The Murder of Kurt Theodore Kaikinger, September 1976

Kurt Theodore Kaikinger was born on November 18, 1948 in San Francisco, CA to parents Theodore J Kaikinger & Elaine B Botzer. By 1950 the family was living in Oakland, Alameda County, CA.

Kurt attended and graduated from Pacific High School in San Leandro, Alameda County. His parents divorced in March 1968, when their son was nineteen years old. Kurt served in the Army from January 22, 1969 to August 27, 1970. He was a veteran of the Vietnam War.

Kurt's last known address in 1976 was 4332 Mowry Ave, Fremont, Alameda County. About two weeks before his death, Kurt moved from there to an unknown address in Hayward. He was employed as a shoe salesman at a Southland shopping center. 

Kurt was known to frequent bars in the downtown Hayward area. According to the lead homicide investigator who worked his case, Detective Paul Wallace of the Hayward Police Department, Kurt had previously been arrested for alcohol and drug violations, "but was into 'nothing heavy. He wasn't a drug dealer or anything.'"

Disappearance 

According to the latest news report that I could find, Kurt was last seen alive by a friend he had spent the night with, who dropped him off at the corner of C Street and Mission Boulevard in Hayward on Saturday, September 18, 1976.

Previous news articles, however, indicated that Kurt was last seen alive on the night of Sunday, September 19th when he was seen by customers in an area bar after visiting a friend. It is possible that the two stories are accurate and actually describe the same night, that of the 19th.

Kurt was 27 years old and described as being about 5'8 and of slender build, with a tattoo of a crow smoking a cigar on his left shoulder. 

From the Sept. 14, 1977 edition of The Fremont Argus, typo included.

Discovery 

At 10:20am on Thursday, September 23, 1976, a man out walking his dog near the salt flats at the end of Eden Landing Rd in Hayward discovered the body of an adult man. The victim was described as being in his late 20s, 5'7, and about 150 lbs. He was initially estimated to have been dead for two to four days by the time of discovery.

By September 25th the body was identified through fingerprints as being that of Kurt Kaikinger. In interviews with the press, Detective Wallace stated that he believed Kurt was killed on Sunday, September 19th or Monday, September 20th. His date of death on official files found on Ancestry is September 19, 1976.

Kurt was the victim of a homicide. He had been repeatedly struck on the head with a blunt instrument. In an interview from the following year, Det. Wallace stated that Kurt had been bludgeoned to death, having been hit on the head about sixty times with a tire iron or crow bar.

"'It's one of the most brutal murders I've ever seen,' Wallace said. 'He was beaten probably 60 times. He had a fractured skull, broken fingers, and fractured ribs.'" 

It is believed that Kurt was killed at an unknown location before being dumped in an open, weed-covered field at the west end of Eden Landing Rd, near the Leslie Salt Company ponds. 

Kurt was found wearing a t-shirt and a pair of checkered swim trunks. No shoes were mentioned. It is implied that this was not the clothing that he was wearing when last seen alive. One newspaper from the time pointed out that, "There is also no indication of why he was wearing [that outfit], since the weather was not warm."

Police were unable to determine a motive for the murder. What little physical evidence may have been found at the scene has not been disclosed to the public by the police. The investigation was also hampered by a lack of witnesses. 

By mid-October 1976, Kurt's father, Theodore, offered a $5,000 reward — $27,855.01 today — for information leading to the arrest and conviction of his son's murderer. After little progress over the course of the following eleven months, Theodore again urged the public to provide information in his son's case in September 1977, now offering a $25,000 reward ($131,335.91 today). 

"'All I want is the guy who killed him,' [Theodore] said. 'I'll admit (my son) was no angel, but he didn't have to die that way.'" 

I found this case while looking through newspapers. From what I could find, Kurt was not mentioned by the press after September 1977, and there have been no mentions of his case online either. He is not listed among the Unsolved Cases posted on the Hayward PD's website.

Because of this, on August 4, 2025 I emailed the Hayward PD, asking about the status of the case to see if it's worth submitting a public records request or not. After providing the needed details, I received the following response:

"I was able to confirm with the Homicide Sergeant that the case is still open. For now, the case remains exempt from disclosure as to not hinder the successful completion of the investigation." 

 This is official confirmation that Kurt's case is still open and unsolved.

Sources

Oakland Tribune 9/24/76, 9/25/76

Fremont Argus 9/25/76, 10/15/76, 9/14/77

Adam Perez of Hayward PD, personal communication 

Pacific High School Alumni In Memoriam profile 

Note: Kurt was killed about three days before, and was then found one day after, the fall equinox. See the Holidays & Events Reference Page for an explanation as to why this is mentioned.