Pod Insights Killer Stories with Harvey Guillén Phone Call From a Serial Killer: Larry Gene Bell About this episode May, 1985. Two days before her high school graduation, Shari Faye Smith was abducted from her parents’ driveway in broad daylight. Her kidnapper taunted Shari’s family by phone for days, calling in the middle of the night and revealing bone-chilling details of his crime.
With little evidence to go on, South Carolina investigators brought in FBI criminal profiler John Douglas and his colleagues, who used the recorded phone calls to create a profile of their UNSUB.
About 2 weeks later, 9-year-old Debra May Helmick was kidnapped in a similar manner. When both girls turned up dead, investigators realized they had a probable serial killer on their hands – and they needed to find him before he could strike again.
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Transcript 0:04 Speaker 00 It's June 1985 when Sharon Shepherd and her husband Ellis packed their suitcases again. They've been doing some traveling lately and just finished a quick pit stop back at their home in South Carolina. They've hired one of Ellis's assistant electricians to house it while they're gone and give them rides to and from the airport. So the three of them climb in the car together as the Shepherds head out on the next leg of their trip. As they drive, the house sitter is talkative and seems fixated on one subject in particular. He says while the couple was out of town, a major crime made news. A teenage girl was abducted from her home about 15 miles away and was later found dead.
0:47 Speaker 00 The Shepherds find it all incredibly sad, and no matter how many times they try to change the subject, the man keeps circling back to the murder. He muses about all the possible ways the crime unfolded, to the point that Sharon grows agitated. Something else is bothering her, too. Recently, the house sitter has started addressing her by a nickname: Sherry. It's odd. For one thing, they're not very close, and she goes by Sharon. Second of all, Sherry is also the name of the teenage victim he can't stop talking about. Welcome to Serial Killers, a Spotify podcast. Every Monday, we bring you the true crime stories that stand out.
1:32 Speaker 00 I'm Janice Morgan. Be sure to check us out on Instagram at SerialKillersPodcast. We'd love to hear from you. If you're listening on the Spotify app, swipe up and give us your thoughts. This episode includes discussions of violence, sexual assault, child death, and murder. Consider this when deciding how and when you'll listen. Stay with us.
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2:55 Speaker 00 On May 31, 1985, Sherri Fay Smith meets up with her mother Hilda to pick up a bathing suit for a pool party. Once they part ways, Sherri catches a ride with her boyfriend and another friend. Authorities later theorize she's already being watched and followed by a man she doesn't notice. Around 3:25 PM, Sherri arrives at her family home in Lexington, South Carolina, which sits on 20 acres of land. Both of her parents are at home and they see her car pull into the driveway. Their mailbox along the main road is so far from the house, it's common practice for Sherri to stop and grab the mail on her way in. She throws the car into park, leaving the engine running,
3:40 Speaker 00 and exits the car barefoot. Minutes tick by. Five, then 10. That's when Sherri's father Bob realizes he still hasn't heard his daughter enter the house. Out the window, he sees Sherri's car sitting by the mailbox, its door hanging open. He grabs his car keys and speeds down the driveway. Stepping out, he finds mail scattered on the ground and Sherri's footprints leading to the mailbox, where they disappear. Her purse sits on the passenger's seat. But Sherry is gone. Local authorities arrive on the scene and quickly surmise that something has gone wrong.
4:21 Speaker 00 Even though it's broad daylight and Sherry was in plain sight of her home, it looks like the scene of an abduction. To investigators, Sherry doesn't seem like the runaway type. They also consider the fact that she's looking forward to high school graduation in just two days. After that, she has the class trip and will be attending her college of choice in the fall. Detectives also learn that Sherry has diabetes insipidus, a rare form of the condition that can cause life-threatening dehydration without constant treatment. Even if she did want to run away, it's highly unlikely she would leave her medication behind. But there it is, sitting in her car. By that evening, authorities launch what is, at this point, the state's largest manhunt in history.
5:06 Speaker 00 They find a red bandana of Sherry's about one-half mile away from the house, but nothing else. There's no forensic evidence in or around her car. Local investigators team up with the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division, or SLED, and call on the FBI to help too. Many hope that Sherry's abductor will contact the Smith family soon, demanding a ransom, so they tap the family's phone line.
5:32 Speaker 00 The weekend passes without incident. Then, around 2:20 a.m. on Monday, June 3rd, the Smiths get a phone call. Bob answers, but the male caller demands to speak to Hilda. Once she's on the line, the caller describes Sherry's outfit to prove he's the one who took her. He says he'll return Sherry soon, but doesn't ask for a ransom. Instead, he tells Hilda to expect a letter in the mail from Sherry, and then hangs up. The call is traced to a grocery store payphone about 12 miles from the Smiths' home. By the time investigators arrive, nobody's there, and the phone has been wiped down, leaving no trace evidence behind.
6:14 Speaker 00 Before the sun rises that same day, authorities wake the local postmaster to open the post office. They want to intercept the letter their suspect promised as soon as they can. Three hours later, they find what they're looking for: a handwritten envelope addressed to the Smith family. Inside is a two-page letter in Sherry's handwriting, but the contents aren't what her family or investigators are hoping to find. The letter is titled "Last Will and Testament." Across the very top of the yellow legal paper, officials find a date: June 1, 1985. A time: 3:10 a.m. And the message: "I love y'all."
6:57 Speaker 00 Sherry writes, "Remember my witty personality and great special times we all shared together." Briefly, she mentions the words "casket closed" in parentheses. And she makes a request: "Please don't ever let this ruin your lives." Investigators can only guess for now, but it sounds like Sherry wrote the letter knowing her death was imminent. The Smith family continues to hope for the best. They make a televised plea to Sherry's abductor to bring her back safely. That same day, June 3, the Lexington County Undersheriff reaches out to FBI criminal profilers, including John Douglas.
7:38 Speaker 00 After spending years interviewing serial killers behind bars, Douglas is one of the pioneers behind the Bureau's Behavioral Science Unit, and he's worked on high-profile cases like the Atlanta child murders in 1981. Now, he's hoping to take what investigators know about Sherry's abduction: the crime scene, the victim, the phone call, and the letter, and create a profile of their unknown subject, or "un-sub." Over the next few days, agents develop a list of characteristics they believe may help identify the suspect. They think he's probably white, may have been married but has since divorced, and likely has some kind of criminal record. He seems to be operating with a certain level of sophistication.
8:22 Speaker 00 Douglas also thinks the suspect has a blue-collar job, perhaps as an electrician, because he used a voice modulator to disguise his identity over the phone.
8:33 Speaker 00 After the Smiths receive Sherry's last will and testament, her abductor phones them that evening. This time, officials are able to record the conversation. The longer the family can keep him on the line, the better their chances of catching him. Deputies are stationed around town, ready to be dispatched to wherever the call is traced. Like last time, the caller asks to speak to Hilda, who manages to keep him talking. The man quizzes her about her daughter's letter and complains the sheriff hasn't called off the search. He assures Hilda that Sherry is drinking plenty of fluids to manage her medical condition. Once again, he insinuates that she'll be coming home soon. He suggests the Smiths have an ambulance ready for her.
9:17 Speaker 00 He also tells Hilda, quote, "Sherry is now a part of me, physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. Our souls are now one." The man calls back the very next evening, and this time, he asks to speak to Hilda as well as Sherry's older sister, Dawn. He tells them to be prepared to take notes and proceeds to recount how he kidnapped Sherry at the mailbox. He claims he used a gun to scare her. He also lays out a timeline for every major event: when he abducted Sherry, when she penned that letter, and when they, quote, "became one soul." That, he says, happened at 4:58 a.m. on Saturday, June 1st.
10:02 Speaker 00 When Hilda asks what that means, he refuses to clarify. Hilda and Dawn draw out every conversation as long as they can while authorities scramble to trace the calls. The last two came from payphones, one eight miles away from the Smiths, the other nine miles away. But officials don't find evidence at either, not even a partial fingerprint.
10:27 Speaker 00 Even so, Sherry's abductor leaves plenty of clues behind for the FBI profilers. Douglas and his fellow agents use the recordings to further develop their profile. From the phone calls, they believe their suspect displays narcissistic and sadistic qualities, and a desire to manipulate and control his victims. And the timeline he keeps of his crimes tells them they're dealing with someone who's meticulous. He likes to keep his details organized. He's probably local to the area, too. The voice modulator can't mask his obvious southern drawl. Added to that, he appears to have no trouble finding payphones that are close to the Smiths, but not too close.
11:09 Speaker 00 Of course, many questions still remain unanswered, like, where's Sherry? Could she still be alive? And what did it mean for her to become one soul with her abductor? The following Wednesday, about five days after Sherry's disappearance, another call comes in. This time, the man gives Hilda precise, turn-by-turn directions and says, "We're waiting." When authorities follow these to a wooded area in the neighboring county, they only find one person: Sherry. She's been dead for a number of days, her body decomposing in the heat. It's impossible to know for certain how she died, but residue from duct tape on her face
11:53 Speaker 00 suggests suffocation. The medical examiner is sure of one thing, though: The manner of death is homicide. It's a devastating loss, and everyone working the case is more determined than ever to catch their suspect. Because it soon becomes clear: He's not done harassing the Smith family. And he's not done killing, either.
12:24 Speaker 00 The day after officials recover Sherri Smith's body, her killer places another call. This time, to an investigative news reporter. The caller claims he knows the Smith family, and that things with Sherri, quote, "just went bad." It sounds like he might be genuinely remorseful. Now, he claims he needs the reporter's help. He says he's going to turn himself in, and asks if the reporter will coordinate with law enforcement. Next, the killer calls Sherri's sister Dawn. She's in college, but she's been staying with her parents ever since her younger sister went missing. The man tells Dawn a similar story. He's preparing to turn himself in. But first, he wants to detail for her
13:07 Speaker 00 the sadistic details of how he killed her sister. Knowing that every moment she keeps him on the phone brings investigators one step closer to catching him, Dawn withstands his cruel story. He explains Sherri remained brave and calm as he tied her to a bedpost, and told her that he would kill her. He claims he allowed her to choose whether to die by drugs, a gunshot, or suffocation, and that she chose to be suffocated. Listening to the recording later, criminal profiler John Douglas finds it extremely unlikely he's telling the truth, because that would have required the unsub to relinquish control. He suspects Sherri's killer chose suffocation himself because of how long it would take for Sherri to die.
13:52 Speaker 00 He wanted to draw out his own gratification. After the phone call, investigators miss their suspect again. This time, he's calling from 50 miles away, much farther than before, and he never turns himself in like he said he would. If he had, then Debra May Helmick's life would have been spared.
14:15 Speaker 00 It's a little before 4:00 PM on Friday, June 14th, 1985, exactly two weeks after Sherri's abduction. Debra May plays outside with her younger brother. She's just nine years old, but the Helmics live in a relatively small trailer home community. Their father Sherwood is just a few feet away inside his home, and at least one neighbor has a clear view of where the kids are playing, which is how he sees what happens next. A silverish car pulls into the trailer park, turns around, and stops beside Debra May. A man jumps out of the vehicle and grabs her. She puts up a fight, screaming and pushing against the exterior of his car, but he manages to throw her inside and speed away.
14:59 Speaker 00 It all happens so quickly that by the time Debra May's neighbor runs outside, the car is already taking off down the adjacent road. He immediately alerts Sherwood-Helmick, and the two men jump in a car to pursue the kidnapper. At the nearest intersection, Sherwood sees a sheriff's deputy and relays what happened. Moments after the abduction, law enforcement has a general description of the kidnapper: A white male in his 30s, about 5'9", with brown hair, a beard, and a mustache. The Helmics' neighbor also remembers his license plate started with a "D". But even with such a quick lead, nobody can find Debra May.
15:41 Speaker 00 It's not lost on investigators that there are some obvious similarities between Debra May's and Sherri's abductions. Both were taken from their driveways in broad daylight around the same time of day on a Friday, almost precisely two weeks apart down to the minute. In one phone call, Sherri's killer even referred to the date of Debra May's abduction as the "anniversary date of Sherri Fay".
16:05 Speaker 00 Detectives were already worried that Sherri's killer would strike again. Now, a pattern seems to be forming.
16:12 Speaker 00 On the other hand, there's a glaring age difference between the two victims. Sherri was seventeen, while Debra May is nine. And as the days pass, nobody calls the Helmick family to taunt them over the phone. John Douglas has a theory about why. He believes Sherri typified the killer's victim of choice. But if the unsub had the urge to kill again, he might target a more vulnerable victim, like nine-year-old Debra May. But, Douglas suggests, the abductor might find it difficult to concoct an imaginary relationship with the little girl the way he had done with Sherri, and he might feel too ashamed to call and boast about his crime. So Douglas comes up with a plan to lure the killer in.
16:55 Speaker 00 It involves holding a memorial service and leaving one of Sherri's stuffed animals on her grave, hoping the killer might take it. But before the plan can move forward, Sherri's sister Dawn gets another phone call from the killer. It's just past midnight on the morning of Saturday, June 22nd, a little over one week since Debra May's disappearance. Without prompting, the caller insinuates he is the same person behind the nine-year-old's abduction. And that's not all. He tells Dawn, "God wants you to join Sherri Fay." Dawn barely has time to register that information before the man gives her directions again.
17:36 Speaker 00 He says behind a restaurant called Bill's Grill, she'll find a chain with a "No Trespassing" sign. Fifty yards beyond that, he says, "Debra May is waiting." Law enforcement recovers the girl's body later that day. Like Sherri, Deborah has been dead for several days and has duct tape residue on her body. It appears that she was most likely suffocated as well. Several investigators suspect they have a serial killer on their hands. Hoping to catch him before he takes another victim, officials move forward with Douglas's plan. The Smiths contact the media and hold a memorial service for Sherri. During the ceremony, Dawn places a stuffed koala on her sister's gravesite.
18:21 Speaker 00 And afterward, officers surveil the cemetery. If the killer takes the bait, they'll be ready to arrest him on sight. Investigators will later learn the killer does return to Sherri's grave, but he never gets out of his car. He stays inside, watching and waiting. Then, the very next day, hidden clues in Sherri's last will and testament letter catapult the investigation toward one main suspect.
18:56 Speaker 00 Three and a half weeks after Sherri Smith's disappearance, forensic document examiners scan her letter using a special machine. The electrostatic detection apparatus, or ESDA, can detect invisible indentations on a piece of paper. Since Sherri's letter came from a yellow legal pad, it's reasonable to think the ESDA machine will reveal what was written on the torn-out pages. That's how detectives get their next big lead. The indentations are faint, but they find what looks like a series of 10 digits separated by hyphens: a phone number. The first six digits tell investigators the number belongs to someone in Huntsville, Alabama, two states over. They can't make out the entire phone number. One of the digits is obscured,
19:41 Speaker 00 but that narrows the field down to just 10 options, one of which, they find, had received multiple phone calls from a number in Lake Murray, South Carolina, just 15 miles from where Sherri Smith was abducted. Investigators trace the Alabama number to a man named Joe Shepherd. He explains the calls from Lake Murray were from his parents, Sharon and Ellis. Notably, Joe mentions his father Ellis is an electrician.
20:10 Speaker 00 The profile John Douglas and his team created suggests the killer is a white male with a background in electrical work. It turns out Ellis Shepherd does match those two characteristics. He doesn't really fit the rest of the profile, but it's too much of a coincidence to ignore.
20:27 Speaker 00 The county undersheriff immediately questions the Shepherds, who he learns have a pretty airtight alibi. They've been traveling a lot recently, and although they made a stop back home in early June, they were out of town during both abductions. They also tell him they've heard all about the girls' murders from somebody who does fit the unsub's profile. A man they hired to house it for them has filled them in on the details of the gruesome crimes. He goes by Gene, but his full name is Larry Gene Bell. When the undersheriff lists some of the attributes from the FBI's criminal profile, the Shepherds agree. It all sounds exactly like Gene. At 36 years old, Gene is divorced and lives with his parents.
21:12 Speaker 00 He sometimes assists Ellis Shepherd at work, so he has experience as an electrician. And he's extremely organized and detail-oriented. It's the reason why they left their home in his care while they were away. When they did, they left a list of information he might need, like their son Joe's phone number in Alabama, which they wrote down on their yellow legal pad. Physically, Gene matches the witness description given by Debra May's neighbor. What's more, Sharon says Gene has talked incessantly about the two cases during most of their interactions for the past few weeks. His obsession really bothered Sharon, but at the time, the Shepherds never thought Gene could actually be involved.
21:54 Speaker 00 Sometime after their initial interview with detectives, Ellis gets a strange feeling. He's heard about the theory that Sherri only got in the kidnapper's car because she was threatened with a gun. Something compels Ellis to make sure his own pistol is in its usual place, and that's how he realizes... it's missing. Since Gene has been at his house, Ellis calls and asks point-blank if he knows what happened to the gun. Without hesitation, Gene says he knows right where it is: under the mattress in the room where Gene was staying. Ellis later reports all of this to authorities, who decide to sit the Shepherds down and play the tape recording of the killer's phone calls.
22:37 Speaker 00 Even with the voice distortion, the couple says they recognize the man as Gene, especially once they hear him give directions to Debra May's body. The caller mentioned a restaurant called Bill's Grill, and the Shepherds know Gene goes there all the time.
22:56 Speaker 00 Before making an arrest, investigators do some digging into Gene's past and uncover yet another likeness to the FBI's profile. Douglas has suspected all along that the killer would have an existing criminal record, one that might include previous sexual assaults. Turns out, Larry Gene Bell's rap sheet goes back more than a decade before Sherri was murdered. In February of 1975, on a Friday morning in broad daylight, Gene tried and failed to abduct a woman walking through a grocery store parking lot. After pleading guilty to assault and battery, he received a five-year probation. Just a few months later, he tried to abduct another woman and ended up serving two years in prison.
23:40 Speaker 00 In 1979, Gene spent months making obscene phone calls to a 10-year-old girl before he was arrested, thanks in part to the girl's mother, who worked with police to record the calls. Six years later, officials now believe he's the man responsible for two murders.
23:59 Speaker 00 On June 27, 1985, detectives set up a roadblock and take Larry Gene Bell into custody. Police search his car and home and uncover evidence. This includes a stamp that matches the one used to mail Sherri's letter and an extra license plate that begins with a D, like the one Deborah Mays' neighbor saw.
24:20 Speaker 00 They find a lot more when the shepherds let investigators search their home. Although Gene had taken pains to clean and vacuum, they recover several blonde hairs, a stained mattress pad, and a pair of blue shorts that look like Deborah Mays'. While the forensics team compiles evidence, detectives work on getting a confession from Gene. They play some of the phone calls recorded from the Smith family's line. Gene agrees the caller sounds like him, but he never confesses. During a conversation with FBI agents, Gene says he couldn't have committed the murders. But he adds,
25:00 Speaker 00 "There's a bad Larry Gene Bell that could have." At some point, he requests to speak with Hilda and Dawn Smith in person. Both women have proven they will do anything to catch Sherri's killer, so they agree to the meeting. Once again, he mentions a "bad" version of himself, but stops short of confessing. For the most part, throughout his interrogations, Gene remains responsive and cooperative. But that changes the following February, when he goes on trial for the kidnapping and murder of Sherri Smith. In the courtroom, he speaks out of turn, rambles off-topic, and refuses to sit down. Agent Douglas suspects this might be an act, because the defense is going for a guilty
25:44 Speaker 00 but mentally ill verdict. In fact, Gene's attorney even tells the jury that his client did abduct Sherri, but that his mental illness should preclude him from being sentenced to death. Much of the trial focuses on testimony from various mental health experts who've evaluated Gene over the years. They agree that Gene is mentally ill, but disagree on a specific diagnosis. One portrays him as a sexual sadist who seeks pleasure in harming others. Another psychologist says Bell probably experienced psychotic episodes while committing his crimes, because she believes he's living with schizophrenia and paranoia. They also have opposing views on whether or not Gene is able to control himself, to
26:27 Speaker 00 stop himself from kidnapping and killing. With the mental health experts at odds, the jury ponders the evidence. The blonde hairs in the Shepherd's home match Sherri's hair type. Blood found on Gene's shoe and the guest room mattress pad match her blood type. Multiple friends and acquaintances identify Gene's voice from the recorded calls. And fibers found in Sherri's shorts match samples from the Shepherd home.
26:55 Speaker 00 It takes the jury less than one hour to reach their verdict. Larry Gene Bell is convicted of kidnapping and first-degree murder and is sentenced to death. The next year, in 1987, he is also convicted of murdering Deborah Mae Helmick and receives a second death sentence. In 1996, when his time on death row comes to an end, Gene chooses to forego the state's typical method of execution: lethal injection. Instead, he opts for the electric chair. But death isn't the end of Larry Gene Bell's story. In February 2025, investigators in Charlotte, North Carolina, name him as the main suspect
27:37 Speaker 00 in another case: the disappearance and presumed murder of Sandy Cornette. After Sandy disappeared in November 1984, before the two murders we know Gene committed, her purse and its contents were found scattered on her bed. Her television was still on. Something bad had clearly happened. But the biggest lead investigators had at the time was that two unknown people used Sandy's bank card to withdraw cash. While police were questioning Gene for Sherri and Deborah Mae's murders, he requested to speak with detectives in Charlotte. According to John Douglas's book, When a Killer Calls, Gene said, "I want to tell them some things about a missing girl named Sandy."
28:22 Speaker 00 Previously, he wasn't even considered as a suspect in the case. But after this request, investigators discovered Gene personally knew Sandy. He'd worked with one of her exes and had been to a party at her home. When he was formally questioned, Gene denied killing her. He did say whoever took her likely had to wait until her fiance left the house. Then, he suggested, the abductor would simply knock on her door and she would have let them in because it was probably someone she knew. Now, Charlotte investigators who've reviewed the case say, quote, "He would have been charged if still alive." They refer to the fact that Jean was able to accurately describe some details of Sandy's abandoned bedroom, including an open jewelry box and a half-filled glass of water on
29:06 Speaker 00 her nightstand. Officials are still searching for Sandy's remains and believe Jean may have given clues to one of his old associates. If you have any information, please contact the Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Department. Sandy's family is holding out hope that they can one day lay her to rest.
29:31 Speaker 00 Thanks for tuning into Serial Killers, a Spotify podcast. To learn more about Larry Jean Bell, we recommend checking out John Douglas's book, When a Killer Calls, and the FBI Files episode, Cat and Mouse. Among the many sources we used, we found them extremely helpful to our research. Stay safe out there. This episode was written and researched by Mickey Taylor, edited by Connor Sampson, fact-checked by Lori Siegel, and sound designed by Alex Button. I'm Janice Morgan.
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