The remains of Brooke Wilberger, abducted from a parking lot on in Corvallis, OR on May 24, 2004, have finally been found. Joel Courtney had earlier been arrested in Wilberger's disappearance and Monday, he pleaded to aggravated murder in connection with the case.
Courtney, 42, received a life sentence without the possibility of parole. However, he revealed the location of Brooke Wilberger's remains as part of a plea bargain to avoid the death penalty.
19-year-old Brooke Wilberger was working at her summer job scrubbing lighting fixtures outside an apartment complex managed by her sister when she disappeared on May 24, 2004. Nothing but her flip-flop sandals were found.
Despite the horror of it all, Brooke Wilberger's mother Cammy said she was grateful to Courtney for finally telling authorities where to find her daugher's remains. Wilberger's family had previously said they would support a plea deal if Courtney would reveal her location.
Benton County District Attorney John Haroldson said that Courtney admittedly to abducting Brooke Wilberger at knife point. He then bound her in duct tape in his van, drove her into the woods, kept her overnight and then raped and bludgeoned her to death.
Courtney was extradited to face charges related to the Brooke Wilberger case in April 2008, after he was convicted of raping a woman in New Mexico. That woman was also a blond-haired, blue-eyed student. He was sentenced to 18 years in prison for the rape.
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