Was there an unknown person with a fake or even real Lexus for sale at a steep discount to get Charlene to show up with cash? Whatever is at play in Charline's case, here we are, 15 years later, without so much as an arrest for her death.
34:07 Speaker 00 And while physical evidence and DNA analysis could provide crucial insights for the investigation and witnesses coming forward with information might fill in the gaps of what happened on the night of April 7, the truth likely lies deeper than what evidence or testimony alone can reveal. The intimate nature of this crime, the suspected connections within Charlene's social circle, and the apparent silence of the community suggest that someone knows far more than they've shared. What could truly bring progress in this case is if the killer or killers, perhaps burdened by years of guilt or fear, were to come forward and confess.
34:48 Speaker 00 A confession would not only provide the clarity and closure Charlene's family deserves, but also allow the individual to unburden themselves and potentially begin the process of accountability and redemption. But unless that moment comes, or until other evidence stacks up to actionable answers, the case remains stalled, held hostage by silence and the weight of what remains unspoken. Rosie shared a direct and powerful message for those responsible at the end of her podcast episode about Charlene. She said, quote, "At the end of the day, justice will come. Justice will come. You know what you did. God knows what you did.
35:33 Speaker 00 Some of your people know what you did, but you cannot get away with it. You will not get away with it." End quote. From the beginning, Rosie, her family, and investigators believed that Charlene was targeted for the money she was carrying with her that day. The killer or killers decided that Charlene's life was worth $4,000, but they stole so much more than that from Charlene and her family. The possibility of buying her own car was just one of many exciting things on the horizon for Charlene that spring. Charlene was planning to move out of her parents' house and get her own place. On top of that, her big sister was getting married soon and she was going to be a bridesmaid.
36:16 Speaker 00 And Rosie was eight months pregnant with Charlene's new nephew at the time. He was due to arrive any day. Charlene would never meet Rosie's son, who was born just two weeks after the funeral. She wouldn't walk down the aisle, holding a bouquet of flowers as a bridesmaid. Charlene never got to pursue a career in fashion and beauty. She never got the opportunity to open a salon, the dreams she often talked about with Rosie. All of it was snuffed out, and someone has yet to pay for what they did.
36:49 Speaker 00 That is how the original episode covering Charline Rosemond's case ended. Back in January of this year, when I first shared her story, her family was still waiting for answers. But that all changed just a few days after the 16th anniversary of Charlene's death. On April 10th, 2025, the Middlesex District Attorney's Office and Somerville Police Department announced that a suspect, 38-year-old Henske Anna Creon, had been identified and indicted for Charline's murder. From the press release directly, quote, "Evidence developed by the cold case unit of the Middlesex District Attorney's Office revealed that, acting together, Anna Creon
37:33 Speaker 00 and his friend Roberto June induced the victim to bring the cash she had withdrawn to a remote parking lot where she was shot and killed. June, whom the victim had believed was one of her closest friends, convinced her he had a contact who could secure the type of car she was looking for at a favorable price. Anna Creon played the part of that contact as he had access through his workplace to the exact model of Lexus that the victim was seeking. Together, June and Anna Creon used that car as bait to gain the victim's trust. In the aftermath of the murder, Anna Creon had admitted to a close confidant that he had provided the 44 Magnum firearm that was used to take the victim's life and that he
38:17 Speaker 00 had disposed of the murder weapon by throwing it into a body of water. The murder weapon has never been recovered. Roberto June died of natural causes in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on July 8th, 2024." End quote. The investigation also revealed that after Charlene was left alone in the car, her promising life, stolen for the sum of a few thousand dollars, the suspect and his friend celebrated with a bottle of champagne. The suspect was also indicted for one count of attempt to willfully mislead a police officer and one count of attempt to willfully mislead an attorney. Henske allegedly told an officer during a formal interview with his attorney present
38:59 Speaker 00 that his friend Roberto admitted to killing Charlene, but denied that he had any prior knowledge or involvement in his friend's plan. However, the investigation proved those claims to be false. Earlier this year, Charline's sister Rose appeared on the Tamara Hall show to appeal to the public for new information in Charline's case. A few months later, the new detectives from the cold case unit working on the case called Rose and her other family members in for a meeting. Rose asked some questions, but the answers were vague and there didn't seem to be any new information to share. Even just a few days before the suspect's arrest, Rose was at City Hall doing what she has always done: advocating for Charline's case.
39:42 Speaker 00 She didn't know that justice was on the horizon, but when Rose got the news, it was a flood of emotions.
39:49 Speaker 02 I feel like it's a mixture between relief and surprise, which it's like, should I be surprised? No, because again, I've always suspected these folks, I've always known that like the police have the information to get this solved, but the fact that it happened, and it sounds crazy because it's like it's been 15 years or 16 years, it should have happened, yes, but I think I was so stuck in it being unsolved, the fact that it's no longer considered unsolved and someone has been indicted, it was like a hard shift for me to be like, oh my god, like, we finally did it, like, we finally did it. And for me, again, it's, it's also relief. My parents are aging, I want them to be able to see my sister get justice and see the
40:33 Speaker 02 folks held accountable. To get that call, like, it was just like, oh my god, like, this is finally happening. And, you know, like, I've always mentioned, not only for myself, but for my parents to like, get to see the people responsible, be held accountable for taking my sister's life, it's just, it's relief and it's also surprising at the same time.
40:54 Speaker 00 Rose has heard countless stories about the suspect and his friend's alleged involvement in Charline's murder over the last decade and a half.
41:03 Speaker 02 My sister had spoken to a couple people the evening of, and she had said, "Oh, I'm going to hang out with Roberto," which is the deceased suspect. And so it's like, we always knew you were with her because she already told folks, like, "I'm going to hang out with you." And so, everything aligned.
41:18 Speaker 00 Rose waited over 15 years for her sister's case to reach the point of an indictment. She has learned a lot in those years about the realities of being a surviving family member of a person lost to violent crime, including the power of keeping the names of victims in the public consciousness, be it through social media, podcasts, news interviews, or making the phone ring at the police department to remind those with the power to solve a case that they're still waiting for justice.
41:47 Speaker 02 I used to check in every year, every couple of times a year. At some point, you know, I think because they saw my determination to, like, continue to get answers and try to solve it. And at one point, the detectives did let me know, like, "If it had not been for you, we would have never continued to work on it." And as sad as that is, that was the reality of the situation. They said that. I didn't make that up. They told me, like, "Had it not been for my persistence and me continuing to, like, stay on top of them, like, they would have just left the case until something came up."
42:19 Speaker 00 Henske Anakrean pleaded not guilty in May of this year. His attorney has commented publicly that someone else is responsible for Charline's murder, and his client is awaiting his date in court to hold the Commonwealth to its highest burden of proof. Rose was there for the arraignment, and she intends to be present for every upcoming hearing and court date possible, despite how challenging it will be to face her sister's alleged killer.
42:47 Speaker 02 I am familiar with the person that is currently charged and is currently awaiting trial for this because we all grew up together. So, he's familiar with me, I'm familiar with him. We all went to the same school. We went to the Boys and Girls Club. So, just seeing his face after so many years, knowing what he did to my sister, was, um, hard to do. But I plan on being there every single date. I don't care if it's for five minutes, I don't care if it's for five hours, but I definitely plan on being there every step of the way for the trial.
43:17 Speaker 00 For Rose, the words "rest in peace" never sat right, knowing that the individuals responsible for Charlene's death were still free, thinking they've gotten away with murder. Now, with an indictment, Rose feels her sister is finally resting peacefully. With a trial still ahead, she is praying for justice and a conviction. In the meantime, Rose and her family have their brightest memories of Charlene to keep them going.
43:46 Speaker 02 My sister was always like the star of the show. It's like anytime we were going out, it's like she would never be considered underdressed. Like, we could be going to Target. And it's like, she would definitely be the one to put on the fanciest outfit. It's like, where are you going? But she always wanted to like, you know, present herself in such a high manner and always dressed well, always did her makeup. And I feel like that was just one thing that my family and I always used to laugh about because no matter how small the function is or how big it is, please expect her to show up to show out. A lot of the things that I know now, as far as like doing hair and the little stuff that I do know, I learned from her. And at the time, growing up, it was just like, oh, let me just watch my older sister do something. But the fact that it was something that I can actually continue to do,
44:31 Speaker 02 like as an adult, and I just simply watched her for a few minutes, and I didn't realize it at the time, but it's like, I learned something that I'll never forget because my older sister taught me.
44:53 Speaker 00 Thank you for listening to Dark Down East. You can find all source material for this case at darkdowneast.com. Be sure to follow the show on Instagram, @darkdowneast. This platform is for the families and friends who have lost their loved ones and for those who are still searching for answers. I'm not about to let those names or their stories get lost with time. I'm Kylie Low, and this is Dark Down East.
45:25 Speaker 00 Dark Down East is a production of Kylie Media and AudioChuck. I think Chuck would approve.
45:35 Speaker 00 In New England, investigations can shift with the tide. And my friend Delia Diambra, host of Park Predators, knows just how the landscape can shape a case. From beaches to national parks around the world, Delia investigates true crime cases as compelling as the places where they occurred. Through her signature boots-on-the-ground reporting, she goes beyond the headlines and speaks directly with those closest to the case. If you're ready to follow the evidence beyond the trail, listen to Park Predators every Tuesday, wherever you get your podcasts.
Previous The Suspicious Death of Leslie Buck (Connecticut) Next The Murder of Lena Bruce (Massachusetts) Page updated November 1, 2026 · transcript and summary are machine-generated