The 1991 Austin Yogurt Shop Killings

Some crimes shake a city to its core. The Austin yogurt shop murders did just that. On December 6, 1991, four teenage girls were brutally killed inside an I Can't Believe It's Yogurt! shop in Austin, Texas. More than three decades later, the case remains one of the most haunting unsolved crimes in the state's history.

A Night That Should Have Been Ordinary

The victims were 17-year-old Jennifer Harbison, her 15-year-old sister Sarah Harbison, 17-year-old Eliza Thomas, and 13-year-old Amy Ayers. Jennifer and Eliza were working their shift at the yogurt shop that evening, while Sarah and Amy stopped by to hang out before heading to a sleepover. None of them knew that they were about to become the victims of a horrific crime.

At 11:47 p.m., firefighters responded to a fire at the yogurt shop. Once the flames were put out, they made a gruesome discovery. The bodies of the four girls were found inside. They had been bound, gagged, and shot execution-style in the head. Amy Ayers, the youngest, had suffered a second gunshot wound, suggesting she might have still been alive after the first round of gunfire. The fire had been intentionally set to destroy evidence, making it even harder to track down the killers.

A Case Full of Twists and Dead Ends

Investigators immediately launched a massive manhunt. The crime scene was chaotic, with crucial evidence destroyed by the fire. Police interviewed hundreds of suspects, but no clear leads emerged in the early days of the investigation. The city of Austin was in shock. Parents feared for their children's safety, and businesses started closing earlier, afraid that such brutality could strike again.

Years passed without any arrests. Then, in 1999, nearly eight years later, police announced they had cracked the case. Four men were arrested: Maurice Pierce, Forrest Welborn, Michael Scott, and Robert Springsteen. Pierce had been questioned back in 1991 after being caught with a gun that was similar to the one used in the crime, but police let him go. Later, Scott and Springsteen confessed to the murders during intense interrogations. However, their confessions quickly came under scrutiny. Both men claimed they had been coerced into confessing under extreme pressure from detectives. There was no physical evidence linking them to the crime scene, yet they were convicted. Springsteen was sentenced to death in 2001, while Scott received life in prison in 2002.

Their convictions did not last. In 2009, both men were released after DNA testing failed to connect them to the murders. The DNA found on one of the victims did not match any of the four men accused, forcing the court to dismiss the charges. This left the case wide open once again.

Still Searching for Answers

With the case back to square one, authorities have struggled to find new leads. The DNA evidence from the crime scene is one of the few remaining pieces of hope in solving the case, but so far, it has not matched any known offenders in the FBI's database. Investigators have not given up, but time is working against them. As the years pass, memories fade, witnesses disappear, and the likelihood of solving the case decreases.

The families of the victims continue to push for justice. They have never stopped seeking answers, hoping that one day, the killers will be found and held accountable. Despite multiple suspects being investigated over the years, no one has been conclusively linked to the crime.

The Austin yogurt shop murders remain one of Texas' most chilling unsolved crimes. What happened in that shop on December 6, 1991, is still a mystery, and until the killers are found, the case will continue to haunt the city of Austin.