Yogurt Shop Murders ////// UPDATE | Forensic Files

Welcome to Off the Record. I'm your host Nick Crime. >> It's good to be seen and it's good to
see you. Off the record. Thanks for listening. Thanks for telling a friend. >> True Crime Podcast.
>> Be good. Be kind. And don't live. >> Gather around. Grab a chair. Grab a beer. Let's talk some ground.
>> Welcome to an emergency off the record. It's the good kind of emergency though.
We are here because there is a case that we've been talking about for several years. It is finally nearing its
conclusion and a successful conclusion at that that they're able to start putting the puzzle pieces together to
finally figure out exactly what happened in the yogurt shop murders. On Friday, December 6th, 1991, 14ed girls were
bound, gagged, and killed at an I can't believe it's yogurt shop off of West Anderson Lane in North Austin, Texas.
The building was then set on fire, destroying what could have been a trove of physical and forensic clues. But they
didn't manage to wipe away every single trace. Every killer leaves a trace. transfer theory wins again. Dr. Edmund
Locard's exchange principal wins out once more. Robert Eugene Brashers is the name that Austinites have been searching
for for over 33 years. Coming up on 34 years this December, Robert Eugene Brashers is one of the perpetrators in
the 1991 yogurt shop murders. A horrific crime, one of the worst crimes that we have reviewed here in the garage. And
this was a case that troubled us greatly. So much so that we revisited this case several times, six episodes
from here in the garage on the yogurt shop case. Our first look was back in February of 2017 with about 2 hours of
coverage TCG episodes 81 and 82. And then again when we were faced with the sad 30year anniversary of the then still
unsolved case with our episodes Yogurt Shop Murders 30 years later episodes 539 and 540. Then most recently this year
2025 after the HBO docu series on the case we did two follow-up episodes. The Yogurt Shop Murders, episode numbers 866
and 867 on your True Crime Garage radio dial. This from our Twitter or on X's as
they say at True Crime Garage from Friday, September 26th. We posted after more than three decades. Investigators
believe the yogurt shop murders have been solved. We will be diving into our sources to try and learn more details.
This is huge news for the true crime world. Got him. Cheers, mates. Got him. If you're not following True Crime
Garage, go follow us on the social channels at True Crime Garage. So, quick recap for those that uh need one on this
case. Four teenage girls were brutally murdered on a Friday night at a yogurt shop in North Austin, Texas in December
of 1991. The girls families and those who worked decades trying to find and prosecute their killer or killers said
that the 30th anniversary came with no sense of closure. The details of the crimes have been well documented.
Jennifer Harbison, Eliza Thompson, both 17, worked at the I can't believe it's yogurt on West Anderson Lane. Jennifer's
sister, little sister Sarah Harbinson, age 15, and Sarah's friend Amy Ays, aged 13, arrived that night at the yogurt
shop before closing time on December 6th, 1991. The plans for young Amy Ays and Sarah Harbbertson were to have a
sleepover together that night. They were close friends. Amy was only an eighth grader at Bernett Middle School. The
other girls attended Laneir High School. Sometime after the yogurt shop closed that night at 11 p.m., the girls were
gagged with their own clothing and then shot in the head. Their bodies were stacked on top of one another and a
portion of the shop was set on fire, the back portion of this restaurant. Authorities arrested four suspects, but
that was almost eight years later in October of 1999. Only two of the four, this was Robert Burns Springsteen and
Michael James Scott, stood trial and both were in fact convicted. Springsteen received the death penalty and Scott got
life in prison. But the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals overturned their convictions, ruling that their
confessions were improperly used against each of them at each other's trials. Springsteen and Scott were released from
prison and prosecutors dismissed all charges against them. In 2017, there was a potential breakthrough that emerged.
Austin detective submitted DNA evidence found in one of the victims on one of the
victims into a database that searches YSTR DNA samples, a type of DNA profile that forensic investigators use to
identify male relatives of a suspect. A match was found in 2017. The Austin Police Department requested more
information about the identity of the matching donor, but the FBI at the time refused to release any information,
saying a federal statute prohibits it from disclosing identities of anonymous donors. Despite these hurdles, the
families continue to work to keep the case in the forefront. Their efforts have led to new crime fighting
initiatives at the state and the federal levels and of course led to the recent docue series on HBO. Now this here
captain is from a press release from Friday, September 26, the same day as your post on on X. And it says they gave
the immediate release of the following titled Austin police make significant breakthrough in 1991 I can't believe
it's yogurt murder case. Austin police have made a significant breakthrough in the 1991 I can't believe it's yogurt
murder case and we have new information. They said our team never gave up working
on this case for almost 34 years. They have worked tirelessly and remain committed to solving this case for the
families of Jennifer Harbison, Sarah Harbison, Eliza Thomas, and Amy Heirs. All innocent lives taken senselessly and
far too soon. We have identified a suspect in these murders through a wide range of DNA testing. The suspect is
Robert Eugene Brashers, who committed suicide in 1999. This remains an open and ongoing
investigation. Austin Police Department investigators have been in touch with the families. We
ask for your patience as we continue this process and remain mindful of the many people whose lives have been deeply
affected by this case. Now, Captain, I appreciate, and I'm not going to go too far down the old rabbit hole
here. >> I appreciate everybody rejoicing that this case is the investigation is moving along
significantly and the identification of this Robert Eugene Brashers. I don't want to piss on
anybody's Cheerios here because that would be disgusting and rude, frankly. But um I do like the title of what the
Austin Police Department chose to title their their press release on Friday that
said that Austin police make significant breakthrough in this case rather than a
lot of people posting that the case is solved. I think that I think that the line in this press release that came out
on Friday from the investigating agency that's in charge of this case that we do
need to keep in mind while we while we are rejoicing and celebrating here in the garage today. But the line that they
did choose to includes in that press release is this remains an open and ongoing investigation. So solved might
not be the the proper term at this moment. making significant breakthrough. Absolutely. And kudos to them for not
giving up and continuing to test information. And actually just watching the the press conference, there was a
press conference scheduled for Monday the 29th. So the information comes out on the Friday. Then we hear that there's
going to be a press conference and they held true to their word. It was covered by several of the local media outlets
there. And I had just finished watching the first about 25 minutes of the case where the the current detective gave a
full presentation and after he was done speaking, we flipped on the microphones ready to talk
about this because it is a good day here in the garage and a good day in Austin.
And it's been a Nothing's going to bring these poor girls back, these four wonderful people back. But this is
something that their family has been hoping and praying for for over three decades. And many folks in Austin and
outside of Austin hoping and praying for for all of this time. Well, in the Austin
public and the victim's families, of course, they're going to be somewhat leery of this information because
they've had this. We've solved the case before from >> Austin PD and there was individuals
arrested. If the defense didn't make a couple mistakes in that case, then maybe uh would never get to this point in the
investigation. >> Yeah. Well, I mean, >> well, I shouldn't say defense. I expand
on that a little bit. The prosecutors because >> the prosec during the trial, what they
did was instead of having people that confessed um testify at the trial, they were using
recordings and written confessions to basically cross-examine the other individuals.
>> Yeah. They used the confessions at the trials against each of the two that were
convicted. What they didn't do was allow the allow for their to that information
and that evidence to be contested in trial. And since it wasn't contested, that's actually that's illegal. It's
it's it's not giving the defendant a proper and fair trial. and thus they overturn those convictions. But then you
also realize how how loose I mean you talk about building your case on on a shoestring. This was more like dental
floss because as soon as those convictions are overturned what happens is the prosecutors dismiss all the
charges against both of them. And then you had Austin PD come out and say no we we're still convinced we got the right
guys. We're just looking for the courts got it wrong and now we're looking for a
fifth person that was involved. And so I there may be somebody sitting out there
somewhere that's going to say that Robert Eugene Brashers was the fifth perpetrator and these other four were
still involved, but that's not what Austin PD said today at the press conference.
>> Absolutely the opposite. I I'm still a little confused even after watching the
conference because there's something that's being overlooked. You know, we you and I had traded some texts and
thank thank you for you were the first one to notify me that there was been this significant breakthrough in this
case and I had said something to you of why I have a little birdie that follows the true crime world
>> extensively and so that little birdie uh tips me off to everything that's happening.
>> Yeah. And you can set up notifications when there's a a news break. I try to distance myself from the news for
reasons we don't need to get into here today, but um >> it's better to have a little birdie.
>> There you go. Yes. I had said to you on Saturday and it's actually you you had
mentioned that there was going to be this press conference and I said, "Well, are they going to explain why they don't
know who the other perpetrator is?" I'm not going to go too much into this because um I could be I could be wrong.
I could be absolutely wrong, but the information I >> Yeah, I think you are. >> Well, thanks for the your vote of
confidence. I appreciate it. >> I was just going to say I looked into this. Do they have two samples from a
suspect and they do not >> which is goes against the information that has been out there for several
years now. >> Yeah. that initially that was put out by the defense saying that is this DNA
sample an actual DNA sample or are there two individuals that we should be looking for? The prosecution argued that
and also forensic reports also contest that. And during the press conference, they said definitively that they're
looking into Brasher as the killer and that he killed uh and did this crime by himself. Oh yeah. I'm not I'm not
pushing back against on the idea that Robert Brat I'm not I want to be clear here. Not saying that at all. He's
absolutely responsible for this. I'm just pointing out that all of the scientific information up until what was
just released within the last 48 hours has said otherwise that there were in fact two perpetrators. Now, to to be to
put to put a point on my side here off of the evidence that they presented at the press conference, they are saying
that the DNA that led them to Robert Eugene Brashers was taken from Amy Heir's fingernail clippings.
>> Yes. And other items, Amy's belt, the ice cream scoop, and clothing. So, the other DNA evidence that has been
discussed up until the most recent 48 hours was from other parts of the crime scene, let's say. But let's we don't we
need don't need to get into that here. What we need to do is get into what we do know. Well, this the statement that I
found was defense arguments have claimed that the evidence could be uh could reflect more than one male contributor,
not just one unknown male. The prosecutors and some forensic reports have contested that. So, other than
that, I can't find, you know, definitive evidence of this second contributor. >> That That's fine. And I'm not asking you
to do that. I I'm not asking anybody else to know that it's there. It's out there and I'm I'm this is I'm not making
it up. It's I don't I don't want to go into the details of that for a lot of reasons, but it's there. And so the
information you're discussing is when the two were convicted. >> Yeah. >> So that I mean that would have been
years and years ago. The information I'm talking about is stuff that has come out
within the last five to six years in this case. And and there could be some confusion on this too because the
initial sample that they had this male only sample which is called a Y STR their initial samples they had ones with
different markers. The most complete one that they had was 17 and then eventually
they're able to get that to 25 markers and it's essentially it's 27 cuz one of them is kind of split but you know going
from 17 markers to 27 is a is a big leap forward. >> Exactly. And what we find here is with
that evidence that was under the fingernail nails of Amy Heirs, eventually that's going to lead to a 27
point match. 27 of 27 match for Robert Brashers. So not even much in the, you know, there's no question in there at
all. Absolutely. Robert Brasher's involved in in responsible for the brutal murders of these four young
girls. According to his obituary, Robert Brashers, Robert Eugene Brashers was 40
years old. He was from Paragold, Arkansas. He died January 13, 1999 in >> It was a shootout, right? It was a It
was a standoff with uh law enforcement. >> Well, it was a a standoff, but but not a
shootout. He He passes away, like the captain said, after a standoff. And I can tell you exactly.
>> Well, I mean, it was a shootout cuz he shot his brains out. >> True. Uh, true.
>> There was still a shootout. >> So, but not the traditional definition of shootout. Uh, the title is Arkansas
man Kills Self after police standoff. This is from Ket, Missouri from the Associated Press. An Arkansas man is
dead following a 4-hour standoff with police at a motel in southeast Missouri. Officers checking on a car with stolen
license plates, went to the motel unit occupied by Robert Brashers, age 40, of Paragold, Arkansas, and his family.
Authorities said Brasher's wife told them that he was not there, but officers saw him hiding under a bed. They said
Brashers placed a pistol to his head and said he would shoot himself if the officers did not leave. The officers
left the room and then contacted Brashers by telephone, convincing him to allow his wife and three children to
leave the room. Police continued to negotiate with Brashers by telephone, but then they heard a single gunshot at
about 4:30 in the morning. Brashers was found on the floor of the room with a gunshot wound to his head. He died later
at the hospital. And authorities said Brashers was wanted for federal weapons violations. Little did they know at this
time in 1999 when this guy kills himself uh that how much other horrible stuff this guy
was actually responsible for and unfortunately didn't face much of a punishment during his time on this earth
for these horrible crimes that he committed. The Austin PD, the detective telling us today at the press
conference, very bluntly and rightfully so, says it exactly the way you should say it. He says, "Robert Eugene Brashers
was a violent serial rapist and murderer." >> Yeah. This will not be the only crime
that they close this year because of of this DNA testing. >> Yeah. Originally, the way that they find
out, they use DNA to find him for other crimes. So, he was identified after death as a being a serial rapist and ser
serial murderer. But it wasn't until very recently that they connected the yogurt shop case to this Robert Eugene
Brashers who killed other people in several different states. And in fact, it was the state of South Carolina that
exumed his body. I think it was in 2017 or 2018. They already had the DNA evidence, but they exumed his body to
make sure that there was no question about it. exume the body, take the DNA from the body, and then using with the
help of Parabon Nano Labs back then, they confirmed that he was the rapist murderer in their unsolved cold case.
They said in in that cold cases press conference, they said that Robert Brashers lived the majority of his life
in Huntsville, Alabama, but lived in Paragold, Arkansas after being released from prison in 1997. So, he did spend
some prison time on a few different occasions here. And unfortunately, like we see in so many other cases, if
this guy wouldn't have been let out on early release, well, this the yogurt shop murders would
not have been committed because he would have still been locked up in 1991, but he was let out early for reasons we that
will never make any sense to me. Anyway, in 1986, Brashers was convicted for beating and shooting a woman in Port St.
Lucy, Florida. For that, he was given a 10-year prison sentence in 1986. He served three and a half years in prison
for that. So, he was released May 4th of 1989. In April of 1990, Brashers brutally
raped and murdered Jenny Zriki in Greenville, South Carolina. >> That's the one that they got the DNA
from. >> In 1992, Brashers was arrested in Cobb County, Georgia for possession of a
stolen pistol and possession of a stolen vehicle. At the time of his arrest, he had a police scanner, a police coat or
jacket, burglary tools, and a fake Tennessee driver's license. So, he was driving around and ready and
willing to present himself as a police officer. We usually know how that goes and why
people do that sort of behavior. He was then sentenced to prison once again after being caught for this in '92
and he was released February 17th, 1997. So sometime between his release of May 4th, 1989, he managed to kill Jenny
Zistriki, and I I'm going to spell that because I'm probably not saying it exactly correct. It's Zi T R I C K I
before being arrested in ' 92. Well, we know that he was down in Austin, Texas, where he committed these the infamous
yogurt shop murders case. Now, he's released February 17th, 1997. And this is what we will typically see with these
types of offenders. Serial rapist, serial murderers. It's not going to be very long before he's going to be back
at it again. And this is March 11th, 1997. Less than 30 days after getting out of prison, Brashers entered a home
in Memphis, Tennessee, where he sexually assaulted a 14-year-old who was visiting friends at this home.
>> Yeah. Wasn't four victims were in that case. >> That's correct. There were four people
inside the home. He sexually assaulted one of the persons in the home. He fled the home and that case was unsolved for
quite some time as well. In March of 1998, so the following year, March 28th of 98, Brashers brutally murdered Sherry
Sherer and her 12-year-old daughter Megan. Sherry Sheerer and her 12-year-old daughter, Megan Sheerer. He shot them
multiple times. daughter was sexually assaulted. Until they solved that case in in South Carolina, this one wasn't
solved either. So, this is what's weird, dude. Like, we're seeing him from the after the exumation in where South
Carolina sled is involved. Solving that cold case connected him to a bunch of these other cases. Now, what we're
seeing today in 2025 out of Texas is the same thing. Brashers we now know did yogurt shop and there's
a case in Kentucky that they are working on with him. >> Yeah, that's kind of what sent them down
this rabbit hole is I guess the way you enter your ballistic information is is manually and so
there's been some errors. So, Detective Dan Jackson, this is in June of this year, decided, okay, well, you know, I
heard that there could be errors here, so I'm going to re-upload this information. That ballistic evidence
brings us to this case in Kentucky. And I think what's fascinating with this case is we have two guns that were used.
So, by there being two murder weapons, maybe you could assume that there's two suspects. But we had a what a 22 and um
380. But the 22 there's just fragments. There was no shell casings, but there was the shell casing of the 380 and the
drain. So they were able to run more ballistic evidence on on that shell casing >> with that sheer case.
This is just really exemplifies how violent this guy was. Later that same day, after committing a double homicide,
he attempted to force his way into a home in Dyresburg, Tennessee. There he encountered a 25-year-old mother who was
home with a small child who fought with Robert Brashers. She was shot in the doorway of her home. uh she survived and
provided a description to police. So if if you're staying up on this and you're aware of the news already, you've
probably seen some of the composite sketches of that are now linked to Brashers that are floating around. Now,
the projectile retrieved from her body was also later linked to the Sheerers murder. So they they had an idea that
those were connected, but until they solved the South Carolina case, that too, this case too remained unsolved.
And then in 1998, April 12, 1998, Brashers was arrested as he attempted to break into a single woman's home for
whom he had previously done handyman work for. Brashers had cut the phone lines to the home, was armed with a
firearm, had a video camera, and possessed other tools. He was released from custody the following day. And then
he goes on the run. [Music] [Music] >> All right, we are back. Cheers, mates. Thanks for joining us here in the
garage. And at least we're bringing good news this time. Cheers to you, Colonel.
Yes, thank you, Captain. Cheers to you, buddy. Um, yeah, always happy to bring good news. In fact, solve more of these
cases so we can bring more good news each and every wonderful week. So, it was there that his wrap sheet uh we'll
get more into brashers, but he's arrested for this B&E. I mean, I get it. I get it. There's there's
constitutional rights. The dude cut the phone lines, brought a gun with him and a video camera and other tools to the
scene, and he's released from custody the following day, goes on the run. And then January 13th, 1999,
the standoff shootout and uh takes place at that Super Eight motel in Kennet, Missouri, where
Brashers is found dead on the floor of the motel room after the standoff with police.
>> Yeah. I mean, I think the most fascinating thing here is obviously we have this individual's DNA,
but did he ever go to Texas? Is it It's not as simple as we got his DNA and there that's it. And I think especially
with what has taken place in this case, the families have the right to wonder where law enforcement is at here. And I
think they did a really good job during the press conference to stack the evidence to say it's not just this DNA
that is important here, but you can stack the evidence against Brasher. >> Yeah. And so I I got my notes here from
the press conference. So they started off when they giving us the presentation of how we got to where
we are today. And like you said, Captain, I'm with you. I appreciate that they went through some detailed
information because as you said, which is correct, a lot of times we hear in these cases, well, we've figured out who
did it. The DNA told us who did it, but um that's all we know. You know, we've we've still not been able to con to
connect the perpetrator to the victim or the victim to the perpetrator here in this case. and I'll go through my notes
from their presentation and maybe this will clear any questions up that that some folks may have or things they're
wondering about. Here says uh the modus opa was the perpetrator entered or remained
near yogurt shop at closing time when no other customers were present. The girls
were found nude and tied up with their own clothing as liatures and bindings. There was evidence of sexual assault at
the scene. All four victims were shot in the head execution style with a 22 caliber gun. Amy was also shot with a
380 caliber gun. The building was set on fire. The evidence collected, they said
in 1991 DNA technology was primitive. All girls had vaginal swabs taken for DNA testing, both at the scene and at
the autopsies, which the detective pointed out was paramount to their investigation and where they are today
with that investigation. One fired 380 cartridge casing was located in the floor drain. As the
captain pointed out, the other other casings were not located at the scene. The fire and the manner in which the
fire was extinguished made evidence collection extremely difficult. Tips and leads. There were thousands of tips and
dozens of confessions, but most led nowhere and no arrests were made. One of the confessions
was from a juvenile named Maurice Pierce. 8 days after the murders, Pierce was at the North Cross Mall with his
friend Forest Wellborn. He was carrying a .22 pistol in his waistband. Maurice Pierce, aged 16 at the time, was
arrested by Austin PD for having a gun at the mall. The 22 pistol was seized. Pierce was taken to the homicide office
and interrogated for hours by detective Hector Palano where Pierce confessed to Palanco. The
next morning, lead detective John Jones arrived at work and spoke to Pierce. Pierce confessed that he had lent the 22
pistol to a friend, Forest Wellorn, and that Wellbourne told Pierce he had killed the girls. When Wellbornne was
questioned, he mentioned to his two other friends, Robert Springsteen and Michael Scott. Those were the two that
were eventually tried and convicted, which is strange, as we've pointed out a couple times prior that Pierce and
Wellbborne were were the ones that were first arrested and and had some form of a confession, but those two, they
weren't able to even bring them to trial. They never brought them to trial. But if Blanco
wasn't so good at getting people to confess, this part of the case would have not
moved forward. And then also, if they would have had the ballistic evidence to test against the gun that Pierce was
found with at the at the mall, then the case wouldn't have gone any further either.
>> Right. And as they presented here today at the press conference, they say police
interviewed all four and they were eliminated. That was of course just weeks after the murders. And we know
that that will change. They said ballistics analyzed the 22 gun that was seized from Pierce at the mall to
determine if it was the same weapon used in the murders. Results were inconclusive as the projectiles were
highly fragmented slashdistorted. But remember publicly, not in ' 91, but what was it in 99? I
think publicly they were saying that it that the ballistics were a match, even though later we find out that they
weren't and in fact inconclusive at best. Says case had gone cold. The case stalled over the years and
personnel were scaled back during the mid90s. In 1999, a new yogurt shop task force revisited the Maurice Pierce
confession. Since 2008, numerous items were sent to numerous labs across the country with various testing strategies.
Most of the male DNA collected from the crime scene were only a few picoggrams and was a mixture with the victims. This
is where we get into some of the DNA stuff. And forgive me because I'm not a scientist. I don't even play one on TV
because that would be impossible. I'm not smart enough. 2018 the unknown YSTR samples were submitted for retesting due
to technical technological advancements. The unknown YSTR returned with 27 known
markers for a more complete profile and as the captain was saying 25 markers with two having double split as he said
uh to give 27 total. The YSTR identified identity remained unknown at that time.
The unknown YSTR profile was also found on other swabs taken from the girls. >> Yeah, I believe what Detective Dan
Jackson was saying is these YSTR samples aren't something that you can't can really put into CODS. You would have to
have a more complete filing, right? And it wouldn't be a YSTR sample. It' be a different sample that
would have to go into CODS. It could be >> correct. So for right because the COTUS
database is not a database of YSTR DNA. So therefore, if you put it in there, there's going to be no match. You'll
never get a hit because it's not a collection of that form of DNA. So you have to have the proper form of DNA to
submit it to Cotus in the hopes of getting a match. Uh, late June of 2025, according to Austin PD, Detective
Jackson, he's the current detective, he deserves a lot of kudos here, determined
that the 380 cartridge had not been submitted to the Nib, that's a database, in many years, and
software had greatly improved. >> Ballistic database. Yeah. Original Ballistics reported in all probability
the weapon used was limited to a an AMT backup model 380 semi-automatic handgun in the murder of Amy Heirs.
So remember they were all shot with a 22. Amy was shot with the the only one being shot with the 380. She's also the
one that they used her fingernail clippings to identify Robert Brashers as the killer. July 2nd, 2025. Uh the
detective requested submission submission of fired 380 cartridge casing through ATF TFO received a hit the same
afternoon to an unsolved murder in Kentucky. Now, they did go the detective went out of his way to say, you know, I
I I can't give too much information on the the Kentucky angle here because uh they're still working and they and
they haven't rather than me answer it, I'll let I'll answer from the detectives here from my notes. Kentucky cold case
homicide from 1998. They have not done their press release yet, so the actual city will not be named. Fair enough.
Right there. They do have some ballistic evidence and matches back, but the complete ballistic results have not come
back in the yogurt shop or this Kentucky case. So, both of these cases are going
to be waiting on those ballistics, but they're but because of the initial testing, they're pretty convinced of the
results that they're going to get. >> Yeah, exactly. And it will be interesting to see how that plays out
and what crime they're talking about as you know the 1998 Kentucky case doesn't not ringing any bells for me but
>> I think it's a single victim and I think it's a rape and murder and I believe the
victim was bound by her own clothes as well and I believe that the building was set on fire.
>> So very similar to the yogurt shop murders. >> Yeah. So what they're saying is that in
July of this year, Austin Police Department cold case and attorney general cold case investigators traveled
to Kentucky because they wanted to review the cases. They're like the captain's pointing out, they are
comparing notes on yogurt shop to the notes on this Kentucky case from 1998. They say their words are the murders
share a similar MO. And then they say preliminary NIB results the ballistics database indicate
a presumptive positive correlation between the two casings indicating the same gun was used. So same gun, the 380
used at Yogurt Shop was used in this Kentucky 1998 cold case. The Yogurt Shop 380 casing was brought to the Kentucky
State Police KSP. Shout out to our friends at KSP. We got a bunch of you that listen and we appreciate it. So
tool mark tool mark examiners could do a onetoone definitive comparison. It says official results are pending but
as said presumptive positive correlation. They believe that it's going to be a match. Aside from the MMO
and the ballistics hit, no obvious links were found between yogurt shop and the Kentucky murder. APB cold case Texas
attorney general's cold case unit and Kentucky PD Kentucky had only tested a cigarette butt from the scene and got an
unidentified Cotus profile. So in that case, they were testing DNA up in Kentucky. They submit it and we get an
unidentified COTUS profile. Testing strategy was developed to test. They noted additional
including an untested sexual assault kit was going to be tested. DNA testing had
not done a YSTR profile yet. So, Detective Jackson requested that they develop one from their evidence to see
if it matches the unknown profile. And this is interesting how this is playing out and what we're learning about what
was going on behind the scenes because many of you that followed this case over the years will remember that it was in
2028 and 2019 and then again reported in late 2020 about there was something going on with the DNA
in the yogurt shop case. And so here from the notes it says in 2018/209 a manual YSTR search was requested from
any lab that retained Y profiles on Kotus samples. At the time few Cotus labs were profiling YSTRS on Kotus
samples. At the time zero profiles matched our unknown YSTR. In 2025 more labs profile YSTRs and databases have
grown. August 2025. Detective Jackson requested a YSTR keyboard manual search from all labs in the US that keep YSTR
profiles. South Carolina State Lab was the only lab that responded that a complete YSTR match to the yogurt shop
YSTR was found. All others had no hits at that level. results were reviewed with for accuracy by South Carolina
legal department before the profile was released to Austin PD. So that's what he's talking about at the press
conference where he's like, "We get told that there's a match, but they say we can't tell you who it is." They had to
wait about 2 weeks. Could you imagine? You've already waited 33 years. You're you're trying to get some answers in
this case and you have to wait another two weeks. I bet that was a long two weeks in Detective Dan Jackson's life. I
wouldn't be able to sleep at night. Says August 22nd, 2025. They received South Carolina lab report that linked the
yogurt shop unknown YSTR to a known YSTR profile from a 1990 Greenville South Carolina sexual assault and murder. And
that is when they identified the unknown YSTR to be linked to Robert Eugene Brashers. Robert Eugene Brashers born
March 13th, 1958 in Newport News, Virginia and as said died in January January 19th of 1999 in Missouri. Yeah.
So the captains would had mentioned, let's tie this guy to the area at this time period more than just saying, "Hey,
we got the DNA of the guy that did it." So, a reminder, the yogurt shop murders occurred December 6th, 1991 around 11:00
p.m. So, sometime between closing the store at 11 p.m. and 11:42 p.m. when firefighters arrive on the scene and
start to extinguish flames coming from the back of the yogurt shop. December 8th, 1991,
less than 48 hours after the yogurt shop murders, Robert Eugene Brashers was stopped by border patrol
at a westbound checkpoint between El Paso and Los Cusus. Brashers was driving a stolen car from
the state of Georgia. Brashers was in possession of a 380 pistol. It was identified as an AMT 380 backup
model serial number A75213. This is the same make and model identified by Ballistics as the weapon
used in yogurt shop. So less than 48 hours after the homicides, he stopped somewhere between Texas and Los Cusus in
his possession. They find the murder weapon. >> Well, it goes a little deeper than that,
too, cuz you go, "Well, why is he in Austin at all?" Well, he was passing through Austin to go to Arizona to visit
his father, and then obviously he was heading back through Austin when he was pulled over. But we also know from, I
believe, his ex-wife and his daughter that he was known to travel and disappear for weeks at a time.
>> Yes. as as we mentioned, he had a wife and three kids, uh, as said at the time
of his suicide in 99. And apparently they when the cold case was solved in in South Carolina in I think that was 2018.
And then they started linking him to these other homicides, again, some of them in different states.
This was all sort of news to them, right? They they didn't know that he was committing these crimes. It's a little
unclear if they he was locked up and then released as we had said and then later locked up and released again. I'm
I'm certain that he they would have known of his later lock and release, but it's unclear if they were aware that he
had been in trouble for a violent crime, that violent crime down in St. Port St.
Port Lucy, Florida. Yeah, I believe the daughter said that sometimes her father would use aliases and sometimes the
mother would tell her, "You need to call your father by these different aliases."
So there there's probably some some of his criminal activity that that the the wife and the family were aware about.
And so he is after that stop, he is charged with autotheft and felony possession of a firearm. And I guess
later that gun was released to Brasher's father after Brasher was sentenced for this stolen car in illegal possession of
a firearm. So that puts him in the area. And I think there's stuff that's maybe less important evidence, but he was
known to carry multiple guns. He was known to tie up and bound his victims with their own clothing. So, I think
this just kind of adds to the pile. >> Yeah, absolutely. I mean, it fits it fits his emmo and and like we're saying
and like Austin PD saying when they go up to Kentucky and compare notes between a cold case up there and their cold case
down here where it looks like DNA is telling us that Brashers was involved in both and the crimes are very similar.
So, this has all the markings of of crimes he's committed before or since uh Yogurt Shop. And they go on to say with
evidence, speaking of evidence, Brasher's YSTR profile has been found in the following three Yogurt Shop YSTR
profiles, sexual assault kits from Jennifer Harbison, Sarah Harbison, and Amy Heirs. And we also know about the
fingernail clippings. One thing that that's not in my notes here, Captain, but but going off a
memory from the press conference, and I don't know exactly how this played out, uh, because it was kind of very quickly
discussed and they moved on, but remember when we've covered Go-Gurt Shop in the past, we've talked about items
that they know were missing from the crime scene. You know, one of them had a leather jacket. There was some clothing
and personal items that were uh whoever committed this took with them. It's presumed they took with them. The killer
did. The detective did mention that he believes that that somehow Brashers probably was able to discard some of
that stuff, right? He he he managed to get rid of it, but didn't get rid of the 380 gun that was found on him when he
was pulled over. just less than two days, less than 48 hours after the murders. >> And as far as the ballistics go, they
say it's a one toone ballistics report that's pending up in Kentucky, but they think that it's going to be a match. But
it was the ultimately the retesting, also some of the ballistics, but ultimately the retesting that resulted
in a an STR profile from the fingernail clippings of Amy Heirs. The STR profile was compared directly to Robert
Brasher's STR profile and matched. And that's a 2.5 million to one. >> Yeah. >> DN D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D
D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D DNA from the Kentucky murder was directly compared to Brashers cannot be
excluded is what they're saying at this time. So, we'll learn more about the Kentucky case because it sounds like
they will once they get that sorted out, they will be holding a press conference
as well. So, still still more to learn here uh about the perpetrator. Still learn more to learn about these other
crimes. We went through the crimes. As said, he he didn't face a conviction or jail time or prison time
for most for most of the crimes that he committed during his lifetime. They were not
known. that was not not known until after 1999, after he had already died. And it's it's really amazing that while
they tie him to a lot of these horrific and violent cases and murders years after he's dead, but in hindsight,
that's what, seven years ago, six years ago, >> but now more. Now more. So, a lot more
to there's probably going to be a lot more to learn about this Robert Brashers who just possessed the ability to go
stateto state and commit these horrible crimes and go undetected for all of those years. You know, sometimes when
you could ask if you could ask a killer, right, we we spent so much time recently
talking about Robert Wrestler and John Douglas interviewing these killers after the fact. the questions that you would
want to ask a killer, but here here you you have a dead killer. We can ask him questions, but wouldn't you want to
know, hey, when they knocked on the door at that motel in January of 1999 and saw
you hiding under the bed, what crime did you think they were knocking on the door
for? >> Which one of these horrific murders, rapes and murders, did was going through
your mind at the time while you're hiding under that bed? Was it all of them? Was it one of them? Was it none of
them? >> Yeah. I like what Bob Aries said because he This is Amy Aries father. He always had
this gut feeling that his daughter, yes, she was a victim, but but because his daughter was involved that somehow she
would be responsible for getting answers in this crime. And really, if she didn't
put up the fight that she put up, they might never got this DNA evidence underneath her fingernails. And then
also kudos to the detectives at the time when DNA evidence is not really a thing
to say, medical examiner, don't take them away yet. Let's let us get this DNA testing and then at the autopsy, let's
do another testing for DNA. Even though it wasn't really much of a thing at all at the
time of these crimes. >> And and I I want to be clear about something that I was dancing around when
we first clicked on the microphones here regarding this other DNA information. Let's call it information. I think
evidence would be would be an incorrect term at this time, especially when we're
hearing that look, this case may be solved. here's how we got to where we are and we're not talking about things
that were said, things that were printed prior to the last 48 hours or so. So, let's not call it evidence. Let's call
it information that that made its way out. >> If Brashers was the only person to
commit these murders, I have no problems with that at all. I can absolutely see how you get to those answers. The
science is telling us that he absolutely did do it. Did he do it with somebody else? What I what I would like to hear
and I think that we are owed this at this point, especially the families who sat through two trials, sat through two
convictions, two sentencing hearings, sat through watching those guys get released and sat through the press
conference here today and through years of torment and grief, a lot of sleepless
nights, a lot of heartache, but with information that did come out from law enforcement that says that there were
two unidentified male DNA profiles found at the crime scene found directly on the
victims. Just tell us how we got from two to now one. That's all right. Like we know how
we got here today and I'm so glad that we are here. I am so thankful that we are here and there will be
>> Yeah. I want to know if it was actual evidence or if it is speculation because
what we've seen in this case over and over is people following whatever narrative that they created in their
mind. And so I think it's possible to go, well, if you're the prosecutors and this DNA doesn't match the the four
suspects that we have that fit the narrative that we're trying to make everything fit. Well, then there must be
a another DNA sample. And then I think you could make the argument that the defense team could have done the
opposite by speculating that there was uh not just a mixture but possibly two complete samples. And so I one I would
like to know that I think we are owed that information because it it did come out at some point and um now we're being
told differently. I'm willing to accept that and I'm glad that we are here where we are today. I'm
glad that there's answers. I'm glad that thankful that the families are finally getting
some form of closure on this story in this case and their lost loved ones. The other thing that
I'm curious about too is now what has to be done with the two innocent men that were convicted because their
wrongful conviction lawsuits against the state of Texas were tossed because it was clear at the time that
while the charges were dropped and while they were convicted and released and charges dropped that they were never
exonerated. And therefore the the to the ability to win that lawsuit didn't have any legs because there was
no exoneration. >> So where do we sit now here with those two men who were featured
during the recent docue series? What is to be done with them? And um how does Texas try to write that wrong?
>> Yeah. But that also becomes I think difficult because their initial >> Oh, yes.
>> the the initial convictions are kind of based off of their own words. So I'm sure all those individuals wish
they could go back in time and most convictions are though, right? And so they wouldn't be the first people to
successfully win a lawsuit against a state that that put them away when >> Yeah. But
>> it was their words that >> that's just strange to me. Like we're we're going to punish the the state for
getting individuals to say they committed a crime that they didn't commit. It's a little bizarre.
>> Oh yeah. There's I mean there's not been anything in this case that hasn't been
difficult. >> Yeah. And I think one of the things, and maybe it's not just DNA, but one of the
things that might point to Brasher solely responsible is when he was initially arrested 2 days after the
crimes, he was traveling by himself. >> He's by himself. He's by himself. And there are
>> And there's also other crimes he committed that had multiple victims. So it wasn't
>> and he was by himself in those ones as well. >> Or at least that's what the evidence is
is telling us. And and in some of those cases there's living witnesses who are telling us that as well that he was that
that seems to be his mo. So if if here there there was another person involved, uh that would be a big break from his
typical MO. And it and it doesn't it doesn't seem to ring true with what we the little that we currently know about
him. It doesn't seem to ring true that that there would be somebody else involved. And it seems like he would hit
the road for periods of time and look to commit these horrible horrific murders that
>> kind of spontaneous. >> Yeah, a little spontaneous. But they all seem to always involve some form of rape
and robbery. uh theft. So, I I hate to try to crawl into the mind of these maniacs, but it's you wonder
was it what what was fueling what, you know, was it the was it the the sexual assault slash greed
that was driving the murders? Because we know in some cases he did he did uh rob and and rape and didn't kill.
But we know a lot of times he did kill. So it's difficult to sort out what was fueling what what was fueling him at
all. Why anybody would do any of this stuff is is foreign to us, >> of course. >> But then to travel, he's traveling from
state to state. He was a carpenter. Um and I'm guessing he's leaving his wife and kids under the ruse of he's going
out and working. I got a job. I'm going to be gone for two weeks or three weeks.
that could have put him anywhere anywhere for a good amount of time. >> Kind of Israel key.
>> And now Yes. Yes. >> The other question that maybe will be answered one day. And one of the biggest
riddles of this case that me and me me and you were both fascinated with was that there was two individuals that were
seen at the yogurt shop to customers and those individuals never came forward. Now, I've never made argument
>> and and have not been identified. >> Right. I I would never make the argument
that they should come forward because if they were local to the area, they would
have heard pretty quickly that they were investigating people, interrogating people, getting people to confess.
So the if you're this young kid and you had nothing to do with the crimes and you know that well maybe you don't want
to get involved just because what could happen to you. But now that we possibly have a definitive answer, maybe these
individuals will eventually come forward and say, "Yeah, we were there and we had
nothing to do with the crime. [Music]

Yogurt Shop Murders ////// UPDATE

Part 1 of 1

www.TrueCrimeGarage.com

After more than 33 years we finally get some closure in the infamous Yogurt Shop Murders case that has haunted Austin Texas since that sad and tragic night when four teen girls were brutally murdered. From The Austin Police Department - Austin Police have made a significant breakthrough in the 1991 I Can’t Believe It’s Yogurt murder case and we have new information. Our team never gave up working this case. For almost 34 years they have worked tirelessly and remained committed to solving this case for the families of Jennifer Harbison, Sarah Harbison, Eliza Thomas, and Amy Ayers, all innocent lives taken senselessly and far too soon. We have identified a suspect in these murders through a wide range of DNA testing. The suspect is Robert Eugene Brashers, who committed suicide in 1999. This remains an open and ongoing investigation.

Previous True Crime Garage Yogurt Shop Murders coverage:

The Yogurt Shop Murders - episodes #81 & #82

Yogurt Shop Murders - 30 Years Later - episodes #539 & #540

The Yogurt Shop Murders - episodes #866 & #867

Be Good, Be Kind, and Don’t Litter!

Thanks for listening and thanks for telling a friend. Cheers.

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Brief Summary

The yogurt shop murders case sees a breakthrough with Robert Eugene Brashers identified as a suspect through DNA evidence.

Key points

Robert Eugene Brashers Identified. The suspect in the yogurt shop murders has been identified as Robert Eugene Brashers, who died in 1999.
The Tragic Details. Four teenage girls were brutally murdered in a yogurt shop in 1991, leaving families devastated.
Yogurt Shop Murders Breakthrough. After over three decades, investigators believe they have identified a suspect in the case.
Brashers' Violent History. Less than 30 days after being released from prison, Brashers assaulted a 14-year-old girl.
Connection to Cold Cases. Brashers was linked to multiple cold cases after DNA evidence was revisited.
Breakthrough in DNA Evidence. In August 2025, DNA linked Brashers to the yogurt shop murders, solving a 33-year-old case.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

This is huge news for the true crime world.

Announcing the breakthrough in the yogurt shop case.

3:04WatchSep 30, 2025

Tension

75/ 100High tension

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