Burton Jones was murdered on May 28, 1979, while he and an unnamed passenger were traveling on Duane Mountain, in the Bulan area of Perry County, Kentucky. An unknown assailant in a red Monte Carlo with a white vinyl top pulled along beside Burton’s vehicle and opened fire with a shotgun. Burton was killed instantly, but I’m assuming the passenger (I can’t find a name anywhere) was either not wounded, or not wounded critically. Either way, it had to have been them that gave the account of what had happened.
It’s believed that his murder could possibly be linked to a coal strike that was happening at the time involving the Coal Company. Burton was actually a US Mail Carrier, and law enforcement thinks that he may have been killed by mistake. One of Burton’s family members reached out to me, telling me that not only was Burton killed, but so was another member of the same family, Elhannon Jones Jr (a man was arrested and tried for his murder, but found not guilty and released); and another family member was ambushed, badly wounded, and although he did survive, he was partially paralyzed.
Law Enforcement also believes that Burton’s death could be related to the murder of another man, Donnie R. Gibson, on December 17, 1979. He was also shot while driving, and the weapon used to murder him was a shotgun.
If you have any information, please contact the Kentucky State Police at 606-435-6069. Even if the parties are deceased, Burton still has living family that would love to be able to put his murder to rest.
01/26/2021 – no updates available
