On a fateful December 31, 1964, what began as a routine family trip took a dark turn into local infamy. A couple from Rochester, en route to visit relatives and traveling north on Interstate 81, innocently pulled into a rest stop just north of Bradley Street in Watertown, New York. Unbeknownst to them, this ordinary roadside stop was a fresh crime scene, the grim location of a gangland-style triple murder that had just unfolded moments before. This was the night the Egan family was brutally murdered at a rest stop, a crime that would haunt Watertown for decades.
Daniel Bower, co-author of The Jefferson County Egan Murders, sheds light on the calculated nature of the crime. “Peter was the only intended victim,” Bower explained, highlighting the ruthless precision of the attack. “Gerald went down to the rest area. Barbara was supposed to live.” This detail underscores the cold-blooded intent behind the violence, initially targeting Peter Egan but ultimately claiming three lives.
The Egan brothers, Peter and Gerald, along with Peter’s wife Barbara, were Watertown residents with a notorious local reputation. As Boyer described, “The Egans, they were petty thieves. Pimps, prostitutes, liars, cheaters, pretty bad people.” Their involvement in petty crime and the underworld painted a picture of individuals entangled in dangerous activities, making them potential targets for more serious criminals.
The night of the murders was orchestrated under the guise of a lucrative heist. “The Egans were lured down to the rest area that night on the premise they were going to hijack a liquor truck carrying $16,000 worth of liquor,” Boyer revealed. This setup, designed to entice the Egans, was orchestrated by James Pickett, a supposed criminal associate they trusted. However, Pickett’s allegiance was with Joe Leone, a key player in a major burglary ring, and the plan was far more sinister than a simple liquor truck hijacking.
Leone’s motives were far graver than eliminating rivals in petty crime. Boyer stated, “Joe Leone told him at the Red Moon Diner that he was going to have to do away with the Egans on a count that they knew enough to put them all away.” This chilling statement suggests the Egans possessed information that threatened to expose Leone’s larger criminal enterprise, sealing their fate.
In the immediate aftermath of the Egan Family Murdered At A Rest Stop, the only witness to the horrific crime was Barbara’s dog. Despite the lack of human witnesses, law enforcement swiftly began piecing together the puzzle. Dave Shampine, Bower’s co-author, noted the rapid progress, “Within the first couple of days they were questioning who were involved in the burglaries, including Joe Leone.” The police investigation quickly zeroed in on individuals connected to the local burglary scene, with Joe Leone emerging as a prime suspect early on.
However, securing justice for the Egan family proved to be a protracted and frustrating process. It took three years for the police to accumulate sufficient evidence to apprehend Leone. His trial commenced two years later, in January 1970, but District Attorney Bill McClusky faced an uphill battle from the outset.
The complexities of the case were compounded by the implication of a second gunman, Willard Belcher, who was identified but never charged after being deemed criminally insane. Crucial evidence, including recordings from a bug planted in Belcher’s residence and Leone’s failed lie detector test, were dismissed, weakening the prosecution’s case. Adding to the challenges, rumors circulated of jury intimidation by Leone’s associates, creating an atmosphere of fear and uncertainty. Ultimately, Joe Leone walked free, declared not guilty, leaving the courtroom a free man despite the overwhelming suspicion against him.
Shampine reflected on the trial’s outcome, stating, “McClusky, I think, was basically left with the word of one outlaw against another outlaw.” The case became a quagmire of conflicting testimonies and inadmissible evidence, highlighting the difficulties of prosecuting crimes within the shadowy world of organized crime.
Despite the lack of a formal conviction, police closed the case, sealing the files with the firm conviction that Leone was indeed the killer. The authors of The Jefferson County Egan Murders share this certainty, and through their book tour, they aim to bring a sense of closure to Watertown’s long-standing “crime of the century,” albeit outside the confines of the courtroom.
Joe Leone has since passed away, taking the full truth of the Egan family murdered at a rest stop with him. While an official conviction remains elusive, accounts suggest Leone later confessed to the killings, offering a chilling, albeit unofficial, resolution to the tragic case.
Daniel Boyer’s personal connection to the case adds another layer to this already haunting narrative. He recounts a childhood memory of waiting for the Wonder Bread truck driver who regularly gave him donuts. When the driver suddenly disappeared, a new driver revealed the reason: the original driver, Joe Leone, had been arrested for the Egan Murders. This anecdote brings the chilling reality of the Egan murders into sharp focus, illustrating how deeply the crime impacted the Watertown community.
In the years between the murders and Leone’s arrest, fear gripped Watertown. The community lived with the unsettling knowledge that a triple murderer was at large. However, unbeknownst to most, law enforcement had identified Leone as the primary suspect early in their investigation and were diligently monitoring him and building their case, even as the Egan family murdered at a rest stop became a chilling unsolved mystery in the public eye.
