Another victim identified, linked to California's notorious 'Scorecard Killer'

Yahoo

13-05-2025

Authorities have identified a man who was found dead along a highway in Oregon more than 40 years ago, and whose death may be linked to California's infamous 'Scorecard Killer,' who targeted young men in the 1970s and 1980s.
Oregon State Police Capt. Kyle Kennedy said the man was identified as 30-year-old Larry Eugene Parks, a Vietnam veteran whose family had lost contact with him in 1979.
Parks' body was found on July 18, 1980, along Interstate 5 and about a mile south of Woodburn, a suburb of Marion County, Ore. Despite extensive efforts to identify him, Parks remained a John Doe until authorities identified him last month but did not disclose it until recently.
Authorities have linked Parks' death to Randy Kraft, who was convicted of murdering 16 young men in Orange County in 1989 and became known as the 'Scorecard Killer."
His nickname came from a handwritten list police said they found in the trunk of his brown Toyota Celica. Prosecutors described it as a 'death list' during Kraft's trial and said it showed each person he had killed.
Although he was convicted of 16 murders, authorities believe Kraft may have killed more than 60 people across California, Oregon and Michigan. Most of the victims were men in their late teens and mid-20s, some which were members of the military.
Parks' body was found just a day after 17-year-old Michael O'Fallon had been found dead along the same interstate near the Talbot Road exit in Marion County.
'Due to similarities in the evidence, investigators at the time suspected the two murders were related,' Kennedy said. 'Unfortunately, both investigations went cold as investigative leads dried up.'
O'Fallon's death was later linked to Kraft when investigators said they found a camera in his garage following his arrest in 1983. O'Fallon's mother's initials were inscribed on the camera, which she identified during Kraft's trial.
The killing spree occurred as authorities were trying to hunt down William G. Bonin, a former Downey truck driver known as the Freeway Killer.
But the bodies of young men continued to stack up after Bonin's capture, leading investigators to believe another killer was on the loose. That chase ended when two California Highway Patrol officers pulled Kraft over in 1983 and discovered a dead Marine in the front seat.
Kennedy said the renewed effort to identify Parks began in January when the Orange County Sheriff's Department reached out to the Oregon State Police Cold Case Unit, offering to help identify the victim using investigative genetic genealogy, a popular tool that helps investigators generate leads in cold cases.
As part of that effort, Kennedy said, the victim's blood sample was sent to a lab, which created a genetic profile. Investigators were able to use the information to locate possible family members that eventually led to the identity of Parks.
Parks is the latest victim to be identified and linked to the convicted serial killer. Two years ago, authorities used the same tool to identify 17-year-old Michael Ray Schlicht.
Kennedy said Oregon State Police's Cold Case Unit is now working to bring the case to a close.
'Ultimately, it will be up to the Marion County District Attorney's Office to determine if the case will be prosecuted once the case is submitted for review,' he said.
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.