Death Row Fugitive: Unsolved Mysteries

You Can’t Make This Up

In 1965, repeat sex-offender Lester Eubanks confessed to killing 14-year-old Mary Ellen Deener and was sentenced to death. However, Lester's sentence reverted to life in prison when a 1972 Supreme Court ruling abolished the death penalty. While in prison, he joined a program allowing inmates to leave the grounds. Around a year later, while on a Christmas shopping trip to the mall, Eubanks escaped. He remains a fugitive nearly 50 years later.

"Death Row Fugitive" is the third episode of Unsolved Mysteries, Volume 2. In this episode of You Can't Make This Up, our host Rebecca Lavoie (Crime Writers On...) speaks with Unsolved Mysteries series executive producer and director of "Death Row Fugitive," Robert Wise. Rebecca will also dive into conversation with her husband Kevin Flynn (Crime Writers On...) as they discuss their own reactions to this episode.

Loyal fans of Unsolved Mysteries might remember these words from the late and irreplaceable former host of the show, Robert Stack, “For every mystery, someone somewhere knows the truth. Perhaps that person is someone listening. Perhaps it’s you.”

If you have any leads on where Lester Eubanks is, go to https://unsolved.com/home/ to share tips, or to learn more about the extensive amount of other mysteries covered by the series. Note to listeners: This episode contains spoilers. So make sure to watch the entire episode before listening on. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, our guest was recorded in his home and not in a studio. We appreciate your understanding. Stay tuned for our next episode on Unsolved Mysteries: Volume 2, " Tsunami Spirits."