3 things to know about Shauna Howe's killers

Trigger warning: This article contains information about graphic violence

The upcoming episode of People Magazine Presents: Crimes of the '90s is all set to explore the brutal murder of Shauna Howe, which shook the little town of Oil City, Pennsylvania, back in 1992. The case, which took over a decade to completely resolve, left an ever-lasting impact on the residents of the small town. 11-year-old Shauna became the target of a supposed prank that ended up in a brutal murder.

On October 27, 1992, young Shauna was kidnapped from the busy intersection of West First and Reed streets while the girl was walking home from a Halloween party. What unfolded next was a series of gruesome crimes. Shauna was kidnapped, assaulted, and later thrown off a bridge near an old, abandoned railroad. Her body was discovered after a three-day search. Even though the police came close to solving the case in the initial stages, an error led the authorities to a dead end.

It was not until 2002 that the authorities finally unraveled the case and arrested all three of the perpetrators, Eldred “Ted” Walker, James O'Brien, and his older brother, Timothy O'Brien. Read on for some facts about the three criminals involved in this brutal crime.

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Three facts about the murderers of Shauna Howe

1) Walker allegedly participated in the kidnapping because he thought it was a prank

Ted Walker, who eventually became the main reason for the O'Brien brothers' conviction, stated that he participated in the plan because he thought it was a prank. The three of them allegedly planned to kidnap one of Ted's son's friends on Halloween as a prank to embarrass the local police force.

Ted claimed that he had no idea that the plan had escalated to this degree. Ted allegedly realized that the brothers had changed the plan when he saw them taking Shauna into their house. State Trooper Vernon Brown, who heard the story from Walker, said:

"He told me he was furious they brought her to his house because that wasn't part of the plan...Once they got upstairs, he heard yelling and screaming, and heard Shauna say 'Let me up. Get off me. Leave me alone."

However, Walker did not come to the authorities for fear of punishment.

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2) Both James O'Brien and Timothy O'Brien were in prison when the authorities linked them to the murder and assault of Shauna Howe

When the authorities finally found a match for the DNA sample found on Shauna, it turned out to be James O'Brien, who was already serving time for attempted kidnapping.

Timothy, James' older brother, was also implicated after a hair sample matched the elder O'Brien sibling's. He was also serving time after being accused of s*xually assaulting children. Their connection with Ted Walker was also established during this time, leading to the eventual conviction.

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3) Ted Walker took a plea deal to testify against James and Timothy

When Ted was initially brought in for questioning after the DNA match was found, he changed his story several times before revealing the actual events. Ted admitted to grabbing 11-year-old Shauna Howe off the street but claimed he had no idea what the O'Brien siblings planned to do to the child later.

According to his testimony, he was furious but the brothers threatened to hurt his son. Ted took a plea deal and is currently serving 20–40 years in prison. His testimony helped authorities charge the two brothers with second-degree murder and third-degree murder of Shauna Howe. They were both sentenced to life in prison.

People Magazine Presents: Crimes of the '90s will explore the Shauna Howe murder case in detail when it airs this week.