Ewald Bandixen

Ewald Emil Bandixen, Jr.

Homicide

Ewald Emil Bandixen, Jr.
70 YOA
U.S. Highway 67
Folletts, IA
Clinton County
Case # 74-00523
October 28, 1974

Clinton County in Iowa

Case Summary compiled by Jody Ewing

Ewald Bandixen was found dead on Monday, October 28, 1974, at the Folletts, Iowa, service stationed he’d owned and operated since 1931. A customer discovered Bandixen’s body — lying behind the service station’s counter — at approximately 11:30 a.m.

The 70-year-old lifelong bachelor had been shot in the head.

Clinton County coroner A.A. Young estimated time of death as sometime between 9:30 and 11:30 a.m.

A Generous Businessman

Courtesy photo Quad-City Times

BCI agents assist the Iowa Highway Patrol and the Clinton County Sheriff’s Office in Ewald Bandixen’s murder. Bandixen had owned and operated the US Hwy 67 service station for 43 years.  

Clinton County Sheriff Gary Mulholland said there were no signs of a struggle inside the station. The cash register had been placed on the countertop — its cash drawer still open — and though it appeared an armed robbery had taken place, a few checks and some cash remained inside the register’s drawer. Officials also found cash inside Bandixen’s pants pockets.

In addition to the Iowa Highway Patrol, the Iowa Bureau of Criminal Investigation was also called in to assist with the investigation.

Bandixen and his brother Johannes — also a bachelor — shared a nearby apartment and had no known enemies. According to family members, Ewald and Johannes — two of seven brothers — raised chickens and grew their own produce, which they’d give freely to neighbors and anyone in need.

 Courtesy photo Quad-City Times

Ewald Bandixen’s brother George (left) assists a BCI agent inside the service station where Ewald was shot.

Johannes passed away four months prior to Ewald’s murder; another brother, August, died just two months before Ewald.

The day before Ewald’s slaying, family members said he’d made about $500 in sales at the service station.

Ewald Bandixen’s murder remains unsolved.

About Ewald Bandixen (from Findagrave and the Iowa Gravestone Photo Project)

Ewald Emil Bandixen was born January 4, 1904, in Clinton County to Iowa native Ella Hinrichs and Ewald Bandixen, a German immigrant.

He had two sisters — Elsie and Rosetta — and six brothers: Johannes, George, August, John (died as infant), Benjamin, and Walter.

He served in the Army Air Forces during World War II.

Courtesy photo Michael Kearney, Findagrave.com

Memorial services were held  October 31 in Dewitt, Iowa, and Bandixen was buried at the Shaffton Cemetery in Clinton County, Iowa.

Information Needed

If you have any information about Ewald Bandixen’s unsolved murder, please contact the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation at (515) 725-6010, e-mail dciinfo@dps.state.ia.us, or contact the Clinton County Sheriff’s Office at (563) 242-9211. You may also contact Iowa Cold Cases directly via our Contact form.

Sources:

• Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, November 25, 2009
• Clinton County Sheriff’s Office
• Iowa Gravestone Photo Project
• Findagrave.com
• “Officers Seek Information,” The Des Moines Register, Oct. 30, 1974
• “Ask public help in shooting case,” The Ames Daily Tribune, Oct. 30, 1974
• “Appeal made,” The Muscatine Journal, Oct. 30, 1974
• “Iowan Found Shot to Death,” The Des Moines Register, Oct. 29, 1974
• “Man Killed,” The Muscatine Journal, Oct. 29, 1974
• “Holdup, Murder,” The Quad-City Times, Oct. 29, 1974