The Priest at the Center of Irene Garza's 1960 Murder

On the evening of April 16, 1960, 25-year-old Irene Garza told her family she was going to Sacred Heart Catholic Church in McAllen, Texas. It was Holy Saturday. Irene was going to confess her sins. She told her mother she wouldn't be long. She had no reason to think it would be the last night of her life. Five days later, her body was found in an irrigation canal on Colonel Rowe Street. Police interviewed hundreds of people. Sixty-one polygraph tests were performed. And almost immediately, they had a suspect. He admitted speaking with Irene that night. His slide viewer was found just feet from her body. And he had fresh scratches on his hands. He was a Catholic priest. His name was John Bernard Feit. Months later, another priest came forward and said Feit had confessed the murder to him. But Feit was never charged. Instead, the Catholic Church transferred him from Texas to Missouri. And he remained free for 57 years. This is the story of Irene Garza, the allegations of a cover-up that followed, and how John Bernard Feit finally ended up on trial. Music 🎵 © Kevin MacLeod #coldcases #coldcasesolved #solvedcoldcases #truecrime