Anthony Probst

Overview

Anthony Probst was an ex-convict who confessed to killing Robert May and Steven Myllo. He later pled guilty in Arizona and Colorado and received prison sentences including a consecutive term.

Timeline

• September 7, 1986 — Robert May, a divorced construction worker, left his Phoenix home to search for work in Houston, Texas.
• September 8, 1986 — May’s car was found abandoned near a school in Bowie, Arizona.
• September 10, 1986 — Steven Myllo was last seen alive.
• September 12, 1986 — The partly-frozen corpse of Steven Myllo, a 38-year-old traveling salesman from New Mexico, was found outside of Castle Rock, Colorado.
• September 12, 1986 — May was found outside of Bowie, in the desert and shot twice in the face.
• March 12, 1987 — Anthony Probst pled guilty in Arizona to Robert May’s murder, receiving a 40-year prison term with a minimum of 25 years to be served before parole.
• Three weeks later (after March 12, 1987) — Anthony Probst pled guilty in Colorado to Steven Myllo’s slaying, accepting a consecutive sentence of 40 years to life.
• (Date not stated) — After his speedy trial in Castle Rock, he told a jailer, "There's going to be plenty of shooting if I ever get out of here."
• April 5 (year not stated) — Anthony Probst joined two cellmates in escaping from the Douglas County jail.
• April 6 (year not stated) — Anthony Probst was recaptured in Castle Rock the next day and returned to Arizona under heavy guard to serve his time.

The offences

Robert May

• Robert May, a 35-year-old divorced construction worker, was killed near Bowie, Arizona.
• His car was found abandoned near a school in Bowie, Arizona.
• Two days after his car was found, he was found outside of Bowie, in the desert, shot twice in the face.

Steven Myllo

• Steven Myllo, a 38-year-old traveling salesman from New Mexico, was killed outside of Castle Rock, Colorado.
• He was last seen alive on September 10.
• On September 12, his partly-frozen corpse was found outside of Castle Rock.
• Myllo had been shot at close range, and his van was missing.
• The van was later found in Overland, Missouri, a St. Louis suburb, where it had been stripped and burned on private property.

Investigation

• May’s I.D. cards and personal affects were soon discovered by a motel maid.
• The I.D. cards and personal affects were discarded in a room that had been rented to one "B.R. Mills."
• Some days after Myllo’s van was missing, investigators questioned the owner of the land in Overland, Missouri.
• The landowner admitted participating in the van’s destruction.
• The landowner declared that it had been an act of friendship performed on behalf of Tony Bropst, a pal from Arizona.
• Homicide investigators picked up Bropst in Phoenix.
• The 33-year-old ex-convict confessed to killing May and Myllo.

Plea and sentencing

Arizona (Robert May)

• On March 12, 1987, Anthony Probst pled guilty in Arizona.
• He received a 40-year prison term.
• The term included a minimum of 25 years to be served before parole.

Colorado (Steven Myllo)

• Three weeks after the Arizona plea, Anthony Probst pled guilty in Colorado.
• He accepted a consecutive sentence of 40 years to life.

Post-sentencing behaviour and escape

• Despite his willingness to talk about the crimes, Anthony Probst showed no inclination toward captivity.
• After returning from his speedy trial in Castle Rock, he told a jailer:

  "There's going to be plenty of shooting if I ever get out of here."

• On April 5, he joined two cellmates in escaping from the Douglas County jail.
• He was recaptured in Castle Rock the next day.
• He was returned to Arizona under heavy guard to serve his time.

Other details

• The case involved Tony Bropst as the 33-year-old ex-convict who confessed to killing Robert May and Steven Myllo.