IN IN - Herbert Richard Baumeister AKA Brian Smart Preyed on Gay Men - Remains Found at Fox Hollow Farm - Possibly I-70 IN/OH Serial Killer

[caradana]

All this needs now is LE to ask Othram and a fundraiser. I hope LE might be willing.

 

[INfisherman]

INfisherman, this is not true-- 'Baumeister's teen-age son and a friend in December 1994 found a human skull on the family's 18-acre Fox Hollow Farm'View attachment 566007

My apologies, as the linked article was the source I was using for the timeframe. You are obviously correct.

Apparently the linked article is wrong & not being corrected? It plainly states 1994 in your newspaper scans & 1996 in the link I used, as well as stating:

Less than two weeks after the discovery, Baumeister died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound near Toronto. He skipped out on a divorce hearing the Tuesday before he died.

Maybe the above paragraph refers to the point in time when the bones were discovered by LE, which would have been 24JUN96 (in your articles above - others reference 25JUN96 for the actual start of digging - see link below, let’s hope it’s accurate). Baumeister died on 03JUL96 in Canada - less than 2 weeks later. Point being LE didn’t have any evidence of murder until HB was already on the run. True, they’d been trying to link him for months but him using an alias, not cooperating & MG unsure of the farm’s location seemed to have caused delays.

MG just seems like he wants to be relevant - implicating himself then distancing himself, telling the truth then lying, saving stories for later. After finishing the documentary, I feel it was a little less tabloid than my initial impression but it just seemed more intent on making the case more than to what the known evidence leads. I was disappointed in that they didn’t dig more into HBs whereabouts prior to buying FHF. There are murders linked to him in other states, occurring in the 80s & nothing was ever brought up about those. They seemed to want to stay in the path of having a third party involved.

Can’t say I blame a prosecutor for not moving forward with charges having MG as the star witness - doesn’t seem to be the most reliable source of info.

Herb Baumeister’s killing field and the new effort to identify his victims: Forgotten at Fox Hollow

In 1996, investigators found thousands of broken and charred bones on Herb Baumeister's killing field: Fox Hollow Farm.

www.wrtv.com

MOO

 

[TwinkieDefense]

Feb 24, 2025 article

New docuseries examines case of suspected Indiana serial killer Herb Baumeister

The docuseries, now streaming on Hulu, "The Fox Hollow Murders: Playground of a Serial Killer" focuses on the Herb Baumeister case from the 1990s.

www.wthr.com

[…]

"'The Fox Hollow Murders: Playground of a Serial Killer" is streaming on Hulu. In the trailer, someone calls Baumeister, "The Dahmer you never heard of."

[…]

 

[friendlysleuther]

All this needs now is LE to ask Othram and a fundraiser. I hope LE might be willing.

Hamilton County is Indiana’s wealthiest county, with a median household income of $117,957 in 2023.

(They have the resources)

 

[friendlysleuther]

LE didn’t necessarily drop any balls

Ok but this is a bit crazy —

November 1, 1997

“Police have not linked Baumeis-ter to any of the deaths, but he has been connected to the disappearance of some of the men whose remains were found. Due to the lack of evidence in the case, police have made a point of not referring to Baumeister as a serial killer.”

 

[INfisherman]

Hamilton County is Indiana’s wealthiest county, with a median household income of $117,957 in 2023.

(They have the resources)

I don’t know what else I can say. Agree to disagree? Not a major deal, because it’s in the past & hopefully lessons are learned. 2023 incomes have little bearing on 25+ years beforehand, that’s a bit apples to oranges but, yes a good start - maybe LE budgets for Hamilton County in 96, 97, 98 would be more fair & relevant? Guessing, not being "that" poster with any type of "gotcha" either.

The lack of resources was the excuse given in the documentary. That can mean a multitude of things, especially manpower or eyes on the suspect, regardless of availability of money. Until LE stepped on FHF they had zero clue into what they were stepping. At best, they had the word of a shaky informant & a wealthy guy being seen with missing men. Very, very suspicious but far from a serial killer.

The article below further supports LE had information but not enough to secure an arrest warrant. I don’t state that with any sort of pleasure - it’s just the simple facts of the matter as to how things occurred. MG was not as reliable as LE had hoped. Hell, I wished it were very different but it wasn’t, for whatever the reasons. I’ve observed in older articles that MG was referred to as an informant - I wonder if was a different type of informant which evolved into the missing persons type. That also might attribute to why he was given such a long leash. Guessing.

Crazy is putting it mildly, IMO. I suspect he’d been killing for decades prior to FHF entering the picture - he likely was killing less frequently early on due to disposal issues but the sprawling countryside (at that time) estate gave him the means for easier operation. Not anything remarkable on my part but just suspicion/speculation. HB was a monster & it’s just so unreal the oddities some spouses live around & never seem to ask the right questions at the right times. If I were married & my wife was constantly urging me to leave her at home or send her off on vacations, certain questions will be asked & I will be finding out the truth (think investigators). Whole thing is just sad & unfortunate, even still today.

This whole case shook me because I was in my 20s when HB was active & i was frequently fishing at night, alone, 70 miles from home & less than 10 miles south of I-70 (well west of Indy, almost in IL). I recall seeing posters on truck stop entrance doors about an I-70 killer (may have been more than 1 dubbed with this name in the media). It just put my senses into overdrive whenever I was out & about late at night around people & close to the highway.

MOO

Ok but this is a bit crazy —

November 1, 1997

“Police have not linked Baumeis-ter to any of the deaths, but he has been connected to the disappearance of some of the men whose remains were found. Due to the lack of evidence in the case, police have made a point of not referring to Baumeister as a serial killer.”
View attachment 566282

 

[friendlysleuther]

This whole case shook me because I was in my 20s when HB was active & i was frequently fishing at night, alone, 70 miles from home & less than 10 miles south of I-70 (well west of Indy, almost in IL). I recall seeing posters on truck stop entrance doors about an I-70 killer (may have been more than 1 dubbed with this name in the media). It just put my senses into overdrive whenever I was out & about late at night around people & close to the highway.

MOO

Wait! Do you think HB is the I-70 killer?

 

[INfisherman]

Wait! Do you think HB is the I-70 killer?

No, no, no, sorry - poor context on my part.

He’s been called the I-70 strangler in some MSM articles I’ve read - and I’m quite certain different regions had killers which they were referring to as AN I-70 killer, which may have operated in IN &/or nearby states along 70 but I am pretty sure some were not officially linked.

My anecdote was referring to seeing a poster of a killer (not knowing of HB because this was prior to him being discovered & publicly named - probably anywhere from 87-93 so he was active at that time, unbeknownst to me) & that inducing concern, then later hearing about HB & recalling those posters. But who knows, maybe HB was one of those "regional" I-70 killers but not necessarily "the" I-70 killer. I personally feel it was a mix of people, some being long haul truckers & other like HB, who travelled for business reasons or lied to spouses as such.

I hope that clarifies things? If not I can try to clarify more.

ETA some, 2nd paragraph - "some not officially linked".

 

[friendlysleuther]

I don’t know what else I can say. Agree to disagree? Not a major deal, because it’s in the past & hopefully lessons are learned. 2023 incomes have little bearing on 25+ years beforehand, that’s a bit apples to oranges but, yes a good start - maybe LE budgets for Hamilton County in 96, 97, 98 would be more fair & relevant? Guessing, not being "that" poster with any type of "gotcha" either.

The lack of resources was the excuse given in the documentary. That can mean a multitude of things, especially manpower or eyes on the suspect, regardless of availability of money. Until LE stepped on FHF they had zero clue into what they were stepping. At best, they had the word of a shaky informant & a wealthy guy being seen with missing men. Very, very suspicious but far from a serial killer.

I must have missed the part where they talked about a lack of resources in the documentary.. I do, however; remember them showing downtown Noblesville & talking about the wealth of the county. (IMO.. This is just an excuse on their part a lousy one, at that..)

Here’s some more info on how Hamilton county has been wealthy: The Rich Stay Rich Among Indiana Counties

Looks like they were actually cutting taxes around this time, but still had a large $47 million budget for 1997 (compared to 51million in 1996)

Carmel police (same county, close to HB but not the same town) had a budget of 5.8 million.

---

IMO it’s just odd to me that they could say, “Hey.. Yeah.. This guy was the last one to be seen with a handful of missing men, and now.. we found bones all over his property! But, no- we absolutely will not call him a serial killer.”
Huh?

---

About the I-70 killer— I was going to ask if you had seen this— long story short, ‘word around town’ was that this man could have been the i70 killer… haven’t heard much since, though

 

[friendlysleuther]

Wait! Do you think HB is the I-70 killer?

Edit to add I had no idea the title of this thread included ‘potential i70 killer’ (paraphrasing)

 

[IceIce9]

I live about 2 miles from Fox Hollow Farm, and I can’t believe how many of the people who live in the nearby neighborhoods have said they had no idea this had even occurred until they saw the documentary on Hulu.

Some of them live in the Viking Meadows neighborhood, which is very near Fox Hollow Farm.

Of course the nearby neighborhoods didn’t exist back when these murders were taking place. The area was rural.

Westfield wasn’t even a city until 2008.

 

[dotr]

Feb 24, 2025
A new documentary is sparking new leads on the victims of a suspected Indiana serial killer.ABC News Studios’ docuseries "The Fox Hollow Murders: Playground of a Serial Killer" focuses on the Herb Baumeister case from the 1990s.When cameras came to Fox Hollow Farm, the Westfield property where police unearthed a monster, the farm's current owner Robert Graves shared the exact spot where investigators believe dozens of men became Baumeister's victims.

 

[friendlysleuther]

I live about 2 miles from Fox Hollow Farm, and I can’t believe how many of the people who live in the nearby neighborhoods have said they had no idea this had even occurred until they saw the documentary on Hulu.

Some of them live in the Viking Meadows neighborhood, which is very near Fox Hollow Farm.

Of course the nearby neighborhoods didn’t exist back when these murders were taking place. The area was rural.

Westfield wasn’t even a city until 2008.

Would this of been Noblesville back then?

 

[IceIce9]

Would this have been Noblesville back then?

No, Noblesville is another Hamilton County city east of Westfield. Westfield was just a town back then, with a population of around 6,000 residents, but Fox Hollow Farm and the surrounding area was just rural Hamilton County.

Westfield became a city in 2008, and the first mayor was elected. Many areas have been annexed to Westfield since then, including the area that includes Fox Hollow Farm.

We moved here in 2007, and our mail is still delivered from the Carmel post office although newer Westfield neighborhoods are delivered from the Westfield post office.

 

[friendlysleuther]

No, Noblesville is another Hamilton County city east of Westfield. Westfield was just a town back then, with a population of around 6,000 residents, but Fox Hollow Farm and the surrounding area was just rural Hamilton County.

Westfield became a city in 2008, and the first mayor was elected. Many areas have been annexed to Westfield since then, including the area that includes Fox Hollow Farm.

We moved here in 2007, and our mail is still delivered from the Carmel post office although newer Westfield neighborhoods are delivered from the Westfield post office

Ah! Gotcha! I was thinking it wasn’t a town or city, thank you for clarifying

 

[Vern]

No, no, no, sorry - poor context on my part.

He’s been called the I-70 strangler in some MSM articles I’ve read - and I’m quite certain different regions had killers which they were referring to as AN I-70 killer, which may have operated in IN &/or nearby states along 70 but I am pretty sure some were not officially linked.

My anecdote was referring to seeing a poster of a killer (not knowing of HB because this was prior to him being discovered & publicly named - probably anywhere from 87-93 so he was active at that time, unbeknownst to me) & that inducing concern, then later hearing about HB & recalling those posters. But who knows, maybe HB was one of those "regional" I-70 killers but not necessarily "the" I-70 killer. I personally feel it was a mix of people, some being long haul truckers & other like HB, who travelled for business reasons or lied to spouses as such.

I hope that clarifies things? If not I can try to clarify more.

ETA some, 2nd paragraph - "some not officially linked".

He was investigated for connections to the remains found along I70 in Preble County, Ohio as those victims had disappeared from Downtown Indianapolis, IN.

***Files also see some discussion of them not being granted funds for travel/cadaver dogs etc (ie: "resources")***

Like you, I can't recall any being 'officially' linked to him, yet the below appears from the files:

Below SS from page 134 of FBI Files linked at bottom of post.

Below SS from page 144:

But the last two pages of the files lead me to pause:

From page 162:

From page 164:

Baumeister FBI Files.

.

 

[friendlysleuther]

He was investigated for connections to the remains found along I70 in Preble County, Ohio as those victims had disappeared from Downtown Indianapolis, IN.

***Files also see some discussion of them not being granted funds for travel/cadaver dogs etc (ie: "resources")***

Like you, I can't recall any being 'officially' linked to him, yet the below appears from the files:

Below SS from page 134 of FBI Files linked at bottom of post.

View attachment 566352

Below SS from page 144:

View attachment 566354

But the last two pages of the files lead me to pause:

From page 162:
View attachment 566357

From page 164:

View attachment 566356

Baumeister FBI Files.

.

Wow, this is crazy whenever you see how they were saying they didn’t even want to call him a serial killer thank you for the files, I’m going to go through them later (-:

 

[INfisherman]

He was investigated for connections to the remains found along I70 in Preble County, Ohio as those victims had disappeared from Downtown Indianapolis, IN.

***Files also see some discussion of them not being granted funds for travel/cadaver dogs etc (ie: "resources")***

Like you, I can't recall any being 'officially' linked to him, yet the below appears from the files:

Below SS from page 134 of FBI Files linked at bottom of post.

View attachment 566352

Below SS from page 144:

View attachment 566354

But the last two pages of the files lead me to pause:

From page 162:
View attachment 566357

From page 164:

View attachment 566356

Baumeister FBI Files.

.

Yeah, I can recall reading about him off & on over the years. I do recall the potential of bodies linked to him in areas of Ohio but I didn’t remember the one in Shelby County which is next door to my county. I believe the body was found in Gwynneville off of Brookville Road (US 52). Small town west of Rushville but between Morristown & Arlington. Was probably very rural back then, if I were to guess. Not an area where I ever really drove through for anything.

Like @IceIce9 (Hi neighbor - never realized you were a Hoosier) has stated, so much of the areas have changed since the mid-90s. Much of the NE side of Indy was farm ground back then & has since been developed into subdivisions. suburban estates, shopping plazas & businesses. Morgan & Monroe counties have always had lots of murders &/or bodies turn up. This would be SW of Indy, around Bloomington & Martinsville areas - throughout the White River valley along through there.

 

[INfisherman]

Wow, this is crazy whenever you see how they were saying they didn’t even want to call him a serial killer thank you for the files, I’m going to go through them later (-:

I’m not sure the reasons for that - it might have had something to do with all the development going in in that area. Folks with money (developers/realtors) probably didn’t want to advertise a serial killer was in the area as that tends not to attract potential homeowners or additional business/real estate developers. All of that would have been politicians, prosecutors & LE leaders potentially influencing the press, if I were to hazard a guess.

 

[INfisherman]

@friendlysleuther your link which you provided in the Comer (possible HB victim) thread is the first I recall seeing a report specifically mentioning HB dismembering his victims. I was thinking of that while watching the documentary the other day - not so difficult for one person to manage if that’s what he’s doing. Wasn’t HB also a tall man, something like 6’3" or so?

I was a bit let down that they didn’t do a bit more of a dive into HB prior to living on FHF. While I appreciate the attempts to renew interest in the case in hopes of further identifying victims found at FHF, it would have been nice to see a more complete background of him to potentially find victims prior to him trolling the gay bars of Indy. I’d bet he was doing that much earlier & possibly outside of Indy/IN as well.

Dude was just a very strange person, outside of being a serial killer, that’s for sure. I wonder if his father being a physician lent to him having any sort of medical/pharmaceutical knowledge which he utilized with his victims?

MOO

Who were the victims at Fox Hollow Farm? Here's what we know about the serial killings

Authorities have 10,000 bone fragments to sort through. "We've got a lot of work in front of us, but every day is a step forward," the coroner said.

www.indystar.com