Unforgotten · Alabama Cold Case Advocacy

S2 Ep 4: James Matthew Helms and Scott Allen Heib

·23 min·1 clip

Robert Aaron Varveen was arrested on the 11th anniversary of the murders, but the charges were later dropped.

1. Unforgotten Season 2, Episode 4 covers the double homicide of James Matthew Helms and Scott Allen Hybe in Enterprise, Alabama. 2. Sellers and Stormy host the episode for Alabama Cold Case Advocacy, and their work matters because they repeatedly share unsolved Alabama homicides and ask for tips. 3. The episode asks why the 2007 killings still lack a final resolution after an arrest, an indictment, and later dismissal of charges. 4. Matt Helms was 30 years old, was called Matt by family, and was also nicknamed “Ick” by friends. 5. The hosts say Matt was born on December 4, 1976, raised by his parents with two brothers and a sister, and had two children. 6. Matt worked as a maintenance supervisor at U.S. Helicopter and was close to finishing an IT degree at Enterprise State Junior College. 7. The hosts describe Matt as someone who helped elderly neighbors with groceries, yard work, and even a flat tire. 8. They say he loved fishing, barbecue, and Alabama football, and he often hosted barbecues during football season. 9. Scott Allen Hybe is identified as Matt’s roommate and the second victim, and the hosts say he was from Colorado. 10. Scott had entered the Navy Reserves, met Matt through a friend from the reserves, and later moved in after Matt got him contractor work at U.S. Helicopter. 11. The home was on Country Road 622 in Enterprise, and Matt’s sister found both men dead from gunshot wounds in the same room. 12. The hosts say there was no evidence of forced entry, and a neighbor later reported hearing a gunshot around 6 a.m. on the Tuesday they were found. 13. The weapon was identified as a Taurus .44 Special revolver with its serial numbers scratched off. 14. Investigators later traced possible ownership history for the revolver, including an original owner, a second owner, and a probable link to a third owner. 15. The episode cites a 2018 News 4 report saying investigators believed 42-year-old Robert Aaron Varveen killed the men because one was seeing his wife. 16. The hosts say police believed Varveen left his special-needs child at home, committed the killings, and then returned home. 17. They also mention a witness who said Varveen may have stolen the handgun after seeing a media broadcast of the gun photo. 18. The episode describes a 2018 arrest on the 11th anniversary of the murders, followed by a June 2019 bond ruling and a July 2020 dismissal after a material witness could not be located. 19. The tone is conversational and advocacy-driven, with Sellers and Stormy reacting to updates from an Enterprise Police Department investigator and reading contact numbers on air. 20. Listeners who follow Alabama cold cases and investigative updates about local homicides will get the most from this episode; listeners wanting a fast procedural recap may skip the family background.

As heard by us

An unresolved Alabama double murder, a discarded revolver, and a missing witness leave this case caught between evidence and answers.

Unforgotten uses an Alabama double murder as a spare, unsettling frame. Matt and Scott were last heard from around 10 p.m. on a Monday night, and by Tuesday morning neither had shown up for work.

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Why you'd press play

You want an Alabama cold case that moves from an ordinary back-porch barbecue to two gunshot deaths, a discarded revolver, and charges later dropped when a witness went missing.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

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