ID's The Murders at Starved Rock: Who is Chester Weger and what did he do?

The Murders at Starved Rock is a mini-docu-series chronicling the 1960 murders of Frances Murphy, 47, Mildred Lindquist, 50, and Lillian Oetting, 50, and Chester Weger's involvement in it. The three women were the wives of prominent Chicago-based businessmen. They took a four-day trip to Starved Rock State Park in LaSalle County, Illinois, but never returned home.

After finding their bludgeoned, semi-disrobed bodies inside a cave in the canyon, the investigators jumped into action. They focused on at Chester Weger, who was a dishwasher at the Starved Rock Lodge, the same place these women were staying.

Despite passing several polygraph tests, many things pointed towards Weger as the major suspect. This also includes a confession from the man himself, which he later retracted.

He served a prison term from 1961 to 2020, and was parolled on his 24th try. This made him the longest-serving prisoner in the history of the state.

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Who is Chester Weger and why was he convicted?

A day after the disappearance of the three women, staff at the Starved Rock Lodge noticed some scratches on Chester Weger's face. This became one of the most prominent things in the case when the police came looking for information about the missing women. While interviewing hotel staff, this information set Weger, who was only 21 at the time, apart from the others.

After the women's bodies were found, the autopsy revealed that all three of them had been dealt heavy blows on and around their heads. They were also tied with twines, the same kind that was found near Chester's workshed. Despite the pin of constant suspicion on him, Chester managed to pass several polygraph tests, before failing a lie detector test.

Moreover, a description of a man who tied and assaulted a teenager at Matthiessen State Park matched Weger's. He was finally arrested on November 16, 1960.

The very next day, he confessed to the murders. However, in a turn of events, he retracted the statement saying had been under duress at the time and the authorities forced him to confess.

However, by then, it was too late for him. When the case went to court, the jury found him guilty and sentenced him to life in prison, ignoring the State's request to sentence him to death. Over the many years in prison, Chester Weger continued to deny his involvement in the case.

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Where is Chester Weger now?

After numerous attempts at parole, he was finally granted freedom on February 20, 2020. He became the longest-serving prisoner in the history of the state. After getting out, Chester Weger said:

"They ruined my life. They locked me up for 60 years for something I’ve never done,...I’m just glad to be out and to be able to walk around...Why should I feel remorse then if I never killed them [Murphy, Lindquist, and Oetting]? I mean I feel sorry for the people being dead, but I’m not going to admit that I’ve done something I [had] never done."

Weger is still trying to clear his name at the age of 81, claiming that his life was ruined because of a false conviction.

The Murders at Starved Rock covers this in detail.