Bone fragments found at Indiana 'serial killer' farm but murderer not charged

Herb Baumeister's 18-acre property in Westfield, north of Indianapolis (Image: WTHR)

It was a horrifying crime committed by one of America's most notorious serial killers - one that has haunted all those who encountered it for decades.

The chilling scene of terror yielded a staggering 10,000 pieces of burnt bone fragments and the full extent of the killer's victims remains unknown to this day.

Nearly three decades after Herb Baumeister's makeshift graveyard was unearthed on his Indiana farm, investigators have confirmed yet another victim has been identified.

Daniel Thomas Halloran was named as the 10th person identified as one of Baumeister's victims by Hamilton County Coroner Jeff Jellison in 2025, according to DNA Solves.

Baumeister is believed to have claimed the lives of at least 25 people between the late 1980s and the early 1990s, predominantly targeting gay men in the Indianapolis suburb of Westfield, reports the Daily Star.

Daniel Thomas Halloran was the 10th victim to be identified (Image: Othram)

The depraved killer lured his victims to Fox Hollow Farm, where he murdered them and disposed of their remains across the property.

Jellison told 13News that Halloran's identification came as a complete surprise. "He was an individual that was not on our radar," Jellison said. "We didn't know anything about him."

Halloran was identified using "advanced forensic testing" and genetic genealogy by Othram, a Texas-based forensic genealogy laboratory. Born in 1972, the exact date of Halloran's death is still undetermined.

"This is a significant development in our ongoing efforts to provide answers to the families of those who went missing," Jellison stated. "We are grateful for the expertise of Othram and the advances in forensic science that made this possible."

Herb Baumeister killed many men - 10 are now identified (Image: Indianapolis Police Department)

Halloran had no surviving parents or siblings. His mother passed away from an overdose, and the Indianapolis coroner had a DNA card for her, which they "were able to do the comparison of the DNA from the remains to the mother's DNA and lock in that identification," Jellison explained.

"We went through most of the investigation without even knowing he had a daughter," he noted. Halloran's daughter, Coral, 33, was just two when her father left, meaning she never had the chance to know him. "I feel kind of like I'm mourning," Coral expressed.

"All my life, I kind of expected my dad to be around and one day hoping he'd come try to find me."

Coral revealed her mother engaged a private investigator in an attempt to locate him, though they all harbored suspicions that Baumeister was responsible.

"It makes me sick and weary to my stomach, having to know my dad was brutally murdered," Coral shared. "It's hard. And for all the other victims out there, their families, I'm with them. I'm praying hard for them."

Baumeister was only apprehended after his 15 year old son uncovered burned bone fragments and human skulls in 1994.

Investigators then uncovered a massive amount of evidence; bone fragments, a skull and teeth. Authorities conducted a search of the property during Baumeister's absence, and excavated the remains of multiple victims, resulting in an arrest warrant.

Baumeister was named as a suspect by police in 1996, prompting him to flee to Ontario, Canada, where he fatally shot himself and tragically never faced charges for his heinous crimes.

His suicide note contained no confession to any murders. Additional remains continued to be uncovered following his death, and in 2022, Jellison said he aimed to identify every last victim buried on the farm.

The 18 acre farm was home to thousands of human bone fragments (Image: Google Maps)

"We now know we have four more people, with Halloran and three unidentified DNA profiles," Jellison said.

"That has all come about in a two-to-three-month time period."

The other nine victims who have been identified are Jeffrey Allen "Jeff" Jones, Allen Lee Livingston, Manuel Resendez, John Lee "Johnny" Bayer, Richard Douglas Hamilton Jr. , Steven Spurlin Hale, Allen Wayne Broussard, Roger Allen Goodlet and Michael Frederick "Mike" Keirn.

Jellison urges any relative of someone who disappeared in the 1980s or 1990s to step forward and provide their DNA for genetic testing.

Source: Crime