Bully's murder remains a secret in Missouri town for 40 years - FOX 2 Anticipating McElroys typical moves, Stratton waited on a back road near the Kansas border. His last wife, Trena, became pregnant with their first child at age 14. Both Sally and Sharon begin having Ken's children. They could have pushed and dug, pushed and dug and gotten nothing, said Huston. Murder is still murder. In the months before McElroy went to trial, the Bowenkamps and Sumy went to bed scared, woke up frightened and lived in terror with every breath. He knew which people to pick on the weak people and he followed through on his threats just often enough to make people believe he was going to do what he said he was going to do. Livestock owners looked the other way when a few head of cattle or hogs vanished in the night or gas barrels used to fuel farm implements were noticeably emptier. But the silence of the townspeople held. You know what he was like. There were plenty of eyewitnesses, as well as the attack happened in broad. Our law enforcement never went after him very hard, he said. As the case dragged on without a court date, Henry said McElroy had parked outside his home at least 100 times. Trena jumped from the truck and a man helped her to safety. He dropped out of school at age 15 in the eighth grade and quickly established a local reputation as a cattle rustler, small-time thief, and womanizer. He neutralized an entire criminal justice system.. Many wondered: Why didnt Baird press charges against the man Trena McElroy fingered as her husbands killer? The DA declined to press charges and the following investigation proved to be futile. If those responsible for killing McElroy are vigilantes, its because the justice system made them that way, Monte said. [6], Based on Trena's story, McElroy was indicted in June 1973 for arson, assault, and statutory rape. Vigilante justice is certainly a slippery slope, but after years of dealing with Ken McElroy, the people of Skidmore reached their boiling point. Known for stealing livestock, harassing women, destroying property and threatening lives, Mr. McElroy had been charged with numerous felonies over the years his lawyer estimated at least three a year but had never been convicted. He stood silently at the back of the store, but his wife tore into Sumy in an argument laced with four-letter bombs, Monte said. Ken Rex McElroy Jr. - Biography - IMDb Edit Ken Rex McElroy Jr. He met his last wife, Trena McCloud (19572012), when she was 12 years old and in eighth grade. I dont know what happened,' Boyer recalls witnesses saying. It was a misunderstanding, but one that made the Bowenkamps lives a living hell for months. It was a matter of self-preservation. What set off McElroy and put the local grocer in his crosshairs was the pettiest of offenses. He showed back up in front of their house that night, and he and Trena sat there and watched them, Monte said. On the morning of July 10, 1981, several townspeople met with the Nodaway County sheriff at a local hall to discuss what could be done about McElroy. The case was later settled out of court by all parties for $17,600, with no one admitting guilt, for the stated reason of avoiding costly legal fees should the suit proceed. A few days later, a pickup truck showed up in the wee hours outside Boyers remote country house. McElroy first began his relationship with McCloud when she was 14 and the two had a child shortly thereafter. In August of 1980, McElroy made attempts to intimidate the Bowenkamp family and their supporters to prevent them from testifying. Luckily, Bowenkamp survived, and McElroy was charged with attempted murder. Ken Rex McElroy (1934 - 1982) - Genealogy - geni family tree I didnt see anything. 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McCloud was McElroy's third "wife," though all unions were suspicious due to the fact that some of his marriages overlapped. 7 Good News Stories: Sense Of Belonging; Secrets To 70-Year Marriage, EPA Limits On Toxic Forever Chemicals Could Cost Utilities Billions, The Poop On Free-Range Cats And Your Lawn And Garden [Block Talk], Boeing Worker Claims $754.6M Powerball Jackpot, Barrier-Breaking Black Army Officer Finally Awarded Medal Of Honor, FL Blogging Bill Says Political Writers Should Register With State. When talking about McElroy, MacLean wondered how he was able to be so crafty. McElroy was convicted of assault but let out of jail awaiting appeal. After dropping out of school in the eighth grade, it didn't take long for Ken McElroy to fall into a life of delinquency. She gathered her strength and put the car in reverse. This is How a Town Ganged Up Against a Serial Bully He was nonplussed. The Vigilantemurder of Ken Rex McElroy still remains a mystery today. The trial collapsed yet all accounts are sceptical that the witnesses were telling the . There were plenty of eyewitnesses, as well as the attack happened in broad daylight, therefore The clerk, Evelyn Sumy, was at the back of the store when the doors swung open. The last three decades have been tough on this agricultural community of 342, about an hour and a half north of Kansas City. McElroy was also accused of abusing his first two wives, Sharon and Alice, but Alice defended him in an interview shortly after his death. He was sure it was Mr. McElroy who had done the shooting. Self care and ideas to help you live a healthier, happier life. Then, on the night of July 8, 1980, McElroy shot 70-year-old Skidmore grocer Ernst Bo Bowenkamp, unwittingly setting up his own murder a year later. That became the pattern. US residents can opt out of "sales" of personal data. In 1980, McElroy shot the 70-year-old town grocer in the neck following a months-old dispute over an accusation about a piece of stolen candy. The FBI entered the case stiff-arming and threatening people, is how Monte, the Bowenkamps daughter, relates it. The Tylenol Murders: Is It Too Late to Solve the Famous Cold Case? As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. 1954: While working for his sister's husband in construction, McElroy suffers a traumatic head injury that leaves him with lifelong pain. Two people decided in the midst of that whole incident theyd had enough, MacLean said. McElroy was a resident of Skidmore, Missouri. Over the course of his life, McElroy was accused of dozens of felonies, including assault, child molestation, statutory rape, arson, animal cruelty, hog and cattle rustling, and burglary. There wasnt much parental supervision, but McElroy had a knack for taking care of himself. A bond hearing was ordered. What gave rise to that theory is that they were in the Legion hall for a meeting, then went down to the D&G [when they heard McElroy was in town]. Please look at the time stamp on the story to see when it was last updated. They were witnesses. American criminal and murder victim, killed by vigilantes, "3 decades on, who killed Skidmore town bully still secret", "Ken McElroy Murderer, rapist and consummate intimidator", "Skidmore, Revisited Part 1: The Death of Ken McElroy", "Ken McElroy Murderer, rapist and consummate intimidator Another Teen Love", "Ken McElroy Murderer, rapist and consummate intimidator Saved by the Law", "Ken McElroy Murderer, rapist and consummate intimidator Intent to Kill", The Death Of Ken McElroy *Interesting History* - YouTube, "AS her daughter Tami listens, Trena McElroy retells how she watched", "3 decades on, who killed Skidmore town bully still secret | McClatchy", "Ken McElroy Murderer, rapist and consummate intimidator Murder in Broad Daylight", "Wrongful death lawsuit settled in re Ken McElroy", "Trena McElroy Passed Away | Harry N. MacLean", "You Get What You Pay For, by Larry Beinhart", "Stream It Or Skip It: 'No One Saw A Thing' On SundanceTV, A Docuseries About How Skidmore, Missouri Has Kept A Murder Unsolved For 38 Years", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Ken_McElroy&oldid=1136590059, Short description is different from Wikidata, Pages using infobox person with multiple spouses, Pages using infobox criminal with known for parameter, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, Bo Bowenkamp (survived an attempted murder), This page was last edited on 31 January 2023, at 02:52. Ken was 18 and Oleta was 16. On July 27, 1976, Skidmore farmer Romaine Henry said McElroy shot him twice with a shotgun after Henry challenged him for shooting weapons on Henry's property. Almost everyone, with the exception of Bo Bowenkamp, backed down. Within a few years, she had had four children by him. Full Worm Moon: Will Conditions Favor A Moonbow? 2023, A&E Television Networks, LLC. He had a legendary status, and it all got to be bigger than he was. In Broad Daylight: A murder in Skidmore, Missouri|Paperback Biography Mini Bio (1) Ken Rex McElroy Jr. is known for No One Saw a Thing (2019). [3] McElroy was acquitted. McElroy sat outside the foster home for hours at a time staring at it. Investigators dug and dug, but Skidmore residents maintained their silence. Timeline | McElroy His attorney, Richard McFadin, said he routinely defended Ken McElroy in three or four felonies a year. No One Saw A Thing centers around the 1981 murder of Ken Rex McElroy in Skidmore Missouri and other crimes committed in the town and surrounding area over the years. Ken Rex McElroy was an illiterate hog farmer who lived on the outskirts of a small town in Northwest Missouri. Ken had 13 siblings: Hershell Eugene McElroy, Orvil O McElroy and 11 . In the plainspoken manner of speaking in Skidmore, McElroy simply needed killing, like a gangrened leg needs to be severed to save the whole body. On July 10, 1981, Ken Rex McElroy was killed in one of the strangest instances investigators ever saw. If you were to go to Skidmore today, there isn't much to see. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLD8iUdp33PqTsix2sGblEQZ8m5FQycC5D Vigilante justice, or cold-blooded murder?MERCH: We've got it! Boyer was among the first responders to arrive outside the D&G tavern where McElroy was ambushed. McElroy was charged with assault with intent to kill. You just didnt do that.. He was a goodhearted person. According to a report, no one called an ambulance. Trena McElroy accused Skidmore residents of turning her husband into a scapegoat. Why are you doing this? The murder of Ken Rex McElroy isn't 'unsolved' in the typical sense of the word. Now, nearly 30 years later, that prosecutor, David A. Baird, is preparing to leave office with his first and most famous case still unsolved. Not only that, they recommended he spend no more than two years in prison. After the sheriff left town, the group walked from the hall and went down the street to the tavern. [4], McElroy fathered more than 10 children with different women. The local major-cases squad investigated, then the Federal Bureau of Investigation. I think its something thats going to define this town forever.. Born in 1934, Ken Rex McElroy was a resident of Skidmore, Missouri. McElroy was in town and behaving belligerently. McElroy escaped jail on an appeal bond and could remain free until he exhausted his appeals, free to taunt his victims with what had become painfully clear: He would never go to jail. [11] Only Trena claimed to identify a gunman; every other witness either was unable to name an assailant or claimed not to have seen who fired the fatal shots. The people of the town keep their heads down and prefer to not speak about the incident. Once the shroud of silence fell, there was going to be no one talking, said Cheryl Huston, whose elderly father had been shot by Mr. McElroy and who watched the killing of Mr. McElroy from her familys grocery store but, like the others, said she did not see the gunman. Absolutely not, he said. But in a dramatic act of solidarity with the gunman, every witness, save the dead mans wife, denied seeing who had pulled the trigger. Case #8: the Mysterious Death of Ken Rex Mcelroy 1 or 2 men (unclear) took guns and shot Ken Rex McElroy dead in his truck. She died in 2012. When Daylight Saving Time 2023 Begins, Will It Be For The Last Time. [1] McElroy successfully appealed the conviction and was released on bond, after which he engaged in an ongoing harassment campaign against Bowenkamp and others who were sympathetic to Bowenkamp, including the town's Church of Christ minister. All That's Interesting is a Brooklyn-based digital publisher that seeks out stories that illuminate the past, present, and future. A writer and storyteller out in the world to write about True-Crime and History. You dont have a town full of people who were hiding a guilty conscience, he said. Immediately after being released at a post-trial hearing, McElroy went to the D&G Tavern, a local bar, with an M1 Garand rifle with a bayonet attached, and made graphic threats about what he would do to Bo Bowenkamp. The Craziest Cold Case in History The Murder of Ken Rex McElroy Nobody wanted to talk to us, retired Missouri State Highway Patrol Trooper Dan Boyer tells A&E True Crime. The townsfolk were infuriated. McElroy allegedly stole livestock, grain, gasoline, and antiques. It was also the first major case for a young county prosecutor, not far removed from law school and just months into the job, who said he was confident that the case would be solved soon. Ken Rex McElroy was shot dead in Skidmore, Missouri on July 10, 1981. The Story Of Ken McElroy The Vicious Bully Killed By His Town. His successor, Robert Rice, already knew how Mr. McElroy died. The meeting broke up after participants learned McElroy and Trena were at the D&G Tavern. His lifelong career as a criminal started with petty offenses, but he increasingly became more violent, amassing a rap sheet that included nearly two dozen felony charges for assault, child molestation, statutory rape, arson, burglary, grain theft, and hog and cattle rustling enterprises that kept a thick roll of hundred-dollar bills in his pocket. 'No One Saw a Thing': A town torn apart by 38 years of violence Consisting of around 440 residents and a number of small family-run businesses, the farming town revolved around work ethic. It's worth noting that the abused defending their abuser often occurs in domestic violence cases. McElory was struck by two different firearms and died behind the wheel of his truck. The police would not or could not help us or Skidmore. The grocer lived and McElroy was again arrested and charged with attempted murder. [10] No one called for an ambulance. 1. At some point in his life, McElroy was believed to have been seriously injured on a construction site, causing him to suffer from chronic pain. The Oscars will air on ABC and can be streamed on ABC.com and the ABC app as well as Hulu + Live TV, YouTube TV, AT&T TV or FuboTV. The murder took place on July 10, 1981, the day after McElroy had threatened Bowenkamp at the tavern. The people of the town keep their heads down and prefer to not speak about the incident. It wasn't the kind of murder which goes unsolved for decades and eventually someone comes forward with the tip that breaks the case open. McElroy would just sit and glower at you just stare at you and youd never know what he was thinking.. He quit.. [14] Trena remarried and moved to Lebanon, Missouri, where she died of cancer on her 55th birthday on January 24, 2012.[15]. SKIDMORE, Mo. Something for everyone interested in hair, makeup, style, and body positivity. . On April 25, 1980 at Ernest "Bo" Bowenkamp's general store, a clerk asked McElroy's 8-year-old daughter to return a piece of candy she had not paid for.