Peter Joseph Halm was 26 when he was killed on September 5, 1976, while visiting a remote area near a cave in Pacific, Missouri. He and his wife, Carmen Miranda Halm, had been lured to the spot under the pretense of a casual outing. As the couple stood in the woods a sniper concealed in brush fired a single rifle shot into Peter’s back; he died before reaching a hospital.

Investigators later determined the killing was part of a plot organized by St. Louis dentist Glennon Edward Engleman. Carmen Halm, a former dental assistant for Engleman, conspired with him to insure and eliminate her husband for the policy proceeds, reportedly worth between $60,000 and $75,000. After two aborted attempts at other locations, Engleman, an accomplice named Robert Handy, and Carmen carried out the plan at the Pacific site; Handy purchased the rifle and Engleman positioned and fired the weapon.

Wiretapped conversations helped federal and state authorities bring charges. Engleman was convicted of capital murder in Peter Halm’s death and received life in prison without parole for 50 years; he and Handy were also convicted on federal mail fraud and conspiracy counts, and Handy was sentenced to 20 years. Carmen Halm testified against Engleman and was granted immunity. Does anyone have information about Peter’s life or the events leading up to that September outing?