Items found discarded behind a Cracker Barrel restaurant in Georgia in 1985 have led to charges against a suspect in an Ohio murder committed around the same time, investigators announced recently.
Case Background
John Warren, a traveling salesman from Dalton, Georgia, was working for an auto parts company when he stayed at the Holiday Inn in Middletown, Ohio, on October 16, 1985, due to scheduled sales meetings, according to Warren County Prosecutor David Fornshell. He was found dead in his hotel room the next day, with his 1985 Oldsmobile and other belongings stolen.
Within days, police in Warren's hometown recovered some of his property and other relevant items discarded behind a Cracker Barrel there. Warren's car was later located in Redington Beach, Florida. Middletown is about 396 miles north of Dalton, while Redington Beach is about 570 miles south.
Forensic Breakthrough
Fornshell stated that detectives had several leads at the time but lacked sufficient evidence to charge a suspect. In 2019, the sheriff's office for the Middletown area assigned investigators to re-examine the case, submitting items from Warren's hotel room, his car, and the Cracker Barrel to a crime lab for modern forensic analysis. The results identified 62-year-old Randy McAllister of Columbus, Ohio, as a potential suspect, along with an alleged accomplice who is now deceased.
Charges and Arraignment
Fornshell's office joined sheriff's investigators in presenting evidence to a grand jury in late June, which indicted McAllister on charges of murder and aggravated murder. McAllister was jailed on July 1 and pleaded not guilty at his arraignment on Tuesday, with bail set at $500,000. At the arraignment, an assistant county prosecutor said Warren had been fatally strangled and beaten before his car and other property were stolen, as reported by WKRC. McAllister's defense requested a $50,000 bond, but Judge Robert Peeler set it at $500,000 after hearing of prior convictions for aggravated robbery and felonious assault in 1985 and 1992, according to WLWT.
Impact and Next Steps
Fornshell credited a tenacious investigation for the charges. Under Ohio law, McAllister faces life imprisonment if convicted of aggravated murder in Warren's death. This case highlights how modern forensic testing on decades-old evidence can bring closure to cold murder cases.
