Between 1976 and 1977, the peaceful suburban communities of Oakland County, Michigan, were gripped by fear as a series of brutal child murders shocked the area. The unknown perpetrator, who came to be known as the Oakland Child Killer, also referred to as The Babysitter, The Babysitter Killer, or The Snow Murderer, left a trail of devastation that continues to haunt the community nearly five decades later.
A String of Tragic Losses
The first known victim was 12-year-old Mark Douglas Stebbins from Ferndale, Michigan. On February 15, 1976, Mark was last seen leaving the American Legion, where he had spent the afternoon. He called his mother around 1:30 PM to let her know he was on his way home but never arrived. His disappearance was reported later that evening.
Four days later, Mark's body was discovered by a businessman in an office parking lot, lying on a pile of logs. Initially mistaking the body for a mannequin, the man quickly realized the horrifying truth and alerted the authorities. Mark was found in the same clothes he had been wearing when last seen—blue jeans and a blue jacket. His small frame, under five feet tall and weighing about 100 pounds, had been subjected to terrible abuse. Mark had been sexually assaulted, strangled, and had sustained head wounds and rope burns, indicating he had been bound and held captive before his murder. The autopsy, however, was compromised when Mark's body was washed before the examination, potentially destroying crucial evidence.
The second confirmed victim, 12-year-old Jill Robinson from Royal Oak, was last seen on December 22, 1976, after a disagreement with her mother over dinner preparations. After leaving her home, Jill was spotted at a local craft store and later at a donut shop the following morning. Her bike was found behind a local store, but her body was not discovered until December 26, on the side of a highway in Troy, Michigan. Jill had been shot in the face, and like Mark, her body was left in a public area, fully clothed and still wearing her backpack.
The nightmare continued with the abduction of 10-year-old Kristine Marie Minerich from Berkley, Michigan. On January 2, 1977, Kristine went to a local 7-Eleven and never returned home. Her body was found 19 days later on a snowbank in a rural area of Franklin Village. Kristine had been smothered to death, and her body was so frozen that the autopsy had to be delayed for a day to allow it to thaw.
The final confirmed victim, 11-year-old Timothy King from Birmingham, Michigan, disappeared on March 16, 1977, after borrowing 30 cents from his sister to buy candy at a local pharmacy. Tim was a well-known boy in the community, active in basketball and school plays. His disappearance sparked a massive search effort around the Detroit area. Tragically, his body was found on March 22 by two teenagers in a drainage ditch in Livonia. Like Mark, Tim had been sexually assaulted and suffocated. His last meal was his favorite—KFC, suggesting he had been fed and cared for before his death. Tim’s body was clean, and his skateboard was found nearby.
The Hunt for the Killer
Despite the horrific nature of these crimes, the Oakland Child Killer remains unidentified. The investigation, one of the largest in U.S. history at the time, generated over 20,000 tips and accumulated 500,000 pages of notes. A task force was formed following Timothy King’s disappearance, which received over 11,000 tips, but despite the efforts, no conclusive answers have been found.
Over the years, several suspects have been considered. One of the most notable was Archibald Sloan, a convicted pedophile whose 1966 Pontiac Bonneville was searched by investigators. A hair found in Sloan’s car matched the DNA tied to both Mark and Tim’s murders. However, the hair did not belong to Sloan, leading authorities to believe that while he may have known the killer, he was not the perpetrator himself.
Another suspect was Christopher Busch, a convicted pedophile who was implicated by another offender, Gregory Greene. Busch, who committed suicide in 1978, was long suspected by the families of the victims, but in 2012, police confirmed that there was no DNA evidence linking him to the crimes.
An unsettling theory also emerged suggesting that John Wayne Gacy, one of America’s most infamous serial killers, might have been involved. Gacy was known to have spent time in Michigan during the 1970s, but investigators could not conclusively connect him to the Oakland Child Killer.
Unanswered Questions and Lingering Fears
The Oakland Child Killer case remains open, with investigators still pursuing leads and testing new evidence as forensic technology advances. Some believe there may have been as many as 11 victims, although only four have been officially linked to the case. Among the suspected victims are Donna Serra, Jane Allen, and Kimberly King, each with tragic stories that share chilling similarities with the confirmed victims.
The case’s complexity and the lack of conclusive evidence have left it unsolved for nearly half a century. The families of the victims, particularly those like Mark Stebbins' brother Michael, who was interviewed in 2021, continue to seek answers. Michael has been waiting for 45 years to know what happened to his brother, and like so many others affected by these crimes, he deserves closure.
Ongoing Investigation
As of 2023, the case is still being actively investigated. Anyone with information is urged to contact the Michigan State Police at 1-855-MICHTIP. Though the task force has been dissolved, the hope remains that justice will eventually be served, bringing peace to the families who have suffered for so long.
For those interested in delving deeper into this case, Marney Rich Keenan’s book The Snow Killings offers a comprehensive look at the investigation and the ongoing search for answers.
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