A Quiet Evening Turns Tragic

On the evening of September 23, 1983, the Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurant in Kilgore, Texas, was winding down operations for the day. Inside were employees Mary Tyler, 37; Opie Ann Hughes, 39; Joey Johnson, 20; and David Maxwell, 20. Joining them was 19-year-old Monty Landers, a friend of Johnson and Maxwell, who had stopped by to visit. Unbeknownst to them, this ordinary evening would culminate in a horrific event that would haunt the community for decades.

The Chilling Discovery

When Mary Tyler failed to return home, her concerned 16-year-old daughter alerted the authorities. The following morning, an oilfield worker discovered the bodies of Tyler, Hughes, Johnson, Maxwell, and Landers along a remote oilfield road approximately 15 miles from the restaurant. Each had been executed with gunshot wounds to the head. The brutality of the crime sent shockwaves through the small town of Kilgore. ...Read More