HOUSTON, Texas – In 1973, 12-year-old Kirk Douglas Gaskin was tragically killed in a restroom at the Early Roberts Famous Foods restaurant in Houston’s East End. Although the murder barely made news at the time, cold case detective Darcus Shorten is now working to bring attention to the case.
According to investigators, Gaskin was found strangled with a towel drying roll nailed to the bathroom wall. Despite interviewing a witness who saw two boys follow Gaskin into the restroom, there was no description provided. Police took only three photos of the crime scene, showing the young boy on the bathroom floor.
The family believes that the investigation was not thorough, possibly due to the fact that they were a poor Black family and felt their son’s case was not a priority. Gaskin’s brother, Kenneth, who was 11 at the time, shares that he was supposed to be at the restaurant the day his brother was killed, making the tragedy even more personal for the family.
Houston Police Department is reopening Kirk’s case with the help of the Emmett Till grant, aiming to shed light on unsolved murders of Black men from the seventies. Shorten admits that finding witnesses is a longshot, but the original police report suggests the restaurant was full that day, implying that potential witnesses may exist.
The lack of information about Kirk’s death and the closure of the restaurant where the murder occurred have only heightened the family’s pain. Now, the Gaskin family is hoping for closure and justice as the investigation is reopened after 50 years.
If you have any information about Kirk’s cold case, you are encouraged to contact Houston police cold case detectives at 713-308-3618.