Henley Tells of More Graves – Houston Police Recover 21 Bodies
by Houston (AP)
Police said they will file murder charges against David Brooks, 18, and Elmer Wayne Henley, 17, later today after Henley showed them two more graves, bringing to 21 a death count that may reach at least 27 in a homosexual procurement ring. “All they were Prosecutors for this queer,” said police Lt. Breck Porter. Henley was charged with three counts of murder in San Augustine County today with bond set by Justice of the Peace C.A. Renfro at $100,000 on each count. Henley directed officers to two more graves near Broaddus, about 130 miles northeast of Houston, shortly after sunrise, bringing to four the number of graves of apparent teenage sex perversion victims found there since Thursday night. Henley told newsmen he could show police “at least six more” graves at High Island, east of Galveston. Police said he would get the opportunity. Henley told newsmen at the Broaddus site the new bodies dug up this morning were those of teenage boys from Pasadena, a Houston suburb. “I felt I owed it to their parents to let them know what happened to them,” he said, in explaining his cooperation in pointing out the graves.
He did not name those victims for newsmen. Henley declined to answer some questions from newsmen, saying the answers were only for the police. Police said a second youth implicated in the killings would lead them to the graves at High Island later this morning. In locating the graves Thursday night, Henley told officers: “Here’s some I got for Dean. He raped them, killed them, and brought them out here to bury them.” Police said Henley told them he and the second youth, who is scheduled for arraignment on murder charges later today, were given $5 to $10 a head for procuring teen-age boys for Deal Arnold Corll, 33, who staged homosexual parties at his suburban Pasadena home.
Henley, who at first said he had killed only the man responsible for the mass slayings, changed his statement Thursday and told police he and another youth helped lure young boys to Dean Arnold Corll, 33, for sex parties that led to torture and death. The horror started unfolding early Wednesday morning when Henley telephoned suburban Pasadena, Texas police said he had killed Corll in self-defense because Corll threatened to kill Henley and two other youths after an all-night sex and paint-spray sniffing party. Henley told officers that Corll had killed other persons and buried them in the boat stall he had rented for the past three years. But as authorities pressed their investigation, Henley was quoted as telling them he had participated in the sex slayings and implicated another 18-year-old Houston male. Houston police took the 18-year-old into custody for questioning Thursday afternoon.
After the questioning, Porter said the youth was being held on suspicion of murder and was expected to sign a written statement today. Porter said that the three apparently teamed to set up the murders and each, had his part. Henley and the other youth would scout for prospective victims and lure them to Corll, who acted as host to his frequent “parties.” “You know how kids are I’ve got five of my own.” Porter said. “Tell them there’s a party and they’re ready to go. It wasn’t too hard to get them over there.” Eight bodies, some wrapped in plastic bags, and all covered with lime, had been recovered from the 20-unit boat storage facility when workmen resumed digging Thursday. By the time they stopped digging about eight hours later, nine more bodies were retrieved and Houston Detective D. R. James said he felt they had uncovered all the bodies. “The place was wall-to-wall bodies,” James said of the small 12 by 30-foot dirt floored stall.
“We’ve been all over it, some of it twice. I’m confident we’ve got all the bodies out of it.” Detective Larry Earls said he didn’t know if more digging would take place in the stall. “If we do, we’ll come back with heavy equipment,” he said. The 17 bodies were little more than lumps of rotting flesh, skeletal remains and the rancid unyielding smell of death.
