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As you’ve read before, there are many rumors and stories that have circulated throughout Delaware and Pennsylvania about Cossart Road, otherwise known as Devil’s Road. You can read those rumors by clicking here.These stories entail the DuPonts, sacrifices, ghosts, and a cult house, and awful amount of superstitions…
The Actual Truth…
The actual truth of Devil’s Road begins with a family known as the Johnston’s.Bruce Alfred Johnston Sr.(March 27, 1939 – August 8, 2002) was the leader of this gang that became the most notorious gang in the history of Pennsylvania. It all began in the 1960s and came to an abrupt end in 1978 when his own son testified against him. Fun fact: a 1986 film At Close Range is loosely based on the Johnston’s.
The Johnston’s were known for stealing antiques, drugs, and especially tractors within Chester County, Lancaster County, Maryland and Delaware. The gang members were highly skilled in lock-picking, cracking safes, disarming security systems and hot wiring vehicles. They paid close attention to police scanners to stay one step ahead of local law enforcement. They would go as far as diverting state police by phoning in a false report of a crime. A retired police officer of the area stated, “Nothing in my experience ever compared to what they were. They were damn good at what they did.”
Gang members (As you can see some were “moles”…)
- Bruce Johnston Sr.
- David Johnston
- Norman Johnston
- Richard Mitchell → later became a witness for the State
- James Griffin → later became a witness for the State
- Edward Otter
- Davis Schonely
- Leslie Dale → later became a witness for the State
- Gary Wayne Crouch, deceased
- Richard Donnell
- Roy Meyers → later became a witness for the State
- Jack W. Baen, drowned in 1970; murder charges were filed against Leslie Dale and Richard Donnell
- Francis Matherly
- Ancell E. Hamm: killed two police officers of the Kennett Square Police Department, William Davis and Richard Posey, in 1972 and was sentenced to two consecutive life terms. He was one of the earliest Johnston Gang members.
The Crime Timeline Starts With Dutch Wonderland…
August, 1971 (Dutch Wonderland-Lincoln Highway East)
One of the Johnston gang members was able to pry open the door to the theme park’s shop with a crowbar. The shop was located just off of a side street that was hidden from the main roads. The gang gathered their tools; crowbar, rope, blowtorch, hammer, walkie-talkies. This operation would become known as the worst ever burglary to ever happen at the popular tourist attraction. They came away with $33,000 worth of loot.
1975 (Meadia Heights Country Club, Lancaster, PA)
Once again, the Johnston boys used a crowbar to break their way into a pro shop at a country club in Lancaster, PA. With skills in disarming alarm systems, they were able to drill holes through the wall of the shop and break the system. When they got in, they dynamited the safe and came out of this mission with golf equipment and $15,000. The equipment was never recovered.
1976
A woman by the name of Janet Gazzerro, along with her husband Frank were convicted of bribing a juror who was on the Chester County Common Pleas Court. This is where the gang leader Bruce Johnston Sr. was accused of stealing a tractor. Janet and Frank received $83,000 in stolen Oriental rugs, jewelry, and exotic furs. Gazzerro admits Bruce Sr. gave her three garden tractors. Janet kept two and one went to the juror. Ultimately it paid off, and Bruce Sr., David and Norman Johnston and Roy Myers were acquitted of the theft charges.
April – May, 1977
In April 1977, the Johnston gang had stolen cigarettes and transported them successfully across state lines The amount of stolen cigarettes totaled $21,900. In 1981 they all accepted the charges and plead guilty for steeling the cigarettes.
May 1977 rolls around and three of the brothers burgle Longwood Gardens in Chester County. They successfully stole $28,000 from the Gardens and ended up serving two-to four year sentences for convictions on state charges for this crime.
August 1978 Victims
As the Johnston brothers and gang members start gaining more attention, the only way they thought to stop people from talking was to get rid of them, including Bruce’s own son…
- James “Jimmy” Johnston (18) half brother to Bruce Jr. — murdered August 16, 1978
- Dwayne Lincoln (17) — murdered August 16, 1978
- Wayne Sampson (20) — murdered August 16, 1978
- James Sampson (24) — murdered August 21, 1978
- Robin Miller (15, girlfriend of Bruce Johnston Jr.) — murdered August 30, 1978
- Bruce Johnston Jr. (19) – critically injured during an attempted murder – August 30, 1978
Bruce Senior Tells His Son To Start His Own Gang…
Bruce Johnston, leader of the infamous Johnston gang leads his son into forming his own gang, making his son the leader. Little Bruce gathered his friends and started committing crimes like their false role models had told them to. Little Bruce’s gang was short lived and he was arrested on charges for petty crimes in Oxford, PA. He was taken to prison and it was there that things started to really go downhill for the Johnston gang.
During the summer Little Bruce was imprisoned, his girlfriend, Robin Miller had written him a letter stating that Little Bruce’s father had raped her. Bruce Sr. had offered to take Robin to see her boyfriend in prison, but instead gave her some whiskey, took her to a motel, and sexually assaulted her. Enraged with fury, Little Bruce spoke to the police and told them everything about the Johnston family and what they had done…
The Violent Ending of The Kiddie Gang
The Johnston family becomes known as The Kiddie Gang around Chester and Lancaster County. Little Bruce was being held in jail under protective custody after spilling out secrets to the police. Rumors started to spread like wildfire. In order to silence the other potential informants the gang was dealing with, they went as far as murdering their own members.This resulted in four gang members’ deaths and an attempted murder of Little Bruce’s 18 year old half brother, James. The gang members were led into an isolated field off of Cossart Road in Chadds Ford, PA, told to dig their own graves, and were killed right then and there.
After hearing about the murders, Little Bruce decided to sign himself out of protective custody. He went and spent the day with his girlfriend at Hershey Park and as they pulled in to their driveway, two men came out from the cornfield across the street and started firing. In August of 1978, Little Bruce and Robin Miller were ambushed by their uncles David and Norman. Robin Miller was shot in the face and killed. Robin was only 15 years old. Little Bruce was shot 9 times, including 3 times in the head, but somehow he survived and managed to get into the house and phone the police.
Little Bruce survived and testified against his father and his uncles and ultimately sent them all to life in prison. Bruce Sr. died in a Pennsylvania prison in 2002 at the age of 63. The Johnston family is still known as one of the most dangerous and infamous gangs in the United States. Disturbingly enough, they went as far as killing their own family members to protect themselves from the Feds and it all happened right here in Pennsylvania…
Inside the Abandoned Cine'Mart Theater in Wilmington Delaware
In the late 60s and early 70s, movie theaters, drive-ins, and strip mall cinemas were popping up all over the nation. They were the new craze. Branmar Cinemahad just opened their doors, along with Tri State Mall’s old theater. And then came the Cine’Mart Theater on Governor Printz Boulevard in Wilmington, Delaware. The first date of the box office opening at the Cine’Mart was January 20th, 1969.
According to the credited research that Edwin Graf Diemer contributed to Cinema Treasures for this story, “The shopping center [across the street from Cine’Mart] was built just following World War II and quickly became the most popular shopping destination in Wilmington.” The theater seated 984 people and there was only 1 screen, similar to Branmar Theater just a couple miles away. A newspaper released at the time of the closure stated, “The CineMart, Northern Delaware’s largest motion picture theater was closed over the weekend. Employees of the 984-seat theater on the Governor Printz Boulevard said they were notified of the closing just hours before it was shut down.”
The theater was steadily losing “$50,000 to $60,000 a year” and fell behind on rent. The owners did ask the owners of the Merechandise Mart to twin the theater, but they declined. At the same time of the CineMart closure, the Edgemoor Theater, which was only a few hundred yards up the road, would close when their lease expired.
Edwin cited that “The auditorium was completely in gold with wide rocking chair seating. The front was deeply curved to allow for the screen, with curtains that went to the rear of the auditorium.” According to local WJBR listener, Gary Rauso who has been to the Cinemart as well as Branmar Cinema, stated “It was the first theater in the area to have surround sound.” This theater, along with many others across America, actually were booking shows ranging from G-rated to explicit p*rnographic films. The theater was originally built to operate solely on X-rated p*rnographic films, but the Budco company acquired the theater from Hallmark Theaters of Massachusetts and started showing all varieties of films. The first film ever shown at the Cinemart was in 1968, titled “The Odd Couple”. The last ever film shown there was “The Exterminator”.
The downfall of the Cine’Mart was actually due to the Concord Mall on Route 202 in Wilmington. The Mall had been built with a theater of its own and sucked the life out of the Cine’Mart. This also resulted in the abandonment of the entire Merchandise Mart. Today, the Cine’Mart is fully abandoned, but remains standing with boards up on every possible entrance.
CineMart Building Exterior
Cine’Mart Governor Printz Boulevard Wilmington Delaware
Cinemart Box Office Poster
Cinemart
Cinema Treasures is the ultimate guide to movie theaters
Inside Cinemart Movie Theater
Cinemart
Cinema Treasures is the ultimate guide to movie theaters
Cinemart Photo Dated 2011
Cinemart
Cinema Treasures is the ultimate guide to movie theaters
Cinemart Box Office Poster 2
Cinemart
Cinema Treasures is the ultimate guide to movie theaters
Cinemart Exterior
Cinemart
Cinema Treasures is the ultimate guide to movie theaters
Cinemart Exterior 2
Cinemart
Cinema Treasures is the ultimate guide to movie theaters
Budco Quality Theatre, Owners of Cinemart
Cinemart
Cinema Treasures is the ultimate guide to movie theaters
Cinemart Bathroom
Cinemart
Cinema Treasures is the ultimate guide to movie theaters
Inside the Cinemart Theater
Cinemart
Cinema Treasures is the ultimate guide to movie theaters
Cinemart Theater Chandelier
Cinemart
Cinema Treasures is the ultimate guide to movie theaters
Cinemart Balcony Seating
Cinemart
Cinema Treasures is the ultimate guide to movie theaters
Inside the Cinemart Theater
Cinemart
Cinema Treasures is the ultimate guide to movie theaters
Exit Sign Still Glows Red
Cinemart
Cinema Treasures is the ultimate guide to movie theaters
Curtain Open and Close Buttons
Cinemart
Cinema Treasures is the ultimate guide to movie theaters
Budco Quality Theaters Patch
Cinemart
Cinema Treasures is the ultimate guide to movie theaters
The Infamous Film Screen
Cinemart
Cinema Treasures is the ultimate guide to movie theaters
Golden Curtain Walls
Cinemart
Cinema Treasures is the ultimate guide to movie theaters
The Infamous Film Screen
Cinemart
Cinema Treasures is the ultimate guide to movie theaters
Cinemart Seating Area
Cinemart
Cinema Treasures is the ultimate guide to movie theaters
Cinemart Movie Poster
Cinemart
Cinema Treasures is the ultimate guide to movie theaters
Cinemart Movie Poster
Cinemart
Cinema Treasures is the ultimate guide to movie theaters
Cinemart Jaws Movie Poster
Cinemart
Cinema Treasures is the ultimate guide to movie theaters
Saturday Night Fever Movie Poster at Cinemart
Cinemart
Cinema Treasures is the ultimate guide to movie theaters
X-Rated Movie Poster
Cinemart
Cinema Treasures is the ultimate guide to movie theaters
X-Rated Movie Poster at Cinemart
Cinemart
Cinema Treasures is the ultimate guide to movie theaters
Monty Python Cinemart Movie Poster
Cinemart
Cinema Treasures is the ultimate guide to movie theaters
Poseidon Movie Poster Cinemart
Cinemart
Cinema Treasures is the ultimate guide to movie theaters
Cinemart Movie Poster Alex in Wonderland
Cinemart
Cinema Treasures is the ultimate guide to movie theaters
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Hollywood Kyle is the Digital Content Producer and Production Director of Mix 99.5 WJBR. Being a Delaware local, Kyle takes pride in his hometown and has had a love for music since a young age. Hollywood Kyle joins the Mix Morning Show for abstract thoughts and ideas during "Hollywood Kyle" segment around 9:40am Monday thru Friday.
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Category:
- As Heard On Air
- Holidays
- WJBR
Tags:
bruce johnston,chadds ford,chadds ford pa,cossart road,johnston,johnston murders
