IN IN - Burger Chef murders, Speedway, 17 Nov 1978

[UnsolvedinOhio]

I found a new podcast that covered this case and one other. Looks like it just started, it's pretty good too, very blue collar. It's called true crime garage, it's on ITunes & stitcher

 

[Sulamith]

I found a new podcast that covered this case and one other. Looks like it just started, it's pretty good too, very blue collar. It's called true crime garage, it's on ITunes & stitcher

Thanks for posting the Podcast. I was trying to find a new true crime podcast just tonight!

 

[colette]

Here is a link to the podcast http://podbay.fm/show/1062418176

 

[dotr]

Bumping this troubling case in light of another senseless crime that recently occurred in Indiana, the murders of Abby Williams and Liberty German.
Although there does not seem to be any connection between these cases and there is of course a huge time difference between 1978 and 2017, it still gives one pause.
imo, speculation.

 

[keystothekiller]

Your right dotr, there's a huge difference between the cases, therefore, no relationship! But, I do thank you for "bumping" this thread, as it hasn't seen much activity so , thank you for your post. I will say, that I am following the Delphi Murders and have recently sent a tip to the Carroll Co. Sheriffs office. Of course, this person is innocent until proven guilt so I will not give out information on this thread. I also contacted a detective to follow up on the information incase the 10,0000th tip gets lost!

 

[libraryg]

There are some very interesting, recent posts on topix.com if you look for the Indianapolis site and Burger Chef murders.

 

[LostOldUserName]

I was very young when this happened (6), so I don't remember a lot about the crime. I did grow up not far from Speedway. Thanks to the poster that mentioned the Speedway bombing, I had no idea that it happened so close to these senseless murders.

 

[keystothekiller]

I did revisit some of the post on Topix and agree with a post from "What Do You Think" that the site where the body's were found is key to solving these murders. What I found to be interesting when surveying this location sometime ago, was the close proximity to a mobile home park. I could not help but think that it was possible that one of the perps. could have lived/ grown up in that mobile home park and therefore frequented that patch of woods often to play/do drugs etc...(think Casey Anthony). With that thought in mind, just incase the police have not already searched those records, I would suggest that any Detective/investigator following this thread do so while the records still exist. HINT: The earlier 77-78 records are in the box marked 1981.

 

[Falling Down]

I know Jayne's sister and her family, she's a very nice woman. So sad that this case has never been solved. Bump for justice.

I was also born in Speedway and my family was from there. My parents grew up in that area in the 70's and I remember years later my mother often talked about the BC murders and the Speedway bombings. The two most notorious crimes in Speedway's history both happened within 2 months of each other in the Fall 1978.

My mother's friend's father was the man maimed in the Speedway bombings and he later committed suicide. My mother has always believed Brett Kimberlin, convicted in the bombings, was involved in the BC murders as well. Why she believes that, I'm not sure, but her and her friend apparently believe that Kimberlin was involved in the BC murders.

That's their opinion, I'm not sure how that fits in with the theory of the beared man, fair haired man, and the others. I've seen several places online where essentially LE believes they know who is responsible but cannot convict at trial.

Jayne's sister ... I've never spoken to her about all of this and never would bring it up, I've actually known her for many years and only recently learned of the connection. So I don't have any inside information there, but I really feel for her. I hope the scum who committed these acts are brought to justice, and one day we know they will have to answer to God.

Marking my spot.

I've wondered if BK was invloved in the BC murders.

He's a slimeball who has been suspected of perpetrating a lot of nasty crimes, including SWATting, or SWATing.

A real creep, and he comes acros as a total sociopath.

 

[dotr]

Not really finding any new articles about the case, this seems to be one of the more "recent" ones.
One of the many things that are curious about this case, is why the victims were murdered in different ways.
Does it have anything to do with the " cross-section of victimization ", ie. male, female, AA, white?
imo, speculation.
rbbm

http://m.indianapolisrecorder.com/mobile/news/article_be470d62-b38c-11e4-a482-cfad2996ea37.html

Leads sought in local cold cases
By LESLIE L. FULLER @IndyJazzBelle |February 13, 2015

Burger Chef murders
Among the Indianapolis-area’s most infamous cold cases are the ‘Burger Chef murders’, the abduction and killing of four young people from a Speedway fast food restaurant on Nov. 17, 1978. The victims included Mark Flemmonds, 16, an African-American high school student whose family had recently relocated to Speedway from Indianapolis; and his coworkers, Daniel Davis, 16; Jayne Friedt, 20; and Ruth Ellen Shelton, 18.
Two days after their disappearance, the four were found dead in wooded area in Johnson County. Flemmonds had suffered fatal blunt force trauma to the head, while Friedt had been stabbed to death, while Davis and Shelton were shot. Over the years, change came to the area; the former Burger Chef restaurant at 5725 Crawfordsville Road is now a Cashland store.
“I think it became sort of renowned in Indianapolis because it was truly a whodunit, and it involved children, high school aged children,” reflected Indiana State Police Sgt. Bill Vann, who continues to investigate the case. “Also it involved girls, boys, one was African-American, the others were white, there’s a cross-section of victimization there.”
Over the years, some have wondered if Flemmonds or his co-workers did something to compromise their safety, said Vann. However, there’s no evidence of that, he said. “There have been fingers pointed at all four of the kids, speculation about the kids about what would have contributed to their murder. He (Flemmonds) was a good kid. “
Vann said the Burger Chef homicides and other cold cases weigh heavily on the minds, and hearts, of police investigators.
“Those type of cases, you don’t just work them 9 to 5. You take them home with you. They wake you up in the morning, you think of something that might be a possibility that you can pursue. They become part of your life,” said Vann.
“There’s been many, many investigators work on the Burger Chef murders over the years. Some have even died without that closure. In a sense, they start to victimize the very detectives working the case. We want to solve it for the family as much as we do anyone else. We want to solve it for ourselves as well.”

 

[libraryg]

While it looks like 2 of the victims, Daniel and Ruth Ellen, were killed quickly by shooting, the other 2, Jayne and Mark, were both tortured. I saw a theory on the topix boards about a possible motive which IMHO, considering the area and the culture of the 70's, seems pretty plausible. Since it is not a MSM link, don't want to go into too much detail and risk a mod- slap

 

[Ven]

Where did gates go? He was only here a few days in 2012 and made some very specific posts that your average user isn't going to make. Then he disappeared.

He seemed certain that the bearded man went to high school with Jayne and was later the I-65 serial killer.

 

[mysterymike]

I've read before where the detectives thought they knew who did the murders, and that there were two of them, and one had already died. How they came to that conclusion, I have no ideal.

Either way, these murders should have been solved along time ago.

 

[DropthePuck]

Article from today in the Indy Star: 'There's still a detective assigned to 'Burger Chef' murders - 39 years later'

https://www.indystar.com/story/life...eres-still-detective-assigned-case/836573001/

 

[dotr]

Article from today in the Indy Star: 'There's still a detective assigned to 'Burger Chef' murders - 39 years later'

https://www.indystar.com/story/life...eres-still-detective-assigned-case/836573001/

Good to know someone is still keeping an eye on this case and also good to have a recent article too, thanks!
From the link..

Even if you did not know that the two life-size human heads fashioned from clay were likenesses of cold-blooded murderers, you could suspect as much.

They exude violence. They stare straight ahead wide-eyed. They purse their lips.
They are the property of Indiana State Police Post 52 on East 21st Street: They are artist's renderings of two men seen outside a west-side fast-food restaurant the night of Nov. 17, 1978.

This is one of two busts that have been made based on the artist's renderings of two suspects from the unsolved 1978 Burger Chef murders. (Photo: Kelly Wilkinson/IndyStar)


Mostly, law enforcement agencies' artist renderings are just drawings. But the still unsolved "Burger Chef murders" were so shocking that someone from Purdue University's art department was hired to make 3-D versions.

 

[Ibiz]

That's odd that the guy and his wife would have visited the crime scene just days after the killings. You would think police would have been watching that area.

 

[Kevingreenlee]

The story of Forrester and his wife visiting the crime scene to hunt for gun shells is pretty odd but there are plenty of peculiar aspects to this case. Here's another one. About twenty minutes after the abductions (but before they were reported) the police pulled over a car for erratic driving a short distance from the Burger Chef. One of the two men in the car has a loaded .38
As he's being pulled over, he puts the .38 in a Burger Chef cup and tosses it out the window. The police don't even notice.

 

[dotr]

The story of Forrester and his wife visiting the crime scene to hunt for gun shells is pretty odd but there are plenty of peculiar aspects to this case. Here's another one. About twenty minutes after the abductions (but before they were reported) the police pulled over a car for erratic driving a short distance from the Burger Chef. One of the two men in the car has a loaded .38
As he's being pulled over, he puts the .38 in a Burger Chef cup and tosses it out the window. The police don't even notice.

Welcome to Ws kevingreenlee!
Lots of crazy going on in this case, hope they make some headway soon to solve these crimes!

 

[Sven Forkbeard]

The ISP have eliminated or lost interest in most of the 30 or so suspects that they ever took seriously from what I've seen and been told. Gates are Open was talking about a man named Pruitt when he says "the bearded man". Pruitt is not the only man the ISP looked at that fits that moniker. There was the bearded next door neighbor of Steinke in Franklin, IN. This man is deceased. Kimberlin's sidekick Bowman was known to wear a beard too. Law enforcement has always been unexplainably sure it wasn't these two. Lyons (Cincinnati suspect) wore a beard and lived near Mark Flemmonds. Always wondered just how they eliminated him, but they did.

 

[Sven Forkbeard]

I would like to hear more information on Pruitt and the person who reportedly witnessed the abduction from across Crawfordsville Rd. A couple other posters on this thread indicated that a gun was confiscated from Pruitt that matched ballistics to BC Murder. I don't believe this claim. There were also posts implying that Det. Jim Cramer was covering up his cousin's involvement in the crime. I don't buy that either. His cousin did work at that location, that much is true. Since I'm not a cop and I don't have access to the massive BC case file, I have to go theory by theory rule out the bunk as a layman. I would very much enjoy hearing more about what may have been observed from afar that night. I've been researching this case for many months now. I know who the suspects are but so does LE. There needs to be a comprehensive DNA analysis of Jayne's jacket. The ISP still has their clothing. What's it going to take? Mike Pence you got your ears on?