Mysterious Cold Case Death Here Has New Life

National Show About “Flatonia’s Dark Secret” Sparks a Renewed Look at Circumstances in Local Woman’s Death 

Rowena Wilkinson Zapalac went out with some friends for a few drinks at the Stag Club in Flatonia on the night of Sept. 19, 1984. The next day she was found dead in her apartment above Cecil’s Saddle Shop in downtown Flatonia.

The medical examiner determined the 20-year-old’s cause of death as suicide via autoerotic asphyxiation. That appeared to coincide with what investigators found at the scene - a rope around her neck and a sex toy on her bed.

But her sister, Joleta Wilkinson, who was 15 at the time, has long-believed Rowena’s death was not an accidental suicide. According to reporting in a recent podcast, there were other clues in Rowena’s apartment that suggested she was not alone that night - pennies scattered on the floor, a broken acrylic fingernail with blood on it, and a broken window. There was an almost-empty bottle of liquor on the bed and a burnt marijuana cigarette in an ash tray. But Rowena’s toxicology report showed a relatively low blood alcohol level of 0.07 and no marijuana in her system. There was semen in Rowena’s body and on the bed.

After their parents died, Joleta began asking questions. She learned about a serial killer with a connection to Flatonia, Robert Charles Browne, and wondered if he could be her sister’s killer. Joleta reached out to the Crime Junkie Podcast, a popular internet show about true crime.

Last week, The Crime Junkie Podcast released an episode on Rowena’s death titled “Flatonia’s Dark Secret: Rowena’s Death Deserves a Second Look.” The podcast is available as a YouTube video at https://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=eQv5hYALZ80. Before watching, be warned that it contains descriptions of sexual content and violence.

Podcast hosts Ashley Flowers and Brit Prawat presented evidence casting doubt on Browne’s involvement. In the early 2000s, while serving time for two different murders, Browne claimed responsibility for the unsolved murder of Melody Bush, which happened around Flatonia just a few months prior to Rowena’s death.

Like Rowena, Bush had been last seen alive at the Stag Club. But Browne’s claims didn’t match the evidence in Bush’s case. Investigators came to believe he was trying to seek notoriety by claiming responsibility for unsolved murders he had nothing to do with.

After looking at Rowena’s case, Flowers, Prawat and their reporting team connected both Melody Bush and Rowena Zapalac to one local man and possibly another. One of those men died in 2023. The other is still alive, but the podcasters say he declined to speak to them.

After the podcast came out, the Record spoke to several individuals familiar with the two men and other parties named in the podcast. None of the people we spoke to were willing to be quoted at this time. However, through those conversations and with subsequent research, a few interesting details have come to light. The Flatonia Police Department did not exist in 1984. It formed about a year later. The investigation into Rowena’s death was handled by the Fayette County Sheriff’s Office along with then-Pct. 3 Constable Rick Vandel. Vandel later became sheriff in the 1990s. The Sheriff in 1984 was Vastine Koopmann. The constable, Vandel, appears to have been the lead investigator in Rowena’s case.

A new investigation into Rowena’s death faces many challenges, including questions about the medical examiner at the time, Dr. Roberto Bayardo. An investigation by NBC-affiliate KXAN revealed numerous botched autopsies performed by Bayardo that resulted in wrongful imprisonment in some high-profile murder cases.

Moreover, the salacious manner of Rowena’s death (and details surrounding Melody Bush’s death) bring up memories that some people might rather forget. But if our off-the-record conversations last week are any guide, no one who knew the story has forgotten about Rowena, despite what little has been said about her in the last 41 years. And now her story has rekindled interest in the Melody Bush case.

Before the podcast came out, Joleta started a petition asking Fayette County officials to amend her sister’s death certificate and change the cause of death from suicide to homicide, and thus reopen the investigation.

Her efforts may soon pay off. Shortly before the podcast aired, the Texas Rangers and the State Attorney General’s office reached out to her about reopening the investigation.

The Record spoke to the Fayette County Sheriff’s Office last Friday, and they are aware of the recent developments. However, they declined to comment publicly at this time.

Look for more on this story as details emerge.