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Wahoo residents revisit Mary Kay Heese murder as new book stirs decades of questions
WAHOO, Neb. —
Wahoo residents are still asking questions about a murder that loomed over their community for decades. Wednesday night, residents came together to talk about a new book that some say is “the fullest public accounting of what happened to Mary Kay Heese on March 25, 1969.”
Wahoo residents gathered Wednesday night at the Wahoo Public Library during a book signing to talk about the new book, “Chasing Evil in America’s Heartland, on the murder of Mary Kay Heese.”
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The book was written by former Saunders County investigator Ted Green and investigative reporter Leesa Zalesky.
Seventeen-year-old Heese was murdered in Wahoo on March 25, 1969. Heese’s murder case sat cold for decades until it was finally taken to court in 2024.
In August 2025, Joseph Ambroz took a plea deal and was sentenced to two years in prison for conspiracy to commit first-degree murder. Ambroz was released early on good behavior and was home for the holidays.
To this day, no one in Saunders County has forgotten what happened.
“I was in eighth grade when this happened and went to school in Weston, and then I was going to go to school, and I picked up Wahoo and just kind of really scared to come here,” former Saunders County resident Denise Taylor said.
Taylor said she is glad they wrote a book because the case has to be kept alive. Taylor left the Wahoo Public Library with books for all of her relatives.
“As soon as I read this, I’ll probably get the answers,” Taylor said.
Heese’s neighbor Russell Andreson was featured in the book. Andreson said he is still waiting for justice for his neighbor.
“The case is complete now; I guess it’s closed. But no, she didn’t deserve that; nobody does,” Andreson said.
Everyone we spoke to Wednesday night said the same thing; people in Wahoo will never stop seeking justice for Heese.
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