On a grim day in Detroit's Cass Corridor neighborhood, the body of 16-year-old Julie Brown was discovered on April 24, 1975. A young African-American female, her life was cut short in a brutal fashion, becoming the second victim in a series of seven murders that terrorized the city between February and October of that year. The perpetrator, who remained elusive, would come to be known as the 'Bigfoot Killer.'
The killer's method was chillingly consistent.
He targeted young women, luring them into his beige Oldsmobile with promises of money for sexual services. Once inside the vehicle, the friendly facade would drop, replaced by threats with a knife. The victims were then subjected to physical assault, rape, and sodomy before being strangled to death. The moniker 'Bigfoot Killer' emerged from witness descriptions of the assailant as a tall, muscular African-American male, estimated to be between 30 and 35 years old, with a distinct afro hairstyle and noticeably large hands and feet. This physical characteristic led investigators to theorize that the killer might have acromegaly, a hormonal disorder that can cause abnormal growth in the extremities.
A significant break in the case appeared to come on January 27, 1976, when a 29-year-old Detroit man named Carl Mayweather Jr. was arrested during an attempted rape in the nearby city of River Rouge. Mayweather, who was also African-American, matched the physical description of the 'Bigfoot Killer,' including his tall stature and large shoe size, making him an immediate and promising suspect.
However, the hope for justice for Julie Brown and the other victims was short-lived. A thorough investigation into Mayweather's background and whereabouts during the time of the murders revealed that he had credible alibis for at least four of the seven killings, including Julie's. With this new information, he was cleared of any involvement in her death and the other murders attributed to the 'Bigfoot Killer.' To this day, the murder of Julie Brown remains unsolved, and the identity of the 'Bigfoot Killer' is a chilling mystery that continues to haunt the city of Detroit.
