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Photo Courtesy Austin History Center Our fair city has seen its share of sinister crimes in its 176 years of existence, and many remain unsolved. Few cold cases, however, compare to these two grisly incidences of murder that occurred almost 100 years apart. One had been largely forgotten until recently; the other is still fresh on everyone’s minds. “The Servant Girl Annihilator” Not many Austinites are aware that eight gruesome murders took place between New Year’s Eve 1884 and Christmas Eve 1885 in the capital city.
In the early Edmund Emil Kemper III was a necrophilia cannibal serial killer who earned the name The Co-ed Killer, after killing his mother, his Grandparents, and six women in. Better known as the 'Soap-Maker of Correggio', she murdered three women in Correggio between 1939 and and turned their bodies into soap. Dec 4, 2012 - We knew then that we were dealing with a serial killer.” In April 1978, Jenkin T. Jones, 77, was killed in his rural Granville home, and Gerald Fields, 35, was shot to death at a private club in rural Fairfield County. On May 21 of that year, the Lewingdons killed their eighth and ninth victims, Jerry Martin, 47,. Serial Killer Calendar: This Day In Killer History By James Gilks. Paperback, 92 Pages. This perfect bound Serial Killer Calendar book includes detailed facts and trivia about serial killers for every day of the year. It also includes the best true crime artwork from around the world. Dimensions (inches) 8.5 wide x 11.
At that time, the idea of there being such a thing as a serial killer was hard to fathom—this was three years before Jack the Ripper sensationally terrorized the streets of London. But, with these local crimes being similar in nature, many modern-day investigators conclude that it must have been the work of one individual, who came to be known as the “Servant Girl Annihilator.” Most of the victims were African-American servants to wealthy families. The first, Mollie Smith, was a 25-year-old cook who was found with a gash on her head outside her home on West Pecan Street (now Sixth Street).
Five more murders would follow, including that of a man and an 11-year-old girl. The level of fear in the city peaked, however, when two white women, Susan Hancock and Eula Phillips, were found dead in separate incidents on the same night.
Both of their husbands were charged, but only Jimmy Phillips was convicted. His conviction was eventually thrown out. Theories about the killing rampage ranged from a “mania” taking over men to an escaped patient from the Texas State Lunatic Asylum. But one theory stands up to skepticism.
In an episode of the PBS series History Detectives, the show’s team of investigators follow the trail of a young black cook named Nathan Elgin. Police killed him when he resisted arrest after attacking a woman in a bar. An autopsy revealed that he was missing a toe. At two of the murder scenes, a bloody footprint was found—with a toe missing.
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If that wasn’t enough of a coincidence, the murders stopped following his death. Unfortunately, with little forensic evidence to go by, no one will ever be able to truly confirm if he was indeed the killer. “The Yogurt Shop Murders” It was a crime that shocked a city that still considered itself a sleepy college town. Around midnight on Dec. 6, 1991, firefighters responded to a fire at the I Can’t Believe It’s Yogurt! Shop on West Anderson Lane.
Inside, the burned corpses of four teenage girls were discovered. The victims, Amy Ayers, Eliza Thomas and sisters Jennifer and Sarah Harbison, were all shot at point-blank range before an accelerant was used to burn their bodies. Much of the crime scene evidence was washed away by the firefighters, so investigators found very few clues.
The case was also plagued by false confessions, including one by a 16-year-old named Maurice Pierce, who was arrested at Northcross Mall for carrying a gun, which he told police was used to kill the girls. (The gun ended up not being a match.) His friends, Michael Scott, Robert Springsteen and Forrest Welborn, were also interrogated but released. Then, in 1999, the friends were called back for more questioning. Scott and Springsteen fessed up to the crime, but later they retracted the confessions, saying police coerced them.
However, prosecutors moved forward, and in 2001, Springsteen was tried, convicted and sentenced to death. The next year, Scott was found guilty and sentenced to life in prison. Only a few years later, their convictions would be overturned due to a constitutional rights technicality.
In 2009, DNA evidence came to light that a fifth man may have been involved, yet no suspect had been found. Travis County District Attorney Rosemary Lehmberg decided to drop all charges against Scott and Springsteen, saying in a statement that although she felt these were the men responsible for the killings, she couldn’t “in good conscience allow this case to go to trial before the identity of this male donor is determined.” Sadly, closure on this case remains elusive. Without a Trace Other unsolved deaths in Austin Susan Leigh Wolf & Connie Leigh Bibb Both victims were attending UT when they met an untimely death. Wolfe was a nursing student abducted in 1980. A witness saw two black males drag her into a 1970 maroon Dodge Polara. Her body was later found in an alley and she had been sexually assaulted. Detectives do not have any suspects that they are willing to name at this time.
Bibb was living in a house with nine other girls. She was found strangled Thanksgiving night 1986. Jay Swann says he has “tons of clues, but sometimes we just have to wait for the right person to surface.” William Greer A homeless man from Houston, Greer was found dead on the morning of July 25, 2012, near the Lady Bird Lake Hike and Bike Trail. He was bludgeoned to death. While he suffered from mental illness, he stayed in touch with his family, who are still hoping for answers.
According to a Texas Observer story, several homeless people were questioned and a couple suspects were investigated. Still, no one has ever been arrested or charged in his death. Grace Chen In February 2014, this 47-year-old beloved teacher and popular member of Austin’s Asian American community was found dead in the bathroom near a language arts school she founded at the Galleria Oaks Shopping Center. Police say they have leads, but no suspect has been arrested. This case is still active in the homicide division.
The APD’s Homicide Cold Case and Missing Persons Unit have between 165 and 170 cases that date back to 1969. Detectives continue to investigate these cases, hoping for new leads. Some are currently listed. Read All About It Inspired by the tragedy of “The Yogurt Shop Murders,” author and Austinite Scott Blackwood creates a fictional account of the incident in, released earlier this year by Little, Brown and Company. In his tale, a town comes to grips with the murders of three teenage girls at an ice cream shop.
Providing more answers than the actual event that inspired it, the book has been described by NPR as “brutal, necessary and near perfect.” Take a Walk on the Wild Side Travel back to 1885 with the Detour app This walking audio tour, produced by the team behind NPR’s Radiolab podcast, is activated by your smartphone’s location and takes you on a downtown stroll, stopping at crime scenes of the “Servant Girl Annihilator.” With Shakey Graves providing the soundtrack, the app will lead you to places you’ve likely never been before, including Sixth Street alleyways and Waller Creek.
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McDonald's manager will get $110,000 for tip on Tampa serial killer suspect The McDonald’s manager who turned in a gun that led to the arrest of a man wanted in a series of murders in Florida will receive “every penny” of the $110,000 reward, Tampa’s police chief said Friday. Delonda Walker will be rewarded for her efforts, which led to the arrest of 24-year-old Emanuel Donaldson III in the serial killings in the Seminole Heights neighborhood of Tampa, reported. Tampa police Chief Brian Dugan said Donaldson, 24, gave Walker - a co-worker at McDonald’s - a food bag Tuesday that contained a.40-caliber Glock before leaving to visit an Amscot. When Walker realized what was inside, she told a police officer who happened to be in the restaurant. Donaldson faces four counts of murder in the deaths of Benjamin Mitchell, 22; Monica Hoffa, 32; Anthony Naiboa, 20; and Ronald Felton, 60. “We would not be here today with this killer in custody if it weren’t for the courage of one individual who just happened to be working at a local McDonald’s,” Tampa Mayor Bob Buckhorn said at a news conference. Buckhorn read a statement from Walker, who said she wanted to do the right thing, the Times reported.
“Receiving a reward never entered my mind,” she said. “Looking back, I’m grateful to know I was assisting law enforcement.” On Thursday afternoon, Hoffa’s father, Kenny, went to the McDonald’s to thank Walker in person, the Times reported.
Several hours later, Naiboa’s father, Anthony Naiboa, met with Walker. “We hugged her and told her she is our hero,” Naiboa said. © 2018 Cox Media Group.