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Yahoo
4 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Indiana coroner says police 'dropped the ball' in Fox Hollow Farm serial killer case
A coroner in Indiana investigating the Fox Hollow Farm serial killer said law enforcement "dropped the ball" when the case was first investigated in the 1990s. Hamilton County Coroner Jeff Jellison announced in April that his office had identified human remains at Fox Hollow Farm in Westfield, Indiana, that belonged to Daniel Thomas Halloran. He was the tenth victim of suspected serial killer Herb Baumeister, whom law enforcement has tied to at least 25 victims. Jellison told Fox News Digital in an interview that he thinks law enforcement didn't handle the case as they should have when they were first investigating it. "I think originally in the investigation, law enforcement did a good job of excavating the remains, but I think as time went on in the investigation, our county really dropped the ball," Jellison said. Fox Hollow Farm Serial Killer's 10Th Victim Identified: Coroner Jellison said local law enforcement in the late 1990s made victims' families pay for DNA testing, and he believes they didn't pursue the possibility of additional victims or suspects aggressively. Read On The Fox News App "They made the decision not to fund DNA testing to identify potential victims in what might be one of the most prolific serial murders in our country. They put the burden of that DNA testing on the families, the cost of that on the family. And I think there was, from a criminal side, the potential for an additional suspect or suspects exists. And I don't know that law enforcement pursued that as aggressively as they could have," he said. GET REAL-TIME UPDATES DIRECTLY ON THE True Crime Hub Detectives believe Baumeister lured gay men into his home during the 1980s and 1990s, and allegedly killed them. He would then bury their bodies across his 18-acre property, which is known as Fox Hollow Farm, according to detectives. When his family was out of town, Baumeister, who owned the Sav-A-Lot shopping chain, would go to gay bars across the Indianapolis area and allegedly find men to bring home. Investigators first considered Baumeister a suspect in summer 1995, according to Fox 59. But detectives were unable to access his property until 1996, when around 10,000 bones and bone fragments were found. Fox Hollow Serial Killer's Secret Tapes Could Reveal Murder Horrors If Ever Found: Documentary Baumeister killed himself in 1996 at a Canadian park shortly after bone fragments were found on his property by his 15-year-old son, prompting authorities to launch an investigation. In April 1998, Hamilton County Sheriff James Bradbury said the case was considered closed. Sign Up To Get The True Crime Newsletter ''If somebody has any information, we don't care who it is, we'd be happy to look at it,'' Bradbury said. ''But Herb Baumeister is the only suspect we have in any of them.'' Families of people allegedly killed by Baumeister spent decades waiting for closure, which Jellison wants to change. He first began an investigation into identifying DNA from the 10,000 bone fragments in 2022. Follow The Fox True Crime Team On X Jellison said he "cannot imagine" that law enforcement would push the financial burden of a DNA test onto a victim's family in today's world. "These remains represent victims in a homicide, in a murder. So, to say to the families that if you want to know if your loved one was a victim of a murder, I mean, that's a tragedy in and of its own," Jellison said. "I think we're better today. We're more sensitive today to victims and family members of victims of crimes." The Hamilton County Sheriff's Office declined to comment. The Associated Press contributed to this article source: Indiana coroner says police 'dropped the ball' in Fox Hollow Farm serial killer case
Fox News
4 days ago
- General
- Fox News
Indiana coroner says police 'dropped the ball' in Fox Hollow Farm serial killer case
A coroner in Indiana investigating the Fox Hollow Farm serial killer said law enforcement "dropped the ball" when the case was first investigated in the 1990s. Hamilton County Coroner Jeff Jellison announced in April that his office had identified human remains at Fox Hollow Farm in Westfield, Indiana, that belonged to Daniel Thomas Halloran. He was the tenth victim of suspected serial killer Herb Baumeister, whom law enforcement has tied to at least 25 victims. Jellison told Fox News Digital in an interview that he thinks law enforcement didn't handle the case as they should have when they were first investigating it. "I think originally in the investigation, law enforcement did a good job of excavating the remains, but I think as time went on in the investigation, our county really dropped the ball," Jellison said. Jellison said local law enforcement in the late 1990s made victims' families pay for DNA testing, and he believes they didn't pursue the possibility of additional victims or suspects aggressively. "They made the decision not to fund DNA testing to identify potential victims in what might be one of the most prolific serial murders in our country. They put the burden of that DNA testing on the families, the cost of that on the family. And I think there was, from a criminal side, the potential for an additional suspect or suspects exists. And I don't know that law enforcement pursued that as aggressively as they could have," he said. GET REAL-TIME UPDATES DIRECTLY ON THE TRUE CRIME HUB Detectives believe Baumeister lured gay men into his home during the 1980s and 1990s, and allegedly killed them. He would then bury their bodies across his 18-acre property, which is known as Fox Hollow Farm, according to detectives. When his family was out of town, Baumeister, who owned the Sav-A-Lot shopping chain, would go to gay bars across the Indianapolis area and allegedly find men to bring home. Investigators first considered Baumeister a suspect in summer 1995, according to FOX 59. But detectives were unable to access his property until 1996, when around 10,000 bones and bone fragments were found. Baumeister killed himself in 1996 at a Canadian park shortly after bone fragments were found on his property by his 15-year-old son, prompting authorities to launch an investigation. In April 1998, Hamilton County Sheriff James Bradbury said the case was considered closed. ''If somebody has any information, we don't care who it is, we'd be happy to look at it,'' Bradbury said. ''But Herb Baumeister is the only suspect we have in any of them.'' Families of people allegedly killed by Baumeister spent decades waiting for closure, which Jellison wants to change. He first began an investigation into identifying DNA from the 10,000 bone fragments in 2022. Jellison said he "cannot imagine" that law enforcement would push the financial burden of a DNA test onto a victim's family in today's world. "These remains represent victims in a homicide, in a murder. So, to say to the families that if you want to know if your loved one was a victim of a murder, I mean, that's a tragedy in and of its own," Jellison said. "I think we're better today. We're more sensitive today to victims and family members of victims of crimes." The Hamilton County Sheriff's Office declined to comment.
Yahoo
24-05-2025
- Yahoo
Indiana coroner reveals 'several tragedies' remain in Fox Hollow Farm serial killer case
The Indiana coroner working to identify victims from Fox Hollow Farm says "several tragedies" still remain. In late April, Hamilton County Coroner Jeff Jellison announced his office had identified the remains of Daniel Thomas Halloran at Fox Hollow Farm in Westfield, Indiana. He's the 10th victim of suspected serial killer Herb Baumeister, but investigators have linked Baumeister to at least 25 victims. A spokesperson for the coroner's office previously told Fox News Digital it still has three DNA profiles that haven't been identified. Jellison said his office is working through 10,000 bone fragments and doesn't know how many victims might be identified but told Fox News Digital in an interview there are "several tragedies." Fox Hollow Farm Serial Killer's 10Th Victim Identified: Coroner "We have 10,000 bone and bone fragments, so how many victims, you know, that will be is undetermined," Jellison said. "I heard someone say recently that one death is a tragedy, two or more deaths is a statistic. And I think we have several tragedies because you have to treat each one of these individuals separately. Read On The Fox News App "So, we look at it really, you know, it's not how many potential victims do we have, but let's just continue working hard to identify. And then, at the end, we'll tally that up." Sign Up To Get The True Crime Newsletter Jellison said in an interview he plans on continuing to identify more victims until he's no longer in office. "This investigation will far exceed my time in this office," Jellison said. Follow The Fox True Crime Team On X Law enforcement believes Baumeister lured gay men to his home during the 1980s and 1990s, where he would kill them and bury their bodies on his 18-acre property, known as Fox Hollow Farm. Fox Hollow Serial Killer's Secret Tapes Could Reveal Murder Horrors If Ever Found: Documentary He often went to gay bars in the Indianapolis area when his family was out of town and, according to detectives, he would find men to bring home. Baumeister owned the Sav-A-Lot thrift store chain. Baumeister killed himself in 1996 at a Canadian park shortly after bone fragments were found on his property, prompting authorities to launch an investigation. GET REAL-TIME UPDATES DIRECTLY ON THE True Crime Hub A recent ABC News documentary, "The Fox Hollow Murders: Playground of a Serial Killer," revealed investigators believe Baumeister recorded his victims using a hidden camera inside his basement's air vent. "Something to relive … the murders," said retired Hamilton County Sheriff's Office Det. Cary Milligan. "We're looking through the bottom of the entertainment area … and we noticed this vent. … I was suspicious that if Herb was videotaping any activity that might have been going on. … That may have been a way that Herb could've gained power over the individuals that he was killing."Original article source: Indiana coroner reveals 'several tragedies' remain in Fox Hollow Farm serial killer case
