On the evening of May 29, 2021, 38-year-old Krystle Layne Buhl finished her shift at Famous Dave’s in Branson and walked to the parking lot with co-worker 39-year-old Richard A. McMahan. As they reached a vehicle they were approached by a stranger who demanded money. The encounter escalated and the assailant shot both employees in the head. Officers found both victims with gunshot wounds; one was pronounced dead at the scene and the other later died at a hospital.

Authorities identified Miguel Angel Melendez-Torres and a 26-year-old female associate as persons of interest. The pair were linked to an armed robbery in downtown Branson days earlier. The woman was arrested in St. Augustine, Florida, on September 30, 2021, and Melendez-Torres was captured in the Boston area on October 5, 2021. Prosecutors charged Melendez-Torres with two counts of second-degree murder, first-degree armed robbery, and armed criminal action; the female associate faced first-degree armed robbery charges. In June 2024 the victims’ mothers filed a civil suit against Melendez-Torres and the restaurant’s operating company alleging inadequate security.

Are there any witnesses or local workers who remember seeing Krystle or Richard that night who haven’t been heard from?