A mom-of-three who spent her nights working at a Dairy Queen was killed in the store for a measly $125.
Margaret ‘Marge’ Walsh, 47, was found with a bullet in her head alone at the fast food restaurant on the morning of April 24, 1980, in the small Missouri suburb of Ellisville, according to the Ellisville Police Department.
Police found her clothes, a glove found nearby on the road, and a bullet as evidence, but without the DNA technology they have today, they came up short in discovering her killer.
However thanks to new technology and forensic tools, investigators have reopened the case and sent the evidence to the lab for testing.
Police Chief Steve Lewis, County Prosecuting Attorney Melissa Price Smith, and retired St. Louis Police Chief Tim Fitch held a press conference on Monday to discuss the cold case.
‘We want the Walsh family to know that we have not given up,’ Lewis said.
The mystery surrounding Walsh’s tragic death started when the restaurant’s co-owner, Helen Pahnke, arrived at the Daily Queen around 7.12am.
Her car was still in the parking lot, and Walsh’s dead body was found in the back office of the Dairy Queen.
Margaret ‘Marge’ Walsh, 47, was shot dead on April 24, 1980, while working the night shift at a Dairy Queen in a small Missouri suburb
Walsh’s co-worker noticed her car was still in the parking lot the next morning after he shift before making the grim discovery of her body inside
Walsh worked the night shift at a local Dairy Queen and was a principal’s secretary during the day
There was a canister of chemical spray near her body, and $125 in cash was stolen.
Fitch speculated that her killer might’ve been looking for the code to open the Dairy Queen’s safe, but Welsh didn’t have it.
Investigators had found that she clocked out at 11.50pm, but had been known to stay late occasionally.
Walsh had closed the store the following night with three teen employees who attended a nearby high school.
All three of her co-workers had clocked out by around 10.45pm. Fitch said he believed Walsh may’ve been confronted when she tried to leave the Dairy Queen.
He added that Walsh could’ve known her killer, or the suspect may have been motivated to murder the only witness to the robbery.
Walsh had three children at the time of her death, ages 16, 18, and 21 years old. Investigators said that they have all since died.
The hard-working single mom worked the night shift at Dairy Queen and was also a secretary for a high school principal during the day.
Authorities announced that they would be reopening the case thanks to modern forensic technology
The St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office has launched a new cold case unit that will also help solve Walsh’s murder
Walsh had a boyfriend at the time who authorities investigated, but he provided an alibi that he was at a bar with multiple people.
Her ex-husband was also investigated, and authorities turned up empty-handed. Her ex-husband and boyfriend have both since died. Walsh’s murder is still the only homicide investigation in Ellisville.
Three years after Walsh’s death, law enforcement began to connect her murder to Maurice Oscar Byrd.
Byrd killed four people at a cafeteria the same year Walsh was murdered and fled to Savannah, Georgia, with his wife.
It seemed like a perfect answer; however, investigators eventually ruled Byrd out due to his alibi.
Byrd was working as a security guard at St. Louis University at the time of Walsh’s murder, and records indicated that he was at work the night of her death.
Fitch also noted that Byrd was asked about Walsh’s murder before his execution, and he denied any involvement.
Fitch has been volunteering since April to work on the cold case. He told reporters that he’s spoken with the three high schoolers who last saw Walsh and her sister.
Walsh was found with a bullet in her head in the back of the Dairy Queen where she worked. Investigators never found her killer but located evidence that they hope modern technology will finally name a suspect
The St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office has now joined the case, launching a new cold case unit to investigate Walsh’s murder.
Officials are also enlisting the public’s help, urging anyone with information on Walsh’s murder to come forward.
‘Maybe you were young, maybe you were scared, maybe you didn’t realize what you saw or heard could matter. But it does,’ Fitch pleaded.
Those who may have a tip related to Walsh’s death can contact St. Louis CrimeStoppers or call 1-866-371-8477.
