The Trail Went Cold - Episode 342 - The Austin Yogurt Shop Murders (Part 1)

December 6, 1991. Austin, Texas. After responding to a fire at a local yogurt shop, the authorities discover the burned nude bodies of four victims who have all been shot in the head: 17-year old employees Eliza Thomas and Jennifer Harbison; Jennifer’s 15-year old sister, Sarah Harbison; and Sarah’s 13-year old friend, Amy Ayers. Nearly eight years later, investigators arrest four suspects for the murders and while the charges against two of them are eventually dropped, the other two – Robert Springsteen and Michael Scott – had confessed to the crime, so they wind up being convicted at their respective trials. However, both men’s convictions are overturned due to civil rights violations and forensic testing reveals the presence of DNA on the victims which does not match any of the alleged perpetrators. In 2009, the charges against the two defendants are dismissed and they are released from prison, but there are no conclusive answers about who actually committed the crime. This week, “The Trail Went Cold” will be releasing the first part of a special two-part episode about one of our most highly requested cases: the Austin Yogurt Shop Murders. Special thanks to listener Melissa Lovell for narrating the opening of this episode.

If have any information about this case, please contact the Austin Police Department at (512) 472-TIPS (8477).

Additional Reading:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1991_Austin_yogurt_shop_killings

“Who Killed These Girls? The Unsolved Murders That Rocked a Texas Town” by Beverly Lowry

“Murdered Innocents” by Corey Mitchell

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/innocence-lost-the-yogurt-shop-murders-09-01-2010/

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/yogurt-shop-murders-are-two-never-identified-customers-key-to-solving-austin-texas-case/

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/the-yogurt-shop-murders-austin-texas-families-investigators-haunted-by-unsolved-case/

https://www.statesman.com/picture-gallery/news/2021/11/30/yogurt-shop-murders-austin-cold-case-photos/8798254002/

https://www.law.umich.edu/special/exoneration/Pages/casedetail.aspx?caseid=3622

https://www.law.umich.edu/special/exoneration/Pages/casedetail.aspx?caseid=3658

This episode of “The Trail Went Cold” is brought to you by HelloFresh. Go to HelloFresh.com/50wentcold and use code “50wentcold” for 50% off plus free shipping.

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“The Trail Went Cold” is doing a weekly livestream show on Vokl every Thursday from 7:00-8:00 PM ET as part of their “True  Crime Thursday” line-up. For more information, please visit their website.

“The Trail Went Cold” is going to be appearing on podcast row at “Crimecon” at the World Center Marriott in Orlando, Florida on September 22-24, 2023. To get a 10 % discount on the purchase of tickets to the event, please use our specialized promo code, “COLD23”, by visiting https://www.crimecon.com.

“The Trail Went Cold” will be appearing at the True Crime Podcast Festival, taking place at the Doubletree by Hilton Hotel in Austin, Texas on August 25-27, 2023. To get a 15 % discount on the purchase of tickets, please our specialized promo code, “TRAIL”, by visiting https://truecrimepodcastfestival.com.

The Trail Went Cold is produced and edited by Magill Foote.

All music is composed by Vince Nitro.