Apple Podcasts<\/strong>: <\/strong>Episode Five – Too Many Suspects
Schedule<\/strong>: <\/strong>Tuesday, Thursday<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhodunnit?\u201d Okay, this is the obvious question, right? \u201cWhodunnit?\u201d That\u2019s what everyone wants to know. So let\u2019s start to unravel that question\u2026 And see how far we get. One thing up front: I\u2019m going to stipulate that we\u2019re talking premeditated<\/em> murder. You don\u2019t just casually walk up to a car and stuff it with a bomb. It\u2019s not a situation where, hey, somebody gets mad and grabs a gun and then says\u2026 \u201cI\u2019m sorry Your Honor, the gun just kinda accidentally went off.\u201d So that means we’re looking for a certain kind of suspect — or suspects. <\/p>\n\n\n\n And yes, this is the kind of murder that forces us to ask about motive: \u201cWho benefits? Who benefits from this?\u201d There\u2019s one thing we\u2019ll eventually realize\u2026 If we didn\u2019t know it right away: There seemed to be a \u201cprize\u201d waiting at the end of this… What do I call it? Hit job?<\/p>\n\n\n His name is Neil Pfeil \u201cScotty\u201d Mackay, the offspring of Muriel Pfeil and Neil Mackay. A child whom his father, Neil Mackay, regards with… let’s just say “some mixed emotions.” Many — most? — of those emotions encompassed by his \u201cclaim\u201d on the boy. And I use the word \u201cclaim\u201d broadly. Certainly fathers are called to love their sons and daughters as much as their mothers do. And, let’s face it, Neil Mackay came to fatherhood fairly late in life. So there\u2019s that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But mixed in with that are all the other sentiments. Some of them frankly pedestrian. We\u2019ll start with the scrap of \u201cpoetry,\u201d if you can call it that, mounted on the wall of a house Mackay owned \u2013 a spot where he’d moved his office because… His high-rise apartment building was condemned. Here it is, in all its glory:<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cFirst there was a father, then a son, neither wore kilts, but both had fun. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n They romped and they stomped it is to be said and the son became as father, so the Bible read. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Mackays, they were a proud Scot line, a bond formed between them that was just fine. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n As a seedling, the father took the boy in tow and shall all remember now, with God\u2019s help we all watched Scottie grow.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Poem displayed at Neil Mackay’s Stanford Drive house<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n Yes, it was framed. A reminder to all who ventured there that Neil S. Mackay treasured his son. As for the spelling… I’m not so sure. All the documents — every single one I’ve ever seen — use an alternate spelling. Scotty with a “y,” not an “ie.” So, maybe the poem was a gift?<\/p>\n\n\n Whatever the case, we include that doggerel here, in part, to help illuminate the feelings that motivated Neil Mackay to file a very specific legal notice once he gained full custody of Scotty. The year was 1979. The state was Hawaii. The cause in his petition read: \u201cIn the Matter of the Petition of NEIL SUTHERLAND MACKAY (father) for and on behalf of NEIL PFEIL MACKAY, a minor, For Change of Name.\u201d The petition was summarily granted. And here’s what the decree read:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Upon consideration of the petition of NEIL SUTHERLAND MACKAY and there appearing to me good reasons for granting the same,<\/p>\n\n\n\n NOW, THEREFORE, by virtue of the authority in me by law vested and thereby enabling, I, JEAN KING, Lieutenant Governor of the State of Hawaii, do hereby order and decree that the name NEIL PFEIL MACKAY is hereby changed to NEIL SUTHERLAND MACKAY, JR.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n In one stroke, Neil Mackay moved to sever Scotty\u2019s ties, Scotty\u2019s identity, to excise his mother\u2019s family name. And the pretext here, the history\u2026 The theory of the case \u2013 and I emphasize THEORY\u2026 <\/p>\n\n\n Because whatever Neil Mackay\u2019s feelings were toward his son, Muriel Pfeil stood in his way. She actively blocked any semblance of possession<\/em> whatsoever. Remember: her last act before dying was to block expansion of Neil\u2019s custody rights for two years, until Scotty, then three years old, turned five. The guy was losing power. The guy had lost control \u2013 if, indeed, he ever had it. He\u2019s going to wrestle it back the best way he knows how. Because it\u2019s also clear that the courts are also in his way. <\/p>\n\n\n\n But\u2026 If she \u2013 if Muriel \u2013 is eliminated, if she is gone, if she is dead, then he \u2013 the presumptive father \u2013 can stand there and say, \u201cI’m the father, I’m the surviving father, give me my child. He’s mine.\u201d<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n Does this make him one of the suspects? Not exactly. Then again, it doesn’t eliminate him from the suspects group, either. And what a rogue’s gallery it was. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Because, as soon as they start investigating \u2013 they meaning the Anchorage police \u2013 the realm of possible suspects started to expand. In fact, as the investigation moved forward, the cops ended up with about seventeen suspects<\/em>. Seventeen<\/em>. That’s too many. I mean, what you want is to narrow the list down<\/em> to the one person or persons who are directly responsible. <\/p>\n\n\n\n And actually, in many cases of intimate homicide \u2013 think a lover\u2019s quarrel \u2013 it’s reasonably easy to reduce that number down to one. To the<\/em> perpetrator. Maybe he was wounded in the struggle. Maybe he left behind proof. Hair or fingerprints or other kinds of evidence. Maybe there\u2019s a history of violence. Even witnesses. Eye witnesses.<\/p>\n\n\n But that’s not that’s not what happened here. Instead, this bombing birthed an aura of fear and paranoia in Anchorage. The suspect list blossomed into a bandwagon of possibilities. Consider, for example, the guy who owned the Baranof Lounge<\/em>, sort of a typical Alaska bar, a live music kind of joint. That guy was convinced the bomb was actually<\/em> meant for him. He\u2019d had threats against his life. He drove a car that was very similar to Muriel Pfeil\u2019s car. In fact, he left Alaska out of fear that there’d be another attempt on his life. <\/p>\n\n\n\n So what\u2019s that<\/em> about? Mistaken identity? Was Muriel Pfeil simply in the wrong place at the wrong time? <\/p>\n\n\n\n That seemed possible after police came across several other incidents. While at a local bar, actually a restaurant, an Anchorage Police investigator observed $15,000 in cash changing hands. And this was at a time close to the bombing. So he’s suspicious. But it\u2019s not a home run. Because neither of the participants looked like Mr. Mackay. And, more to the point, they both got away before the investigator could identify them or determine why<\/em> there was such a large transaction. And I gotta ask: How in hell does he \u201cknow\u201d there\u2019s fifteen grand on the table? He sees packets of hundred-dollar bills, straight from the bank?<\/p>\n\n\n\n But let\u2019s keep going, shall we? Another informant told investigators that the bomb that killed Muriel Pfeil was actually meant for a female reporter who\u2019d been doing freelance investigative journalism into alleged corruption in the Fairbanks Teamsters organization. Yes, we\u2019ve already mentioned her. That informant later revised her opinion, but police learned that the journalist was doing a Teamsters Union expose. Something about corruption. <\/p>\n\n\n\n And, the thing was, this reporter was based in Anchorage, drove a car very similar to Muriel Pfeil’s, and always parked in the lot where the blast occurred, a lot in which Muriel Pfeil seldom parked. So? Yeah. <\/p>\n\n\n And then there was the lawyer who later became a judge. His name was Karl Johnstone. He provided a statement to the police indicating that he felt he had been the intended victim of the blast. A pro-business lawyer, who often helped companies fight off union activities, he\u2019d been involved in many a battle that pitted store owners against their workers, most of them, of course, demanding better wages or better working conditions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n One of Johnstone\u2019s most recent actions \u2013 in June of 1976 \u2013 had been in support of Alaska Fish & Farm<\/em>, a restaurant wholesaler. And the Teamsters were leading a boycott of that very wholesaler. Johnstone, representing Alaska Fish & Farm, said his clients were seriously considering filing a damage suit against the Union. <\/p>\n\n\n\n If the suit went forward, and the wholesaler prevailed \u2013 AF&F could seek to recover not only actual<\/em> damages, but also a punitive award<\/em> against the Teamsters. So\u2026 That might make somebody mad. Johnstone also told investigators that he routinely parked his car in the lot where the blast occurred. A spot, it was noted, where Muriel Pfeil did not<\/em> usually park. And, he added, he\u2019d received threats. You might take a car bombing as\u2026 What? An escalation of those threats?<\/p>\n\n\n\n But if you want to get really, really, really down into the interesting part\u2026 You have to follow me around a corner\u2026 Because\u2026 Within weeks of the murder all those suppositions were in the past tense. A young man had come forward. And confessed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n His name was Donnie Wayne Pitts. He was at the Alaska Psychiatric Institute, in the Adolescent Facility. In other words, he was still in his teens and he might be crazy. Okay, so that tells us a little bit about him. Why are you there, Donnie? Well, mental problems, he admitted. I’m unstable. But he said, look, and this is where it’s, it gets kind of — weird. <\/p>\n\n\n Two hours before the bomb went off, he was telling anyone who\u2019d listen: There’s a bomb and it’s going to go off within a block of Captain Cook Hotel. And he\u2019s saying this, like I said, before<\/em> the bomb goes off. And then after the bomb goes off, he\u2019s complaining. It should have gone off by now.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n The cops found out and, of course, they confronted him. Interrogated him. He said, yeah, I had plans for the bomb and I passed them on to a friend of mine. And once I learned the bomb had finally gone off, I skipped out of this place \u2013 meaning the Psychiatric Institute \u2013 and collected my $100 bucks. \u2018Cause I helped plan that bomb. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Really Donnie? Are you sure? Donnie started backpedaling. Recanting. The cops said, what about a polygraph? Which was canceled because\u2026 Donnie Wayne Pitts was schizophrenic. Take him off the suspects list. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Kill Brother, Kill Sister<\/strong><\/em> is available at Amazon<\/a>, Barnes & Noble<\/a> and other fine bookstores (paperback and ebook).<\/p>\n\n\n\n Copyright Leland E. Hale (2026<\/em>)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Kill Brother, Kill Sister: Episode Five Podcast: Episode Five – Too Many SuspectsApple Podcasts: Episode Five – Too Many SuspectsSchedule:…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[132,138,130,131,17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-31876","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-car-bomb","category-kill-brother-kill-sister","category-muriel-pfeil","category-neil-mackay","category-true-crime"],"yoast_head":"\n![\"suspects\"](\"https:\/\/lelandhale.com\/images\/scotty-safe-and-sound-grandma-age-5-border.png\")
Courtesy: Associated Press<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\nOK, It’s A Poem<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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![\"\"](\"https:\/\/lelandhale.com\/images\/alice-puster-mackay_mccomas_confer_evidence_hearing_anc_Anchorage-Daily_Times_1987_01_11-1-photo-alice-puster.png\")
(photo: Copyright Alice Puster, used with permission: ADN)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
![\"\"\/](\"https:\/\/lelandhale.com\/images\/muriel-pfeil-beehive-1969-pro-travel-svc-anch-times-jan-11-1987.png\")
(copyright; courtesy Anchorage Daily Times)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\nMuriel’s Blocking Move<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
A Galley of Suspects<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
![\"suspects\"](\"https:\/\/lelandhale.com\/images\/barrys-baranof-lounge.jpg\")
Suspects Or Mistaken Identity?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
![\"suspects\"\/](\"https:\/\/lelandhale.com\/images\/karl-johnstone-photo-Bar-Rag-Scan-10-1979-1.png\")
Teamsters Again?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
17 Suspects, 1 Confession<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/lelandhale.com\/images\/AK-psych-institute-1968-jim-balog-photo.png\")
\n\n\n\nThe Book: Kill Brother, Kill Sister<\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n