Birmingham tax attorney Major Bashinsky went to his office on Wednesday, March 3, but never returned home. Mr. Bashinsky was a 63 year old married man with four children. He and his present wife have 2 young children while he has two adult children by a former marriage. He was described as a devoted husband and father.
The Mountain Brook Chief of Police is expecting a report from the coroner at anytime as to the cause of death. The coroner’s office is examining and checking to determine the time and cause of death. Bashinsky went to his office as usual on Wednesday morning and his wife had no idea anything was wrong but she had this to say:
Mrs. Bashinsky said her husband was always on time so she knew something was wrong when he didn't come home by 5:30 p.m. March 3. "I don't think he's been late in 15 years," she said. (Kent Faulk-Birmingham News, 03/17/2010).
When he still did not show up, Mrs. Bashinsky went to his office and found the door open, lights on and the television on. Sometime later she called the Police and reported him missing.
Bashinsky was the son of the founder of the highly successful; Golden Flake potato chip company. His family is not now involved in the lucrative business but is the largest stockholder with 44.5% of it’s stock. He was very active in local civic organizations and well known throughout the area.
Police had very little to go on and for several days found no clues. They did take a computer from his office, one from his home and his cell phone to try and find some information of value. Then on the evening of March 7, (4 days after his disappearance) his car was found in the 2100 block of 11th Court South by his daughter who was distributing fliers seeking information on his disappearance.
The police towed the car in to examine it for clues. An anonymous letter was received by the Golden Enterprises Corporation (The potato chip co.) which was very critical of the Bashinskys according to Mark McCutcheon, Chief Executive officer for the company who turned it over to the police.
Bashinsky’s wife, Leslie, told reporter Roy Hobbs of ABC 33/40 TV, that she had found a copy of the letter taped to the back of the drivers seat in her husbands car the day they found it. She said it was taped with duct tape and had a package of Golden Flake potato chips taped with it. She added that she also received a copy in her mailbox the next day after he disappeared.
On Monday, March 15, a golfer spotted what he called a “suspicious object” floating in the pond at the Highland Golf Course off Clairmont Avenue. He called the police and the body of a white male was pulled from the water. They were unable to determine the cause of death and the body was carried to the coroner.
As of this writing, the exact time or cause of the death is unknown, and the motive or identify of anyone who has knowledge of the death is yet unknown.
Police say that the letter was typed on plain white paper. And although it mentioned that the Bashinskys made millions from the Golden company while the workers were underpaid. Police Chief Johnny Stanley said that one line of the letter stated, “If dividends are not stopped, it will force us to act urgently.”
The Police added that it seemed unreal that a current employee would be so disgruntled, since they are paid competitive wages, the company has been hiring additional employees, and their benefits are also comparable to other local industries.
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