SEATTLE — A convention aimed at getting fresh eyes on unsolved cases is in Seattle this week and they'll be putting two Thurston County cold cases under the microscope.
Nancy Moyer was reported missing in 2009.
Nancy's daughter Sam and her ex-husband, Bill Moyer, thought the waiting was over when in July of this year police told them a man named Eric Roberts had called and confessed to police that he had killed Nancy.
“I was just balling,” said Sam, “Tears of sadness, tears of happiness.”
But the next day Roberts took back his confession.
“It was just a stab to the heart, that it’s not over,” said Sam, who is now 19-years-old.
While police still consider Roberts a person of interest, they said they do not have enough evidence to charge him with Nancy Moyer's murder.
But Sam and her father Bill have a new reason to be hopeful.
On Thursday, a "CrowdSolve" crime convention began in Seattle. Its attendees will be taking a look at the Moyer case and the 2007 murder of Karen Bodine, another unsolved crime in Thurston County.
Event organizers said more than 300 participants will gather in Seattle for the four-day conference.
They’ll be encouraged to share theories, and ask investigators or criminologists about the case, said podcaster James Baysinger.
Baysinger’s “Hide and Seek” podcast brought renewed attention to the Moyer case earlier this year.
Investigators said it may have prompted Roberts’ confession.
Baysinger will be involved in panel discussions about the two cases but said most of the conference will involve attendees.
He would love to think his podcast and the convention might end up solving the case.
“I can't even put into words what that would be like knowing the Moyers can now move forward,” said Baysinger.
“I would just be happy it’s over,” said Sam, wearing a tee-shirt with her mother’s picture reading, “10 Years Too Long” on the back.
“I would just be happy it's over. I have answers. I know what happened. It’d be amazing,” said Sam.
Her father said he’s hopeful, but added he’s being “cautious” to get his hopes up after what happened in July.
Thurston County detectives plan to share the case files with the convention, but anyone who views them will have to sign a non-disclosure agreement saying they will not share the information outside of the convention.