John Oertel, 84, of East St. Louis, Illinois, was murdered on May 12, 1979, during a home invasion. Girvies Davis and Richard Holman, later labeled the .22 Caliber Killers, broke into Oertel’s residence and shot him while committing a robbery. The pair targeted elderly victims in a string of late-1970s robberies and often shot witnesses to prevent identification.

Davis and Holman were arrested and charged with multiple counts of murder and attempted murder. Davis was executed by lethal injection on May 17, 1995; Holman received life without parole. The case attracted attention for the crimes’ brutality and the legal battles that followed.

Did anyone in the East St. Louis area know John Oertel or have information about his life before May 12, 1979?