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The Osage Indian Murders · Murder Files Unsealed

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Today, we're heading to Oklahoma. Back in the early nineteen hundreds.
• 0:04
  Picture this, the Osage Indian nation sitting on a gold mine,
• 0:08
  but not the kind you'd expect oil.
• 0:10
  Speaker 2: Right, They struck liquid gold, and their land became a
• 0:13
  beacon for fortune seekers and sadly, something far more sinister.
• 0:17
  Speaker 1: Exactly, we're diving into the Osage Indian murders, a period
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  some call the Reign of Terror. This isn't just a
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  crime story. It's a chilling look at greed, corruption, and
• 0:29
  a nation grappling with its demons. What happened to the
• 0:32
  Osage people is a tragic part of American history that
• 0:35
  deserves a closer look.
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  Speaker 2: Absolutely, we're talking about at least sixty confirmed murders, but
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  many believe the real number could be much higher, possibly hundreds.
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  And these weren't random acts of violence. They were calculated, systematic,
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  all driven by an insatiable hunger for wealth and power.
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  Speaker 1: It's hard to fathom such darkness, especially considering the Osage
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  people had just come into unimaginable wealth. Yeah, how did
• 0:55
  a nation go from riches to tragedy so swiftly?
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  Speaker 2: Well, it all circles back to this thing called a head, right,
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  imagine every member of the o Sage nation getting a
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  share of a massive profitable company passed down through generations.
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  That's essentially what a headwright was a golden ticket.
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  Speaker 1: So everyone's getting a cut of this incredible oil fortune.
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  Sounds like a dream come true. Right, where does the
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  reign of terror come in?
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  Speaker 2: Well, the US government stepped in, claiming they needed to
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  protect the Osage, who they deemed and amusing their words here,
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  too primitive to handle their own finances.
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  Speaker 1: Along primitive, that's incredibly condescending.
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  Speaker 2: It was the prevailing attitude of the time, unfortunately, and
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  using that as justification, they imposed a guardianship system, appointing
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  white lawyers and businessmen to manage the Osage's.
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  Speaker 1: Money, essentially telling them they couldn't manage their own wealth.
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  I could see how this could go very wrong, very quickly,
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  and it did tragically.
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  Speaker 2: So many of these guardians, instead of protecting the Osage,
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  saw a golden opportunity to line their own pockets, and
• 1:58
  someone even further resorting to to inherit their victim's head rights.
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  Speaker 1: So the stage is set incredible wealth, a vulnerable population,
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  and a system ripe for abuse, and that's when the
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  killings begin.
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  Speaker 2: One of the early cases involved a woman named Anna Brown.
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  Her death was initially ruled as alcohol poisoning, just.
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  Speaker 1: Swept under the rug as another tragic accident. But something
• 2:20
  didn't sit right, did it.
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  Speaker 2: No. Anna's family pushed for an autopsy, and it revealed
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  a bullet lodged in the back of her head, a
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  tiny detail conveniently left out of the initial report.
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  Speaker 1: Talk about a cover up.
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  Speaker 2: This was no accident, not even close, And this pattern
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  of obfuscation, of deliberately misleading the public continued. Local law enforcement,
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  whether incompetent or complicit, failed to properly investigate these deaths.
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  The Osage people were desperate for answers, but their cries
• 2:47
  for justice were being ignored.
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  Speaker 1: The body count kept rising. Anna's sister, Rita Smith and
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  her husband Bill died when their house exploded.
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  Speaker 2: Their home was blown to smitherines with nitroglycerin, a brutal
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  escalation of the violence.
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  Speaker 1: That's like something out of a mafia movie. Did investigators
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  start making connections between these seemingly isolated incidents.
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  Speaker 2: One family in particular became tragically intertwined with this escalating violence.
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  Mollie Burkhart and her family. Molly's story is heartbreaking. One
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  by one, members of her family started dying under really
• 3:19
  suspicious circumstances. Her sisters were murdered right, yes, Anna, Rita
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  and Minnie. And it wasn't just them, Her mother was
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  killed two even her brother in law.
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  Speaker 1: And each death just so happened to shift more of
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  the family's fortune closer to Molly's husband, Ernest Burkhart exactly.
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  Speaker 2: You see. Ernest he was the nephew of a powerful
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  rancher in Ousage County, William Hale.
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  Speaker 1: Hale, the supposed mastermind behind these murders. Yeah, what was
• 3:43
  his motive? Was it just about the money?
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  Speaker 2: Hale? He was driven by greed, absolutely, But it wasn't
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  just about accumulating wealth. It was about power control. He
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  saw the Osage's fortune as his for the taking, and.
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  Speaker 1: He was willing to manipulate, bribe, even.
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  Speaker 2: Killed to get it without hesitation. He used his influence
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  to corrupt the guardianship system, bribed officials, threaten anyone who
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  got in his.
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  Speaker 1: Way, and he was using his own nephew, Ernest, as
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  a pawn in this deadly game. What about the Osage people,
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  what were they doing in the midst of all this?
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  Speaker 2: Imagine the fear, the desperation they were being terrorized and
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  the very people meant to protect them. The local authorities
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  were either turning a blind eye or actively participating in
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  the conspiracy. So who did they turn to In a
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  desperate plea for help? The Osage reached out to the
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  Bureau Investigation, the forerunner to the FBI.
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  Speaker 1: This was still the early days of the FBI. What
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  could they do that local law enforcement couldn't?
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  Speaker 2: The BOI. They were a young agency, eager to prove themselves,
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  and they had one crucial advantage. They weren't beholden to
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  anyone in Osage County, so they.
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  Speaker 1: Weren't afraid to go after the powerful figures involved. How
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  did they approach the investigation?
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  Speaker 2: They sent in a team of undercover agents to infiltrate
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  the community, gather evidence, and expose the truth. It was
• 5:00
  incredibly dangerous. The corruption ran deep.
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  Speaker 1: These agents were walking a tyrope. How do they manage
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  to blend in gain people's trust in such a suspicious environment.
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  Speaker 2: The BOI, they were smart. They put together a diverse team,
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  each with a unique set of skills. They had a
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  former sheriff, a seasoned Texas ranger, even a member of
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  the Ute Nation who'd served as a spy during the
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  Mexican Revolution.
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  Speaker 1: He sounds like they were ready for anything.
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  Speaker 2: They had to be. They spent two years under cover,
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  risking their lives to piece together this complex conspiracy, and.
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  Speaker 1: They finally connected the dots back to William Hale.
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  Speaker 2: Their investigation, it exposed Hale as the mastermind. But he
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  wasn't working alone. He had an entire network of corrupt guardians, lawmen,
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  even hired killers on his payroll.
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  Speaker 1: He built a criminal empire on the backs of the
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  Osage people, using their wealth to fuel his own ambitions.
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  Speaker 2: It was a web of deceit and violence, and Hale
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  was at the center of it all. He even turned
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  on his own nephew, Ernest, when he feared he might talk.
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  Speaker 1: He tried to have his own wife, Mollie murdered.
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  Speaker 2: He did, Hale. He was ruthless. He ordered Ernest to
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  slowly poison Molly, figuring once she was gone, Ernest would
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  inherit her head rights, making Hale even richer.
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  Speaker 1: That's cold blooded. How did Molly survive?
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  Speaker 2: It was a close call?
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  Speaker 1: Mollie.
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  Speaker 2: She confided in her priest. She'd been feeling sick and
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  something felled off the priest. He was suspicious too, told
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  her to stop drinking alcohol. Turns out that's how they
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  were masking the poison.
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  Speaker 1: Wow, what happened next? Did the priest contact the authorities?
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  Speaker 2: He went straight to the bi agents. They knew this
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  was their chance. With Molly safe and Ernest's betrayal out
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  in the open, they finally had enough to make some arrests.
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  Speaker 1: It sounds like things were finally starting to turn in
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  the Osage's favor. M Did they arrest Hale?
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  Speaker 2: They moved quickly, apprehended Hale, Ernest, his brother Byrons, several
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  others involved in the conspiracy, charged them with the murders
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  of Molly's family and other Osage victims. The trial, it
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  became a national sensation.
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  Speaker 1: So the trial gets underway, the whole nations watching what
• 7:01
  went down in that courtroom? Did justice finally get served?
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  Speaker 2: Oh? That trial? It was a long and winding road,
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  full of twists and turns enough to keep anyone on
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  the edge of their seat. Remember that deeply rooted corruption
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  we talked about. While it made finding an impartial jury
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  nearly impossible.
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  Speaker 1: People were afraid, weren't they.
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  Speaker 2: Absolutely many were terrified to speak out against Hale and
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  his cronies, fearing for their own safety, their family's safety.
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  You see Hale, even behind bars, he still cast a
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  long shadow.
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  Speaker 1: It's a chilling thought that kind of grip on a community.
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  Were there any significant breakthroughs in the case.
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  Speaker 2: The prosecution's case it hinged on Ernest Burkhardt's testimony. Facing
• 7:42
  a life sentence, he decided to turn state's evidence.
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  Speaker 1: He threw his own uncle under the bus.
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  Speaker 2: He did. Ernest confessed to his role in the conspiracy,
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  pointed the finger directly at Hale as the mastermind spilled
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  the beans on their whole gruesome plan.
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  Speaker 1: So Ernest finally cracked, betrayed his family to save himself.
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  What about the other conspirators? Did they stick to their stories?
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  Speaker 2: Two of Hale's hired killers, Henry Grammer and Asa Kirby,
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  they met untimely ends before they could testify. You're kidding
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  Grammar he died in a suspicious car crash, and Kirby
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  was killed during a supposed robbery.
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  Speaker 1: Convenient timing to say the least, right.
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  Speaker 2: Some people believe that Hale, even from behind bars, ordered
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  their deaths, wanted to make sure they stayed silent.
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  Speaker 1: Eliminating threats even from prison. With all those obstacles, could
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  the prosecution still get a conviction.
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  Speaker 2: It was a close call, but the evidence it was
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  just too overwhelming, especially with Ernest's testimony. The jury found Hale,
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  Ernest Burkhart, and another accomplice, John Ramsey, guilty. All three
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  sentenced to life in prison.
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  Speaker 1: A victory for the o Sage, though bittersweet, wouldn't you say,
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  after so much loss, so much suffering, did they finally
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  get the justice they deserved.
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  Speaker 2: It was a step in the right direction, for sure,
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  But the story it doesn't end there. In a shocking
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  turn of events, Hale, Ramsey, even Ernest burke Kart, they
• 9:00
  were all later.
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  Speaker 1: Paroled, paroled after all those lives lost, all that suffering
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  they inflicted.
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  Speaker 2: Hale and Ramsey were released in nineteen forty seven, an
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  earnest believe, or not even earlier in nineteen thirty.
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  Speaker 1: Seven, almost beyond belief those responsible for such a horrific
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  scheme walking free.
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  Speaker 2: It really highlights the deep seated inequalities of the time.
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  The Osage people, their lives, their suffering, it seemed to
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  matter less in the eyes of the law.
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  Speaker 1: This case, it's a stark reminder of how easily justice
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  can be manipulated, how power can silence the truth. But
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  the Oceage Nation, they never stopped fighting for their rights,
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  for recognition of the injustices they faced.
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  Speaker 2: Absolutely, they fought tirelessly for decades, and their efforts they
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  extended beyond just the criminal convictions. Remember how the US
• 9:45
  government imposed that guardianship system on them.
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  Speaker 1: The system that ultimately allowed so much of this to
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  happen in the first place.
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  Speaker 2: Right in two thousand, the Osage Nation, they filed a
• 9:54
  lawsuit against the US government alleging gross mismanagement of their
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  trust funds, of their resources.
• 9:59
  Speaker 1: It's about time. What was the outcome of that lawsuit?
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  Speaker 2: It took years that the case was finally settled in
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  twenty eleven for a historic three hundred and eighty million dollars. Now,
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  no amount of money could ever truly compensate for the pain,
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  the loss, the generations impacted by these crimes, but it
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  was a start, a recognition of the wrongs committed.
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  Speaker 1: A long overdue acknowledgment of the suffering the o Sage people.
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  Speaker 2: Indoors exactly, And it showed that the fight for justice,
• 10:25
  it doesn't have a statute of limitations.
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  Speaker 1: The Osage Indian murders. They're a dark chapter in American history,
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  often overlooked, brushed aside. This deep dive it's about bringing
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  that darkness into the light, understanding how greed, corruption, and
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  indifference can poison even the most prosperous of times.
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  Speaker 2: It's a stark reminder that we must always be vigilant
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  to speak up for the vulnerable, to hold those in
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  power accountable, and to never forget the past so we
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  can learn from it and create a more just future.
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  Speaker 1: The O Sage people their story. It's one of resilience,
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  of courage, of unwavering determination in the face of unimaginable
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  livers city. Their fight for justice continues to inspire us
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  to this day, and that's a legacy worth honoring.