IL IL - Lane Bryant Murders, Tinley Park, 2 Feb 2008

[LurkingSleuther]

I’ve lived in the area for years. I’ve only heard this case mentioned 1 time and that was by an old lady that has lived in the area for years when I was looking at the surveillance videos in my husbands office. She told me they put up the cameras because of this crime. That’s how I found out about this case and decided to research it.

I think the Tinley Park police dept didn’t tell us multiple people were involved because they didn’t want to scare the public more than they already were. This was a relatively new shopping center when this crime occurred. It’s one of the nicest place to shop in Tinley Park if not he nicest and generates a lot of tax revenue for them. I think that since there isn’t much pressure from the public they don’t want to remind people this happened here.

I’ve lived 3 miles down 191st St my whole life (and have been to this shopping center hundreds of times), and my experience is the exact same as yours. Outside of when it happened, I’ve never once heard someone bring it up. I’ve brought it up to people about 15 times over the years, and all 15 times it was the first time that person or people had heard about it.

Tinley Park PD really tries to hide that this ever happened and gives the vibe that they want it unmentioned.

And it’s still bizarre they’ve never mentioned anything about the getaway car(s) and multiple people involved. If I wasn’t a dedicated online sleuth, I would’ve never known.

 

[LurkingSleuther]

Well 17 years now and still no closer to a resolution. As of right now no news articles about the anniversary. I have seen many more cold cases receive far more attention that this one and this incident resulted in 5 deaths.

Yes, for years I was certain this case would be featured on 48 Hours or a similar high profile show.

I’ve always been stumped how the Lane Bryant murders got relegated to obscurity in terms of national attention.

 

[jbirner]

Yes, for years I was certain this case would be featured on 48 Hours or a similar high profile show.

I’ve always been stumped how the Lane Bryant murders got relegated to obscurity in terms of national attention.

Funny the first question I asked when I first started posting here was why this case wasn't featured on ID or any other crime shows. It blows me away how many cases I see profiled on the various crime networks, some cases are profiled on like 10 different shows. Some have books written about them. This case though, lucky if a news article comes out every few years or so.

 

[Betty P]

Funny the first question I asked when I first started posting here was why this case wasn't featured on ID or any other crime shows. It blows me away how many cases I see profiled on the various crime networks, some cases are profiled on like 10 different shows. Some have books written about them. This case though, lucky if a news article comes out every few years or so.

It seems if the local LE in charge of investigating the case decides not to cooperate with anyone in the news media, cable,documentary makers, authors, etc. very little coverage happens.

 

[333_OnlyHalfEvil]

Hello, new here! I'm kinda surprised the survivor hasn't said anything in the years since, not even for the big anniversaries. By now I'd personally be getting pretty cranky over the lack of movement in the case. Has she even been ID'd or is she still anonymous?

 

[jbirner]

Hello, new here! I'm kinda surprised the survivor hasn't said anything in the years since, not even for the big anniversaries. By now I'd personally be getting pretty cranky over the lack of movement in the case. Has she even been ID'd or is she still anonymous?

She is still anonymous. She hasn't said anything public in 18 years, as far as i know. This case is dormant if you ask me. Other than the 10-year anniversary where they released an updated image of the suspect, there has been nothing in this case for many years.

 

[dotr]

Feb 2, 2025
Sunday marked 17 years since the Lane Bryant murders rocked south suburban Tinley Park. As time has gone on, the storefront has changed and the reward for info leading to an arrest has increased over $100,000, but the murders still remain unsolved.WGN's Jackie Bang reports on the story.

 

[mothwings]

5 dead and such a brazen crime.

It seems like this crime would have received so much more attention. Most people can relate to working retail, or having family members who have worked retail. And everyone shops.

Usually highly relatable crimes receive much attention.

It is bizarre, isn't it? 48 Hours or Dateline and other national shows need to get on this.

Seriously, the killer got so lucky.

These ladies need justice and the remaining survivor deserves to live in peace knowing the killer is no longer at large.

 

[mothwings]

I uploaded the America's Most Wanted episode to YouTube today. I would love to see this help solve the case. Here it is for those interested.

 

[jbirner]

It is bizarre, isn't it? 48 Hours or Dateline and other national shows need to get on this.

Seriously, the killer got so lucky.

These ladies need justice and the remaining survivor deserves to live in peace knowing the killer is no longer at large.

I have been saying this exact same thing for 12 years now. I would think that if there was any urgency to solve this case there would be constant publicity, as in tv shows or documentaries or books. Nothing but crickets over the last decade.

 

[Via Marple]

There are also five victims' families, are they also living in fear? Have they been speaking up?

 

[333_OnlyHalfEvil]

How reliable do you guys/gals think the survivor's information is? when faced with impending death, most people's brains store every tidbit of info, so most can give a very good description of the perp later.But I remember it took forever for the sketch to be released, and even then she wasn't sure if it was 3 or 5 cornrows or how tall he was. Those cornrows should have been burnt into the back of her eyelids for years if not life! When I see something traumatic, I see it every time I close my eyes for days afterward. I guess not everyone is like that?

Does anyone have any insight into her response to the trauma? Why it was so hard for her to remember and why it took so long for her to be able to communicate what she saw to the police? I know at first there was some speculation about her being in on it maybe, but after all this time I think something would have come out about it if that were true.

 

[jbirner]

From what I have always understood, they were looking for an African American male with green beads from the get-go. As far as I know she is the only living eyewitness who saw him up close. What I believe is that we only know a small fraction of what she told them. We are pretty much on a need-to-know basis. I could understand that if this was the early stages, however after 17 and a half years and an investigation that is going nowhere, they would try some new tactics.

 

[rob525]

At 10:44am, presumably the only camera capturing the parking area shows a certain car and SUV in front of the Lane Bryant store. Investigators brought the video to NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama. Using the same technology used to get clearer images from space, astrophysicist, Dr. David Hathaway, got rid of some of the graininess to the video and came up with these images of the two vehicles in question. Investigators seem to believe that, more than likely, the SUV pictured belongs to the killer as it was parked facing the direction of the store. Here's the stills from the America's Most Wanted segment.

A delivery type van or mini van would have the license plate on the side of the rear end due to both doors opening. Also could explain what looks like a small window. Wondering, if he considered Lane Bryant a "soft" target given the clientele and/or thought that the previous evenings money was still in the store. Sorry if this has been stated, I have not read all of the pages of posts yet.

 

[333_OnlyHalfEvil]

Has it ever been said if a second person was originally scheduled to work that day? I know it's generally good policy to have 2 at a time because of potential security issues. I wonder if the perp was looking for someone who was supposed to be working but wasn't? Maybe that was why he stayed so long, expecting them to show up late?

 

[saztina]

Has it ever been said if a second person was originally scheduled to work that day? I know it's generally good policy to have 2 at a time because of potential security issues. I wonder if the perp was looking for someone who was supposed to be working but wasn't? Maybe that was why he stayed so long, expecting them to show up late?

I’m not sure, I think it has been said that Rhoda wasn’t meant to work that day and was actually covering for another employee. Maybe the perp was looking for this person thinking they should be there instead.

 

[jbirner]

Has it ever been said if a second person was originally scheduled to work that day? I know it's generally good policy to have 2 at a time because of potential security issues. I wonder if the perp was looking for someone who was supposed to be working but wasn't? Maybe that was why he stayed so long, expecting them to show up late?

My theory as to why he stayed so long is that he got greedy. He didn't get satisfaction with what was in the register so he decided to stay and get as much as he could. Just my theory though. I am 99.99% sure that he had at least 1 more person helping him, possibly more.

 

[333_OnlyHalfEvil]

My theory as to why he stayed so long is that he got greedy. He didn't get satisfaction with what was in the register so he decided to stay and get as much as he could. Just my theory though. I am 99.99% sure that he had at least 1 more person helping him, possibly more.

Have they ever released a sketch or anything showing the layout of the store and where the bodies were found? I'm curious as to the size of the break room they were held in, and how many people could have fit in it if he had continued what he was doing.

I'm also really curious as to what happened to make Rhoda call 911. I feel like she didn't do that for no reason, since the perp was about to leave. She must have overheard something that freaked her out and made it worth the risk.

 

[jbirner]

I don't believe there has ever been anything showing the layout of the store. I do remember someone making a video of TJ Max and they were standing outside of the breakroom where the murders happened. Nothing from LE though.

I agree about the 911 call. She would not have made this call and risked hers and the others lives if she felt the perp was going to leave. She felt he was going to kill them and had nothing to lose by calling 911 or maybe even a better chance to survive.

 

[dotr]

Have they ever released a sketch or anything showing the layout of the store and where the bodies were found? I'm curious as to the size of the break room they were held in, and how many people could have fit in it if he had continued what he was doing.

I'm also really curious as to what happened to make Rhoda call 911. I feel like she didn't do that for no reason, since the perp was about to leave. She must have overheard something that freaked her out and made it worth the risk.

Welcome to Ws @333_OnlyHalfEvil!
Maybe Rhoda made the call at that point because she sensed the perp was losing self control? speculation.

Ill. Mall Killer's Voice Heard On 911 Call

Cops Release 37 Seconds Of Call From Suburban Chicago Store Where 5 Women Were Shot To Death

www.cbsnews.com

'Only snippets of a man's voice can be heard during the 37-second recording. Most of the phrases are difficult to decipher, but at one point it sounds like the man says "I'm losing it" and "foolishness."

'In that segment, store manager Rhoda McFarland, 42, called from her cell phone moments before being killed. She whispered the name of the store, its location and told the dispatcher to hurry.'

"Lane Bryant," McFarland whispers to the dispatcher.