ABC 20/20 “Missing from the Mall” January 12 2024 Preview & Case Details
The episode of ’20/20′ titled “Missing from the Mall” is set to be broadcast on Friday, January 12, from 9:01 to 11:00 p.m. EST on ABC.
On a November afternoon in 2003, Dru Sjodin, a senior at the University of North Dakota, disappeared while she was finishing up some Christmas shopping in the parking lot of her local mall. The authorities who arrived at the scene made a chilling discovery – the sheath of a handheld knife. In a new episode of “20/20,” “Nightline” co-anchor Juju Chang delves into the details of Dru’s disappearance, the subsequent investigation that led the police to Alfonso Rodriguez, a local man with a history of violence, and the trial that resulted in North Dakota’s first death sentence in over a century, a sentence that was later overturned.
This two-hour program includes a heartfelt interview with Allan Sjodin, Dru’s father, who had not spoken on national television since Alfonso Rodriguez’s death sentence was overturned. The episode also features interviews with Deputy Chief Bill Macki and former detective Orie Oksendhal, who were part of the original detective team on the case. It includes insights from Sven Sjodin, Dru’s brother, who played a pivotal role in the initial search efforts to find his sister, as well as perspectives from Britni Schmalz, Dru’s sorority sister, Jean Ann Bienek, Dru’s manager at Victoria’s Secret, and Shirley Iverson, who survived a previous attack by Alfonso Rodriguez.
Additional interviews are conducted with Special Agent Chris Boeckers of the FBI, Maria Awes, an investigative journalist, Drew Wrigley, the current North Dakota attorney general who prosecuted the case while serving as the North Dakota U.S. attorney 20 years ago, and other law enforcement officers, as well as family and friends of the victim. “20/20” is scheduled to air on Friday, January 12, from 9:01 PM to 11:00 PM EST on ABC, with availability on Hulu the following day.
What Happened to Dru Sjodin & Killer Alfonso Rodriguez Jr?
Dru Katrina Sjodin tragically met her fate when she was abducted from the Columbia Mall parking lot in Grand Forks, North Dakota, on November 22, 2003. At the time of her disappearance, she was a 22-year-old college student at the University of North Dakota and a member of the Gamma Phi Beta sorority. Dru’s evening took a sinister turn after she finished her shift at the Victoria’s Secret store in the Columbia Mall at 4:00 p.m.
While walking to her 1994 Oldsmobile Cutlass parked outside, she was engaged in a cell phone conversation with her boyfriend, Chris Lang. The call took a distressing turn when, just four minutes into their conversation, Dru was heard saying “Okay, okay” before the call abruptly ended. Lang initially assumed the call was disconnected, as Dru didn’t convey any sense of urgency. However, about three hours later, Lang received another call from her cell phone, characterized by static and the sound of buttons being pressed. Authorities later determined that this second call originated near Fisher, Minnesota, although this remained unconfirmed. With Dru not showing up for her shift at the El Roco nightclub and these unusual phone calls, concerns arose regarding her whereabouts.
A week later, on December 1, 2003, a suspect emerged in the form of 50-year-old registered level-3 sex offender Alfonso Rodriguez Jr., born on February 18, 1953. Rodriguez had been arrested in connection with Dru Sjodin’s disappearance, sparking a high-profile investigation.
Alfonso Rodriguez Jr. had a deeply troubled history. Born to migrant farm workers Dolores and Alfonso Rodriguez Sr., he had a background marred by substance abuse and criminal behavior. His criminal record included rape, aggravated assault, and kidnapping, resulting in a 23-year prison term. He had also pleaded guilty to rape and faced multiple convictions for sexual assault against women. He was classified as a Minnesota Level 3 sex offender, signifying a high likelihood of reoffending.
During the police investigation, Rodriguez admitted to being near the Columbia Mall the night of Dru’s disappearance, claiming he had watched a movie at the Columbia Mall Cinema 4. However, authorities found no evidence of the movie “Once Upon a Time in Mexico” playing at any cinema in the area. Additionally, police discovered receipts of purchases Rodriguez had made at stores near the mall, including a receipt for a knife from a nearby Menards store. While Rodriguez possessed two tool kit knives, they could only be obtained from a specific home center store approximately one mile from the mall. The purchase date for these knives was never established. Notably, police found a tool kit knife in Rodriguez’s car soaked in a cleaning solution in a rear wheel well. Inside the car, they also discovered a woman’s shoe and a knife with blood matching Dru Sjodin’s DNA.
The tragic conclusion to this case came when Dru Sjodin’s body was found on April 17, 2004, just west of Crookston, Minnesota, where Rodriguez lived with his mother. Dru was discovered partially nude, face down in a ravine, with her hands tied behind her back. She had suffered a brutal fate, including beating, stabbing, sexual assault, and several lacerations, including a significant neck wound. A rope was tied around her neck, with remnants of a shopping bag discovered beneath it, suggesting she may have had a bag placed over her head. The cause of death was determined to be either the major neck wound, suffocation, or exposure to the elements. Thousands had participated in the search for Dru, and hundreds attended her funeral.
Due to Dru’s abduction spanning state lines, the case fell under the Federal Kidnapping Act, making it a federal matter. This allowed the possibility of the death penalty in Rodriguez’s case, which wasn’t applicable under the state laws of North Dakota or Minnesota, as neither had the death penalty. Ultimately, Rodriguez became the subject of the first death penalty case in North Dakota in a century. He was convicted in federal court on August 30, 2006, for kidnapping resulting in death and received the death penalty recommendation from the jury on September 22, 2006. On February 8, 2007, Rodriguez was formally sentenced to death by U.S District Judge Ralph R. Erickson. He is currently imprisoned at the United States Penitentiary, Coleman in Florida, with plans for execution in South Dakota.
In a later interview on death row in June 2013, Rodriguez confessed to his guilt. In October 2011, his defense attorneys filed a federal habeas corpus motion asserting that Rodriguez was mentally disabled.
However, in 2021, the same judge who initially sentenced Rodriguez to death, Ralph R. Erickson, now a judge for the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, overturned the death sentence. He ordered a new sentencing phase, citing misleading testimony from a medical examiner, limitations on mental health evidence, and deficiencies in Rodriguez’s legal representation. On March 14, 2023, prosecutors announced they would no longer seek the death penalty for Rodriguez, and he was subsequently sentenced to life without parole on May 18, 2023.
Dru Sjodin’s tragic case led to the passage of “Dru’s Law,” which established the Dru Sjodin National Sex Offender Public Registry in 2006. A scholarship in her name was also created at the University of North Dakota in 2004. Memorial gardens in her honor were established in Pequot Lakes, Minnesota, her hometown, and one is planned for the University of North Dakota campus.
