TX TX - Elizabeth Shumate 54, JoAnn Brown 46, & Frances Ivey 60, realtors shot dead, Houston, 19Aug1983

[dotr]

Who killed 3 Houston Realtors execution-style in 1983? Cold case investigators aren't giving up.
February 20, 2020
''HOUSTON — It’s one of the biggest unsolved murders in Houston, and now cold case investigators are looking at it from a different angle, hoping new forensic testing could help find the killer.

On Aug. 19, 1983, three realtors were shot inside the Shumate and Co. Realtors Office at 16007 Memorial Drive in west Houston. The victims were identified as Elizabeth Shumate, 54, JoAnn Brown, 46 and Frances Ivey, 60.''

''It’s an empty field now, but 37 years ago, there was a house on the property and inside, a boutique real estate firm.

“It was a little Victorian house that they had moved to the property,” Maldonado said.

“Yellow and white,” Edwards said.

The murders happened around closing time after most people in the office had left. Another worker returning to the office around 6:30 p.m. discovered the crime scene.

“This was the day after Hurricane Alicia hit Houston, the streets were still full of glass, traffic was crazy,” Maldonado said.

Houston Police said the women were all found shot in the back of the head, execution style. Shumate was tied up, Brown and Ivey were close by and some of their jewelry was stolen.

The women had time to hide some pieces of jewelry, beneath chair cushions and trash cans.

Shortly after the murders, two people came forward saying they saw a man near the real estate office, and a composite sketch was released. However, detectives thought all along there might have been at least two killers.

Originally, they thought one of them might have been a woman''.

 

[dotr]

May 14, 2020
Reward increased in cold case of 3 Houston Realtors who were murdered the day after Hurricane Alicia

''Crime Stoppers is not giving up, announcing Thursday, May 14, the reward was raised to up to $15,000. After KHOU's story aired in February, the Houston Association of Realtors board voted to donate the money.

“Anything that would have to do with the safety of our members would be of critical importance to us," said Vice Chair Chaille Ralph. "We would certainly hope that some resolution could be found."

Houston police had a sketch of a suspect, but think he wasn’t working alone. They’re now looking at what new DNA technology they can use to test old evidence.''

''Houston police have reached out to the FBI to help with research and testing, but they still hope the new reward will encourage people to call Crime Stoppers at (713) 222-TIPS.''
May 14, 2020

 

[dotr]

• Who killed 3 Houston Realtors execution-style in 1983? Cold case investigators aren't giving up.
  
• 
• Two people reported seeing a man near the real estate office around the time of the murders. Police released this composite sketch, hoping tips would come in.

 

[dotr]

Pleased and a little surprised to see this in local Toronto news..
May 16 2020 rbbm.
CRIME HUNTER: Hurricane and homicide a deadly cocktail

Houston cops believe this man and another suspect are responsible for the 1983 triple murder of three real estate agents. SCREENGRAB / HOUSTON POLICE
“It didn’t seem like a random, run of the mill, one of those crimes of opportunity. It was something that looks like it was planned out that was purposely executed,” Det. Sgt. Richard Rodriguez told the Houston Chronicle.

“It didn’t look like there was a big struggle, a big fight, nothing like that.”

He added: “We know from the evidence that was left there was at least two different types of weapons used.”

Cops always believed there were two killers and one of them may have been a woman.

Now, investigators are turning to new DNA tech to test old evidence. They remain hopeful they will eventually close the case and bring some semblance of closure to the still grieving families.

“I think there’s always a possibility. It’s just a matter of when technology is going to catch up with what you have,” Rodriguez said.

And the families not only want justice, they want answers to the senseless crime.

“I want to know why somebody would do this to these three women, loved by everyone. It just doesn’t make sense,” Sarah Ivey said.''

 

[Snoods]

Bringing my post over from Cheryl and Andy’s thread about victim Fran Ivey:

I was friends and went to school with (one of) victim Frances Ivey’s daughters. Mrs. Ivey was sweet as pie, as was her daughter. Her daughter was a tiny blond barrel of fun, just adorable. We lost contact after our school years, I hope she is doing well.

As youngsters we were all shocked and terrified when our friend’s mother was murdered in such a horrible way. I remember going over to play at her house after the murders and it was all I could think about, but we never talked about it. I can’t believe it’s still unsolved!

There is definitely more than a passing resemblance between the two composite sketches, yep.

 

[dotr]

Bringing my post over from Cheryl and Andy’s thread about victim Fran Ivey:

I was friends and went to school with (one of) victim Frances Ivey’s daughters. Mrs. Ivey was sweet as pie, as was her daughter. Her daughter was a tiny blond barrel of fun, just adorable. We lost contact after our school years, I hope she is doing well.

As youngsters we were all shocked and terrified when our friend’s mother was murdered in such a horrible way. I remember going over to play at her house after the murders and it was all I could think about, but we never talked about it. I can’t believe it’s still unsolved!

There is definitely more than a passing resemblance between the two composite sketches, yep.

Thanks for the reply!
Re post of the suspect sketch in the CH & AA murders..

Can you help solve some of Houston's most infamous cold cases?

TX - TX - Cheryl Henry, 22, & Andy Atkinson, 21, Houston, 21 Aug 1990

 

[PayrollNerd]

I remember hearing about this on the news. I was a young adult and so perplexed that these 3 ladies could be targeted like that. It makes me think one, or all of them, knew these ladies, otherwise why the murders? If the motive was robbery, simply cover your face and none of them would have been immediately recognized. I wonder if it could have been workman that were hired to do a high end house and thought the realtors coming thru would be wealthy too? Puzzling.

 

[CocoChanel]

THANK YOU for starting this thread @dotr.
This has been a troubling case for so long, and remains one of the big unsolved crimes in west Houston. Would love to see new technology bring it to resolution.

 

[dotr]

Lengthy article.

Solving the unsolved: Decades-old cold cases cracked by Houston-area forensic lab

Currently, there are more than 330,000 unsolved murders in the U.S., according to the FBI’s Uniform Crime Report data. Cold cases, some decades old are being cracked in Houston because of technology at Othram, a first-of-its-kind lab in the world that was purposefully built to identify...

www.click2houston.com

May 9 2023 Zachery Lashway, Reporter/Anchor rbbm.
''Kristen Mittelman, is chief development officer at Othram. “We bring the truth that is missing. Most forensics testing prior to this technology was code testing and you heard of a few cases solving here or there across the country. ‘Why weren’t all the cases solving?’ And the reason is that DNA from crime scenes is very, very different than the DNA that you would get if you went to the doctor’s office today, or if you took a consumer test.”

This was the precise purpose of why Kristen and her husband David, built Othram in 2018. Then, a team of four people started solving unsolved mysteries immediately. First, it was a few hits a month, then several answers a week, and now, the lab is solving multiple cases a day with more than 50 people at its headquarters in the woodlands.''


''Sara Ivey Edwards a daughter of Frances Ivey reflects on the day that changed her family forever. “It was the day after Hurricane Alicia.”

Sara’s sister Helen Ivey Maldonado explained, “August 19th, 1983, was the darkest day in my life. The day that our mother was ripped away from all of us.”

Helen remembers the phone call that changed everything.

“The phone rang and of course, I jumped to the phone and I asked if this was Fran Ivey’s residence,” she said. “And I said, yes, it is, but she’s not here. And they told me that we’re not sure, but there’s been a shooting at her mate and company and we’re not sure, but we think your mother is involved.”

''Frances Ivey was murdered in her place of employment, Shumate and Company, a real estate office along Memorial Drive near Highway 6 in west Houston. Also killed on that August day, her colleagues Elizabeth Shumate and Joann Brown. Ivey’s girls believe it was a targeted robbery.''
The family is interested in getting the case over to Othram. They say they’re looking into the case.

At the time this article was published, evidence in Fran Ivey’s case continues to sit in the cold case files at HPD.''