It was cold the night of February 5, 1978. The temperature stood in the single digits and the only sound in the valley at 11:00 PM were the groomers moving along the slopes at Ski Wing Hollow.
It was a sharp contrast to the scene earlier in the the day. The sun had been shining and a fresh snowfall and chilly temps brought hundreds of people out to ski. Young and old alike spent hours riding the T-bars and chairs to the top of the hill so they could come swishing back down.
There were the more cautious skiers, making their way slowly, criss-crossing across hill. Then there were the daredevils who raced to see who could make it back to the chairlift first.
After spending time outdoors, these same people would head to the Swiss-style chalet to grab a bite to eat, drink hot chocolate, and trade tales of their skiing adventures.
But by the time Michael Forness and Stephen Bender arrived to work that night, the last skier had headed home and they had the task of preparing the hills for the next day.
Stephen Bender, 30, grew up in the neighboring city of Olean. He was an outdoorsman, having graduated from the State University of Forestry and the New York State Rangers School.
Michael Forness, 29, lived in Cuba, NY. After graduating from the State University of Cortland, he went to work at AVX Ceramics in Olean as a chemist and was also a self-employed mason.
Both men had started working at Ski Wing the previous December to earn some extra money during ski season.
Shortly before midnight, one of the groomers quit working. The two men met up on the slope and made their way back to the chalet to get warm, drink some coffee and grab some tools. Coming up the building, they would’ve noticed the broken glass in a side door. Ski Wing had had several burglaries in the past, with the most recent one occurring just a couple of weeks before.
Thinking to catch the thieves in the act, the two men opened the door and stepped inside. At some point they might have tried to call the police to inform them of another robbery, but the phone in the chalet lobby had been ripped from the wall. Upon reaching the main office, they would’ve seen the door slightly ajar, with marks showing it had been pried open.
With their apprehension rising, they entered the office to find a man standing there with a .38 caliber revolver. Another man was inside the closet, working to chisel the cement surrounding the floor safe.
Now, here’s something interesting. Ready?
The safe had only been in its current location for a short time. After someone had made off with the previous floor safe, the resort owners decided to take extra precautions. The new safe was encased inside cement floor, reinforced with steel rods. It was well-hidden in a closet off the main office, under a piece of carpeting, where even some employees were unaware of its new location.
The thieves had chosen the right night for their wicked activity. Ski Wing had enjoyed a busier than usual weekend and there was a combination of U.S and Canadian currency totaling over $18,000 in the safe, which is equivalent to $82,000 today.
Stephen and Michael startled the men removing the safe, but the man with the gun recovered quickly. He raised his arm and shot Michael in the chest. The two employees turned and tried to flee. Stephen was shot in the back and fell right outside the office. The gunman shot him twice more, once in the neck and once in the back of the head.
Meanwhile, Michael ran towards the front door to make his escape but found it bolted. The gunman shot him again, hitting his left shoulder. He then stood over Micheal, executing him with a shot to the back of his head.
He turned and went back to the office to finish the job of removing the 175-pound safe. While most people would assume they loaded the safe into a car or truck, there have been persistent rumors that they actually made their get-away on snowmobiles.
At 2:50 AM, Donald McCartan arrived at Ski Wing where he worked as a janitor. He was almost three hours late for his shift that started at midnight. He had been watching a program on ABC and fell asleep in his chair. Upon entering the building and discovering the dead bodies of his co-workers, he quickly exited and drove to a nearby house to call the police.
Though the police interviewed over 100 people and ran down several leads, the case quickly went cold. You would think someone trying to pay with, or exchange Canadian currency, would’ve been noticed but I guess not. I did hear about a high-stakes poker game that took place shortly after the robbery where Canadian currency was part of the pot.
On the morning of March 4th, almost one month to the day, NYS Trooper Eugene Adams decided to pull onto the Vandalia Bridge, which spanned the Allegany River. The bridge was a favorite dumping spot and had been checked immediately after the robbery and several times since. Trooper Adams noticed a scraped and dented area on the bridge’s steel railing. Leaning over, he could make out the glint of metal in the water. He contacted one of the investigators from the Bureau of Criminal Investigation and the two of them brought the object up to the surface. It was the missing safe. It had been sawed open and the contents emptied.
This brings up another curious point.
The river was approximately 2.5 feet deep and while the safe was heavy, it wasn’t very large. It may have been 18 inches in both width and depth. How was Trooper Adams able to see that safe in the water and why was he even looking there on that particular day? After all, that area had been checked several times already. Did someone tell him to check the river again? I can’t ask him, as he passed away in his garage in 1980 at the young age of 43.
This coming February will mark the 45th anniversary of two men being murdered in cold blood for $18,000. There have names mentioned throughout the years, but no charges have been filed.
The families of Stephen Bender and Michael Forness have gone too long without seeing justice served. They deserve answers.
Somebody knows something. It’s time for them to speak up.
45 years ago…
2 innocent men executed…
For $18,000.
If you know anything, please contact the New York State Police at crimetip@troopers.ny.gov or by calling 585-344-6200. You can also submit a tip to NYS Crimestoppers by calling (866) 313-TIPS (8447).