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would like to know about a case called mullendore a rancher that was killed i was told if i was interested in cold case crimes id be interested in reading that one

Thanks, Billy. Do you know anything at all else about the case — what community it occurred in or anything?

I remember my parents had a book on the Mullendore murder. I think it may have happened in the late 1960’s. It happened in Osage County, this I’m sure of.

I had a dear best friend that came up missing 1990, i believe. I was babysitting her daughter and after her mama not showing up for three days, I took her daughter to her Mother’s. A policeman came and talked to me, but, I have not heard from her. I contacted the okc police detectives and said that she has not been found. Where is she?

I was told by this detective that she was spotted riding on a motorcycle with the gangster holding onto her in front of him.

What is your friend’s name, Mary?

We ran a pretty good story on the Mullendore case in The Oklahoman about 1 1/2 years ago. I’m posting the text here. For more information, check out The Oklahoman’s archives, accessible through http://www.newsok.com.

Fugitive’s arrest rekindles mystery

By Chad Previch
Staff Writer

The prisoner in a sheriff’s office in Kansas did not look familiar to George Wayman a few weeks ago. But the former Osage County sheriff believes the man in handcuffs was the key to solving a mystery more than three decades old.

“I stuck out my hand and said, ‘Hi, I’m George Wayman,’ and he said, ‘I knew it was you, but I couldn’t think of your name. I thought you’d be pushing up daisies by now.’”

Just like that, Wayman was back on the case of who killed E.C. Mullendore III. Then, he and Damon “Chub” Anderson, a fugitive since 1990, sat down and chatted for three hours about the night of Sept. 26, 1970.

Just before midnight on the fall night in 1970, Mullendore, a 32-year-old millionaire rancher, was shot once between the eyes at his Cross Bell Ranch near Hulah in Osage County. That night, Mullendore and Anderson, his bodyguard, were in the spacious, multilevel house not far from the ranch headquarters.

The rancher had a bodyguard because of his life insurance policy and because he owned 90,000 acres of ranch land, Wayman said. Mullendore’s bankers were nervous because he constantly was drinking and were afraid the ranch’s financial standing was wavering.

Anderson, then 29, told investigators at the time he was drawing a bath when he heard a shot in the basement. He said he ran downstairs and saw Mullendore seated near the couch, blood flowing from his face.

Anderson told authorities he was shot in the shoulder and then emptied his .25-caliber pistol at two fleeing men. Those men and a murder weapon never have been found.

Footprints never were found, either.

Wayman said physical evidence was disturbed, destroyed or never collected.

Mullendore’s body was removed from the scene before Wayman arrived. Wayman said the rancher obviously did not survive, and the body should not have been moved. The body was embalmed before an autopsy was performed.

Wayman, now 82, said Thursday that a skull fragment found in one of Anderson’s hats was lost during the trip from the ranch to the sheriff’s office. No arrests ever were made in the case.

‘A quitter never wins’

No one has to remind Wayman of those details. The case — and any chance of solving it — resurfaced in mid-June when Anderson, a fugitive from Kansas for 16 years, was arrested in Montana.

Anderson, now 64, was wanted by Chautauqua County (Kan.) deputies and by the FBI for jumping bail in 1990 on charges of cultivation of marijuana valued at more than $500,000, and possession with the intent to distribute it.

The Montana arrest was on a complaint of attempting to file for Social Security benefits using a dead man’s name. He was sentenced Wednesday on an old drug charge to one to five years in prison after pleading no contest, Wayman said.

Chautauqua County Attorney Larry Markle said Anderson could serve as little as eight months behind bars. He wasn’t surprised that Anderson’s attorney asked for a plea deal.

“It was a slam dunk. I mean come on. That’s why he ran for 16 years,” Markle said.

Markle said he never discussed the Mullendore case with Anderson’s attorney and doesn’t understand how Anderson went from being one of America’s most wanted to having no one interested in prosecuting him.

Anderson’s attorney, public defender Philip Bernhart, said he also didn’t discuss the Oklahoma cases. Anderson is being held in an Independence, Kan., jail because his kidney dialysis is easier to do there.

“He’s sick and tired,” Bernhart said. “At least that’s how I would describe him.”

Investigators brought Wayman to Sedan, Kan., from his Fairfax home because they said he has the most knowledge about the case and the best rapport with Anderson.

The former bodyguard has denied involvement in Mullendore’s death.

Wayman, who retired in 1989 after more than 20 years as sheriff, said Anderson is the only witness to the homicide and calls him a man of interest. Wayman won’t detail what the two discussed in Kansas but said he hasn’t given up hope of solving the case.

“A quitter never wins,” Wayman said. “We’re just plugging away at it. It’s the best chance since about three or four days after it happened.”

Osage County District Attorney Larry Stuart said if evidence surfaces, he’ll be ready to prosecute.

“I’m not getting my hopes up,” he said. “It will be quite a challenge. But you know, you’ve got to try.”

Wayman thinks the case will be solved.

“When the time is right, we will,” he said. “The time’s going to have to be right.”

I would like to know about several cold cases (at least as far as I know they still are). One happened about 3 years ago on Peebly Road in Choctaw. A man was killed on July 4th or right around that date (wife found him in the trunk of his car I believe). Another was on that happened around 1992 or 1993. 5 women were shot in a home on NE 36th around the Westminster area? The other was a MWC girl by the name of Dittmeyer I believe? She was missing or maybe even found dead? Not sure but i believe a few weeks later a relative of her’s hung himself. All these were very disturbing in that (at least to my knowledge) they kind of got forgotten without the person or people responsible were never found…if I’m wrong & any of these cases were solved please let me know! Thanks

Vito, the first case you’re thinking about is the 2002 death of David Whetstone, 51. He was shot to death and found in the trunk of his car in the 3100 block of S Peebly Rd. A coin collection valued at $50,000 was stolen.
I do not know if this case was ever closed.
The second case sounds like the Green Pasture slayings, in which five women were stabbed to death in May 1992. Danny Hooks was linked to the crime in 1997; his DNA matched blood drops from the death house.
He received the death penalty in 1998.
The third case is the 1996 death of Crystal Dittmeyer, 12. In 1999, her stepfather, Benjamin Crider Jr., was convicted of murder, although the girl’s body was never found. That conviction was overturned by an appeals court, which decided that improper evidence was allowed at the trial.
In 2005, Crider confessed to killing her “in a heat of passion after being provoked,” apparently because she violated his rules by using the master bedroom shower.
Prosecutors cut a deal with him, citing problems with evidence and witnesses. He pleaded guilty to manslaughter and, as near as I can tell, is out on probation.

Vito and Ken-

I am thinking Vito has Crystal Dittmeyer’s name mixed up with the facts surrounding another girl who went missing around the same time: Amber Barker. I remember both of these cases since I was only a few years older than these two girls in 1996/1997.

I hope some new evidence will come to light thanks to this blog and the hard work of the OKC PD cold case detectives.

A swing manager named Joe Watson was murdered in 1989 at the McDonald’s in Okmulgee, OK. I know this crime remained unsolved for many years and I have not heard that it ever was.

I was employed as the store manager at the time and will never forget the incident. Joe had let the crew out after closing the store and remained in the store alone to finish paperwork. Joe’s body was discovered by the opening manager the next morning.

Joe’s body was near the back of the store. The back door was pried open at the bottom from the inside as a means for the individual to leave the store since all the doors were locked. The killer left behind a .22 cal single shot rifle with a broken stock and bent barrel in the breakroom on a table. It was probably used to pry open the back door. The only thing I could discover missing was the VCR from the breakroom.

This was investigated by the OSBI. At the time, McDonald’s posted a $10k reward and I would assume they would still honor it.

If this has been solved, please let me know. If not, anything that could help solve this case would be appreciated.

the man that was murdered on peebly road was my father-in-law David Whetstone. His wife did not find him in the trunk of his car the sheriffs did after they walked all over the crime scnene. They say they have dna a finger prints. But they still have no idea who did it. Would love for this crime to be solved, but I feel that it will never be because it was not a priority. Alot of the people in law enforcement didn’t care for him. When shefiff Whetsel was running for sheriff again it became important but after election it was not important anymore.

I worked with a young black man that was butchered in his home in the ninties. He was very nice and was on the timed side. I am not sure but I know it is possible he knew Ben Crider. He also worked with another man at University Hospital that he told me he was afraid of. His death has not been solved.

I am very interesed in the in the Joe Watson murder. Dave posted this message on March 16th of 2008. Joe was my Uncle and my Grandmother had her 69th birthday yesterday. She came to me crying and stating that this is the 20th year since Joe’s murder and she is afraid she will never find out who killed him. I was in the 2nd grade when my unlce was taken from us. Please let me know if you can do anything. Thanks!

As EC Mullendore’s cousin, I have now built a historical web site for the EC Mullendore murder case. Anyone my come by and explore all the details of this unsolved murder and keep upto date with it. Thank you for allowing me to let people here know.

http://www.mullendoremurder.ning.com The site is free.