In the quiet, rural community of Gaston, Oregon, the summer of 1977 was shattered by a brutal and calculated act of violence. On August 7, Gary Seslar, a 19-year-old male, was found murdered, the victim of an execution-style shooting. He was not the only one to lose his life that day. Alongside him were Margo Compton, 24, her twin 6-year-old daughters, Sylvia and Sandra, and Seslar, who was the son of Margo's boyfriend. All four had been shot in the head in what would become a long and complex murder investigation. The scene that greeted authorities was one of unimaginable horror. The young twin girls were found in their beds, clutching their teddy bears.
The motive for this horrific crime stretched back to Margo Compton's courageous decision to testify against members of the Hells Angels motorcycle gang in a San Francisco pimping trial. This act of standing up for what was right had marked her for death. The investigation into the quadruple homicide would span nearly two decades, a testament to the dedication of law enforcement, particularly Detective Sergeant Mike Graham, who relentlessly pursued justice for the victims. For years, the case remained cold, a dark shadow hanging over the small Oregon town.
A significant breakthrough finally came when a prison informant, Michael Thompson, a leader of the Aryan Brotherhood, provided crucial information. Thompson revealed that Odis "Buck" Garrett, a leader in the Vallejo chapter of the Hells Angels, had confessed to ordering the killings. Garrett had sought to do business with Thompson, who refused, citing the rumors of Garrett's involvement in the murder of children. Garrett admitted to ordering the hit and named Robert G. "Bugeye" McClure, a Hells Angels associate, as the triggerman.
This new information revitalized the investigation and ultimately led to the arrests of those responsible. In 1994, Robert McClure was tried and convicted for carrying out the four murders. He was sentenced to four consecutive life terms in prison. The following year, Odis "Buck" Garrett was also found guilty of four counts of murder for orchestrating the killings from behind the scenes. He too received four life sentences, finally bringing a measure of closure to a case that had haunted a community for eighteen long years.
