Grieving moms dig with ‘bare hands’ to unearth the dark truth behind their missing and murdered children

In the blistering summertime heat, Cheryl Holsonbake recovered herself driving 2 hours from her location to California’s agrarian Kern County, wherever she would hunt with her "bare hands" immoderate onshore that appeared similar a shallow grave.

The matriarch was joined by 2 different mothers successful hunt of answers for their children.

"We took shovels and looked for my lad there," Holsonbake recalled to Fox News Digital. "I would deliberation if I could conscionable hunt with my ain hands and find him, I could bring him home. I could bring him backmost to his family. That’s what we would bash connected weekends."

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Cheryl Holsonbake is seen present with her lad Micah Holsonbake. (Investigation Discovery)

"People person sent america accusation erstwhile they wouldn’t talk to detectives," she shared. "They’ve sent america what they deliberation are clues. We’ve opened our phones earlier and had pictures of quality remains. ‘Does this look similar it mightiness beryllium portion of your son?’ Who lives that life? But we instrumentality together."

Holsonbake is 1 of the mothers of the "Bakersfield 3." It represents 3 cases that were entangled with each other. The quest for answers is being explored successful a caller Investigation Discovery [ID] existent transgression docuseries premiering Sunday, "The Bakersfield 3: A Tale of Murder and Motherhood." Fox News Digital contacted the Kern County Sheriff’s Office for comment.

The mothers of the "Bakersfield 3" spoke retired successful a caller docuseries premiering connected Mother's Day successful hopes that it volition promote anyone with leads to travel forward. (Investigation Discovery)

"One of my son’s favourite shows arsenic a kid was ‘America’s Most Wanted’ and shows wherever they would look for missing radical – helium loved them," said Holsonbake. "As agelong arsenic radical perceive to the story, we’re going to archer it. And it brings accusation to our detective."

According to Marie Claire, Micah Holsonbake's work was chopped abbreviated successful outpouring 2003 by country to region a ample benign maturation successful his throat.  (Investigation Discovery)

The communicative of calamity started successful March 2018 erstwhile Holsonbake’s 34-year-old son, Micah Holsonbake, went missing. He vanished the aforesaid period arsenic Jane Parrent’s then-20-year-old daughter, Baylee Despot, whom helium knew. Then, successful April 2018, Diane "Di" Byrne’s 38-year-old son, James Kulstad, was changeable to decease successful his car. He shared a societal ellipse with Micah and Baylee.

Holsonbake said it was Byrne, who died successful 2024 aft a conflict with ovarian cancer, who realized that the cases whitethorn beryllium connected.

The "Bakersfield 3" mothers. Cheryl Holsonbake (center), Jane Parrent (left) and Diane "Di" Byrne (right). (Investigation Discovery)

"She called maine retired of the bluish and said, ‘I heard your lad is missing. My lad was murdered. They knew each other,’" Holsonbake recalled. "I had nary idea."

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James Kulstad, an avid surfer, was killed successful a drive-by shooting. (Investigation Discovery)

About 2 to 3 weeks later, Baylee went missing. Holsonbake realized that her lad knew her. Her husband, who had spotted missing posters for Baylee, texted the fig listed. It was her mother.

It is believed that Baylee Despot knew Micah Holsonbake. (Investigation Discovery)

"He told Jane, ‘You don’t cognize me, but I deliberation our lad and girl knew each other," said Holsonbake. "Then we banded together."

Parrent inactive vividly remembers the past clip she saw Baylee.

Jane Parrent said that her daughter, Baylee Despot, was struggling with her intelligence wellness earlier she disappeared successful 2018. (Investigation Discovery)

"I gave her a speedy hug successful beforehand of Matthew Queen’s location [the antheral she was surviving with]," she tearfully told Fox News Digital. "I conscionable privation that hug was tighter. But successful hindsight, you ne'er cognize what’s going to happen. But that past day, I saw her, touched her, smelled her, heard her voice."

The children were each going done idiosyncratic struggles during those last months. James, erstwhile obsessed with surfing, became addicted to drugs aft being deed by a car successful 2007 and prescribed opioids, Marie Claire reported. 

According to James Kulstad's mother, helium had hung retired with Micah Holsonbake. (Investigation Discovery)

According to the outlet, Micah, who enlisted successful the Navy aft 9/11 and aboriginal became a stockbroker, besides became addicted to drugs aft surgery. Baylee was diagnosed with bipolar upset and survived an overdose. She besides endured home unit successful a erstwhile relationship.

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After surgery, Micah Holsonbake became addicted to medicine drugs. (Investigation Discovery)

Holsonbake inactive grapples with guilt implicit the past clip she heard from Micah.

"He called maine and asked for money," she said. "I didn’t person it. He got aggravated with me. He raised his dependable astatine me.

Marie Claire reported that ANDE was a institution that offered automated DNA investigating successful little than 2 hours. (Investigation Discovery)

"I hung up connected him, and I ne'er talked to him again. I’ve replayed that infinitesimal a cardinal times. . . .  The past clip I saw him was astir 2 weeks earlier that. He was teasing maine and joking. I effort to absorption connected that due to the fact that helium was much himself. . . .  But I don’t bent up connected radical anymore. Be cautious hanging up connected your kids."

Diane "Di" Byrne (right), James Kulstad's mother, was the archetypal to wonderment if the cases were someway connected. (Investigation Discovery)

According to the docuseries, the women became frustrated by the deficiency of accusation they received from the police. The investigators argued that, similar with immoderate case, they withheld cardinal details from the nationalist to forestall immoderate imaginable grounds tampering oregon alerting imaginable suspects.

The mothers took matters into their ain hands. Whenever they received a extremity connected societal media oregon done a telephone call, they went searching. Parrent enactment up missing posters daily, adjacent aft they were taken down and poles were greased. If she drove by a strange-looking achromatic integrative bag, she wondered: Could quality remains beryllium inside?

Micah Holsonbake's begetter saw the missing flyer for Baylee Despot. He went connected to substance the fig that was listed. (Investigation Discovery)

"I’m not a precise spiritual person, but I person gotten person to God, and I haven’t walked this way alone," said Parrent. "But it’s conscionable truthful achy to relieve this each day. And you get truthful frustrated. You archer instrumentality enforcement, ‘We got a extremity to spell look here.’ Well, we can’t spell hunt determination connected a tip, due to the fact that that costs wealth and time. OK, we’ll spell bash it ourselves. And we’ve been told to spell to truthful galore places. I’ve ever said, ’I person obscurity to look and everyplace to look.'"

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James Kulstad's 2018 execution remains unsolved. (Investigation Discovery)

In 2018, a woman’s limb was recovered successful a Kern County lake, astir 25 miles southwest of Bakersfield, Marie Claire reported. Parrent was definite it was Baylee’s. It belonged to 64-year-old Santa Ana nonmigratory Shirley Mae Cassel. 

A period later, a severed limb was recovered successful a bag, weighed down with rocks. According to the outlet, Holsonbake work an nonfiction astir ANDE, a institution that offers DNA investigating successful little than 2 hours.

Like Micah Holsonbake, James Kulstad struggled with addiction. (Investigation Discovery)

The outlet noted that portion bony fragments had been sent to Sacramento for DNA done the State Department of Justice, results could person taken a twelvemonth oregon more. But conscionable earlier Christmas successful 2018, Holsonbake learned done ANDE that the limb belonged to her son.

In 2019, Baylee Despot (left, seen present with her mother) was charged successful absentia successful Micah Holsonbake's murder. (Investigation Discovery)

In 2020, Queen and Baylee were charged with Micah’s kidnapping, torture and murder, Marie Claire reported. According to the outlet, investigators believed that Queen and Baylee brought Micah to Matthew Vandecasteele’s store successful 2018 to question him astir a firearm. Micah was accused of stealing the weapon from Queen.

The Bakersfield Californian reported that respective radical interviewed by constabulary who knew Micah said helium had grown progressively paranoid of Queen starring up to his disappearance. Others claimed Micah owed debts to assorted radical for drugs.

The outlet noted that constabulary had interviewed Vandacasteele portion helium was serving clip connected abstracted convictions. He claimed Queen asked him to usage his store to extract accusation from Micah. Queen and Baylee were alleged to person placed zip ties connected Micah’s arms, and Baylee retrieved a weapon from wrong the apartment. Afterward, Baylee looked shaken.

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According to the documentary, Jane Parrent's missing posters for her girl Baylee Despot were being mysteriously removed. (Investigation Discovery)

The outlet besides noted that constabulary discovered Vandecasteele had searched for however to dissolve a assemblage online, days aft Micah was suspected of being killed.

Parrent told reporters that Baylee wasn’t susceptible of doing thing that horrific unless "her beingness was successful danger, oregon she was threatened." She argued that her girl should beryllium recovered to get answers.

Prosecutors alleged that Micah had been dismembered, and that his remains were scattered passim Kern County. His skull, recovered wrong a bag, was retrieved successful 2021.

Baylee Despot's parent said she antecedently dealt with home violence. (Investigation Discovery)

Some thought that the quality would interruption the mothers apart. It didn’t. They continued to thin connected each other.

Baylee Despot is inactive missing. (Investigation Discovery)

"I person done things I'd ne'er thought I would bash before," said Parrent. "This has made maine a antithetic person. I anticipation I’m a amended person. I cognize not to beryllium acrophobic to talk up and telephone radical retired connected what’s incorrect and broken. . . .  I’m stronger now, but sometimes you don’t privation to beryllium strong. You conscionable privation to clang into the waves and person it beryllium over. But you can’t springiness up hope."

In 2022, Queen was convicted of second-degree execution successful Micah’s death. KGET reported that helium had been sentenced to 30 years to beingness successful prison, positive 56 years.

The remainder of Micah’s remains person ne'er been found. James’ sidesplitting remains unsolved and is not believed by authorities to beryllium straight connected to Micah oregon Baylee, Marie Claire reported. Baylee is inactive missing.

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The mothers of the "Bakersfield 3" are urging anyone who whitethorn person immoderate accusation to travel forward. (Investigation Discovery)

Today, the surviving "Bakersfield 3" moms are urging anyone with accusation to travel forward.

"We request radical to deliberation to themselves, ‘Could this extremity assistance a ma find her daughter, find a shallow grave?’ ‘Would I privation idiosyncratic to bash this for me?’" said Holsonbake. "Just travel to us. We’ll beryllium and perceive to you, due to the fact that I’ll ever beryllium searching. We’ll instrumentality it from there."