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Cult Leader And His Torture Harem Locks Women in Boxes For 23 Hours a Day
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Colleen Stan was born in Eugene, Oregon on New Year’s Eve of 1956 to parents Jackie Nolan and Evelyn Damers. Her parents separated shortly after her birth and later remarried. She had two sisters along with three half-siblings. Colleen grew up in a middle-class household and was described as a shy, introverted child.
Despite her quiet nature, Colleen was deeply considerate of others and preferred to keep her troubles to herself rather than burden her loved ones. Her sister once told a reporter, “She would not have let us worry.” According to her own account, Colleen was a deeply religious person who carried a strong sense of responsibility towards others.
She genuinely wanted to help those around her and often saw the best in people. In May of 1977, then 20-year-old Colleen planned to surprise her friend for her birthday in Westwood, California. At the time, hitchhiking was still a popular and affordable way to travel, almost a free alternative to public transport.
But as the saying went, nobody rides for free. During those years, the roads were not just filled with wanderers and dreamers, but also predators who preyed on vulnerable individuals, especially women traveling alone as you’ll remember from our recent coverage of Robert Ben Rhodes and his many, many crimes. For the most part, Colleen felt confident in her ability to read people.
She’d hitchhiked several times before and believed she could make the journey safely without ever ending up as one of the horror stories that made the news, but sadly, she was tragically mistaken. On May 19th, 1977, Colleen accepted a ride from a man named Cameron Hooker driving a blue van along Interstate 5. At the time, Cameron lived in a rented house in Red Bluff, California with his wife Janice.
He had graduated from the local high school and later found work at Diamond International Lumber Mill. He was known by his co-workers as a dependable man. Cameron had a very quiet life in Red Bluff and even his neighbors barely knew anything about him or what he did in his spare time. That day, Colleen had already turned down two rides offered by young men before deciding to accept Cameron’s.
Seeing that his wife Janice and their baby were inside made the situation appear safe. But beneath the harmless facade was a far darker reality. Cameron had a history of violence and cruelty. Years later, investigators would find that Cameron was connected to the disappearance of 19-year-old Marie Elizabeth Spannhake, also known as Mylette, who went missing on January 31st, 1976, roughly 16 months before Colleen Stan’s abduction.
Inside, everything seemed ordinary enough. The couple appeared friendly, chatting casually and keeping the ride lighthearted. For a while, Colleen relaxed until she noticed Cameron’s eyes fixed on her through the rearview mirror. About half an hour later, the family stopped at a gas station. Colleen went to use the restroom where she reportedly thought about running away, but she eventually brushed off her instincts and convinced herself that Cameron couldn’t possibly harm her, especially with his wife and toddler right there.
She went back to the van, the family handed her a candy bar. Roughly 20 minutes later, Cameron pulled off to the side of the road. Said that he was interested in some caves in the area and wanted to make a quick stop. Cameron then drove down a dirt road and stopped in the middle of nowhere. His wife Janice stepped outside with the baby and went to a nearby lake.
Then, Cameron pulled a knife and held it against Colleen’s throat, threatening her that she better do whatever he told her to. He had handcuffed her wrists, blindfolded her, and gagged her before forcing a large wooden box he had built himself on her head. The box was made of heavy plywood lined with carpet on the inside and fitted with a small neck hole that made breathing extremely difficult.
Afterwards, he covered her body with something heavy, possibly a sleeping bag or a blanket. Short while later, Colleen felt the van starting to move. She could tell by the motion that they were driving downhill. Cameron stopped along the way for dinner. The van finally came to a stop for good. It was outside their home at 11:40 Oak Street in Red Bluff, California.
Colleen felt a brief moment of relief when the box was finally removed from her head, but that comfort was short-lived. Her real nightmare was only beginning. Cameron let her down into the basement where she was forced to stand on a small ice chest. He ordered her to raise her hands and bound her wrists to a pipe overhead.
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He then stripped her of her dignity, removed the icebox, and left her hanging, helpless and terrified. When Colleen tried to scream, Cameron threatened to cut her vocal cords if she dared to make another sound. Cameron then assaulted her with a whip. Even though Colleen was blindfolded, she could still slightly see a magazine on the floor depicting a woman suspended just as she was.
What was Colleen’s worst nightmare was Cameron’s darkest fantasy made real. He was so excited by his conquest that he went out, returned with his wife, and became intimate with her while Colleen hung suspended and terrified above them. It was later revealed that Cameron and Janice had made a mutual agreement.
He could capture a young woman to fulfill his desires. Cameron had been using Janice for these activities up until that point. He first met her in 1973 when she was just 15 years old. At the time, Janice was vulnerable like most teenagers her age and Cameron exploited her want for attention. To make matters worse, she was also epileptic, which made her even more dependent on him.
He persuaded her to participate in his bondage fantasy, suspending her from a tree by her wrists and undressing her. By 1975, they were married. But as Janice grew older, she began to realize how she was being violated and used for his gratification. She made an agreement with Cameron that if he would stop these practices with her, they could capture a woman instead to satisfy his desires.
However, Cameron was only allowed to be intimate with his wife. Nevertheless, Janice was satisfied in some way. She had a baby and now she wasn’t forced to endure the torture. Yet the couple still needed to contain Colleen, prevent her from being seen by the neighbors, and avoid suspicion. Cameron had accounted for all of this.
Being a professional and hardworking, he constructed restraints, racks, and boxes specifically designed for Colleen. Cameron had also built a variety of disturbing devices to fulfill his violent fantasies. One of them was what he called the stretcher. It was a 2×8 wooden board with a cross piece attached. Cameron would force Colleen to lie across it, bind her limbs tightly, and then use his full strength to pull and stretch her body, causing excruciating pain.