2847UMCA
I find this case intriguing for multiple reasons. Unlike most murder cases where a victim is found hours, days, weeks, etc. after they've been killed, this man had only been dead for a matter of minutes when he was discovered. His face and body would have been unusually "fresh" (so to speak) and easy to identify, yet no one has. He was well-dressed with recent dental work and was most certainly not a transient. I do find it odd though that no actual post-mortem pics were released considering how recently he died. The sketches aren't bad, but they kind of look like he should be a character in a cheesy 70s cartoon show or comic strip.
Burger King employees stated that he mentioned that he had recently arrived from LA. I wonder in what context he said this. Was it just basic small talk to the cashier while he waited for his order? Or was he conversing with another patron and the employees just happened to overhear him? Did he say anything else that may have been a clue? Fast food restaurants, particularly those in places like bus stations and airports, are usually pretty busy, so there must have been something that made this particular man stand out in the minds of the employees who see hundreds of customers come and go daily. If the Burger King cup was found near his body, he probably was just there before he died. Perhaps that's why they remember him so well.
His body was found in an empty stadium at around 9pm. What was he (and his killer, for that matter) doing there? That doesn't sound like a place you go to at that hour without a specific reason, and you almost certainly wouldn't just accidentally get lost and wander in even if you're new to the area. Could he have been involved in a drug deal gone wrong? I just can't really think of any other reason why this man would have been essentially trespassing in the sports arena after dark.
What I find particularly curious is the anonymous phone call to police. Since his death occurred so shortly before police arrived, I think it's very possible that the caller either witnessed the murder or was even the killer himself/herself. When they say "minutes prior" for his time of death, I take it they mean less than an hour or else they would have just said "x hours prior". In an empty stadium at that time of night, who else would have entered in such a narrow window of time to discover the victim?
Sadly, with this case being close to 40 years old, I have a feeling that the answers to at least some of these questions have been lost to time.
