Although evidence pointed towards one primary suspect, no one has ever been convicted for the three murders that took place 45 years ago. Summer camp has been a staple of the American experience for generations. On the night of September 26, 1970 E.C. Nearby, down a narrow dirt road lined with looming trees and 400 acres of dense woods, young Girl Scouts rushed inside their tents. Weaver had served from 1961 to 1971, then was reelected in 1973 and would hold the position until 1981. The following day, Darnell tampered with a track switch near Henryetta, Oklahoma, which later caused a passenger train to jump the track. The OHS has the oldest, largest, and most complete collection of newspapers available within the state. Predictably, this information sparked controversy. This is Rex Brinlee Jr. Famous Crimes the World Forgot Volume II Photo Gallery. This time, it would take police longer to catch Hart. Inside was Doris Milners body. Amazon. The Mayes County Sheriff Glen "Pete" Weaver was assigned to the case. She was a straight-A student and had already been admitted into a Tulsa school that was created for exceptionally bright students. He was an escaped convict that had been on the run for 4 years, before being captured. sharing the stories, pictures and loves of Oklahomans across our great state. Little did they know that day, June 13, 1977, after nearly 50 years, Camp Scott would never reopen its doors. Wilhite would say later that when she was back in her tent trying to fall asleep, she could still hear that sound. However, those familiar with the area or even experienced hunters would know that there were three caves surrounding the camp. [], Posted: January 5th, 2015 under Mug Shot Monday. Nance was convicted of the 1985 murder of Rodney Spencer Johnson, 31, of Oklahoma City. He was the prime suspect and was held in jail for 13 months before the judge ruled there was not enough evidence to convict him. These three innocent girls will always remain in our hearts and prayers. The years have smoothed much of the pain, Sue Benham said. [], Posted: May 12th, 2014 under Mug Shot Monday. Growing up, Hart was recognized in the area for being a talented football player in the area. When he approached the body, Anderson said he was shot once in the shoulder, but then returned gunfire on two fleeing men. However, lingering questions remain nearly 45 years later: was Gene Leroy Hart the killer? There were no witnesses to her apparent kidnapping. "From Gene Leroy Harts perspective, the best place for him to have that trial was in Mayes County.". Decades later, local residents are still aghast at the details about the Oklahoma Girl Scout murders. Their bodies were found approximately 150 yards from Tent #8. After just a few months in prison, Hart died of a heart attack while serving time in prison, taking his secrets with him to the grave. might have owed to them. Anderson claimed that he been upstairs drawing a bath when he heard a shot. Two of the girls had been killed inside the tent, while the other one was killed outside on the trail. The statement named Sonny James, Frank Justice, and Bill Stevens as the suspectsall of whom had substantial run-ins with the law. "My husband wouldn't go, it was too hard on him. After decades . While in prison, he contracted tuberculosis. Nearly 45 years ago, three Girl Scouts were brutally murdered at camp. Featured below are 14 mesmerizing photos in Oklahoma during the 1970s that showcase some memories during this decade. By 1970, the year of the murder, Everett, his second wife, and their kids were in Oklahoma. Eugene Claremont "E.C." Mullendore III (October 26, 1937 - September 26, 1970) was an heir to one of the largest cattle ranches in Oklahoma. Investigators also interviewed Bryan Green, Gilley's sometime police partner. Nearly 45 years ago, three Girl Scouts were brutally murdered at camp. September 18th 2017, 7:09 PM PDT. Around 11 p.m., the front gate was locked, but was left unguarded during the night, as well as the side gate near the Kiowa Unit. OnlyInYourState may earn compensation through affiliate links in this article. Three weeks later, he murdered four. Camp Scott closed its doors on that day, never to reopen, after hosting nearly 50 years of Girl Scout camps. One camper said they heard a scream in the night and another camper said they heard someone crying for their momma. BIOG: NAME: 2023 www.oklahoman.com. [12] His killer was never brought to justice, and the crime was never solved. Antypas was murdered on 8 March 1907 by unknown persons who were hired to kill him. Collins is a trusty and has had a clear conduct record for almost nine years. In fact, before leaving her home in Broken Arrow, her mother GeorgeAnn told a newspaper that Michele insisted she take care of her plants while she was away at camp. They were met by their worried parents who hoped and prayed their daughters would step off the bus from camp a camp they had trusted to keep their daughters safe. Hart was later caught and charged with rape and kidnapping. Thank you! One of the only places authorities couldnt find blood was on the cot on the right side of the tent. Following his conviction, Hart had escaped from jail but was believed to still be in the area when the murders took place. Who was responsible? Justice has been arrested more than a dozen times and was said to have been evasive when he was questioned about the murders. Bill Burchardt, "Osage Oil," The Chronicles of Oklahoma 41 (Fall 1963). Gilley passed a polygraph. Around 10 that morning, and without any explanation to the other campers, the camp was evacuated, and the girls were bussed back to Tulsa. In April 1977, just two months before the murders, a training session for camp counselors was held at Camp Scott. K. Barbara Ann Spengler/Flickr 3. However, instead of going to see an eye doctor, Hart developed a habit of stealing glasses. Green was later killed in an unrelated incident. It is important to note that both of the victims wore eyeglasses. On June 12, 1977, the gates opened for the first group of 140 summer campers at Camp Scott in the small town of Locust Grove, Oklahoma. The following morning on June 13th, a camp counselor was walking to the showers along a trail and made a gruesome discovery of the three girls from tent #8. Brittany's mother is still actively seeking justice for her daughter. Around the same time, a camper in Tent Seven saw a light approaching the tent. However, despite all of the theories, rumors, and tales that have been passed down over the years, the only person who has ever been formally charged with the Girl Scout Murders was Gene Leroy Hart. Oklahoma City sister station KOCO looked inside the case into exclusive files and interviews. The DNA sample was a semen stain found on a pillowcase inside Michelle Guses sleeping bag. During the day, the three girls had all participated in camp activities and written letters home to their families. Authorities returned him to the Mayes County Jail where he escaped again. Crying, he expressed remorse for killing his wife. The handwritten notewarned, "We are on a mission to kill three girls in tent one." The tents, though made to look like cabins, were wooden platforms with four cots, no lights, and a large flap serving as the door. Collins asked the board Friday to reduce his life sentence to "45, 60, 75, 99 years - it doesn't matter. " Officials said they believe he now lives near Dallas. Tags: 1930s, Murder, Oklahoma, This is Rex Brinlee Jr. The killer had swept away footprints and tire tracks. Now, nearly 40 years later, a never before seen photo was just uncovered at the jail as a retiring lawman cleaned out his desk. On the evening of June 12, 1977, the stormy skies opened, and heavy rain descended over Locust Grove, Oklahoma. Police hope publicity will lead to new information. His father served as pastor of Putnam City Baptist Church and the family resided in Okarche, Oklahoma. The board also voted to set off Collins' next parole consideration until 1995. In fact, it wasnt until his fourth burglary, at the home of a Tulsa police officer, that his crimes came to light. The blood type of Collins and the victims is A positive, he said. Testimony revealed Hart was a suspect early on. They were found with their throats slashed about 3 p.m. on July 1, 1982. McDaniel was transported to the hospital, but died three days later of his wound. As she headed out of her tent, she spotted what appeared to be sleeping bags a little way away from her tent. Instead of their previously planned activities, the girls were sent back to their tents after dinner to write letters home. NAME: Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. On that dreary evening, 8-year-old Lori Lee Farmer, 9-year-old Michelle Heather Guse, and 10-year-old Doris Denise Milner returned to their cabin in the Kiowa Unit. Thank you! Hart was a member of the Cherokee Nation and was well-respected in his community, where he had been a high school athlete. CORY YOUNG/Tulsa World Cory. NORMAN Sue Benham has fainted once in her life. It was 20 years ago Sunday. screenshot taken from youtube from user Alana G. screenshot taken from youtube user Unsolved Mysteries. After searching the caves, investigators found grocery items, newspapers from the same edition of the Tulsa World, two photographs, and duct tape matching the kind found on the girls' bodies. Among them were Lori Lee Farmer, 8, Doris Denise Milner, 10, and Michele Guse, 9. Get more stories delivered right to your email. The manhunt would take them approximately 10 months, when Hart was apprehended on April 6, 1978. Then, the campers tents proceeded in a semi-circle away from the Counselors, ending with Tent #8 the victims tent, which was over 80 yards from the Counselors Tent. E.C. No trace of Lauria or Ashley has ever been found. William T. Horton, 1946-2011, Mug Shot Monday: Nathan Jerry Ellis, 1956-1986, Mug Shot Monday! She stopped responding to family and friends in the spring of 2012. Weve looked at the Great Depression, 1950s and 1960s in Oklahoma, and now its time to see some memories from the 1970s. Denise Milner had wanted to back out of the trip after two of her friends cancelled, but her mother encouraged her to go anyway. Their bodies were pocked with bullet holes. Anyone could get in. A day later, Mr. Freeman was found shot in the head. His death in 1970 was one of the most famous unsolved murder mysteries in Oklahoma history. E.C. Sloan clothed. Ashley has lived in Oklahoma for 25 years and is the Oklahoma staff writer for onlyinyourstate.com. Carla Wilhite, who would eventually discover the bodies, investigated the noises but couldn't find the source. In June of 1966, Hart's career as a criminal began. Do you think Gene Leroy Hart was responsible for the murders? Privacy Policy | Terms | Contact | Sitemap True Crime Historian Blog, Celebrated Criminal Cases of America, 1830-1910, Mug Shot Monday! Though they assumed it was an animal, when Wilhite went to investigate and shone her flashlight in the direction of the noise, the sound stopped. Then, during the Hart trial, an Okmulgee woman testified that the flashlight found at the crime scene had belonged to Stevens. Edwin It was a decade full of changes for Oklahoma due to the oil industry and many advancements in national defense, weather prediction and transportation. We promise to never spam you. The Pardon and Parole Board voted unanimously against recommending parole for Bobby Collins, 37, who killed a Woodward County couple and their two young children in 1975. She had been raped and strangled and was probably dead for a few days before her body was found. That November, Crowe left [], Posted: March 30th, 2015 under Mug Shot Monday. The first car pulled from the lake was a 1969 Chevrolet Camaro [], Posted: September 18th, 2013 under Rediscovered Crime News. Her cheating husband was not home at the time and saw her body through a window, before entering the home. Tags: 1920s, 1930s, Oklahoma, Skeletal remains of six people missing since 1969 and 1970 were found in two cars at the bottom of Foss Lake, Custer County, Oklahoma Tuesday afternoon (Sept 17, 2013) after authorities found their two submerged automobiles with new sonar they had been testing. Mrs. Freeman's body was found in the mobile home but Mr. Freeman and the 2 girls were not found. Somebody shot her from the porch through a window into her bedroom. BELL, John Albert Detectives believe she is a victim of foul play and continue their investigation in the case. The Greatest Rock Stars Who Died Before 30. Benham, 61, lives in Oklahoma City with her husband. When Officer McDaniel attempted to arrest Frederick D. Fair, the principal instigator, Fair shot the forty-nine-year-old lawman in the chest. When turned on, just one small beam of light escaped the flashlight. October 15, 1979: 2: Oklahoma, USA: Garry Thomas ALLEN. BIOG: However, the OSBI told sister station KOCO though Stevens was named at the trial, DNA proved to not be a match. The trail ran along the side of the Kiowa Unit, which was positioned in a semi-circle, tucked in the furthest left part of Camp Scott. "Didnt matter if they were mens or womens glasses. "There was not necessarily a barrier that would keep people out," said Marty Wilson, an OSBI Investigator. Eugene Claremont "E.C." This horrific crime happened on June 13, 1977 at Camp Scott in Mayes County. Though the witness would later redact their statement, and the theory was widely discredited by authorities, it wasnt entirely unbelievable. Some of the most infamous Oklahoma murders which you may frequently find on these lists that remain unsolved include the 1997 murder of Doris Milner, Lori Farmer, and Michelle Guse, also known as the Oklahoma Girl Scout Murders, the 2000 murder of Nancy Probst, the 2004 murder of Brittany Phillips, and the 1970 murder of E.C. Girl Scouts Lori Farmer, Michelle Guse, and Doris Milner were between the ages of 8 and 10 when they were brutally raped and murdered at Oklahoma's Camp Scott on June 13, 1977. History of the FBI's Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Field Office. Yet, the memory of Lori Farmer, Denise Milner, and Michele Guse lives on, their families having ensured they are never forgotten. The unique aspects of his life of crime is that between 1970 and 1983, Horton repeatedly was able to wiggle out of many serious rape and molestation charges against him by lenient judges and high priced [] Hours later, a camp counselor found the girls' bodies stuffed in their sleeping bags and scattered through the woods. Three weeks later, he murdered four teenagers and two adults in an Oklahoma City Sirloin Stockade freezer, shooting all six of them to death. [3], There were a number of theories speculated on about who the murderer was and what the motive was, often involving the large debt on the ranch or his insurance policy. "This case has boxes and boxes and boxes of files and interviews of all the people that they looked at," said Fielding of the OSBI. So, again, anyone could get in. Brittany, an 18-year-old college student, was found dead in her Tulsa apartment on September 30, 2004. At any moment, one of Oklahoma's most notorious murder mysteries could go from a cold case to a case closed. A Crime Stoppers reward is being offered for information. Just as quickly as he appeared, he disappeared into the darkness, closing the flap behind him. In 1973, after being returned to the Mayes County Jail for a hearing at the Mayes County Court, Hart escaped but was quickly caught by police. No one knows for sure what happened to Lauria Bible and Ashley Freeman on December 30, 1999. These 11 Hidden Gems In Oklahoma Hold Historic Keys To The Past, This Rare Footage Of Oklahoma In The 1930s Is Truly Mesmerizing, What Was Preserved For Over 100 Years In This Oklahoma Chest Will Leave You In Awe, A Hidden Treasure Uncovered At An Oklahoma School Will Remind You Of A Simpler Time, 10 Retro Places In Oklahoma That Will Take You Back In Time, On This Day In 1995, The Unthinkable Happened In Oklahoma, 10 Insane Things That Happened In Oklahoma You Wont Find In History Books. "While all the other tents in the camp had four girls in them, Tent #8 only had three girls," Wilson said. One of the most mysterious unsolved crimes of the decade was the murders of prominent Oklahoma City residents Syrl Orbach, 87, and his wife, Christine, 67. She has driven hundreds of thousands of miles in her car that has been wrapped with photos of Brittanyhoping to bring awareness to this decade-long case. On June 16, the medical examiner would announce the three girls had not been raped, though they were sexually molested. Green told them Gilley had a .22-caliber rifle in his police locker, a gun the same caliber as the murder weapon. Tags: 1970s, Juvenile, Oklahoma, unsolved, Joe Crowes Prison Mug Shot Oklahoma State Penitentiary convict Joe Crowe is a great example of the laxness with which prisons once guarded their inmates. November 21, 1986: 1: Oklahoma, USA: Sahib Lateef AL . Burrows said he did not want his board interview to "lessen or mitigate or excuse or justify" his crime, but he said his skills would be assets to society. In 1978, Roger Dale Stafford flagged a family down on I-35 near Purcell and shot and killed them all -- an Air Force Sgt., his wife and their 12-year-old son. At about 6 a.m., a camp counselor was walking along a trail to the shower when she discovered their bodies on the side of the trail. Police believe the couple was killed that night or early the following morning. He said cigarettes at the crime scene showed someone with O-positive type blood was there. Theyre So Different. When police arrived on the scene, they found Tent #8 covered in blood. Tags: 1970s, Oklahoma, Psychopath, Sex Crimes, This unfortunate face belongs to Nathan Jerry Ellis, killer and rapist. Additionally, they all were rumored to have ties to Hart. News reports indicated Gilley was convicted of assaulting a prisoner in 1968 in Amarillo, Texas, when he was a deputy sheriff in Potter County. Serial killers Otis Toole and Henry Lee Lucas, who traveled together and separately across the United States in the 1970s and 1980s randomly killing . Unsure of what to do, both girls went back to sleep. Gene Stipe and Willand M. Gotcher, Appellants and Cross-appellees, v. Kathleen Boren Mullendore and Katsy Mullendore Mecom, executrix of the Estate of Eugene C. Mullendore, deceased, Appellees and Cross-appellants, 527 F.2d 1031 (10th Cir. Tags: 1930s, bizarre, Fraud, Oklahoma, The bullet in Chester Comers head made it difficult for him to speak. Additionally, they all were rumored to have that trial was in Mayes County jail where he escaped.. Investigators also interviewed Bryan Green, Gilley 's sometime police partner.22-caliber rifle in his locker! Police locker, a gun the same caliber as the suspectsall of had. 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