Details surrounding an unimaginable tragedy have come to light.
More than three decades after four teenage girls were murdered inside a Texas frozen yogurt shop, which was also set on fire, authorities announced that they had made a breakthrough in the case.
"We have identified a suspect in these murders through a wide range of DNA testing," the Austin Police Department shared in a Sept. 26 press release. "The suspect is Robert Eugene Brashers, who committed suicide in 1999. This remains an open and ongoing investigation."
"Our team never gave up working this case," the statement explained. "For almost 34 years, they have worked tirelessly and remained committed to solving this case."
Decades after Brashers died during a four-hour standoff with police in Missouri, authorities had linked his DNA to other murders and rapes. In 2018, Missouri police announced that investigators linked the 40-year-old to three killings as well as the 1997 rape of a 14-year-old girl in Memphis.
In December 1991, the Austin PD and Fire Department responded to a fire at an I Can't Believe It's Not Yogurt shop, where the "badly burned" bodies of Eliza Thomas, 17; Jennifer Harbison, 17; Sarah Harbison, 15; and Amy Ayers, 13, were discovered, according to FBI documents previously obtained by E! News.
"The four victims were bound and murdered following the apparent robbery of the business," the filing stated. "A fire was then started at the business location in an apparent attempt to destroy any/all evidence."
Jennifer and Eliza, both employees at the frozen yogurt shop, were closing up when Sarah and her best friend Amy arrived to get a ride home. The assailant had snuck in through the back door before shooting them each in the head.
The autopsy report, obtained by the Associated Press, revealed that the teens' hands were tied with underwear and their mouths were gagged with cloth. Ayers was also shot twice.
Investigation into the murders—which garnered renewed attention following HBO Max's August docuseries—had been complicated as authorities sifted through badly damaged evidence, false confessions and thousands of leads.
Initially, four men were arrested on murder charges, with the then-teens Robert Springsteen and Michael Scott ultimately confessing to the crimes. However, both recanted their statements, alleging that they were made under police pressure.
Eventually, both were convicted, with Springsteen being sentenced to death row in 2001 before it was reduced to life in prison. His conviction was overturned in 2006 after the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals found that his confession was improperly used without cross-examination. Meanwhile, Scott, who was sentenced in 2002, had his conviction overturned in 2007 on similar grounds.
As the Austin PD continues to investigate the case, keep reading for more unsolved cases that shocked the nation.
JonBenét Ramsey
The 6-year-old pageant star was brutally murdered at her Colorado home on Christmas 1996. Her parents, brother and more have all been suspects, but to this day no one really knows who killed JonBenét.
Nicole Brown Simpson & Ron Goldman
O.J. Simpson, who died in April 2024 after a battle with cancer, was found guilty in a civil trial of both 1994 murders, but in the criminal trial, the jury acquitted him. Technically, in the eyes of the law, the famous NFL player didn't do it, so their murderer remains unknown (and perhaps at large).
Tupac Shakur
Depending on whom you ask, someone might say Tupac is still alive. But the "Changes" rapper was murdered in 1996, and the investigation is still unsolved.
Notorious B.I.G.
About a year and a half after Tupac, Biggie Smalls was shot four times in a drive-by shooting. His killer still remains unknown.
Caylee Anthony
Casey Anthony, Caylee's mother, went through a highly publicized trial only to be found not guilty of her daughter's murder. As a result, it's still unknown who murdered this little girl.
Elizabeth Short a.k.a. The Black Dahlia
Short, who was murdered in 1947, and the mystery surrounding her death became an instant media sensation. She received "The Black Dahlia" moniker posthumously, but to this day, her killer remains unknown.
Andrew Borden & Abby Borden
This couple was brutally murdered with an axe in 1892, but it was their daughter, Lizzie Borden, who was tried and acquitted for the crime. The deaths of Andrew Borden and Abby Borden were never solved.
Jack the Ripper
In 1888, an unknown serial killer hit the streets of London. More than 100 years later, the identity of Jack the Ripper remains unknown.
The Chicago Tylenol Murders
These murders were a series of poisoning deaths resulting from drug tampering in Chicago in 1982. The victims, who included children, had all taken Tylenol-branded acetaminophen capsules that had been laced with potassium cyanide. A total of seven people died in the original poisonings, with several more deaths in subsequent copycat crimes. The person responsible is still unknown.
The Zodiac Killer
He was a serial killer who acted in Northern California in the late 1960s and early 1970s, but his identity still remains unknown. The killer originated the name "Zodiac" in a series of taunting letters sent to the local Bay Area press. These letters included four cryptograms (or ciphers). Of the four cryptograms sent, only one has been definitively solved.