The morning of October 23, 1980, began like any other for James E. Wood, the dedicated 51-year-old manager of Pope's Cafeteria at the West County Center mall in Des Peres, Missouri. A responsible leader, he was starting another workday alongside his staff, unaware that his life, and the lives of three of his colleagues, were about to be tragically cut short in what would become one of the most infamous crimes in St. Louis County history. The city of Des Peres had not recorded a single homicide since its incorporation in 1934, but that was about to change in a brutal and shocking way.
Around 7:45 a.m., before the cafeteria opened, two employees arrived for their shift and were met with a horrific scene. Inside the manager's office, they found blood and the bodies of their coworkers. They immediately flagged down a passing police car. Responding officers discovered Mr. Wood and three other employees on the floor of the office, all victims of gunshot wounds. James E.
Wood, a male, was pronounced dead at the scene, along with cooks Edna Ince, 68, and Carolyn Turner, 51. A fourth victim, 37-year-old Judy Cazaco, was found alive but had been shot in the head and eyes. She was rushed to a hospital but succumbed to her injuries ten days later. Investigators quickly determined that the motive was robbery, as several thousand dollars had been stolen from the office safe.
The investigation into the quadruple homicide was intensive. The Major Case Squad of Greater St. Louis was called in to assist the Des Peres Police Department. Suspicion eventually fell on Maurice Oscar Byrd, a 25-year-old former pest-control worker whose route had included Pope's Cafeteria. This familiarity meant Byrd knew the layout of the business. Investigators learned that on the morning of the murders, Byrd had called in sick to his job and promptly disappeared, failing to even collect his final paycheck. He had left the St. Louis area and traveled to Georgia, where he suddenly had a large amount of cash.
The break in the case came several months later when Byrd was arrested in Savannah, Georgia, for the murder of a liquor store employee. While in custody in Georgia, Byrd confessed to the Pope's Cafeteria murders. He was extradited to Missouri and, in June 1981, was charged with four counts of capital murder. During his trial in August 1982, the prosecution presented evidence of his connection to the cafeteria, his sudden flight from Missouri, and his confessions to fellow inmates. Byrd testified in his own defense, claiming he was innocent and that the money he had came from other sources.
On August 14, 1982, a St. Louis County jury found Maurice Oscar Byrd guilty on all four counts of capital murder. The jury recommended the death penalty for each of the killings. In December of that year, a judge formally sentenced Byrd to death. Byrd was a serial killer, proven to have killed at least five people between 1980 and 1981. His method was shooting his victims, often in an execution-style manner.
After years of appeals, all of which were denied, justice for James Wood and his murdered colleagues was carried out. On August 23, 1991, Maurice Oscar Byrd, 36, was executed by lethal injection at the Potosi Correctional Center. He declined to make a final statement. Following the execution, Missouri Governor John Ashcroft issued a statement saying, "Justice has been served. This regrettable event is necessary to reaffirm the value the state of Missouri places on innocent human life." The brutal robbery and murders left a lasting scar on the community and the families of the victims, who lost their loved ones in a senseless act of violence during what should have been a routine morning at work.
