The Horrors of Fox Hollow Farm

Beneath the tranquil surface of a wealthy Indiana estate, a nightmare was unfolding. For years, the sprawling, 18-acre property known as Fox Hollow Farm projected an image of the American dream: a successful business, a loving family, and a luxurious Tudor-style mansion. But hidden in the quiet woods behind the home, a gruesome secret was slowly decaying, waiting to be discovered.

This is the story of Herb Baumeister, a man who masterfully maintained a double life as a devoted family man and a prolific, sadistic serial killer who preyed upon young men from the Indianapolis gay community.

The Making of a Monster: Early Signs

Herbert Richard Baumeister was born in 1947 into a comfortable middle-class family. Outwardly, his childhood seemed normal, but by adolescence, deeply disturbing behaviors began to emerge. Classmates and teachers reported his morbid fascinations, which included an intense curiosity about the taste of human urine and playing with dead animals. In one shocking incident, he placed a dead crow on a teacher’s desk; in another, he urinated on it.

Alarmed, his father, a doctor, arranged for a psychiatric evaluation. Herb was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia and antisocial personality disorder—conditions that could cause delusions, extreme paranoia, and a complete lack of empathy. Tragically, he received no sustained treatment. He learned to mask his oddities, a skill he would later use to hide far darker impulses.

A Double Life: The Facade of Normalcy

As an adult, Baumeister’s life was a series of failures and erratic behavior. He dropped out of college multiple times, struggled to hold jobs, and was eventually fired from the Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles in 1985 for—unsurprisingly—urinating on his manager’s desk.

Despite this, he married Juliana “Julie” Seder in 1971, and they had three children. Julie stood by her husband, even during his severe mental health struggles that led to a brief psychiatric commitment in 1972. She later revealed that in over 25 years of marriage, they had been intimate only six times, and she had never seen him fully nude. Unbeknownst to her, Herb was living a closeted life, secretly frequenting gay bars in Indianapolis under the alias “Brian Smart.”

The Rise and The Hunt

In the late 1980s, with financial help from his mother, Baumeister found unexpected success by opening a chain of thrift stores called “Save A Lot.” The business boom funded his ultimate purchase: the opulent Fox Hollow Farm estate in 1991.

This secluded property became his private hunting ground. By day, he was a store-owner and father. By night, he was “Brian Smart,” a charming regular at gay bars along Massachusetts Avenue. His method was cunning: he would befriend young, often lonely men, buy them drinks, and lure them to his estate with promises of a private party at his indoor pool.

Once at Fox Hollow, the horror began. The pool area was decorated with mannequins posed in festive positions, creating a disorienting, party-like atmosphere. Baumeister would introduce erotic asphyxiation under the pretense of a consensual kink. At the crucial moment, he would refuse to release his grip, strangling his victims to death for his own sadistic gratification.

With his family away, often visiting Julie’s mother at a lake cottage, Baumeister would then dispose of the bodies on his vast property. He engaged in gruesome post-mortem rituals, dismembering victims, burning their bodies in open pits, and crushing bones to fragments. He was known to extract teeth with tools and toss them down a hallway “like Tic Tacs” in a grotesque celebration of his kill. Investigators believe he may have murdered at least 25 men, possibly more.

The Victims: Lost Lives and Lingering Fear

The victims were young men, mostly in their teens to their thirties, whose disappearances tore apart their families. The list of those identified includes:

Roger Goodlet (33), whose disappearance prompted his friend to investigate.
Johnny Bayer (20), of whom only a single rib bone was found.
Alan Broussard (28)
Richard Hamilton (20)
Manuel Rescendez was identified nearly 30 years after vanishing in 2024.
Jeffrey Jones was identified via genetic genealogy in 2024.
Michael Karn (46) is one of the oldest victims.
Alan Livingston (27), whose mother kept her phone line connected for decades, hoping he would call.

For years, the Indianapolis LGBTQ+ community lived in fear, feeling their concerns were dismissed by law enforcement due to prejudice. As one local magazine publisher stated, “If somebody were killing cheerleaders at a suburban high school, nobody would rest until the killers were found.”

The Downfall: A Survivor and a Skull

The case began to crack thanks to two key elements: a brave survivor and a mother’s doubt.

A man using the pseudonym Tony Harris, a friend of victim Roger Goodlet, deliberately sought out “Brian Smart” to uncover the truth. He accepted an invitation to Fox Hollow Farm, where he avoided a spiked drink and survived multiple strangulation attempts. He managed to get Baumeister’s license plate number, which finally led police to Herb Baumeister.

Despite this, the police lacked the physical evidence for a search warrant. The final break came from within Baumeister’s own home. In 1994, his 13-year-old son found a human skull on the property. Herb calmly explained it was an old medical specimen from his doctor father, and Julie, astonishingly, believed him.

But in 1996, with their marriage failing and police pressure mounting, Julie finally allowed investigators to search Fox Hollow Farm.

Discovery, Flight, and a Coward’s End

What they found was beyond imagination. The woods were littered with human remains. In total, over 10,000 bone fragments were recovered, representing at least 11 individuals, with evidence pointing to many more.

When Herb learned of the search, he fled to Ontario, Canada. On July 3, 1996, he was found dead in his car from suicide. He left a rambling, three-page note apologizing for his failed business and marriage—but he never mentioned a single one of his victims, denying their families any confession or closure.

Read more: Hunting the Hunter: A Survivor’s 33-Year Journey to Justice

A Legacy of Loss and Resilience

The story of Fox Hollow Farm is one of horrific evil, but also of incredible resilience. It is the story of families who refused to give up, a community that banded together, a survivor whose bravery broke the case open, and forensic experts who, to this day, continue to identify victims using advanced DNA technology.

Herb Baumeister died a coward, but the victims he tried to erase are being remembered. Their names are being restored, and they are being returned to their families, ensuring that the true legacy of Fox Hollow Farm is not one of murder but of the enduring pursuit of justice and peace.

Rest in peace to the known victims and those yet to be named. Your lives mattered.