Uncover the harrowing details of the Popeyes Chicken murders—a case that has haunted a community since a storm-riddled prom night in 1994. Journey with us as we piece together the chilling sequence of events, from the power outages that led young employees to seek an early end to their shift to the unexpected roster change that placed Tamika Collins at the scene. Corrected misconceptions about manager Darrell Collier's first day set the stage for a deeper understanding of the crime, committed by insider Temoc Paraita and Robert Bryant Nelson. Contributions from survivor Brian Archer, the manager's sister Dawn Ward, and officers on the case like Lane Keener, who provides a vivid recollection of the crime scene, and Randy Phillips, who shares a private briefing, enrich our narrative with their personal and poignant insights.
As we mark the 30th anniversary of this tragedy, we honor the victims' legacies, striving to remember them for the lives they led—not just their tragic demise. With co-host Shawn Tucker, we reflect on the absence of a memorial, the community's quest for healing, and the survivor's journey to recovery. Through shared stories and support, this episode of "Murder in Your Backyard" not only holds space for the memory of those lost but also casts a light on the broader context of unsolved cases in Alabama, particularly in Etowah County. Thank you for joining us in this profound remembrance and ongoing search for justice.
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www.murderinyourbackyard.com
www.youtube.com/@murderinyourbackyard
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Joseph Cramer (00:01):
Hi and welcome to the new Murder in your Backyard
podcast.
I'm here with my co-host, seanTucker.
Today we'll be talking aboutthe Popeyes Chicken 1994 murders
.
There were four people involved.
That included 17-year-old BrianArcher, nathaniel Baker, who
was also 17, daryl Collier, the21-year-old store manager, and
Tameka Collins, the 18-year-oldassistant manager.
(00:23):
So this was a prom night.
It was heavily downpouringoutside.
The 17-year-olds wanted toleave because the store kept
flickering on and off power sothey couldn't even really make a
lot of chicken.
Everything just kind of keptgoing on and off and they kept
asking the store manager and theassistant manager if they could
leave.
They said there was probablymaybe four or five customers all
night.
(00:43):
There wasn't many at all.
There was a little bit ofschedule changing.
There's been a lot of back andforth so I do want to clarify
that, as far as I know, the onlyperson whose schedule was
changed was Tamika Collins.
Originally she wasn't supposedto be there but being that
someone else had to go to promthat night, her schedule was
changed beforehand.
She was on the schedule thenight that it happened, but
(01:11):
originally she wasn't supposedto be there.
As far as I know, everythingelse was orderly and supposed to
be the same way that it wasbrought in Daryl had just
started.
That wasn't his first day.
That's another speculation.
People and guests can stillbelieve that he had just started
that day.
He did start that week, Ibelieve, but it wasn't the day
of the event.
So we're just going to startwith the remainder of the story.
I'll kind of tell a littlebriefing on what happened.
They went to take the garbageout.
As they closed the store, asthey got to the end, in the back
(01:32):
door, nathaniel Baker wastaking out the trash.
Darrell Collier had opened theback door and as he opened the
back door, two assailants camein, one with a gun in hand.
One of them's name was TomokPereta and the other one's name
was Robert Bryant Nelson.
As they came in, they took thepeople into the office, stole
$2,100 in cash, took them to thefreezer and the shooting began.
(01:54):
I'm not going to go into toomuch detail because I'm going to
let the people tell their story.
So as they shot the people, orthe victims, they made their
exit out the back door.
And behind this introductionhere I will have statements from
Brian Archer, who was the onlysurvivor, and also Don Ward, who
was the store manager's sisterStatements from responding
(02:15):
officer Lane Keener and we'llhave statements and Q&A from
Scott Hilton, who was the EagleRock Boys Ranch owner and
founder, and he tried to takeParade in before the events
happened but stuff just didn'twork out the way he wanted.
It didn't come to be.
Shawn Tucker (02:29):
Well, Joe, did the victims know the killers?
Joseph Cramer (02:34):
Pareto was actually a worker.
He worked there as far as myunderstanding is.
He worked there about two weeks, cased the place out, got to
know the ins and outs of thebusiness.
As he closed he saw that theback door was being used as the
place to to make entry if heneeded to come in.
He also saw where the dropswere going, the money drops, and
how to gain access to the themoney at night.
Shawn Tucker (02:55):
So he took that to his advantage to get in the
store and I think, if I rememberreading the story correctly,
the cops were able to identifythe suspects with the they had
left a shoe print.
Joseph Cramer (03:10):
That's correct.
Right beside the at the time in94, there was a Taco Bell right
beside the Popeye's Chicken.
So in the middle of thatthere's a water slough and the
assailants, as the water felldown, they were standing in that
slough as they came in.
They'd actually eaten at theTaco Bell beside it fell down.
They were standing that slew asthey came in that actually
eaten at the top of bail besideit.
So as they came in there was ashoe print left inside of the
water slew there and they wereactually able to pour a mold.
(03:30):
That mold left a full-on print.
So when they were apprehendedlater on they took that print
and as I lifted it they couldtell that that was right Nelson
shoe print.
Shawn Tucker (03:41):
I, I hope and assume that they still would
have caught them, but itprobably would have been harder
without that.
Joseph Cramer (03:47):
That shoe print I think it would have been.
It would have been easy toidentify pareto because pareto
was the worker that had beenthere.
Bryant archery gave his accountthat pareto was there that
night and just knowing that hehad that identifying haircut
through bryant's testimony he hewas able to be apprehended and
they could tell that was him.
But without that shoe print Idon't think they would have
(04:07):
known right away.
That was Nelson.
Nelson was in the vehicle buthe claimed that he wasn't there
and Parade also turned aroundand claimed that Nelson was
picked up.
Later he dropped off anotherblackmail and picked up Nelson,
and then Nelson just happened tobe in the car.
Shawn Tucker (04:20):
Okay, so that that shoe print got melson.
Okay, okay, um, and then, uh,how?
How were they apprehended?
Joseph Cramer (04:30):
as they were leaving parada's house.
They pulled up and and wereable to get the suspects.
The reason they were able toget them so quickly they picked
them up later that night.
I think it was in that withinan hour or two bryant's
testimony brought archer'stestimony was that well, he gave
them the answer straight up.
As soon as they entered thepopeye's chicken.
He told him what the car makingmodel was, which was a 1980s
(04:50):
monte carlo.
So they, they went pretty muchright to his address and in
rainbow city, and rainbow citypolice apprehended them rather
than gadsden.
Gadsden didn't find out that itwas a car.
They had a bolo out for thatvehicle okay, okay.
Shawn Tucker (05:03):
And then you said shots were fired.
So they like what I'm trying toget here.
The way it's been presented tome and described it looked like
it was a robbery.
Why go back in and kill thesepeople, murder these people?
It's senseless.
Joseph Cramer (05:23):
I don't think Pareto's.
I couldn't say that paradawanted to kill him.
He could have, but I would.
I would think that parada wasin it for the robbery itself.
I don't know if he even knewthat melson was going to kill
him.
He knew melson had a gun.
I believe the gun belonged toparada, as far as I know from
reading it, but I also thinkthat parada being a 17 year old
male, I don't know if he wasquite there where he wanted to
(05:44):
come in and just kill thesepeople in cold blood.
He may have just wanted to takethe money and get out, but
unfortunately, as the doorclosed and reopened, shots began
coming through andunfortunately killed these three
people and hurt Brian Archer.
Shawn Tucker (05:58):
And did the victims know these people
outside of Popeyes, or was itjust working with them?
Joseph Cramer (06:07):
Tamika Collins.
She was a Gaston StateCommunity College student.
So she, as far as myunderstanding, she may have
known Bryant and Melson, becauseI've heard from someone else
who knew both of them that hekind of flirted with her and he
knew Bryant also.
But as far as Bryant, melsonand Tamika I'm not totally sure.
But it's possible that theyknew each other.
(06:27):
Couldn't tell you for sure.
Shawn Tucker (06:29):
Okay, and were there any statements from the
police about the murder?
Joseph Cramer (06:37):
We'll be hearing from Officer Lane Keener also in
this podcast, any statementsfrom the police about the murder
.
We'll be hearing from OfficerLane Keener also in this podcast
and he goes on to tell aboutsome distinctive memories he had
as he entered the building andsome of the stuff he got to see
and do and what went onthroughout the night as the
events unfolded.
I did speak with Officer RandyPhillips also, but I didn't get
any kind of audio or video.
(06:58):
He told me more of hisstatements would more so do
damage or hurt the family morethan what they needed to hear.
So we just cut everything offand he gave me a briefing on
everything that went on thatnight.
Shawn Tucker (07:12):
With that being said, I assume that they closed
this business.
Is this Popeye's still there?
Joseph Cramer (07:17):
Popeye's is still there.
The Popeye's has beenrearranged.
They took the freezer out.
It's been remodeled heavily butthe inside of the building is
pretty much the same as it wasback in 94.
Actually I ate there for thefirst time after I interviewed
Brian Archer, he told me, justbecause something happened and
just because tragic eventsunfolded the way they did, it
(07:39):
wasn't Popeye's fault that thiswas done.
It was the fault of these twoindividuals that made this not
happen.
But he has no hurt againstPopeye's, I guess you would say.
He said it's still a greatplace to eat.
So as soon as I got done Ijumped in the truck and I went
straight to Popeye's.
It was a great place to eat.
But I did want to kind of seethe insides and outsides of the
(07:59):
buildings and see kind of whatmight have taken place.
Shawn Tucker (08:02):
Since you knew, you know this incident and you
know what had happened and allthat, was there a bit of
eeriness or anything when youwent in there, Because you know,
like, if it's me and I don'tknow anything right, and I go
into this Popeye's and I getsome food, I don't know, you
know, I don't know anything.
(08:22):
But since you knew the history,was there a little bit of like
eerie-ness for you.
Joseph Cramer (08:28):
Well, I saw on television I was maybe 9 or 10
years old at this time, 94, itkind of freaked me out seeing
two assailants.
You know, yeah, been on the run, that's all I knew.
You know, looking back it justkind of.
It's just kind of terrifying.
At that time, as I've gottenolder and meeting archer and
making my way into five eyes, Iwouldn't say there was eeriness,
(08:51):
but just the seeing what couldhappen.
You happened while I was there.
Your mind shifts to whathappened in 94, and you see it
through different eyes,especially after talking to
these people about it, notreally reliving it.
And I did ask questions topeople that were working there,
(09:11):
but it was just kind of shunnedoff or thrown off and they
couldn't tell me much about it.
Shawn Tucker (09:16):
It was just kind of shunned off or thrown off and
they couldn't tell me muchabout it and I don't know if you
know, 94 was what 20 years agonow 30.
30?
30 years ago, 30 years ago,yeah, so it was 30.
Joseph Cramer (09:25):
We actually just met the anniversary of the 30th
last month, oh wow.
So this is the 30th anniversaryof the 5i shoot.
Shawn Tucker (09:33):
Okay, so I would assume the franchisee owner um,
is he still around?
Is it the original owner ofthat popeyes?
Joseph Cramer (09:44):
and one of my statements from bryant.
I believe that the owner haspassed away.
I'm not sure if that was in oneof the interviews that I did
with him.
He has since passed and I don'tthink he lived much longer than
the original shooting.
Shawn Tucker (09:54):
And I believe you were also telling me that,
bryant, it was very tough on himafter, right that, like you
know, he was in the hospital andhe had a long road to recovery
right, that's correct.
And that it was not everything.
(10:17):
His medical expenses were not,he only got a little bit of
money.
Joseph Cramer (10:22):
He didn't get much of anything.
He's still had a lot of issuesfrom that.
It's just a horrible, senselesschain of events, not only for
him but also these otherfamilies that they've had to
endure throughout the years.
I've tried to reach out to someof these people, like to make a
Collins family.
I hadn't heard back, but I doknow that since Nelson has been
(10:46):
executed in prison, they I thinkthey that was a closure for
them, I believe you know, and Iread that in the papers at one
time.
So, seeing that closure forthem it's not really a
continuation or open, trying toopen scars with this story.
It's more of a way.
I know archer still wants toget this out there and every
once in a while the guests andtimes will post something every
10 to 15 years.
(11:06):
You know what kind of memory isthat for?
For, you know, for those peopleI mean, yeah, it's, it's not
scars, it's, you know, memories.
Shawn Tucker (11:15):
And speaking of remembering, you know, like the
blockbuster murder in Annistonand of course they closed that
blockbuster down but they had amemorial there to the victims.
Is there a memorial to thevictims of this Popeyes?
Joseph Cramer (11:34):
No, there isn't.
I know back at 94, directlyafter it happened, there was a
sign out there and it saidspecifically sorry to the loss
of these families or somethingof that nature.
There's nothing now.
I mean you can't, you can justpass it day to day and you would
never even know anythinghappened there.
So it's far beyond tragedy.
Shawn Tucker (11:55):
It's hurt several people.
Do you think it's just becauseI don't know?
I guess I guess the ownerdidn't think, because I guess
whoever owns the building wouldbe the one putting the memorial
there.
So I guess maybe he didn't wantto.
Joseph Cramer (12:12):
I couldn't speak on his behalf.
I'd like to be able to say oreven contact him, but I couldn't
speak on his behalf.
Shawn Tucker (12:18):
So from there it'd just be us assuming and
theorizing, right, correct.
The other thing I wanted to getback to was wasn't there some?
And I guess when you're inprison and you're on death row,
you're gonna kind of change yourstory maybe a little bit, or
and all that, wasn't there alittle bit different?
You know, between the twosuspects, like like going back
(12:47):
and saying, oh, it wasn't me, itwas actually him who parada.
Joseph Cramer (12:51):
Parada never said he did or didn't break.
Parada himself wasn't theshooter.
But parada did turn around andsay that melson wasn't the guy
he picked up that night, as hisfirst two statements were yes, I
picked him up, he was theshooter, yada, yada yada.
He turned around and changedhis statement, I guess to try to
(13:13):
relieve him and get him atleast back to maybe where he can
get a conviction of life inprison rather than a death
sentence.
Shawn Tucker (13:19):
A death sentence, but they had his shoe print so
he was obviously.
Joseph Cramer (13:23):
Yeah, he was there.
You can't deny those statements, even though his statements and
his claims were all the sameand his attorneys were firing
back that the cops had done thisand maybe they framed his shoe
prints, you know.
Shawn Tucker (13:39):
But also the victim was.
Who survived was like no, yeah,they were both there, right.
Joseph Cramer (13:44):
He couldn't fully say at the time because they
had masks over the face.
He didn't know.
Pareto had the shave and hecould tell, but I think as far
as I know it was like a blackguy.
But the shoe print doesn't lie,that's set in stone.
So one in a million.
You don't hardly ever see thatin a case.
Shawn Tucker (14:06):
Okay one in a million, you know, yeah, you
don't hardly ever see that inthe case.
Okay, so, and then I think alsothe a part of the, the whole
story, that that I had read toowas um, uh, I'm trying to
remember, forgive me, I forgetthe name.
There's parada, and who's theother guy right?
Melson, melson, melson, um,he's the one who would harass
(14:27):
right Years later, would call upand harass the family.
Joseph Cramer (14:31):
No, that was Pareda Pareda would do that so.
Bryant-melson's already beenexecuted.
Shawn Tucker (14:35):
Yeah, okay.
Joseph Cramer (14:36):
Pareda was 17 years old at the time this
happened also, so he was at thesame age as Nathaniel Baker and
Bryant-Archer.
Shawn Tucker (14:45):
Oh, sorry to interrupt you, you there, but
that also cuts into.
They were the first ones rightto be tried.
There was a new alabama lawright so him being 17.
Joseph Cramer (14:53):
That week they had just passed a law that
teenagers could be tried asadults.
That set him in motion to betried as an adult, which landed
him in prison for this crime andgave him the sentence of life
in prison, which he got life inprison because, for one, he
wasn't the shooter and he was17,.
So I guess they convicted himon that sentence, but that's
(15:17):
where it stood.
So Pareto got life.
Brant Nelson, the shooter yeah,the death penalty.
Shawn Tucker (15:22):
And then he would bother.
Joseph Cramer (15:23):
The Pareto would call and bother harass Pareto,
would harass some of thevictim's families and kind of
reach out and do stuff.
I want to let Archer tell hisstory more about that.
Okay, Because some of theseguys I don't want to take
anything from them because thisis their life and I just kind of
want to tell tidbits and kindof get the ball rolling on the
(15:45):
story.
I want Scott to be able to tellmore about Parada and Lane
Keener to be able to tell aboutcoming to the scene and what he
saw and experienced throughout.
And also Brian, you know, justkeep him in your prayers and be
able to hopefully write a bookone day.
That's what he would like to do.
Have none on his end.
Shawn Tucker (16:07):
And then, especially since we don't, well,
even if we did have a memorial,just keep the victims' memories
alive, and your thoughts, andalso that this murder doesn't
define their lives.
There's more to them than justthis event.
They were humans with hopes,hopes, dreams and emotions and
(16:29):
all that, and deserve to beremembered for for who they were
.
Joseph Cramer (16:35):
And with Murder In Your Backyard, I want to keep
this flowing because there'sseveral people, not only that,
have been massacred or murdered,stabbed or shot.
There's also people missing.
There's several of them, notonly throughout the nations, but
here in Alabama and right herein Calhoun and, Etowah county.
So I'm hoping through this, wecan also maybe find some of
those people right now.
This, this main interest.
(16:55):
I want to stay with Popeye'sand Bryant archer and his story
and hopefully get this to anyonewho will listen.
Yeah, hopefully so.
So, thank you so much for thefirst podcast of Murder In Your
Backyard.
I'm Joseph Cramer, I'm ShawnTucker.
You guys have a good night.
Hi and welcome to the new Murder in your Backyard
podcast.
I'm here with my co-host, seanTucker.
Today we'll be talking aboutthe Popeyes Chicken 1994 murders
.
There were four people involved.
That included 17-year-old BrianArcher, nathaniel Baker, who
was also 17, daryl Collier, the21-year-old store manager, and
Tameka Collins, the 18-year-oldassistant manager.
(00:23):
So this was a prom night.
It was heavily downpouringoutside.
The 17-year-olds wanted toleave because the store kept
flickering on and off power sothey couldn't even really make a
lot of chicken.
Everything just kind of keptgoing on and off and they kept
asking the store manager and theassistant manager if they could
leave.
They said there was probablymaybe four or five customers all
night.
(00:43):
There wasn't many at all.
There was a little bit ofschedule changing.
There's been a lot of back andforth so I do want to clarify
that, as far as I know, the onlyperson whose schedule was
changed was Tamika Collins.
Originally she wasn't supposedto be there but being that
someone else had to go to promthat night, her schedule was
changed beforehand.
She was on the schedule thenight that it happened, but
(01:11):
originally she wasn't supposedto be there.
As far as I know, everythingelse was orderly and supposed to
be the same way that it wasbrought in Daryl had just
started.
That wasn't his first day.
That's another speculation.
People and guests can stillbelieve that he had just started
that day.
He did start that week, Ibelieve, but it wasn't the day
of the event.
So we're just going to startwith the remainder of the story.
I'll kind of tell a littlebriefing on what happened.
They went to take the garbageout.
As they closed the store, asthey got to the end, in the back
(01:32):
door, nathaniel Baker wastaking out the trash.
Darrell Collier had opened theback door and as he opened the
back door, two assailants camein, one with a gun in hand.
One of them's name was TomokPereta and the other one's name
was Robert Bryant Nelson.
As they came in, they took thepeople into the office, stole
$2,100 in cash, took them to thefreezer and the shooting began.
(01:54):
I'm not going to go into toomuch detail because I'm going to
let the people tell their story.
So as they shot the people, orthe victims, they made their
exit out the back door.
And behind this introductionhere I will have statements from
Brian Archer, who was the onlysurvivor, and also Don Ward, who
was the store manager's sisterStatements from responding
(02:15):
officer Lane Keener and we'llhave statements and Q&A from
Scott Hilton, who was the EagleRock Boys Ranch owner and
founder, and he tried to takeParade in before the events
happened but stuff just didn'twork out the way he wanted.
It didn't come to be.
Shawn Tucker (02:29):
Well, Joe, did the victims know the killers?
Joseph Cramer (02:34):
Pareto was actually a worker.
He worked there as far as myunderstanding is.
He worked there about two weeks, cased the place out, got to
know the ins and outs of thebusiness.
As he closed he saw that theback door was being used as the
place to to make entry if heneeded to come in.
He also saw where the dropswere going, the money drops, and
how to gain access to the themoney at night.
Shawn Tucker (02:55):
So he took that to his advantage to get in the
store and I think, if I rememberreading the story correctly,
the cops were able to identifythe suspects with the they had
left a shoe print.
Joseph Cramer (03:10):
That's correct.
Right beside the at the time in94, there was a Taco Bell right
beside the Popeye's Chicken.
So in the middle of thatthere's a water slough and the
assailants, as the water felldown, they were standing in that
slough as they came in.
They'd actually eaten at theTaco Bell beside it fell down.
They were standing that slew asthey came in that actually
eaten at the top of bail besideit.
So as they came in there was ashoe print left inside of the
water slew there and they wereactually able to pour a mold.
(03:30):
That mold left a full-on print.
So when they were apprehendedlater on they took that print
and as I lifted it they couldtell that that was right Nelson
shoe print.
Shawn Tucker (03:41):
I, I hope and assume that they still would
have caught them, but itprobably would have been harder
without that.
Joseph Cramer (03:47):
That shoe print I think it would have been.
It would have been easy toidentify pareto because pareto
was the worker that had beenthere.
Bryant archery gave his accountthat pareto was there that
night and just knowing that hehad that identifying haircut
through bryant's testimony he hewas able to be apprehended and
they could tell that was him.
But without that shoe print Idon't think they would have
(04:07):
known right away.
That was Nelson.
Nelson was in the vehicle buthe claimed that he wasn't there
and Parade also turned aroundand claimed that Nelson was
picked up.
Later he dropped off anotherblackmail and picked up Nelson,
and then Nelson just happened tobe in the car.
Shawn Tucker (04:20):
Okay, so that that shoe print got melson.
Okay, okay, um, and then, uh,how?
How were they apprehended?
Joseph Cramer (04:30):
as they were leaving parada's house.
They pulled up and and wereable to get the suspects.
The reason they were able toget them so quickly they picked
them up later that night.
I think it was in that withinan hour or two bryant's
testimony brought archer'stestimony was that well, he gave
them the answer straight up.
As soon as they entered thepopeye's chicken.
He told him what the car makingmodel was, which was a 1980s
(04:50):
monte carlo.
So they, they went pretty muchright to his address and in
rainbow city, and rainbow citypolice apprehended them rather
than gadsden.
Gadsden didn't find out that itwas a car.
They had a bolo out for thatvehicle okay, okay.
Shawn Tucker (05:03):
And then you said shots were fired.
So they like what I'm trying toget here.
The way it's been presented tome and described it looked like
it was a robbery.
Why go back in and kill thesepeople, murder these people?
It's senseless.
Joseph Cramer (05:23):
I don't think Pareto's.
I couldn't say that paradawanted to kill him.
He could have, but I would.
I would think that parada wasin it for the robbery itself.
I don't know if he even knewthat melson was going to kill
him.
He knew melson had a gun.
I believe the gun belonged toparada, as far as I know from
reading it, but I also thinkthat parada being a 17 year old
male, I don't know if he wasquite there where he wanted to
(05:44):
come in and just kill thesepeople in cold blood.
He may have just wanted to takethe money and get out, but
unfortunately, as the doorclosed and reopened, shots began
coming through andunfortunately killed these three
people and hurt Brian Archer.
Shawn Tucker (05:58):
And did the victims know these people
outside of Popeyes, or was itjust working with them?
Joseph Cramer (06:07):
Tamika Collins.
She was a Gaston StateCommunity College student.
So she, as far as myunderstanding, she may have
known Bryant and Melson, becauseI've heard from someone else
who knew both of them that hekind of flirted with her and he
knew Bryant also.
But as far as Bryant, melsonand Tamika I'm not totally sure.
But it's possible that theyknew each other.
(06:27):
Couldn't tell you for sure.
Shawn Tucker (06:29):
Okay, and were there any statements from the
police about the murder?
Joseph Cramer (06:37):
We'll be hearing from Officer Lane Keener also in
this podcast, any statementsfrom the police about the murder
.
We'll be hearing from OfficerLane Keener also in this podcast
and he goes on to tell aboutsome distinctive memories he had
as he entered the building andsome of the stuff he got to see
and do and what went onthroughout the night as the
events unfolded.
I did speak with Officer RandyPhillips also, but I didn't get
any kind of audio or video.
(06:58):
He told me more of hisstatements would more so do
damage or hurt the family morethan what they needed to hear.
So we just cut everything offand he gave me a briefing on
everything that went on thatnight.
Shawn Tucker (07:12):
With that being said, I assume that they closed
this business.
Is this Popeye's still there?
Joseph Cramer (07:17):
Popeye's is still there.
The Popeye's has beenrearranged.
They took the freezer out.
It's been remodeled heavily butthe inside of the building is
pretty much the same as it wasback in 94.
Actually I ate there for thefirst time after I interviewed
Brian Archer, he told me, justbecause something happened and
just because tragic eventsunfolded the way they did, it
(07:39):
wasn't Popeye's fault that thiswas done.
It was the fault of these twoindividuals that made this not
happen.
But he has no hurt againstPopeye's, I guess you would say.
He said it's still a greatplace to eat.
So as soon as I got done Ijumped in the truck and I went
straight to Popeye's.
It was a great place to eat.
But I did want to kind of seethe insides and outsides of the
(07:59):
buildings and see kind of whatmight have taken place.
Shawn Tucker (08:02):
Since you knew, you know this incident and you
know what had happened and allthat, was there a bit of
eeriness or anything when youwent in there, Because you know,
like, if it's me and I don'tknow anything right, and I go
into this Popeye's and I getsome food, I don't know, you
know, I don't know anything.
(08:22):
But since you knew the history,was there a little bit of like
eerie-ness for you.
Joseph Cramer (08:28):
Well, I saw on television I was maybe 9 or 10
years old at this time, 94, itkind of freaked me out seeing
two assailants.
You know, yeah, been on the run, that's all I knew.
You know, looking back it justkind of.
It's just kind of terrifying.
At that time, as I've gottenolder and meeting archer and
making my way into five eyes, Iwouldn't say there was eeriness,
(08:51):
but just the seeing what couldhappen.
You happened while I was there.
Your mind shifts to whathappened in 94, and you see it
through different eyes,especially after talking to
these people about it, notreally reliving it.
And I did ask questions topeople that were working there,
(09:11):
but it was just kind of shunnedoff or thrown off and they
couldn't tell me much about it.
Shawn Tucker (09:16):
It was just kind of shunned off or thrown off and
they couldn't tell me muchabout it and I don't know if you
know, 94 was what 20 years agonow 30.
30?
30 years ago, 30 years ago,yeah, so it was 30.
Joseph Cramer (09:25):
We actually just met the anniversary of the 30th
last month, oh wow.
So this is the 30th anniversaryof the 5i shoot.
Shawn Tucker (09:33):
Okay, so I would assume the franchisee owner um,
is he still around?
Is it the original owner ofthat popeyes?
Joseph Cramer (09:44):
and one of my statements from bryant.
I believe that the owner haspassed away.
I'm not sure if that was in oneof the interviews that I did
with him.
He has since passed and I don'tthink he lived much longer than
the original shooting.
Shawn Tucker (09:54):
And I believe you were also telling me that,
bryant, it was very tough on himafter, right that, like you
know, he was in the hospital andhe had a long road to recovery
right, that's correct.
And that it was not everything.
(10:17):
His medical expenses were not,he only got a little bit of
money.
Joseph Cramer (10:22):
He didn't get much of anything.
He's still had a lot of issuesfrom that.
It's just a horrible, senselesschain of events, not only for
him but also these otherfamilies that they've had to
endure throughout the years.
I've tried to reach out to someof these people, like to make a
Collins family.
I hadn't heard back, but I doknow that since Nelson has been
(10:46):
executed in prison, they I thinkthey that was a closure for
them, I believe you know, and Iread that in the papers at one
time.
So, seeing that closure forthem it's not really a
continuation or open, trying toopen scars with this story.
It's more of a way.
I know archer still wants toget this out there and every
once in a while the guests andtimes will post something every
10 to 15 years.
(11:06):
You know what kind of memory isthat for?
For, you know, for those peopleI mean, yeah, it's, it's not
scars, it's, you know, memories.
Shawn Tucker (11:15):
And speaking of remembering, you know, like the
blockbuster murder in Annistonand of course they closed that
blockbuster down but they had amemorial there to the victims.
Is there a memorial to thevictims of this Popeyes?
Joseph Cramer (11:34):
No, there isn't.
I know back at 94, directlyafter it happened, there was a
sign out there and it saidspecifically sorry to the loss
of these families or somethingof that nature.
There's nothing now.
I mean you can't, you can justpass it day to day and you would
never even know anythinghappened there.
So it's far beyond tragedy.
Shawn Tucker (11:55):
It's hurt several people.
Do you think it's just becauseI don't know?
I guess I guess the ownerdidn't think, because I guess
whoever owns the building wouldbe the one putting the memorial
there.
So I guess maybe he didn't wantto.
Joseph Cramer (12:12):
I couldn't speak on his behalf.
I'd like to be able to say oreven contact him, but I couldn't
speak on his behalf.
Shawn Tucker (12:18):
So from there it'd just be us assuming and
theorizing, right, correct.
The other thing I wanted to getback to was wasn't there some?
And I guess when you're inprison and you're on death row,
you're gonna kind of change yourstory maybe a little bit, or
and all that, wasn't there alittle bit different?
You know, between the twosuspects, like like going back
(12:47):
and saying, oh, it wasn't me, itwas actually him who parada.
Joseph Cramer (12:51):
Parada never said he did or didn't break.
Parada himself wasn't theshooter.
But parada did turn around andsay that melson wasn't the guy
he picked up that night, as hisfirst two statements were yes, I
picked him up, he was theshooter, yada, yada yada.
He turned around and changedhis statement, I guess to try to
(13:13):
relieve him and get him atleast back to maybe where he can
get a conviction of life inprison rather than a death
sentence.
Shawn Tucker (13:19):
A death sentence, but they had his shoe print so
he was obviously.
Joseph Cramer (13:23):
Yeah, he was there.
You can't deny those statements, even though his statements and
his claims were all the sameand his attorneys were firing
back that the cops had done thisand maybe they framed his shoe
prints, you know.
Shawn Tucker (13:39):
But also the victim was.
Who survived was like no, yeah,they were both there, right.
Joseph Cramer (13:44):
He couldn't fully say at the time because they
had masks over the face.
He didn't know.
Pareto had the shave and hecould tell, but I think as far
as I know it was like a blackguy.
But the shoe print doesn't lie,that's set in stone.
So one in a million.
You don't hardly ever see thatin a case.
Shawn Tucker (14:06):
Okay one in a million, you know, yeah, you
don't hardly ever see that inthe case.
Okay, so, and then I think alsothe a part of the, the whole
story, that that I had read toowas um, uh, I'm trying to
remember, forgive me, I forgetthe name.
There's parada, and who's theother guy right?
Melson, melson, melson, um,he's the one who would harass
(14:27):
right Years later, would call upand harass the family.
Joseph Cramer (14:31):
No, that was Pareda Pareda would do that so.
Bryant-melson's already beenexecuted.
Shawn Tucker (14:35):
Yeah, okay.
Joseph Cramer (14:36):
Pareda was 17 years old at the time this
happened also, so he was at thesame age as Nathaniel Baker and
Bryant-Archer.
Shawn Tucker (14:45):
Oh, sorry to interrupt you, you there, but
that also cuts into.
They were the first ones rightto be tried.
There was a new alabama lawright so him being 17.
Joseph Cramer (14:53):
That week they had just passed a law that
teenagers could be tried asadults.
That set him in motion to betried as an adult, which landed
him in prison for this crime andgave him the sentence of life
in prison, which he got life inprison because, for one, he
wasn't the shooter and he was17,.
So I guess they convicted himon that sentence, but that's
(15:17):
where it stood.
So Pareto got life.
Brant Nelson, the shooter yeah,the death penalty.
Shawn Tucker (15:22):
And then he would bother.
Joseph Cramer (15:23):
The Pareto would call and bother harass Pareto,
would harass some of thevictim's families and kind of
reach out and do stuff.
I want to let Archer tell hisstory more about that.
Okay, Because some of theseguys I don't want to take
anything from them because thisis their life and I just kind of
want to tell tidbits and kindof get the ball rolling on the
(15:45):
story.
I want Scott to be able to tellmore about Parada and Lane
Keener to be able to tell aboutcoming to the scene and what he
saw and experienced throughout.
And also Brian, you know, justkeep him in your prayers and be
able to hopefully write a bookone day.
That's what he would like to do.
Have none on his end.
Shawn Tucker (16:07):
And then, especially since we don't, well,
even if we did have a memorial,just keep the victims' memories
alive, and your thoughts, andalso that this murder doesn't
define their lives.
There's more to them than justthis event.
They were humans with hopes,hopes, dreams and emotions and
(16:29):
all that, and deserve to beremembered for for who they were
.
Joseph Cramer (16:35):
And with Murder In Your Backyard, I want to keep
this flowing because there'sseveral people, not only that,
have been massacred or murdered,stabbed or shot.
There's also people missing.
There's several of them, notonly throughout the nations, but
here in Alabama and right herein Calhoun and, Etowah county.
So I'm hoping through this, wecan also maybe find some of
those people right now.
This, this main interest.
(16:55):
I want to stay with Popeye'sand Bryant archer and his story
and hopefully get this to anyonewho will listen.
Yeah, hopefully so.
So, thank you so much for thefirst podcast of Murder In Your
Backyard.
I'm Joseph Cramer, I'm ShawnTucker.
You guys have a good night.
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