Billy Dye

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Billy Howard Dye (disappeared March 3, 1956) was one of three men that disappeared from northern Jefferson County after attending a party in Robinwood near Morris in March 1956. He and his brother Robert and their cousin Dan Brasher were last seen in Billy's 1947 Ford. The trio were rumored to have stolen liquor from some local bootleggers before they disappeared.

Rumors of their fate continue to percolate. Some thought they may have been dumped down an old mine shaft. Others claim they were buried in their car under the road bed for Alabama Highway 79, then under construction near Pinson.

The initial investigation by the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office produced no firm leads. The efforts of Brasher's brother Curtis convinced Sheriff Holt McDowell to assign Deputy Tom Ellison to the case. Test bores were drilled into the highway where witnesses claimed to have seen a car buried, but nothing was found.

The case was inactive until Jefferson County Commissioner Tom Gloor resuscitated it on 1972. A Navy metal detector was used to find more places to drill, but again nothing was found. In interviews at the time, Ellison claimed that McDowell pulled him off the case prematurely, perhaps to protect those responsible for the crime. The mens' disappearance is currently the oldest case still active with the Sheriff's Department.

References

  • Jones, Pam (Fall 2006) "Brasher-Dye Disappearance." Alabama Heritage. No. 82, pp. 44-47