Diners are the best place to have a great time with your friends and family. Unfortunately, happy public places like these attract violence to a great extent. Fighting over pancakes, pizzas, or a wrong order is pretty normal unless they become the reason for violence. Most of the crimes are committed late at night or early in the morning when diners are agitated. Most of the psychopaths or criminal-minded people have these restaurants on their list for committing crimes. Let’s talk about 10 crimes that happened in diners.

1 A psycho killer massacred 21 people at McDonald’s with no motive.

On July 18, 1984, a massacre happened at a McDonald’s in California. Over 21 employees and diners were murdered. James Oliver Huberty, the shooter who had a history of violence, left his home saying to his wife that he was going “hunting for humans.”

A normal sunny day in California turned into a massacre on July 18, 1984. A gunman named James Oliver Hubert entered a packed McDonald’s restaurant. He was carrying three guns. First, he pointed towards an assistant manager. 

Then he turned back and started firing without any motive. He killed 21 and wounded 19 more employees and diners. The massacre continued for over 82 minutes and stopped when a police sniper shot him.

It was a gruesome massacre where a family of three was covered in blood, an eight-month-old and two youngsters lay dead, and many other people who came to enjoy the food died without any reason. Huberty was a 41-year-old man with two daughters and a wife.

He got fired a week ago from a security guard position. It was a calm day in Hubert’s life when he went on this killing spree. He left his home after telling his wife that he is going for the “hunting for humans.” (1, 2)

2 A misogynist killer murdered 23 people in Luby’s cafeteria.

On October 16, 1991, an unemployed man named George Jo Hennard killed 23 people at Luby’s cafeteria in Texas. He stepped out of his truck and began firing through the window of the diner. He had a history of misogynistic threats, and he mainly killed women during his rampage in the cafeteria.

A crowd of 100 people gathered on October 16 1991 at Luby’s cafeteria in Texas to enjoy food. A gunman named George Jo Hennard drove his truck through the cafeteria’s window and started shooting openly towards the crowd.

The 35-year-old killer walked through the large crowd killing random people with no motive. Eventually, he killed 23 people and wounded 20 more. The rampage lasted for 15 minutes. He was shot multiple times by police who responded to the scene, but he committed suicide as he ran low on bullets.

Witnesses of this massacre stated that the killer preferred to kill women more than men. He also had a history of misogynistic threats like calling women “vipers” and stalking neighbors. People believe that misogyny is one of the reasons for a person’s capacity to commit mass murders. (1, 2)

3 Burger Chef employees were found dead after they went missing while closing up.

In November 1978, four young Burger Chef employees went missing while closing up the restaurant. Two days later, their bodies were found by hikers 20 miles away on a hilly, wooded area. Indiana state police chased down every possible lead but could not solve this murder mystery, and the case remained unsolved.

Four young employees of the Burger Chef restaurant at 5725 Crawfordsville Road, Speedway, Indiana were preparing to close.

At 11 p.m. after closing the restaurant, all four of them, Daniel Davis (16), Ruth Shelton (17), Mark Flemmonds (16), and assistant manager Jayne Friedt (20), went missing. At midnight, a coworker stopped by to collect garbage from the back door, but he found out that the back door was already open and the place was empty.

None of the young employees returned home that night. After two days of fruitless investigation, their bodies were found in a hilly, wooded area in Johnson County which was 20 miles away. The hikers hiking around the area discovered their bodies and reported them immediately.

Police stated it was probably a robbery gone bad. Investigators chased every lead for few weeks but came up empty and the murder was never solved. The restaurant reopened the day after the employees’ disappearance, and any evidence was wiped away when the restaurant was cleansed to reopen. (source)

4 A customer got shot because of his unruly behavior.

On June 13, 2014, a customer was shot by one of the employees at a Waffle House in Georgia. In interrogation, it was revealed that two men and a woman came into the restaurant. The woman left, but the two men stayed. The cook refused to serve them because of their rowdy behavior. When the men threatened the cook, gunfire broke out.

An Atlanta-area man was shot dead by an employee of a Waffle House on June 13, 2014. The crime happened around 4:30 a.m. A named Adrian Mosley. a 33-year-old, entered the Waffle House with another man and a woman.

The woman was told to leave the restaurant when she got involved in an argument with the security guard. The two men stayed, but the cook refused to serve both of them because of their rowdy attitude. Then Mosley started threatening the cook, and eventually, gunfire broke out. Adrian Mosley died on the spot.

It was reported that this incident happened after Georga passed the “guns everywhere” law. It states that licensed gun owners are free to take their guns in churches, restaurants, and government buildings. (1, 2)

5 Robbers executed Brown’s Chicken employees after ordering chicken.

On January 8, 1993, over seven employees were killed in a robbery that happened at Brown’s Chicken in Chicago. Robbers ordered chicken before stealing around $2,000 and then executing and dumping the employees into the walk-in fridge of the restaurant.

On January 8, 1993, one of the most ill-famed crimes was committed in Chicago at Brown’s Chicken. Two robbers named James Degorski and Juan Luna entered the restaurant at closing time. They ordered a four-piece chicken dinner. Then, they forced the employees to the back and executed them. The killers dumped the bodies into the walk-in fridge.

The casualties included the owners Richard and Lynn Ehlenfeldt. Other victims were employees Guadalupe Maldonado, Rico L. Solis, and Michael C. Castro. Also were two employees who were high school students who worked there part-time, Thomas Mennes and Marcus Nellsen.

The case turned into a cold case until 2002 when a former girlfriend exposed James Degorski and his mate Juan Luna. It was reported that Luna worked in the restaurant before and his DNA matched the DNA found on the half-eaten chicken.

Both of the criminals confessed their crimes and stated that they both wanted to do “something big” that night. It’s heartbreaking to see people losing their lives because some psychopaths are bored and want to do “something big.” (1, 2)