In November of 1978, four fast-food workers were abducted from a Burger Chef restaurant in Speedway, Indiana. Disarray in the empty store told police that a robbery took place, but they attributed the crime to the employees themselves, telling the store manager he could continue with business as usual.

When the employees’ families had heard nothing by the next day, they pressured Speedway police to conduct a search of the area. The search turned up nothing. The employees were nowhere to be found and any evidence in the restaurant was destroyed when the next crew cleaned for the breakfast shift.

Two days later, dog-walkers found the bodies of all four employees in a secluded, rural area in another county. Two of the victims were shot, one was stabbed and the other suffered blunt force trauma to the face and head.

Police entertained several theories during the initial investigation. One theory is that the crime was one of a string of fast-food restaurant robberies in the area. Another theory was that the killer was the same man responsible for a series of bombings in Speedway earlier that year.

Police have never made an arrest in the Burger Chef murders. Over the years, witnesses have proffered the names of several men who they believe were involved with, or outright responsible for, the murders. Tonight, we will review the abduction and murders, and discuss the statements of several witnesses who claimed to see the abduction take place. Next time, we will explore the theories in the case, and we will discuss a few potential suspects.

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