Authorities Still Seeking Thompson Killers

The Los Angeles Sheriffs Department recently released time-enhanced sketches of two suspects still sought in the 1988 murders of racing legend Mickey Thompson and his wife, Trudy.

Suspect No. 1

Suspect No. 2

Thompson and his wife were gunned down in their driveway in the early morning hours of March 16, 1988 while preparing to leave for work. Nearly 20 years later, a former business partner, Michael Goodwin, was found guilty by a Pasadena Superior Court jury in 2006 of two counts of first-degree murder for planning the murders. The actual gunmen were never identified or apprehended.

Thompson, a pioneer in the world of high-performance racing, rose to stardom in the early 1960s, when he became the first American to travel faster than 400 miles per hour in his famed Challenger I, a four-engine vehicle built in his garage largely of spare parts. Thompson went on to be an innovative influence on multiple forms of racing, from the Indy 500 to the deserts of Baja, teaming with such racing greats as Dan Gurney, Danny Ongais, Roger Mears and Tom “the Mongoose" McEwen.

A $1 million reward is still being offered to any individual who provides information which directly leads to the arrest and conviction of all individuals responsible for the murders. Information should be directed to the L.A.S.D. Homicide Bureau to the attention of Det. Mark Lillienfeld at 323-890-5500 or 5747 Rickenbacker Road, Commerce, CA 90040.

Suspect No. 1: On the day of the murder, Suspect No. 1 was described as a black male; 6-foot-plus in height, weighing about 175 pounds with a thin muscular build.

Suspect No. 2: On the day of the murder, Suspect No. 2 was described as a black male; 5-foot-10 in height, 185 pounds with a stocky muscular build