The I 70 Killer

The I 70 Killer

   The I 70 killer or Interstate 70 killer was an unknown serial killer who in 1992 committed at least 6 murders along Interstate 70. I 70 runs from Baltimore, Maryland to Cove Fort, Utah. All were in a few miles of each other in Kansas, Missouri, and Indiana. There is theory but not proven that he may have links to 4 other murders that occured in Texas in 1993.  The pictures to the right are composite sketches that people have described how the I 70 Killer may look like.
  The killer would probably in his 50`s today and could be dead or in jail for another crime. He left little or no evidence for investigators to go on. Ballistics did connect all 6 I 70 shootings to the same gun.
  This was a hard case to find stuff on on the internet because every site you go to says the exact same thing. The man had no motive he was a spree killer who wanted to kill for the sake of killing nothing more. This is a man who odds are will never be caught he left no real solid evidence behind. All he left behind was heartache for the victims families.

Victims:

Robin Fuldauer 26: Killed April 8th, 1992 at a Payless Shoe Store in Indianapolis, Indiana
Patricia Magers 32: Killed April 11th, 1992 at a bridal shop in Wichita, Kansas
Patricia Smith 23: Killed April 11th, 1992 at a bridal shop in Wichita, Kansas
Michael McCown 40: Killed April 27th,1992 at a ceramics store that his mother owned in Terre Haute, Indiana. Investigators believe that the killer may have assumed Michael was assumed to be a woman and may of had his back turned as he often wore his hair in a pony tail.
Nancy Kitzmiller 24: Killed May 3rd, 1992 at Western Boot Shop in St. Charles, Missouri
Sarah Blessing 37: Killed May 7th, 1992 at a Gift Shop in Raytown, Missouri.

Other Possible Victims: There are other possible victims of the same killer along I 35 and I 45 in Texas which occured in 1993 and 1994. The killer was described to look similar to the man who commited the I 70 killings. There were a total of 3 victims all linked into those murders. The weapon was different than the I 70 killings but the MO was the same women working alone in shops.

Suspects & Leads In The Case: The best lead in the case came from the murders at the bridal shop in Wichita, Kansas. A man entered the store just before closing to get a cumberbund for his tuxedo and came face to face with the killer. It is unknown if the women were already dead or in the back but the killer asked the man to get into the back room. He said no and the killer told him to get out of there. It is unknown if the killer only attacked women or he was out of ammo. The man went to police and helped with a composite of the killer.

  Other leads that came in the case were witnesses when Sarah Blessing was murdered at the gift shop where she worked. Tim Hickman owned a video store next door to the gift shop where she worked and heard loud bangs. After hearing this he seen a man walking up the hill behind the shop and onto Interstate 70. When he entered the shop he discovered Sarahs body lying on the floor dead. A grocery clerk collecting carts also seen the killer walking in the parking lot.
  Serial killer Herb Baumeister from Westfield, Indiana was believed to be the killer but he committed suicide. He also didnt match the MO as he mainly killed homosexual males and buried them in his back yard.
  Donald Prince and Donald Blom were also pressumed at one point to be suspects.

Some References:
http://unsolvedmysteries.wikia.com/wiki/Interstate_70_Killer
http://unsolved.com/archives/i-70-serial-killer
http://fox4kc.com/2012/05/03/police-release-information-about-i-70-killer-20-years-later/

In April of 1992, a string of murders started occurring in various locations on Interstate 70, ranging from Indiana, Indianapolis, Wichita, Kansas, and Missouri. These horrible murders lasted until May and it stopped as quickly as it began.
However, police believe that this -unidentified- killer has ties to nine altogether, three of which in 1993-1994. Although connected to nine murders, only six are confirmed. Five women and a male, which was a mistake on the killer's part.
Unsure of his motive, his MO was the same. He would drive (possibly for work?) and stop at various strip malls. Then, he'd walk into various stores such as Payless ShoeSource, a bridal shop, a Western boot store, and kill -the- woman working at the time with a .22 caliber pistol.
At this particular time, his body count was up to five. His next kill happened in Terre Haute, Indiana. This time, the victim was a male, but it's assumed that it was a mishap. When he walked into the store, the employee had their back to the assailant. The male had long hair which was in a ponytail and was mistaken for a woman.
Other attempted murders proceeded to follow, yet thankfully two people survived the attack, one of which was due to the .22 caliber pistol jamming. The survivors were able to provide details on identifying the man and a composite sketch was made. The reports gave information of the killer being in his mid twenties to early thirties, well dressed and clean cut with good hygiene, with a slender body frame and a height of roughly 5'8.
With the composite sketch, the police were able to follow leads that lead to Herb Baumeister from Westfield, Indiana, businessman who traveled quite frequently. What happened next created a shockwave of terror that was entirely unexpected.
As the police began searching his property, they uncovered a vast amount of skeletal remains that totaled 11 people. However, they were all male believed to be homosexual. Out of the eleven, eight of them were reported missing.
Shortly after, Herb Baumeister committed suicide. It was also learned that he had throat cancer, but was currently in remission at the time. He also owned a .22 semi automatic which helped further the belief of him being the I-70 Killer.
Unfortunately, although suspected as the I-70 Killer, there weren't any female remains on his property. With his suicide, it is unknown whether or not his alleged involvement of the women who were murdered had anything to do with him. Nevertheless, the police were able to solve a lot of cases after finding the male remains, so it wasn't a completely total loss.
Ultimately, the conclusion is this: Either Herb was involved in not just the male killings that were on his estate, but the women in stores too, or there were two different serial killers operating around the same time frame and incredibly close to each other in the states.