CRIME:

Detective won’t let case of murdered Elvis die

Tribute artist, girlfriend were shot 15 years ago in Vegas ‘Mini-Graceland’

Monday, Sept. 8, 2008 | 2 a.m.

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To one supermarket tabloid, the murders of Dana MacKay and Linda Huffman in 1993 were big news. The killings were thought to be the result of a botched burglary.

Huffman (above) and MacKay

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Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department: Cold Cases

Dana MacKay was a successful Elvis impersonator looking to leave the business. His girlfriend was a pageant queen, a divorced Mrs. Nevada, living with the King in a fixer-upper Vegas mansion they called “Mini-Graceland.”

When police arrived at the house, they found the couple dead on the floor, shot after coming home with groceries — laundry detergent, T-bone steaks, bananas and a box of Junior Mints.

The steaks had gone bad. MacKay and his girlfriend, Mary Huffman, had been dead for a day or two.

Police concluded the couple had walked in on a burglary and had died for it. Fifteen years later, a different cop disagrees.

“I don’t believe it,” homicide Detective George Sherwood said. “Somebody was lying in wait for them.”

And only one important item, as far as anybody can tell, was missing.

•••

Dana MacKay looked an awful lot like Elvis. When he sang, he sounded like Elvis. He had a backup band, and he didn’t lip-sync. When his slaying was splashed across the tabloids, they called him “America’s first Elvis impersonator.”

He was the kind of celebrity impersonator who bristled at the title. In his mind, he was a tribute artist. He played the Dunes before it was dusted. He was the first to play Elvis in “Legends in Concert” at the Imperial Palace. He played a 35-year-old King in the movie “This Is Elvis,” considered one of the better documentaries on the subject. It was rereleased last year in a special two-disc collectors’ edition. But sweating and grinding in rhinestones isn’t the easiest way to make ends meet. MacKay had been working as an impersonator for years, and though he was good at it, he wasn’t happy enough to spend the rest of his life onstage, squeezed into a white jumpsuit. He had other plans — palm trees.

MacKay had a landscaping business on the side — not driving around in a pickup truck with a lawn mower, but designing and planting large tracts for high-end homes and hotels, friend Danny Koker remembers. MacKay had an in with a guy in California who raised quality palm trees and sold them at a discount to the Elvis impersonator. This is clear when you look at aerial crime scene photos of Mini-Graceland, his Spring Valley stucco home: The place is covered in palm trees, a foolish number of them — a sort of Vegas desert answer to Greek columns.

The house needed work, though. MacKay, known for being clever with his hands, was in the middle of remodeling the place, which had a recording studio on the top floor with picture windows that overlooked the Strip. And someone looking down on Las Vegas Boulevard at that time, the early ’90s, might have noticed something: no palm trees.

MacKay thought this was his chance. Las Vegas and Clark County officials were looking, his friends and family remember, for someone to line the Strip’s median with palm trees. It was a big contract, and one MacKay thought he could win. He had the trees, but he didn’t really have the financing. So he brought in a friend — Tim Stone-

street, of the now-defunct auto dealer Stonestreet Motor Cars.

With Stonestreet providing the financial backing, the friends formed Paradise Palms Co. in December 1992. They bought expensive toys, about $100,000 worth of landscaping equipment — a backhoe, a 40-foot storage trailer, crane equipment, the works. Together, friends recall, the two were determined to get the Strip contract.

The partnership was dissolved five months later. The ex-partners quickly ended up in court, fighting over the company’s equipment. MacKay represented himself. Stone-

street hired an attorney from Goodman and Chesnoff, the firm co-owned by the man who would go on to become Las Vegas’ mayor.

Things were bitter. In one of MacKay’s court filings, he wrote: “In retrospect it appeared that all Tim was trying to do was obtain my contacts for trees, learn my expertise and establish his own palm tree company.”

MacKay didn’t want to part with the equipment, even after Metro Police were dispatched to his house to remove it. They were unsuccessful, and MacKay was optimistic. He told his pal Koker he had information that would help him win the case. But before he could go to court with whatever that information was, MacKay was dead. The tabloids described it as a “gangland-style execution.”

Roughly two weeks later, Stonestreet was awarded the dissolved company’s assets.

•••

Robbers don’t leave guns behind. This is common knowledge to police, homicide Detective Sherwood said. They don’t typically leave behind jewelry, either. And when the person you’re robbing has cash and a wallet openly on his person, as MacKay did when he died, failing to snatch it up is just another sign that you’re a lousy robber, or not a robber at all.

The couple died near the front door of their house — shot several times at close range. Rumors floated that MacKay was involved with drugs, was hanging with a rough crowd, but the coroner’s report reveals there wasn’t a single illicit substance in his body.

“His friends said he didn’t even drink very often,” Sherwood said.

The detective has been working Metro’s cold cases for the past two years. He has been in homicide for going on eight. He’s planning to leave the section in a few weeks, but he’s so certain he can solve the Mac-

Kay killing, he’s taking the case with him.

“I’m not going anywhere,” he said.

His new boss will read this. Hopefully he won’t mind. Sherwood is the kind of guy who lets a thing eat at him. He has been chewing on the MacKay case for months, has conducted a dozen interviews, traveled out of state several times. He has visited a few jails, had a few behind-bars conversations with a few persons of interest. Next he’s going to the police DNA lab to see what they can squeeze from the available evidence. That’s about all he’s going to tell you, too.

Well, besides this: “This case is solvable.”

The only item of interest that was taken from the Mac-

Kay house was a manila folder the Elvis impersonator carried with him everywhere. Koker, who had plans to get into the palm tree business with MacKay when Stonestreet was out of the picture, remembers him dragging it out every time they talked business, which was often, and flipping through the pages. He kept everything too. He was a meticulous Elvis.

Sherwood is a meticulous detective. He drags out the cold case file, which consists of two hulking black three-ring binders, and flips through the pages.

“Dana always kept a file with him that outlined all his business, whether it was his musical endeavors, the palm tree business, his home and personal information, his life finances. And that was the only notable thing that was missing,” he said. “Somebody wanted that folder, and somebody wanted Dana.”

Several hundred black binders line Metro’s cold case shelves. Sherwood opened this one because MacKay has a daughter, a girl who saw her father during the summer and remembers the last time she saw him: at a family funeral, with a Marilyn Monroe impersonator for a date. Then he was killed. On a whim a few months ago, his daughter, Misty Vargas, searched for her father’s name online, found a blurb about his case, discovered it was being called a burglary gone bad and flipped out. She called Metro, and from there, they started poking around. At the time of the killing, Koker came out hard against Stonestreet. He brought America’s Most Wanted right to the front door of his house, knocked on the front door, and let the cameras roll while Stonestreet said he had no comment.

Stonestreet said the same thing, through his attorney, John Spilotro, to the Sun last week. He refused to meet with Sherwood as well. At the time of the slaying, it’s widely known, Stonestreet was out of town. Police cleared him of any wrongdoing when the case was first investigated.

Sherwood says he’s following up on about three angles, working just as hard to eliminate bad information as to confirm the good. He’s not a divulger of details. MacKay’s remaining family, Misty’s grandparents, have come forward with a reward, $25,000, for anybody who knows anything useful about the killing of the King and his beauty queen at Mini-Graceland.

His palm trees are still there. Someone else’s are up and down the Strip.

Discussion: 11 comments so far…

By Lenny_V

9/8/08 at 3:38 a.m.

Comment removed by staff.
By Lenny_V

9/8/08 at 3:39 a.m.

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Why is there no mention about what Stonestreet is doing now? Did he go on to start a palm tree business?
By mikeg

9/8/08 at 9:54 a.m.

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Yeah good question. And Stonestreet's attorney is John Spilotro? Interesting last name - he must be related to Tony Spilotro, the famous gangster portrayed by Joe Pesci in the movie Casino. Wow. This story would make a great Sopranos episode.
By Chittychuck

9/8/08 at 1:26 p.m.

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Mr. Stonestreet is listed as an officer for Six Star Construction Comp., Six Star Interiors, Six Star Realty, Skylar Music LLC. and Stonestreet Enterprises. Mr. Stonestreet owns property in Summerlin valued at over a million bucks...411 easily accessible on the county's tax assessor page.
Not bad for a former used car dealer and Elvis fan...life must be good. Can't tell that he owns a palm tree company...10 bucks says he digs eating at Piero's with "friends."
By ElvisImp3

9/9/08 at 1:31 p.m.

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As a very dear friend of Dana McKay, I can comprehend how his daughter must feel, beings how his death still bothers me today. I think the man above is looking down on us because he knows this tragic incident cannot go on unresolved.

In the past 10 years or so, I've written Unsolved Mysteries and inquired about their program looking into this matter, because it’s always been my opinion that this was not just some random burglary. However, I've yet to receive any type of correspondence.

Dana McKay was a very outgoing and giving person. He always wanted people to see him not only as an Elvis impersonator, but rather a real down to earth individual. In my opinion, that is what made Dana McKay so loveable in the eye’s of people that really knew him. Having said that, I cannot forget the many times he offered to perform for family, friends and one’s close to me as personal favor. “That’s The Way He Was!”

However, Dana confined in me about the many threats he received from the people he was in business with but felt the court system would protect his interests; having never known that it would escalate to the demise of himself and Mary Huffman.

I can still recall their were times he would call me and ask if I would call the police while he was at home and tell them that I was driving by and noticed people on his property lurking around the equipment and supply's around his home. There were also times he would call and ask me to call law enforcement because there were unidentified men parked down the street watching his house.

The sad part of this whole ordeal is on the day of Dana and Mary’s deaths, I went by their house just hours before they were killed. I spoke to Dana as he was watering his palm trees and he stated to me, “I got another phone call from our friends today.” Smirking as if he wasn't worried; with both of us never knowing what would transpire in the next several hours to come. I guess that’s the part I can't stop thinking about to this day.
By ElvisImp3

9/9/08 at 1:32 p.m.

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Last but not least, it also difficult not to forget the time I heard this tragic news and went over to the Mini-Graceland house and met his brother Brian McKay and heard in graphic details of what had happened to my friends. To add insult to injury, with no disrespect, I noticed Mary Huffman’s ex-husband carting several idem's out of there house that actually belonged to Dana.

From what I recall, Brian McKay was still in shock and devastated over the death of his brother and stated to me that their wasn't too much he could do and it would have to be taken up on a civil judicial matter at a later time.

In all, I must say I miss my dear friend Dana McKay and hope the thug or thug’s responsible for this vigorous crime is brought to Justice. I cannot wait to see this happen and I certainly hope it comes sooner than later.

I must send my love and deepest regards to Dana McKay’s Family! I'll be praying for a positive outcome in the investigation and capture of the person or person’s responsible for this inexcusable act. God Bless!
By Heartbroken93

9/26/08 at 1:42 a.m.

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My Mother is/ was Mary Huffman. This story is mostly a review of the America's Most Wanted Story from 1995. A good recap. I am glad people care enough to keep the story known and search for the killer. I am grateful. No Ex husband carted any of Dana's belongings off after the crime. Not my Dad or my mom's second husband. Dana's parents actually rummaged through my mom's closet while we were at her funeral and stole many things. That is the truth, but irrelevant 15 years later. My mother was murdered after becoming involved with Dana after a painful dissolution of her 14 year marriage. She loved Elvis her whole life and supported Dana's dreams. My life was shattered after their murder and rebuilding it has been more painful than words can express. I spend my life now, through my work, helping others who are dealing with violent loss. This type of loss can destroy you. I hope and pray the killer is found and am so grateful to Detective Sherwood for working on the case and caring. And to all of you who care.. thank you.
M.
By mistyvargas

9/29/08 at 10:25 a.m.

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Well Hello "M", this is Dana's daughter. I read your blog and couldn't help but notice that you haven't changed. Still lies. What about all my fathers music equipment, and custom made costumes, not to mention the one that belonged to Elvis himself and was given to my father as a gift from Elvis' family, that you stold. It's funny that you say we stold your mothers belongings while you were at her funeral, when it was quite the opposite. Your first priority was not your mothers belongings, it was the things of value that you went for first, which happened to be items that did infact belong to my father. And then you had the nerve to look me in the eye at that meeting and tell me that "Dana didn't have a daughter." How dare you! You should be ashamed of yourself and your actions. You were more interested in getting what you could from their deaths than you were morning for their loss or finding the killers. The case got reopened because of me. I was 13 then, what was your excuse?
The bigger picture is, that I hope we do get the person responsible this time around, as I'm sure you do too. But I couldn't help but to have an angry response to your blog. And you know why. How much money did you get for my father's music equipment, that he owned before your mother came into his life? Gift from your mother, WHATEVER!!!!!
I found it entertaining to watch your performance on the america's most wanted segment all those years ago. The tears were a nice touch! Misty
By mistyvargas

9/29/08 at 10:25 a.m.

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Well Hello "M", this is Dana's daughter. I read your blog and couldn't help but notice that you haven't changed. Still lies. What about all my fathers music equipment, and custom made costumes, not to mention the one that belonged to Elvis himself and was given to my father as a gift from Elvis' family, that you stold. It's funny that you say we stold your mothers belongings while you were at her funeral, when it was quite the opposite. Your first priority was not your mothers belongings, it was the things of value that you went for first, which happened to be items that did infact belong to my father. And then you had the nerve to look me in the eye at that meeting and tell me that "Dana didn't have a daughter." How dare you! You should be ashamed of yourself and your actions. You were more interested in getting what you could from their deaths than you were morning for their loss or finding the killers. The case got reopened because of me. I was 13 then, what was your excuse?
The bigger picture is, that I hope we do get the person responsible this time around, as I'm sure you do too. But I couldn't help but to have an angry response to your blog. And you know why. How much money did you get for my father's music equipment, that he owned before your mother came into his life? Gift from your mother, WHATEVER!!!!!
I found it entertaining to watch your performance on the america's most wanted segment all those years ago. The tears were a nice touch! Misty
By ElvisImp3

10/3/08 at 2:32 a.m.

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It's sad that we must argue about facts that happened to dearly deceased people we all loved and cared for.

The statement I made about things being carted off from the house isn't idle gossip since I witnessed it with my own eyes, Brian McKay can verify my story with a simple phone call. Or, we can reiterate the facts by looking at what is left after everyone picked through the bones after that tragic incident.

To me, after they were gone their place was like an old turkey carcass, excuse me, tiss the season. I still can't help to remember what I saw and what I'll never forget, as both of them were my friends too and I'm trying to score points or get people to hate one another, this was just facts.

Even though I never had the opportunity to meet Dana's daughter, I have no reason to fabricate the truth in any way. I understand her loss and would do anything to help her get this issue resolved.

God Bless Again!
By steelcurtain7

2/7/09 at 10:36 p.m.

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This is to Dana daughter,My name is rick Randolph I was a little boy when your father worked,with my dad in Fresno Ca at Dolly Madison Cakes Than my Dad told me he was at a concert one night at the selland arena and your Father came in dressed up as Elvis and the woman went wild.I saw him at an apartment complex by our house and is hair was dyed and he looked just like Elvis I want you to know I just looked him up on the internet because I wanted to hear how he sounded and I saw what happened and I am truly sorry for your loss.

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